Credit Union News

Will you be visiting Glasgow Credit Union offices soon?

We’ve opened a Yorkhill Children’s Foundation textile recycling bank outside our offices on Dalintober Street.  We’d like to encourage all members to donate unwanted items to help fundraise for the charity, who help provide enhanced medical equipment and resources for sick children and babies treated at the hospital.

Recycling your unwanted clothes, shoes and textiles in the clothing bank will raise funds for the Foundation and help reduce landfill.  Goods are then recycled and re-used throughout the developing world, Africa and Asia.

This service - maintained by Nathan’s Wastesavers - is not restricted to members and can be used by everyone.

What can be donated:  All clothing, sheets, blankets, curtains, shoes, belts, bags and towels.

What can’t:  dirty items and rags, duvets and pillows.

The Credit Union has committed to on-going fund-raising for Yorkhill Children’s Foundation.  

Alan Morrison has decided to step down as President of the board and resign as a director. Alan helped build our credit union into the strong, successful organisation we are today. He has also been a key player in helping to develop the Scottish credit union movement through his training work at credit union summer schools. All of the Board, Committees and staff of Glasgow Credit Union would like to thank Alan for all his hard work and wish him all the best for the future.

Vice President, Cathy McGrath will take the role as interim President until a new President is elected by the board at the next AGM.

British charities are launching a radio and TV campaign to raise funds for victims of the devastating floods in north-western Pakistan.

The Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC) - an umbrella organisation of 13 UK humanitarian aid agencies - has opened the ‘DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal’ and special broadcasts will run from Thursday (05.08.10) on BBC, ITV, Sky, Channel 4, Channel Five and independent radio stations.

According to the United Nations, three million people have been affected by the floods, with at least 1,500 killed.

Aid agencies are already working in the region, distributing clean water and food parcels to save lives, but they want to scale up their work and the “DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal” will help them to achieve this.

The money raised by the appeal will help fund the life saving work in Pakistan.

To donate to the “DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal” call the automated donation line on 0370 60 60 900 or visit the DEC website: www.dec.org.uk

If you are travelling abroad this summer, make sure you let us know if you wish to use your Glasgow Credit Union Current Account card while on holiday.

Simply phone us on 0141 274 9933 to let us know where and when you are going, and for how long, and we will ensure that your card is enabled.

To combat fraud, Glasgow Credit Union will decline use of your card in a foreign country unless you have notified us that you plan to be there.

We recently welcomed our 25,000th member to the Credit Union – consolidating our position as the largest and most successful credit union in the UK.

Curtis Walker, a 3d visualiser with architect firm CRGP Ltd was delighted to be welcomed with a ‘25 Reasons To Love Your Credit Union’ hamper, which helped celebrate the landmark achievement and his decision to join us.

‘I’m over the moon to have found such a great financial provider as Glasgow Credit Union and winning the hamper is the icing on the cake,’ said Curtis. Having recently been denied credit by his bank, despite having a good credit history and a steady income, Curtis went on-line to find what other options were open to him. He chanced upon us via TV money expert Martin Lewis’ Moneysavingexpert  site.

Curtis added, ‘Glasgow Credit Union looked at me as an individual, not a statistic and assessed my financial circumstances and ability to repay before making their decision.’ The 25 year old, married father of one used his credit union loan to buy essential computer equipment to further his career and is typical of Glasgow Credit Union’s new wave of membership.

If like Curtis, you are looking for a financial provider that works for you, apply on-line here or call our Glasgow based office on 0141 274 9933.

Pictured below, lucky winner of the GCCU Lottery July Super Draw, Margaret Rizza collecting her brand new car.

Margaret who has been a GCU member for over 19 years was absolutely thrilled to find out she had won the top prize:

“I’m totally over the moon to win such a fantastic prize. I have always been a proud member of the Credit Union making sure I tell all my friends and colleagues about the great service on offer. I have been a member for years and even have my mortgage with my Credit Union. To win a brand new car in the Lottery is the icing on the cake”

If you want to be in with the chance of winning top prizes like Margaret, click here now!

