West Cheshire Credit Union Hits the Radio Waves Preaching Community Collaboration

Friday 3 November 2023

West Cheshire Credit Union Hits the Radio Waves Preaching Community Collaboration

The credit union was introduced by the radio host Helen Jones as a “guiding light” for those needing financial services in West Cheshire and she described the credit union as an organisation which “thrives on the power of the community”.

As illustrated by Neil, West Cheshire Credit Union offers members a place to keep their savings safe and access small to medium-sized loans to all within Cheshire West, Cheshire East, and Flintshire. Neil urged listeners to kickstart a savings habit even by saving a couple of pounds a month, this could make a huge difference for expensive periods like Christmas. The radio host even shared that she has been a member of a credit union for many years and derives great pride from saving money for Christmas each year.

Collaboration was a key theme of the radio interview, whereby Neil emphasised that in cases where the credit union cannot directly provide a service to members such as financial advice, they always provide a helpful referral to those who can. Neil characterised this as the credit union being a “one-stop-shop by referrals” so members can access all services necessary from themselves or other local organisations.

Neil shared that this process of referral and collaboration has been greatly enhanced by the credit union’s decision to move its Ellesmere Port office to The Portal which is based in the heart of the town centre. This move has further enhanced the ability for the credit union to collaborate with partner organisations such as Cheshire West and Chester Councils, Job Centre Plus and the Department for Work and Pensions who are in the same building. Therefore, not only will necessary referrals be made across organisations, but members will not need to even leave the building to receive help and guidance.

The West Cheshire manager also highlighted their close relationship with the Wirral Credit Union and Neil stated that “credit unions work very closely with each other because it’s all about making sure the service is there across all areas for people to join a credit union and then discover the benefits [of being a member]”.

The radio interview is available here for further details.