Supporting sustainability within the credit union sector
A new guide and supporting resources to help credit unions plan for a sustainable future
As part of our commitment to increasing the availability of affordable credit for people in financially vulnerable circumstances, we’ve been working with community finance providers to develop a series of practical tools and resources to support the growth of the sector.
One example is our guide to Building Strategic Sustainability within the Credit Union Sector, which draws from expert advice and experiences from the credit union sector to help providers develop robust strategic plans for sustainable growth.
Here’s our Deputy CEO, Kate Pender, on why this guide has been created, how it can be used and why sustainability matters in business:
Developed in conjunction with credit unions, the guide focuses on six financial and organisational challenges and related opportunities which are key to sustainability:
- Achieving a balanced membership
- Diversified lending and customer growth
- Optimising capital positions
- Digital implementation
- Effective governance and risk management
- Proactive consolidation and collaboration
It also includes practical tools to help credit unions establish, implement and monitor sustainable growth strategies, including a business plan template and guide, and a generic forecasting and reporting tool.
We hope these resources will support credit unions as they navigate the fallout from the pandemic and the ongoing cost of living crisis.
‘We were slightly nervous working with people from outside the credit union on the business plan but we need not have worried. We ended up with a strategy that we felt belonged to our organisation and was much more practical.’
Peter MacDonagh, Operations Manager at Riverside Credit Union
We’d love your feedback
We want the resources we develop to be practical, usable and useful, so we’d love to hear from credit unions who have tried them – what’s working, what could be improved and what else would you find helpful? Do let us know any feedback you have at hello@fair4allfinance.org.uk.
We’ll be sharing more tools and resources throughout the year, for both credit unions and CDFIs. Please keep an eye out for our regular Community Finance Bulletins or visit the ‘Resources’ section of our website to find the latest support.