Glasgow Credit Union member Sophia Robertson is celebrating in the sun this week, following a double dose of good news.

Sophia, a full time carer for a family member was thrilled to discover that her family had arranged a surprise respite break in Turkey for her and a friend. Her good mood was boosted yet again when she discovered she had won our “Save with Rent” competition, in conjunction with Provanhall Housing Association.

Fifty-seven year old Sophia was selected at random from the bank of Save with Rent members who’ve regularly contributed to their accounts since opening them in January. Her prize is one month rent free, which she says will come in handy for extra spending money for her holiday.

Sophia says: “I joined Glasgow Credit Union in January through this new scheme and have been saving a little every week. I completely forgot about the competition. It’s fantastic timing. It means I can treat myself on holiday and bring some wee things back for the family.”

She continued: “I’ve found Save-with-Rent really simple. Every time I pay my bills, I pay a little extra to my rent. That goes straight to the Credit Union account without me having to move the money myself.”

The Save-with-Rent pilot scheme was introduced in Provanhall to allow residents to contribute to a savings account wherever and whenever they pay their rent. Once the savings account is activated, members can then apply for low cost loans, take advantage of discounted white goods and open current accounts, junior accounts and more.

If you’d like to find out more about Save with Rent, contact us on 0141 274 5401 or email l.boulton@glasgowcu.com

Glasgow Credit Union staff have helped kick off World Cup fever.

The Yorkhill World Cup took place at Powerleague in Glasgow on June 6th 2010.  Our boys were one of thirty-two teams representing a FIFA World Cup 2010 team in the tournament.

The boys won two and drew one of their four games.  We anticipate their sponsorship totaling over £1000, which will help sick babies and children from all over Scotland treated within Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

We’re fundraising all year round for Yorkhill Children’s Foundation.  Look out for our four skydivers in September and in November, one of our very brave girls will be walking over hot coals. 

If you would like to find out more about the fantastic work at Yorkhill Children’s Foundation, visit their website here. 

We are delighted to introduce a new exclusive member discount  for all Glasgow Credit Union members with Evans Halshaw Car Dealership.

Glasgow Credit Union members will benefit from no service costs for the first 3 years (or 60,000 miles) when buying a brand new car from Evans Halshaw. 

Every member buying a brand new car from Evans Halshaw will also be given Pureguard Paint and Fabric Protection completely free of charge (retail value £199).

And to launch the new discount scheme the first 50 Glasgow Credit Union members who buy a brand new car from Evans Halshaw quoting the reference code will also receive £300 holiday vouchers with their car.

The reference code is available in the members area of the web site or by giving us a call on 0141 274 9933. Click here if you don’t already have a PIN to access the members area of the website.

Remember, if you are considering buying a new car, make sure you use our handy loan calculator to help you figure out what you can afford. GCU loans are great value, easy to arrange and there is no early settlement fees, no admin fees and no set up fees. We also offer free life insurance on unsecured loans at no extra cost giving you peace of mind that your loan will be cleared should the worst happen (terms and conditions apply). Click here for more information on Glasgow Credit Union loans. 

Congratulations to the lucky winners of our recent Newsletter competition. Entrants to the competition were asked to tell us three words that they think best describes Glasgow Credit Union. All entries received were really positive with the winners being picked at random:

1st Prize: Martin Wilson (pictured below receiving a Nintendo Wii and Game).

Martins 3 words were: Dynamic, Efficient and Friendly

Runner Up: Eileen Dorman. Eileen’s husband Martin (also a GCU member) picked up her prize for her– a Nintendo DS lite.		Runner Up: Alistair Russell (pictured below receiving a Nintendo DS lite)
Eileen’s 3 words were: Welcoming, Accessible and Secure		Alistair’s 3 words were: Safe, Secure and Honest

Thank you to everyone who entered and keep your eyes peeled for future promotions.

The Government has announced that it intends to reduce and then stop all governement contributions to Child Trust Funds.

