Credit Union thanks colleagues, volunteers and partners after clocking up 25 years and millions of pounds in savings for members

An organisation which has generated millions of pounds for the regional economy by offering a fairer banking alternative to savers and borrowers celebrated its 25th anniversary by looking forward to the next quarter-century.

HEY Credit Union took over Hull Guildhall for the occasion and welcomed members, volunteers and staff from a branch network stretching from Bridlington to Grimsby and Goole to Withernsea.

Guests were welcomed by the Lord Mayor, Cllr Mark Collinson, and they heard from speakers who represented the past, present and future of an organisation which is credited with helping the community develop a better understanding of financial issues and resisting the scourge of loan sharks.

Alan Johnson, the former MP for Hull West and Hessle who was a key figure in launching the Credit Union and is still a member, was unable to attend but sent congratulations by video.

He said: “From small beginnings this tremendous organisation has grown. The Credit Union was formed to tackle problems for people who only had modest amounts of money but wanted to entrust it safely and get the benefits of a bank account, particularly in terms of direct payments and paying their bills.”

Cllr Mike Ross, Leader of Hull City Council, and Cllr Daren Hale, Leader of the Opposition, both spoke about the significance of the Credit Union and the 25-year milestone and Matthew Stevens, CEO of the Credit Union, highlighted the achievements so far.

He told of modest beginnings when the organisation, initially known as City of Hull Credit Union, was set up in a back room in the Guildhall to help council employees build up savings and get cheaper credit than they could get from other lenders.

In 2004 the directors made the most of a change in the law to take the organisation across Hull and East Yorkshire, updating the name accordingly. In addition to the main office in Hull it now has a presence in Beverley, Bridlington, Driffield, Goole, Grimsby, Hessle, Scunthorpe and Withernsea, and membership extends into North Yorkshire.

Matthew said: “We’ve enrolled over 18,000 members and junior savers, who together have accumulated over £14 million in savings. Lots of members have told us that, without us, they’d never have got into the habit of saving regularly.

“We’ve issued over 81,000 low-cost loans, to a total value of £60 million. We estimate that we have saved people who have borrowed with us, instead of taking out credit with doorstep lenders and other high cost credit sources, over £25 million in interest charges.

“We’ve also returned £1.6 million to our Members as Dividend rewards, sharing the benefits of Co-operative trading with the people we serve. These funds have stayed within our City and Region’s economy instead of being sucked out of our communities to make profits for City bankers and possibly ‘bankers bonuses’ for their managers.

“Our Christmas Savers account, with £1 million saved into it every year, is probably the biggest and safest Christmas Club in the region, avoiding the risks of unregulated hamper clubs and didlums. We have also provided stable Real Living Wage employment for 23 people, and volunteering opportunities for many more.”

Also present at the celebration were some of the employers who support their workforce wellbeing with direct payroll deductions for savings and loans with HEY Credit Union.  Matthew revealed they now total more than 30 and include the four local authorities, DWP, Hull University, KWL, Groupe Atlantic, Sewell Group, HICA and Image Data.

Andy Stankard, outgoing President of HEY Credit Union and an employee of Hull City Council, told how he was approached in the early 2000s to help with preparing the ground for the expansion of the Credit Union. His involvement led to him becoming Vice President in 2014 and President in 2017.

Joe Hendon, who will succeed Andy in December, said: “I am excited to take on this role and really enthusiastic about what the Credit Union does at the moment and what it has the potential to do in the future.”

Matthew, who succeeded the Credit Union’s Governance Officer, John Smith, as CEO in 2023, emphasised the importance of continuing dedication and partnership as the organisation moves forward.

He said: “None of this success would have been possible without the dedication of our amazing team of staff and volunteers.  The work they do, day in, day out, to look after our members is tremendous and I’d like to thank them all, not only for their loyalty and support but also the way they live up to our co-operative ethics and values in everything they do.

“I’d also like to thank our directors, who give their time freely to serve on our board and help to set our future direction. We also appreciate the many partner organisations, service providers and suppliers that we work with. They are all part of our success.

“What of the next 25 years? I’d like to think that HEY Credit Union will go on to achieve new levels of success, serve many more people and organisations across an expanded area, and deliver even more social benefit to our members and the communities we serve.”