£13,000 lent out in loans before Christmas

Thirty members received loans totalling £13,000 in November and December '08.

Just over half the loans were for Christmas but the others covered a wide range of expenses including holidays, car repairs, removals, household repairs and improvements, computer purchase and washing machine replacement.  The biggest single loan was for consolidation of credit card debts.  One couple both took out loans to help with wedding expenses.  Another member took out a loan to enable her to fill her heating oil tank taking advantage of a special offer by her oil supplier.

When the music stops...

Isabelle Birch, Tim Herbert and David Shaw were re-elected to the Board at the AGM on Weds 18th February. Tony Medd was elected to replace Peter Stonell, who resigned to join the Supervisory Committee. Tom and Elizabeth Frankland also joined the Supervisory Committee.

The full list of who's who and who does what can be found in the 'About Us' section of this website.

The Credit Committee decide on loan applications.  They meet 2-3 times a month and work according to strict rules.  At least three people must be present when deciding a loan.

They also over­see the local loans officers.  Loans officers have the power to make loans up to £1000.

Our Credit Control team work closely with the credit committee. They monitor overdue loans, and pursue them by telephone and with visits.  If necessary, they take legal action.

Visits are made in pairs and we need both men and women volunteers in this role.

Would you like to become involved in running the credit union? You can offer yourself for election to the Board, or the Credit Committee or the Supervisory Committee. But there are lots of other jobs to be done as well.

We depend on grant funding at present, but we have just one person working on fundraising. Ideally a small team is needed to look for opportunities, complete applications, monitor grant-spending and write reports for the funders.

The Supervisory Committee is our internal audit.  They cover every­thing from passbook checks to monthly bank reconciliations, and also oversee loans made to Board members. We need at least three people on this Committee.  If you are independent-minded and have some knowledge of audit or accountancy, this is for you.

Northumberland Credit Union Ltd is a co-operative encouraging saving and providing low cost loans to members. Membership open to anyone living or working on Common Bond area, which covers the whole county of Northumberland

When will we get a dividend?

Back in June 2005, our Treasurer, Ian Hutton, reckoned that we needed about £300 per month in clear income to cover costs, without any paid staff. 

Since 2005, fees and other costs have gone up. And, we do need a few hours per week of paid help in the office, including help with the accounts.  We currently make £270 per month from loan interest and about £30 per month in bank interest, and this covers about 30% of our operating costs, the rest comes from grants.

So, sorry, no dividend for some time yet.  The answer lies in loans. The more and bigger the loans, the more we make in loan interest.