There will be no immediate effect on Child Trust Funds, which means that for the present -

• vouchers will continue to be issued inviting parents to open CTF accounts for their children
• vouchers that have already been issued will continue to be valid up to their expiry date
• HMRC will continue to open CTF accounts for children where the voucher has not been used by its expiry date
• government contributions into CTF accounts will continue to be made at current levels
• CTF accounts already in existence will continue to operate as usual

If you have any questions regarding your Glasgow Credit Union CTF account, please phone us for further information.

The Financial Ombudsman Service’s (FOS) annual report shows that credit unions are bucking the financial industry trend for increased complaints.

While other organisations in the financial sector saw complaints increase by around 30%, complaints against credit unions dropped by almost a fifth.  Of over 952,000 complaints received by the FOS in 2009/2010, just 14 were against credit unions.

The FOS is the official independent expert in settling complaints between business providing financial services.  To visit their web site, and view their annual report, click here.

Consumers in Glasgow have been learning about the different savings options available for Christmas.

Glasgow Credit Union has been delivering a programme of interactive workshops on behalf of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), enabling people to choose the best savings plans for their individual circumstances. The OFT developed the “Save Xmas” scheme in 2006, after the Farepak collapse. Whilst the workshops are based around Christmas savings schemes, the knowledge and skills can be transferred to any event where short term saving is required, such as Weddings or holidays.

We visited various community groups in Glasgow to deliver the workshops, including One Parent Families Scotland and Balornock East Residents Association, who found the workshops very useful.

 Remember, it’s’ not too late to join our, or any other Christmas savings scheme. Glasgow Credit Union Christmas Club is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority and members’ savings are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. For more information on our Christmas Savings Club, click here

GCU has teamed up with Speirs Gumley to offer members great discounted rates on Home Reports.  Find out more...

As of the 1st of April 2010, Glasgow Credit Union will donate £1* to Yorkhill Children’s Foundation for every new GCU Money Monster Account opened.

Yorkhill Children’s Foundation aims to provide all the ’extra’ services and pieces of equipment for sick children and babies from all over Scotland who are treated within NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.  For more information visit their web site yorkhillchildrensfoundation.org

To mark the launch of GCU’s new donation scheme, the GCU Marketing Team visited the foundation to present a brand new games console for use in the hospital.

Money Monster Accounts offer the ideal way to set aside savings for your children or grandchildren.  For more information or an application form, click here.

*subject to a maximum of £1,000 per year.

A donation by Glasgow Credit Union has been used to build a classroom and install windows at a new school for orphans in Kenya.

Glasgow Credit Union staff member Elaine Pollok was very proud when her daughter Lauren (23) volunteered to spend six weeks in Kenya working with a team to help build the New Hope School and Orphanage.

We directly donated £500 to help with the build.  We were thrilled when the Volunteers reported back just a fortnight later, that our donation had been used to build the classroom, install the windows and even kit the classroom out with chairs.  That’s fast work indeed!

Glasgow Credit Union is delighted to introduce a new member discount with Mobility Scotland Ltd. Mobility Scotland Ltd champion the world of bespoke seating, furniture and general mobility equipment.

GCU members will receive 10% discount from the total retail price of any product purchased, (whether bespoke or purchased from the catalogue) and also benefit from a service guarantee on all adjustable and mechanical equipment.

10% of the total saving made by each GCU member will then be donated to the Marie Curie Big Build Appeal. This appeal aims to raise money to cover the cost of building a brand new hospice in Glasgow to better serve the needs of patients in the City

For more information on the discount log in to Member Deals in the secure members section

We are pleased to welcome RESPONSE to Glasgow Credit Union - they are the latest employer to come onboard, offering payroll deduction to their staff!

All staff employed by RESPONSE can now take advantage of the services and benefits available at Glasgow Credit Union and save directly from their wages.

Please get in contact if you would like to enquire about accessing Glasgow Credit Union services through payroll deduction – saving the easy way!