Fylde coast credit union gets bank support

A specialist Fylde coast community savings scheme has been given cash support for one of the high street banks.
Nick Williams of Lloyds BankNick Williams of Lloyds Bank
Nick Williams of Lloyds Bank

The First Rate Credit Union, based in Blackpool, has been awarded a £100,000 grant by Lloyds Banking Group through its Credit Union Development Fund to invest in communities across the town.

First Rate Credit Union offers savings accounts and affordable loans to employees of BAE Systems across the country.

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Established in 2014, the Lloyds Credit Union Development Fund is run in partnership with the Credit Union Foundation.

Over the past five years the Fund has awarded 30 northern credit unions with £1.7m to support members across the north of England.

The Fund is designed to strengthen the financial position of credit unions to enable them to provide much-needed responsible lending to local people and organisations.

Chief executive of First Rate Credit Union, Mike Barry, said: “First Rate Credit Union has seen strong growth over the last few years and has faced the challenges of meeting capital requirements with reducing loan to assets ratios that many credit unions recognise.

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"We welcome this generous award from Lloyds Banking Group which will help to underpin our regulatory capital needs to allow continued growth as we offer fair, easy and affordable financial services to our growing membership.”

Lloyds Banking Group Ambassador for the North West, Nick Williams, said: “As part of our commitment to helping Britain prosper, we’re proud to offer support with this grant to First Rate Credit Union, who has provided financial help and advice for BAE Systems employees for almost forty years.”

The Lloyds Credit Union Development Fund grant for First Rate Credit Union forms part of Lloyds Banking Group’s Helping Britain Prosper Plan, as part of which it has donated £1 million a year to credit unions since 2014, to better enable them to offer affordable loans and savings services to their members.