Northern Community Bank has been awarded a £50,000 grant by Lloyds Banking Group through its Credit Union Development Fund to invest in communities across the region.
This is the second time we have successfully applied for support from the fund, with £50,000 also being awarded in 2018. That grant allowed Northern Community Bank to build on our partnership with SPE Furnishings and contributed to the important development of opening the St James’s Street branch in Burnley.
Chief Executive of Northen Community Bank, Kathryn Fogg explained the positive impact the 2018 grant had on the community bank.
The grant allowed us to create a branch within SPE Furnishings, on Briercliffe Road, and employ an additional member of staff to offer a real alternative to the pay weekly stores. It also helped Northern Community Bank to renovate a recently acquired town centre property. Bringing Northern Community Bank onto Burnley High Street helped to showcase us to the local community as an alternative to high interest lenders
The number of high interest companies operating in the town, which a high percentage of Northern Community Bank’s account holders use or have used, demonstrates the need for the affordable finance and ethical loans which we provide. In the short period Northern Community Bank has been in direct competition to the money, pay weekly and pawn shops we have already seen higher than expected growth.
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 £1.7 million 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.
Northern Community Bank is proud to be self-sufficient, however the rapid sustainable growth means that the community bank needs to increase financial reserves to comply with regulatory requirements. The second successful £50,000 Lloyds Banking Group grant will be placed into Northern Community Bank’s reserves.
Northern Community Bank CEO, Kathryn Fogg, said
We are very grateful for the award granted by the Lloyds Credit Union Development Fund. It has provided reserves, enabling us to continue to comply with regulatory requirements following the opening of our new branch in Burnley town centre.
Lloyds Banking Group Ambassador for the North West, Nick Williams, said
At Lloyds Banking Group we’re committed to helping Britain prosper, which is why we’re proud to support the Northern Community Bank with this funding and help them make a lasting difference to families across Lancashire.
The Lloyds Credit Union Development Fund grant for Northern Community Bank forms part of Lloyds Banking Group’s Helping Britain Prosper Plan, as part of which it has donated £1 million a year to community banks since 2014, to better enable community banks to offer affordable loans and savings services to our account holders.
To find out more about Lloyds Banking Group’s Helping Britain Prosper Plan visit www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/helpingbritainprosper
