JOHN’S BLOG – MAY 2019

As ever, there’s a lot happening at HEY Credit Union, so it’s time to give our members and supporters an update on our progress!

Members, Savings and Loans all growing steadily    

We’re now past the half way stage of our financial year and it is good to see that we’re building on the excellent progress of 2018.  Membership (including Junior Savers) is up by 9% to almost 15,000, making us Britain’s 8^thlargest ABCUL credit union.  Savings are up by 5% year on year while our total loans are up by an amazing 32%.

Our Spring Loan Sale, with rates reduced by 15% on loans from £2,000 to £7,500, is attracting lots of attention.  If you have a project where it makes sense to spread the cost, do ask us for a quotation – we can and often do beat the rates available from High Street banks.

HEYCU Mobile App

Our new Mobile App is proving very popular and within the first month of its launch we’ve seen over 500 members register to use it, with more every week.  It’s another handy way that our members can check their credit union accounts, move funds (minimum £10), find a branch or get in touch.  Here is a link if you’d like to register for our Mobile App:

https://www.securecuserver.co.uk/~hulley/webapp/login.php

We are now making withdrawals and loan payments via Faster Payments, so the funds will usually be in your bank account the same day or early next day (except at weekends).   We’ve had some great feedback from members who’ve noticed the speedier service.

HEY – it’s your credit union!  

After consulting members via the recent Member Survey, we learnt that over 80% of you are happy with our proposed new trading name – HEY Credit Union.  The Board has agreed to roll it out this year.  Our registered name will still be Hull & East Yorkshire Credit Union, but as we now have hundreds of members living or working outside our traditional county boundaries, it makes sense to adopt a shorter nametag that is just as relevant to them as to our original founders.  

Our 20^thAnniversary    

Next month we reach an important milestone – it will be 20 years since a group of colleagues at Hull City Council came together as volunteers to found what is now HEY Credit Union!   We’re planning some special activities and events between the anniversary date – 10^thJune – and our AGM in December, including prize draws and a celebration event in September.  Keep your eyes peeled for news! 

Out and about     

I’ve been to a number of events recently to “fly the flag” for credit unions and make sure that our voice is heard.  On 7 May I was invited by the Co-operative Partyto a Roundtable Event at the Houses of Parliament, along with other credit union leaders from around Britain.  Jonathan Reynolds MP, Shadow Economic Secretary to the Treasury, hosted the meeting which discussed the challenges and opportunities facing our movement and the support we would like to see from future governments to help it to grow and thrive as it has in the USA, Canada, Australia and Ireland. In the USA credit unions have been allowed to provide a wider range of consumer products such as credit cards and car loans for their members, which UK law doesn’t currently permit us to offer, and it is widely felt this is holding back UK credit unions from reaching their full potential as champions of responsible saving and borrowing.

Our President and I also attended the ABCUL Larger Credit Union Groupin Sheffield, which was hosted very well by a top credit union – Transave UK.  The sessions there were on a similar theme – how can we all work co-operatively to make sure we are delivering services relevant to the modern world and giving our members best value for money?   We also met with the Money and Pensions Service, to update them on the work credit unions are doing to support financial wellbeing in the workplace.

Mental Health Awareness Week

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/campaigns/mental-health-awareness-week

As I write these notes there is a big focus on mental health.  People’s mental wellbeing is majorly affected by worries about money. It is said that 1 in 4 workers regularly lose sleep over money worries; perhaps not surprising when the Money Advice Service says more than half the adult population in regions such as Yorkshire & Humber and the North East have no more than £100 tucked away to stave off a financial crisis.  Credit unions like ours have shown we can help people to build up some useful savings through painless payroll deduction schemes at work.  We can turn borrowers into savers and help them achieve the financial resilience that makes those money worries go away.   If you’d like to save and borrow with us direct from your pay, why not ask your employer to contact us about starting a payroll partnership?  It costs nothing to operate but the benefits to employers and employees alike can be huge.

Withernsea – to be a Credit Union Town   

We’re thrilled that Withernsea Big Localhas entered into a three year partnership with us to expand our branch at The Shores, with extended opening times, better facilities and much more involvement with the local community.  We’ve appointed Matt Lloyd as our local Credit Union Champion and he is already busy making links with all kinds of organisations to make them aware of what we do. Our aim is to make Withernsea a Credit Union Town – one that says NO to high cost credit, NO to doorstep and payday lenders and loan sharks, but YES to affordable responsible credit, and YES to safe savings and common sense money.

