No longer the poor man's bank

It may be taking some time, but credit unions are slowly beginning to grow in size and stature in Swindon and around the country.

According to Patrick Chaney, who helped to establish the Parks and Walcot Credit Union in 1993, the main aim of a credit union is for people to help others in their local communities.

"We have an open door to anyone from any part of the community. We say to people if they want to save money we can help them do it, no matter how little they want to save," said Mr Chaney.

"Because there is no limit to how much our members save, people can deposit loose change it's surprising how much that adds up to over a year."

There are currently three credit unions running in the Swindon area, the Parks and Walcot Credit Union, one based at the Pinehurst People's Centre and one in Penhill.

Mr Chaney decided to set up the union in Parks about 10 years ago, when he saw the success of the one at Raychem where he worked. As president for 10 years, he saw first hand the kind of benefits the credit union offered.

It took more than two years to get the project underway with the help of volunteers from the area.

Based in the community shop in Cavendish Square, the Parks and Walcot Credit Union celebrates its 7th anniversary this month and is holding open evenings.

Mr Chaney said: "Parks is an area recognised as being one with high unemployment. Because the rest of Swindon enjoys such high levels of employment it has also become an area which people have tended to push to one side.

"Before the credit union was set up, a lot of people in this area were borrowing money from loan sharks and companies which charge a high rate of interest.

"This meant people were finding it difficult to get out of debt and their situations were just getting worse and worse. It can be a very difficult situation to get out of."

Now those people who were borrowing money from loan sharks no longer have to worry about debt collectors waiting for them outside the post office when they go to collect their benefits a situation which Mr Chaney says he has seen for himself.

But breaking out of the cycle of debt is not an easy thing to do.

Dorothy Brown, who helped Mr Chaney set up the union, now works as a credit union developer.

She said: "There is a certain stigma immediately attached to people because they live in a certain area and they are classed as being poor.

"That is a very difficult thing to get away from."

This stigma means it is difficult for someone who is not earning a lot of money to walk into a bank and open an account, sometimes because they may have a bad credit record from previous debts.

"We can help to open doors which people might think are closed to them, because they don't earn much money, or because they live in a certain area," she said. "We don't discriminate against anyone.

"If someone wants to start saving money with us, we don't look into their credit history.

"When people come to us we treat it as a fresh start for them. We give everyone a chance to start over again by saying when they come to us that 'this is day one, whatever has happened in the past makes no difference to us'.

"We always remember that the credit unions are owned by the members and run to suit the members.

"We're here not for profit, but for people."

Mr Chaney says the best thing about being involved with the credit union is the opportunity to help people.

He said: "There was one girl who had been taking part in a computer course. Through the course she was offered a better job working with computers, but had the problem that if she took the job all her benefits, which she needed to look after her young children, would be stopped.

"The job was paid one month in hand, so for the first month she would not have any money. Because of all these problems, she was close to not taking the job."

As the woman was a regular saver, the credit union let her borrow the money she needed to cover her finances for a month.

She was able to accept the job and has since been promoted.

Another example of where the credit union has helped concerns a student who was paid for his summer job with a cheque.

Because he didn't have a bank account, he would have had to travel into Swindon, paying a bus fare, and then pay the fee to have his cheque cashed.

"We arranged to have the cheques cashed through us, without a charge, and now he can get his wage without having to pay out half of it."

Other people the union has helped include the 20 volunteers who help run the branch.

Mr Chaney said: "The volunteers who help run the centre are fantastic. They are helping themselves by gaining new skills. We train people in computer skills .

"Some of our volunteers have even taken the things they learn through us and have gone on to get other jobs. I really believe in credit unions and the way they can help people.

Pensioner Ted Poole decided to join the Pinehurst Credit Union after hearing a story on the radio about a credit union in Manchester.

Mr Poole, 75, said: "I was listening to the radio one afternoon and I heard a story about a woman who used to visit her elderly mother on a regular basis.

"On one of her visits, she could tell there was something on her mother's mind but couldn't find out what.

"Then one day the young girl went to see her mum and she was in tears.

"It turned out her mum had borrowed £10 from a loan shark, but she was on a state pension and couldn't afford to pay the money back. The interest had gone up and up and she owed £100.

"The girl went to the loan shark and paid off the debt and since then her mum has started to save money with a credit union and things have improved a great deal for her."

Mr Poole was so touched by the story that he wanted to know if there was one in his area he could join.

It turned out the Pinehurst Credit Union, based at the Pinehurst People's Centre, was already up and running and both Mr Poole and his wife joined.

Mr Poole said: "It's a real help. Me and my wife are both on a pension, so we save the money we have with the union and if we need to borrow some money we know we can without being charged a lot of interest.

"I have just taken out some money today, because we are going away on holiday to Wales for a week.

"It's really convenient to know we can come in and borrow the money and afford to go away on holidays. It makes life much easier."