APRIL 2018

ABCUL annual conference 2018
p Greater Manchester
mayor, Andy Burnham,
addresses delegates at
the Abcul conference
The Association of British Credit Unions (Abcul)
held its annual conference in Manchester in March,
with delegates from across the UK, and guests from
the USA, discussing ways to serve and transform
low-income communities.
Keynote speaker Nick Crofts, president of the
Co-op Group’s member council, said this
had left people disillusioned by the world’s
ruling institutions – and said the credit union
and co-op movements must “up our game”
to win them over – and work more closely together.
Mr Crofts said the Group was playing its own part
supporting credit unions. “We are talking to our
colleagues about financial management and where
they can find support,” he said.
And he pointed to the Group’s work with
Homes With Style, a social enterprise in Huyton,
Merseyside, which sells affordable furniture,
including Co-op Electrical products, backed
by finance from local credit unions Enterprise
and Riverside. The project offers an affordable
alternative to exploitative rent-to-buy outfits.
“This is co-operation in action, people working
together for the benefit of each other ... Join a credit
union and you become part of a global movement.”
But he warned of “an artificial barrier between
credit unions and the co-op movement” and
stressed the importance of bringing those barriers
down. “This is a time of opportunity and we must
not miss it,” he said. “We need to strengthen ways
we work in our communities and be smarter ...
People in this room, one loan at a time, are changing
the world and you should be proud of that.”
Later that day, Andy Burnham set out his plans
for the devolved Greater Manchester area, and said
credit union and co-operative values had a role to
play in rebalancing an “overcentralised” political
system that has left the north of England neglected.
This could include a role for credit unions in
providing young people with financial education as
part of a “curriculum for life”, he said. They could
also work with local authorities to provide new
financial services to help care leavers and homeless
people enter work and find accommodation.
Mr Burnham, who was elected mayor of Greater
Manchester in 2017 after six years as an MP, spoke of
his frustration during his time in Westminster. “It’s
an overcentralised system and within that bubble
the London view of life predominates. This explains
why there’s a feeling that politics hasn’t worked.”
He said this included a feeling that young people
had been neglected by politics, prompting him to
launch the Greater Manchester Youth Combined
Authority. “The biggest request they have made is
a curriculum for life ,” he added. “Financial advice
is a big part of that and I’ll be coming to our credit
unions and asking if you can help provide that
education they are asking for.”
And he called on credit unions to help offer
solutions to the homelessness crisis.
“In the 1980s, jobs were secure and housing
was secure. Now there are hundreds of thousands
of people in insecure work and they are in private
rented accommodation – a lethal combination...
The biggest cause of rough sleeping is eviction from
private rent.
“Credit unions have a big part to play... We want
to help young people, particularly care leavers.
We’re looking at a care leavers guarantee ... of a
home and a job, and our credit union partners
could help us with that.”
Credit unions could also help the authority help
private tenants with the transfer to universal credit,
he said. “It’s going to leave people waiting weeks
for their money ... We want to develop a scheme that
will help people.
“We will ask the DWP to give us names of people
who are waiting for sanctions so we can get better
at homeless prevention. We want to set up a centre
for people given a section 21 from private landlords,
so they go to a hostel instead of the street.
And credit unions could help us rebuild their
situation and their transition back to work.”
He added that his authority wants to work with
credit unions on its financial inclusion agenda.
“Payroll giving to credit unions should be part of
what pubic sector employers do,” he said. “They
should set a lead, and then we can ask private
sector to follow suit.”
APRIL 2018 | 29