We are keen to recruit some additional volunteers to help us.  Then we’ll be able to open longer, perhaps run a school savings bank and support more members.  Would you like to learn new skills, meet people and help the people of Withernsea?  If so, call Matt on 01964 615190 or email mlloyd@hullandeycu.co.uk– we’d love to hear from you.

Sunny summer activities in our Region

With summer on the way, it’s time to think about some activities to entertain the whole family, without breaking the bank. Some great things to look out for on your doorstep:

·      Visit The Deepin Hull – Yorkshire’s #1 aquarium, home to over 3,000 aquatic creatures

·      Hit the beach at Hornsea, and take in the sights and sounds of the beautiful coastal town

·      Climb the heights of Withernsea Lighthouse Museum. Standing at over 127m tall, it remains one of only a handful of lighthouses built inland, and is open to visitors

·      Get up close and personal with the world’s wildlife, at Bridlington Birds of Prey & Animal Park

·      Step into the past, at Grimsby’s Time Trap Museum, for an insight into what life was like before mobile phones and the internet!

Our Charity of the Year 

Don’t forget we are raising money this year for Yorkshire Air Ambulance.  We’ll be telling you next time about some new fundraising events for our members, staff and volunteers to get involved with.

Best wishes and thank you all for your support …

JOHN’S BLOG – JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019

Here are HEYCU we’ve now ‘resurfaced’ after the most hectic Christmas season ever!   We issued the highest ever number and value of loans as well as record pay outs of Christmas Savers - £806,000 in fact.    On top of all that we had our year-end accounts to put to bed and an AGM to arrange.  So a big well done to our staff and volunteer family for coping so well and keeping the ship on course.

Here’s a round-up of the past few months’ activity:

OUR AGM  

We were pleased to welcome over 80 members and guests to Hull’s splendid Guildhall on 11 December. A big part of what makes credit unions so different from banks is the ability of member-customers to take part in shaping our future by asking questions of the Directors and voting on the big decisions.   As well as an increased dividend on savings, members voted to disband the Credit Committee and to extend our field of membership to include more Government departments and all who live or work in postcode area YO (North Yorkshire).

Thank you to members attending for their great feedback: All had found attending a positive experience and we will ask for the chairs to be spread out a little more next time.

£100,000 SHARE OUT

Following our much improved financial results we posted a dividend of 1% to all members’ savings accounts the day after the AGM – based on the average daily savings in the year ended 30 September 2018 – that’s nearly £100,000 from the rewards of mutual trading going back into the pockets of our members.   If we were a commercial business, the money would most likely have been sucked out of our community, away to the City of London or even a foreign tax haven!

WHY DISBAND THE CREDIT COMMITTEE?

At the AGM it was explained that the growth of the credit union and changes to the way loans are processed had reduced the need for a members’ committee.  When we started 20 years ago, each and every loan was looked at individually by the Credit Committee, who met specially on a Thursday evening to go through them.   On Friday mornings our office phone was red hot as members called in to find out if their loan had been granted! 

Before long that was no longer practical, and we appointed staff loan officers with the professional knowledge to underwrite loans, following policies set by the Committee and Board.  Gradually the Credit Committee’s role moved on from making loan decisions to one of oversight – checking that its policies were working and tweaking them as necessary.  The Board of Directors became more involved in loan strategy too, as we made growing the loan book a key part of our annual business plan, recognising that it is a major driver of our future sustainability. 

As in many credit unions of our size the need for a Credit Committee had passed and the AGM agreed to disband it (in line with the Rules), with a big “thank you” to all members who had served it so diligently over the years.

AIMING HIGHER 

A nice touch at the AGM was the presentation of £735 to our Charity of the Year, Aim Higher.  The funds raised by staff and members during 2018 will make a difference to the charity, which supports families challenged by mental health, autism and learning difficulties. It was my pleasure to meet some of them at their monthly drop in session at 171 High Street, Hull on 9 January, when I explained the different ways that we help families to make the most of their money, for instance Christmas saving, junior savings accounts and our Child Benefit Loans.

We are currently consulting with staff, volunteers and our local member groups to select our 2019 Charity of the Year, so watch this space!

