Lloyds Banking Group is awarding £1m in grants to 17 credit unions in 2014 as part of the Lloyds Banking Group Credit Union Development Fund (Fund) announced earlier this year.
Run in partnership with the Credit Union Foundation, the Fund will provide £4 million to credit unions selected by an independent grants committee – £1m each year from 2014 to 2017. Almost 100 credit unions across the UK applied for funding this year and 17 have been chosen to receive grants in year one.
The fund features two kinds of grant: large awards between £50,000 and £100,000 and seed funding awards between £10,000 and £20,000. 12 credit unions will receive large awards, intended to provide a contribution to a credit union’s reserves and help remove barriers to growth and innovation, with another five receiving seed funding awards to help make the changes they need to apply for a large award in a subsequent year or to pay for the costs of merger.
Graham Lindsay, director of responsible business at Lloyds Banking Group, said: “We are delighted to be awarding grants to 17 credit unions across the country this year. Lloyds Banking Group is firmly committed to taking a lead in financial inclusion to enable all individuals to access, and benefit from products and services they need to make the most of their money. This is something credit unions play a critical role in, helping people to access finance in a safe and responsible way, and we are pleased to be working in partnership with The Credit Union Foundation to support this important sector.
“As well as our £4 million fund over four years, as part of our Helping Britain Prosper Plan we have invested £235,000 in the pilot stage of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Church Credit Champions Network. We’re also starting to roll out signposting customers, where appropriate, to their local credit union and creating local relationships between credit unions and branches, including access to skilled volunteers.”
Liz Barclay, independent trustee of the Credit Union Foundation and chair of the Fund Grants Committee, added: “Credit unions offer vital access to affordable credit amongst other services. We are delighted that so many credit unions applied for a grant to extend their vital services within the communities they serve.
“Lloyds Banking Group’s ground breaking investment of £4 m over four years via the Credit Union Foundation is a game changer for the credit union sector and will make a huge difference to allow credit unions to grow their services sustainably. The Lloyds Banking Group awards will ensure more people have access to savings and affordable loan products long into the future.”