More low income families in Wiltshire to be supported by Credit Union
The charity's been given a grant to upgrade their IT
It's hoped a new IT system for Wiltshire and Swindon's Credit Union will mean more local people avoid using payday lenders and loan sharks.
The charity's been given a £5,000 grant from the Wiltshire Community Foundation for the improved tech.
That'll mean the service can speed up the process of financially supporting households, improve their security measures and ultimately help more families.
Chair Nick Gallop said the new system is desperately needed:
“Having this grant will make a huge difference to us and we are very grateful. It means we can get on with replacing our current IT much more quickly. Not having the grant would have slowed us down considerably.”
The Credit Union has around 2,500 active members across Wiltshire, and lends out around £1 million a year to people who wouldn't qualify for help from banks, and might otherwise turn to much higher interest lenders.
They've also seen a 30% increase in demand for their services in the last year, which is only expected to rise as the cost of living crisis continues to hit families.
Among the products the charity offers is its Family Loan, which requires members to have their Child Benefit paid into their savings account with the Credit Union.
They can then take out a maximum £500 loan and the charity takes its weekly repayment directly from the benefit, before passing on the balance the same day.
It wants to offer the same service to recipients of Universal Credit, but needs the improved IT system to do so.
They also want to develop an app to make repayments easier.
Chair of the Wiltshire and Swindon Credit Union, Nick Gallop, said the loans are a vital lifeline to families faced with an emergency and no other means of raising the money:
“There’s an extraordinary 40 to 50% of people who generally can’t get a loan from a bank. They can get a basic account but they can’t have an overdraft or a loan, so if their fridge breaks down and they need to replace it what alternative do they have?
“We are the alternative. It’s not a cheap loan but it’s fair, especially when you compare it to the unknown extortionate lending rate from a loan shark, or a pay day lender where the interest is up to 1,000%, or a hire purchase scheme where you are paying 150% interest.”
Wiltshire Community Foundation joint chief executive Fiona Oliver said:
“The generosity of our donors allows us to fund work like this. We are delighted that the grant is going to make a difference to many people on low incomes who need to raise money for unexpected, like replacing a washing machine, repairing their car or buying school uniform.”