REFER A FRIEND PRIZE DRAW

  

In the run up to Christmas we encouraged members who were happy with our services to ‘refer a friend’ and many did so.  Our computer randomly selected two lucky members – Simone Priestman of Greatfield, Hull and Helen Harper of Newport, Brough – to each win a £50 shopping voucher.  Just in time for those New Year Sales!

BUSY WINTER IN WINTERTON 

The start of 2019 has seen a big increase in credit union activity in Winterton, North Lincolnshire where we have a weekly contact point in the Co-op Store, supported by Winterton 2022 Big Local project.  On 16 January we relaunched the Pennies 2 Pounds school bank at the Infants School which now takes place every Wednesday at the end of the school day.  Penny our pennywise penguin waddled into the opening session, much to the delight of the children, who received a piggy bank and £1 to start their savings off.  Patrick, our man in Winterton, is also presenting some money information sessions at the Hub and the Cornerstone Café on alternate weeks for the benefit of local residents.

WITHERNSEA NEXT!  

Last time we mentioned our ambitious plans to make Withernsea a Credit Union Town.  We’ve now received approval from the funding body, Big Local, to recruit a Development Worker to spearhead our expansion project.  As I write the closing date for the role has passed and we hope an appointment will soon be made.  We know the local community is very enthusiastic about it; as usual we are taking a different approach to the big banks who are retreating from such towns at an ever faster pace.

LINCOLNSHIRE CO-OP SUPPORT FAIR FINANCE 

We are most grateful to our friends at Lincolnshire Co-op for including HEYCU in their current Community Champions.  The scheme is their way of giving back to local communities.  Since it launched in 2013 they’ve helped hundreds of local charities and groups, raising amounts from £200 to over £200,000.  Every time a Co-op member shops in their branches they make a donation to a good cause, chosen by their staff and members for a three month period.  The theme, from December 2018 to March 2019, is financial well-being and we are to benefit from donations made at Crowle, Bransholme and Molescroft Co-ops.  If in an area served by Lincolnshire Co-op, please support their stores – they are one of the UK’s leading Co-operative businesses.

OUR MEMBERS’ LOTTERY 

One way that our own members can support our ongoing development is by joining our Members’ Lottery.  For just £1 a ticket, deducted monthly from your savings account, you get the chance to share in a monthly prize fund of around £600.  The top prize is usually £250, with several others ranging from £75 to £10.  At Christmas time there are triple prizes to win!   60% of the ticket proceeds are paid out, with the rest supporting our training and development activities.  We are grateful to the Hull Branch of UNISON, the public service union, for kindly sponsoring some prizes again throughout 2019.

ENGAGE ACCOUNT RELAUNCH 

With the coming of the Universal Credit benefit system to Hull and East Yorkshire, many more people are needing a transactional banking facility, to help them manage their monthly benefit payments, and some would clearly prefer to bank with their local credit union.  Although we can no longer offer our own Current Account, we work with a partner called Engage to provide a VISA card, exclusive to credit union members, with many useful features.   We’ve recently relaunched this account, with a lower monthly fee of £2.99.  Find out more here.

BIG ANNIVERSARY YEAR  

2019 is a very special year for our Credit Union – on 10^th June it will be  20 years since we were founded.  We are looking forward to celebrating this special anniversary with our members old and new.  If you have any bright ideas for ways that we might mark the occasion, please let us know!  We’ll keep you updated with our plans as the year unfolds.

WHAT’S IN A NAME? 

Our credit union has come a long way in 20 years and its shape and size is nothing like it was when formed, covering not only the entire Humber Region but also the work family of national employers like the DWP.  We hope we haven’t lost any of the personal touch or friendliness of those early days.

However, we have reached the point where we need to think about our trading identity and how relevant it is to all our members.  Our official name is, and will remain Hull & East Yorkshire Credit Union.  But perhaps it’s time to consider a different trading name – one that: is relevant and acceptable across all parts of our common bond; is short and simple to fit easily on to shop fronts, posters and leaflets; but pays due regard to our proud heritage (ie where we first began).

We have therefore started to experiment with using HEY Credit Union in our communications, and would be interested to have your feedback on this.  One member called it a “cool name”, saying it acknowledges our roots but in a modern way.   Changing a trading name is not to be done lightly – as lots of businesses have found to their cost – especially when we’ve worked hard to build up a respected brand.  But, this is your credit union, and we’d really welcome your views as we approach our 20^th anniversary.

Keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter pages to stay up to date with our news, offers and events.

John’s Blog – June & July

The month of June has perhaps been one of the busiest in our Credit Union’s history, so there’s lots to tell you about…

Now we are 18!

Your Credit Union was registered with the then Registrar of Friendly Societies on 10^th June 1999, so this month we attained our 18^th anniversary.  This significant milestone was marked by the cutting of a special birthday cake at our Central Office in Hull by our President, Alan Hignett and our guest from the Pen Fed Credit Union, Georgia, USA, Sherry Saxon.
 

HEYCU began life as the credit union for Hull City Council staff and their families and our first office was a back room down a corridor in the city’s magnificent Guildhall.  We were only open on Wednesday lunch times at first and run entirely by volunteers.  Despite this, with the enthusiastic support of the Council workforce, we grew rapidly, beating our three year plan targets in the first year! 

 

The first ever loans we granted were to help members to buy shares in the city’s own telecommunications business, KCom, which had just floated on the stock market!   Now, we make loans for less unusual purposes, such as holidays, Christmas, home improvements, cars and family celebrations, and more besides.

It’s remarkable to think that we have since expanded to become one of Britain’s top 15 credit unions, with over 40 payroll partners (including the DWP, one of the largest government departments) as well as serving over 10,000 members who live and work in the Humber Region. 

As someone who was there at the start, seeing our CU “come of age” is a great personal thrill.  I’d like to pay tribute to all who have shared the journey, including Eddie (our Finance Manager) and John Bailey (Director) whose involvement, like mine, has spanned the whole 18 year period.

If you want to learn more about our fascinating history, there’s a timeline on our website. 

Our new website

Have you seen our new website?  Early in June, with the help of Cornerstone Mutual Services, we switched over to our fresh look site. Our loan and savings products are displayed much more clearly and the improved loan calculator (with an easy to use slider bar) is proving a big hit with members eager to work out the repayments on a CU Loan.

It’s so easy to navigate – on your smartphone, tablet, laptop or desk computer – whether you are looking to join online, download forms or documents, or access one of our partner sites such as Co-op Energy or the Co-op Electrical Store. 

Why not take a browse today, and then give us some feedback?   We are always keen to hear what our members think.

Fairbanking Mark awarded

I am thrilled to announce that we’ve been awarded a 5-star Fairbanking Mark for our Credit Union Loan products.

The prestigious mark, awarded by the Fairbanking Foundation, recognises that our CU Loan has the required features to make a positive impact on consumers’ financial well-being.  If you have had a CU Loan, you’ll be familiar with these admired features, which include:

·         providing loan applicants with a budget planner to help them work our whether they can afford to repay a loan;

·         allowing borrowers to settle early without a fee or penalty charge; and

·         encouraging our members to save alongside their loan repayments, which supports a savings habit, and gives an incentive to continue savings when the loan is completed.

Very few banking organisations have achieved a Fairbanking Mark so far, and even fewer one with 5-stars.  Before a mark is awarded, the bank or credit union undergoes a rigorous independent survey when members or customers are asked for their views on the product and their experience of using it.   We’d like to thank all our members who took part in the survey and helped us to gain our award.

Antony Elliott, the CEO of the Fairbanking Foundation said “We’ve now worked with eleven credit unions to enable their personal loans to be granted the Fairbanking Mark.  The evidence shows that credit unions are playing an increasingly important role in people’s financial lives in the UK.”

  

Visit by Georgia League of Credit Unions

The UK credit union movement and the Credit Union League of Georgia, USA have formed a partnership to work together for mutual benefit over a ten year period.  Credit unions are huge in the USA and have been around for much longer than in the UK, so we have much to learn from their experiences.

So, it was truly a pleasure to welcome Mrs Sherry Saxon, the Regional Director of PenFed Credit Union in Augusta, and her husband Sidney, to Hull & East Yorkshire Credit Union from 12 to 16 June.  Sherry worked with me, and our directors, to look at how we can further develop our loans business, and revamp our head office to provide an even better experience for our members. She attended a Board meeting, to explain how her credit union had grown from a micro-business to the multi-million dollar organisation that it is today, and how we might follow in their path, while staying true to our co-operative not-for-profit ethos. And she visited all our branches and met the directors and staff socially, which was a most enjoyable experience. 

