Lloyds Banking Group awards £1m in grants to 17 credit unions in 2014 as part of the Lloyds Banking Group Credit Union Development Fund

LONDON, 18-12-2014 — /EuropaWire/ — As part of its commitment to helping Britain prosper, Lloyds Banking Group is awarding £1m in grants to 17 credit unions in 2014 as part of the Lloyds Banking Group Credit Union Development Fund (Fund) announced earlier this year.

Run in partnership with the Credit Union Foundation, the Fund will provide £4 million to credit unions selected by an independent grants committee – £1m each year from 2014 to 2017. Almost 100 credit unions across the UK applied for funding this year and 17 have been chosen to receive grants in year one.

The fund features two kinds of grant: large awards between £50,000 and £100,000 and seed funding awards between £10,000 and £20,000. 12 credit unions will receive large awards, intended to provide a contribution to a credit union’s reserves and help remove barriers to growth and innovation, with another five receiving seed funding awards to help make the changes they need to apply for a large award in a subsequent year or to pay for the costs of merger.

Graham Lindsay, Director of Responsible Business at Lloyds Banking Group said:

“We are delighted to be awarding grants to 17 credit unions across the country this year. Lloyds Banking Group is firmly committed to taking a lead in financial inclusion to enable all individuals to access, and benefit from products and services they need to make the most of their money. This is something credit unions play a critical role in, helping people to access finance in a safe and responsible way, and we are pleased to be working in partnership with The Credit Union Foundation to support this important sector.

“As well as our £4million fund over four years, as part of our Helping Britain Prosper Plan we have invested £235,000 in the pilot stage of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Church Credit Champions Network. We’re also starting to roll out signposting customers, where appropriate, to their local credit union and creating local relationships between credit unions and branches, including access to skilled volunteers.”

Liz Barclay, Independent Trustee of the Credit Union Foundation and Chair of the Fund Grants Committee said:

“Credit unions offer vital access to affordable credit amongst other services. We are delighted that so many credit unions applied for a grant to extend their vital services within the communities they serve.

Lloyds Banking Group’s ground breaking investment of £4m over four years via the Credit Union Foundation is a game changer for the credit union sector and will make a huge difference to allow credit unions to grow their services sustainably. The Lloyds Banking Group awards will ensure more people have access to savings and affordable loan products long into the future.”

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For more information contact Caroline Cody on 0207 616 3248 or
caroline.cody@lloydsbanking.com

Notes to editors:

Regional breakdown of Credit Unions receiving grants:

About Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Banking Group has a combined history that stretches back more than 300 years and a heritage of making a difference within its communities that spans decades. Driven by its desire to give back to the communities in which it operates, the Group supports a wide range of ground breaking programmes. Lloyds Scholars, Money for Life, Lloyds Bank and Bank of Scotland Community Fund, the School for Social Entrepreneurs, Business Connectors, Lloyds Bank Foundations and the Bank of Scotland Foundation are just some examples of the programmes it supports.

In March 2014, the Group published its Helping Britain Prosper Plan, setting out seven separate and significant public commitments to do even more to help address some of the big issues facing its customers and Britain today. As part of the Plan, the Group has committed to take a lead in financial inclusion to enable all individuals to access and benefit from, the products and services they need to make the most of their money.

To find out more about Lloyds Banking Group’s commitment to Help Britain Prosper, please visit http://www.lloydsbankinggroup-cr.com/

About Lloyds Banking Group’s £4million Credit Union Development Fund
In June this year, as part of its Helping Britain Prosper Plan, Lloyds Banking Group announced a £4million fund for credit unions which over four years, will assist credit unions who can demonstrate strong and viable proposals for growth. Delivered in partnership with the Credit Union Foundation, the fund will focus on strengthening the financial position of credit unions, enabling them to grow sustainably, build resilience and help more people in the long term.