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Eastern Savings and Loans Credit Union Limited is a not-for-profit member-owned financial co-operative, based in
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...
and operating through 25 local payment and information points in the
East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...
n counties of Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk. The
credit union A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit organization, nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including depo ...
has 6,500 members.


History

Eastern Savings and Loans traces its origins to the foundation of the Ipswich Credit Union in 2001, which became Ipswich and Suffolk Credit Union in 2005. South Norfolk Credit Union was formed in
Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
in 2002, becoming Norfolk Credit Union in 2007. The directors of both these credit unions agreed a merger in 2014, adopting the present name.
Rainbow Saver Anglia Credit Union Rainbow Saver Anglia Credit Union Limited was a not-for-profit member-owned financial co-operative, based in Lowestoft and operated through 18 collection points in the East Anglian counties of Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and certain districts of N ...
, formed in Lowestoft in 1999, was included in merger discussions and joint meetings of all three credit unions showed a similar ethos and statistics. The merger with Rainbow Saver Anglia is now expected to proceed at a later date. The smaller North Cambridge Credit Union was formed in 1998, becoming the Cambridge City Credit Union in 2005; its 161 members voted to transfer engagements to Eastern Savings and Loans in 2015.


Activities

The credit union operates for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit and other financial services to its members at reasonable rates. Membership of Eastern Savings and Loans is restricted by common bond to individuals living, working, studying or volunteering inside the boundaries of Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and
Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
. Tenants of a number of
housing association In Ireland and the United Kingdom, housing associations are private, Non-profit organization, non-profit making organisations that provide low-cost "Public housing in the United Kingdom, social housing" for people in need of a home. Any budge ...
s, students enrolled at the British Racing School, Northern Racing College, Racing Welfare or
The National Stud The National Stud is a United Kingdom Thoroughbred horse breeding farm located two miles from Newmarket. The Stud originated in 1916 as a result of a gift by William Hall Walker (later Lord Wavertree) of the entire bloodstock of his stud farm ...
, employees of the
East of England Co-operative Society The East of England Co-operative Society is the fourth largest consumer co-operative in the United Kingdom after The Co-operative Group, The Midcounties Co-operative and Central England Co-operative. It is a registered society with its headqua ...
and individuals related to and living in the same household as a member are also eligible to join. In 2014, the credit union was awarded a grant of £100,000 by the
Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Banking Group is a British financial institution formed through the acquisition of HBOS by Lloyds TSB in 2009. It is one of the UK's largest financial services organisations, with 30 million customers and 65,000 employees. Lloyds Ban ...
Credit Union Development Fund to help support its reserves and facilitate mergers with neighbouring credit unions.


Products

Eastern Savings and Loans runs a payroll deduction savings and loans scheme in conjunction with the East of England Co-operative Society,
Ipswich Buses Ipswich BusesCompanies House extract company no 2000058
Ips ...
and a number of local authorities. The credit union is responsible for the operation of the scheme, with the employer facilitating monthly deductions from salary. A payment card, accepted at
Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...
and
PayPoint PayPoint plc is a British business offering a system for paying Invoice, bills in United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland and Romania. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange. History The PayPoint network was set up in 1996 with the aim of ...
outlets, is also issued to members on request. As is common with credit unions, Eastern Savings and Loans doesn't pay a fixed rate of interest on savings balances; instead, the organization distributes its trading surplus to members in the form of an annual dividend calculated on average savings or as a rebate of loan interest paid. The credit union offers business, third sector and corporate deposit accounts to organisations based in the area covered by the membership requirements. The Change Account card, issued on behalf of Eastern Savings and Loans, functions in a similar way to a High Street bank account. Eastern Savings and Loans is a member of the
Association of British Credit Unions The Association of British Credit Unions Limited, commonly known as ABCUL, is the leading trade association for credit unions in Great Britain. ABCUL represents around 70% of credit unions who in turn provide services to 85% of the British credit ...
Limited, registered under the Credit Union Act 1979 and the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014, and is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and PRA. As with banks and building societies, members' savings are protected against business failure by the
Financial Services Compensation Scheme The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) is the UK's statutory deposit insurance and investors compensation scheme for customers of authorised financial services firms. This means that FSCS can pay compensation if a firm is unable, or li ...
.Credit Union Guide
Financial Services Compensation Scheme (retrieved 2 April 2015)


See also

*
Credit unions in the United Kingdom Credit unions in the United Kingdom were first established in the 1960s. Credit unions are member-owned financial cooperatives operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit and other financial services to their members. Credit un ...
*
East of England Co-operative Society The East of England Co-operative Society is the fourth largest consumer co-operative in the United Kingdom after The Co-operative Group, The Midcounties Co-operative and Central England Co-operative. It is a registered society with its headqua ...


References


External links


Eastern Savings and Loans Credit UnionAssociation of British Credit Unions
{{Credit Unions in the United Kingdom Credit unions of the United Kingdom Banks established in 2001 Companies based in Suffolk Companies based in Ipswich