During their time in Hull, Sherry and Sidney visited Hull’s Guildhall and were treated to afternoon tea with the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress.  They were so impressed with this wonderful historic building.  We should also like to thank the Leader of the Council, Steven Brady, for spending time with them to talk about Hull’s development strategy.  It was a memorable visit and we hope to see them again at some point.

Howden contact point opens

Wednesday 21^st June was a special day for us as we opened a new Credit Union contact point to serve the town of Howden.  Thanks to the kind support of the Co-operative Group, we will have a table inside the large Co-op supermarket in Charles Briggs Avenue every Wednesday from 12 noon to 2 pm.

At the contact point residents can join our credit union, pay in savings deposits, apply for loans and ask about our services.  Howden is one of the rural communities that has sadly lost its main bank, so we are pleased to offer an alternative savings and loans facility without residents needing to travel to Goole.

Our opening day was also special because we introduced Penny Penguin, our new penny-wise mascot.  Penny was very popular with the youngsters as she toured the town, handing out balloons and posing for “selfies”. 

While Penny was busy at the Co-op I popped our leaflets through doors to announce our arrival in town, and enjoyed meeting the people of this lovely historic town.

CU staff take part in Hull 10k

Congratulations to my staff colleagues, Sandra, Sarah (and her husband Paul), Matthew, Steve and Kathryn on completing the Hull 10k Run recently.  Proudly displaying the HEYCU logo on their running tops, they did amazingly well especially on the hottest day of the year!

New Lottery sponsors

We are delighted to welcome the Hull Branch of UNISON, the public service union, as our main Members’ Lottery sponsors.  UNISON have provided funding for three extra lottery prizes each month, so we hope even more members will sign up for lottery tickets (£1 each, deducted monthly from your CU Savings).  There’s at least £550 in prizes to be won each month, plus a bumper triple draw at Christmas, so don’t miss out – apply today! 

Hull’s wonderful news

Our home city has been gaining lots of deserved applause for embracing its City of Culture status so well.   So it was wonderful to learn that £27.5 million funding – including a £15 million National Heritage Lottery grant – had been secured for a major tourism investment in Yorkshire’s Maritime City.

The seven-year project will see the Arctic Corsair – Hull’s last remaining trawler – move to a new berth in a dry dock on the River Hull, alongside a visitor centre; a facelift for the Maritime Museum in Queen Victoria Square, including public access to a rooftop dome; a new home for some of the city’s historic maritime treasures opposite; and a refit for the Spurn Lightship.

It’s great news that 74 jobs, 10 apprenticeships and hundreds of volunteer roles will be created, with the 300,000 extra visitors to the city in the first year boosting the city’s economy by over £1.4 million. 

Well done to all who helped to make this happen – it’s fantastic that the City Plan ambition of creating a world-class destination on our doorstep is being realised.

Summer Events in our Region

Well, it’s summer at last, so let’s take a trip around our Credit Union region and find some ideas for outdoor events that you might like to attend:

Sat 1st - Sun 2nd July	Winterton Agricultural Show
Sun 2nd  July	Howden Show
Tue 11th July 2 - 3.30pm	Oldfleet Primary School, Greatfield Celebration
Thu 13th July 2 - 3.30pm	Stockwell Primary School, Greatfield Celebration
Sat 15th July – 11 am - 3pm	Greatfield 60 Street Party: Meet at St Hilda's at 11am for the parade to St Stephen’s where the 'street party' will be held.
Sat 15th – Sun 16th July	Open Gardens at Winterton
Wed 19th July	Driffield Show
Sat 22nd July 1 – 4 pm	Viking Barton Family Fun Day
Sat 22nd – Sun 23rd July	Withernsea Carnival, Steam Rally and Parade
Tue 1st August	Yorkshire Day at Sewerby Park, Bridlington – a celebration of all things Yorkshire
Wed 2nd August 11 am to 3.30 pm	Ongo Carnival Scunthorpe
Fri 18th to Sun 20th August	Old Goole Gala

Summer Loans

Would some extra funds come in handy for holiday spending money, holiday clothes or equipment?   Don’t forget we have five-star CU Loans available at competitive rates to suit all pockets.  Check out our website today!