Commsave Credit Union Limited is a not-for-profit member-owned financial co-operative, based in Northampton in the

English Midlands The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...

. In 2020, it absorbed Northamptonshire Credit Union (trading as Harvest Money). As at 31 March 2021, Commsave has 30,875 members with over £90m worth of savings and £45m on loan to members.

History

Commsave

Northamptonshire Postal Workers Credit Union was originally established in 1991, becoming East Midlands Postal Workers Credit Union in 1996 and finally, Commsave Credit Union in 2002.

Harvest Money

Northampton Borough Council Employees Credit Union was originally established by the payroll department to help council workers in 1997. It became Northampton Credit Union in 2003 and finally, Northamptonshire Credit Union in 2013, rebranding as Harvest Money on its twentieth anniversary in 2017. In 2013, Golden Sheaf Credit Union, established in

Kettering Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of ...

in 2001 and The Five Wells Credit Union, established in

Wellingborough Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, 65 miles from London and from Northampton on the north side of the River Nen ...

in 2001, transferred engagements to Northamptonshire Credit Union. In 2015, the

credit union A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including deposit accounts, provisi ...

was awarded a grant of £67,500 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 increase its capital asset ratio to support growth in membership and assets. More recently, Weston Favell and District Credit Union, established in Northampton in 1980, transferred engagements in 2016, followed by Blackbird Leys Credit Union, established in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

in 1994, in 2017. At the time of the merger with Commsave, Harvest Money had 2,205 members and assets in excess of £1m.

Activities

The members of a credit union are required to share a common bond. In the case of Northamptonshire Credit Union, membership was restricted to people residing or working in the county of Northamptonshire or the surrounding districts of Milton Keynes,

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

Central Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created in 2009. Formation Central Bedfordshire was created on 1 April 2009 as part of a structural reform of local government in Bedfor ...

, Cherwell, the City of Oxford,

Vale of White Horse The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. It was historically a north-west projection of Berkshire. The area is commonly referred to as the 'Vale of ''the'' White Horse'. It is crossed by the Ridgeway N ...

and

South Oxfordshire South Oxfordshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England. Its council is temporarily based outside the district at Abingdon-on-Thames pending a planned move to Didcot, the district's largest town. The a ...

. Membership of Commsave Credit Union is restricted to people living or working in the

NN postcode area The NN postcode area, also known as the Northampton postcode area,Royal Mail, ''Address Management Guide'', (2004) is a group of nineteen postcode districts in England, within eight post towns. These cover most of Northamptonshire (including No ...

or who work for one of a number organisations, including Royal Mail, Departments of HM Government and their associated agencies or public bodies or who are members of

Unite the Union Unite the Union, commonly known as Unite, is a British and Irish trade union which was formed on 1 May 2007 by the merger of Amicus and the Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU). Unite is the second largest trade union in the UK (afte ...

. 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 Industrial and Provident Societies Acts, Commsave Credit Union is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and PRA. Ultimately, like the 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)

References

External links

Commsave Credit UnionAssociation of British Credit Unions
{{Credit Unions in the United Kingdom Credit unions of the United Kingdom Banks established in 1991 Companies based in Northampton