Lewisham Plus Credit Union provides the opportunity for every person living or workingwithin our postcode boundaries to give and receive mutual financial support.This is a community service promoting compassion and justice through co-operation.
Lewisham Plus Credit Union Limited was created on 13th June 2006 through a change of name from ACTS Credit Union Limited, and an expansion of the common bond to cover the whole of the London Borough of Lewisham plus the areas outside this in the postcodes of northern Bromley – SE19, SE20, SE26, BR1 and BR3.
It has around 3,500 adult and 1,000 junior members, with savings of £1,000,000 and loans of £1,000,000. The credit union provides a personal, friendly and ethical community service to local people, always seeking to meet individual needs where we are able to help, within a professionally managed business that also protects the value of our members’ savings.
Annual Reports
Our Annual Report includes reports from out President, Manager, Secretary, Treasurer and Supervisory Committee and our full audited accounts. We also include a graph showing how many loans we have made and how this has changed over time.
 Download Annual Report 2009 (156kb)
Download Annual Report 2008 (199.6kb)
Download Annual Report 2007 (286.7kb)
Download Annual Report 2006 (216.6kb)
Download Annual Report 2005 (6067.1kb)
Download Annual Report 2004 (6079.4kb)
Why Lewisham Plus?
The Lewisham Plus name was chosen to reflect the various meanings of “plus” or “+”:
- The geographical area is Lewisham plus the north of Bromley - Penge, Beckenham and Downham;
- The credit union exists to make a positive contribution to building an inclusive society;
- By encouraging savings, and offering low cost loans, members add to their financial well-being;
- The credit union draws inspiration from the Christian faith, for which a cross is the central symbol of good overcoming all that is bad, through Jesus Christ giving his life in service to others;
- Branches of the credit union across the area can be a plus for their own locality.
Previously the credit union was ACTS, deriving its name from the “Association of Churches Together in Sydenham and Forest Hill”, an ecumenical grouping of 20 local churches of all denominations that founded the credit union in 1992. In a modern context it follows the spirit of the early church where “all believers were together and had everything in common; selling their possessions and goods they gave to everyone as he had need”. ACTS Chapter 2 verses 44-45.
Our Vision
- Local community will be strengthened where people belong to Lewisham Plus;
- Every adult and child entitled to do so will save with Lewisham Plus and receive an attractive dividend on savings;
- Members will borrow from Lewisham Plus in preference to other lenders;
- The Christian churches of Sydenham and Forest Hill will continue to regard the credit union as an important part of their ministry and be encouraged as they serve others together;
Our Values
- Placing members’ mutual interests first will always differentiate us from profit-motivated financial institutions;
- Volunteer officers will extend their skills through training and supervision in order to provide a quality service;
- Business will be conducted with due regard for confidentiality; and
- Integrity, respect and equality of opportunity are paramount.
Volunteer Opportunities
Lots of community-minded people are volunteers with Lewisham Plus Credit Union. There are many opportunities and usually something to suit each person’s abilities and preferences. Volunteers give as much or as little time as they are able and help regularly or when the need arises. We arrange our own training for new volunteers and also participate in London-wide training events.
The Credit Union could not exist without the volunteers who run it. Some of the volunteer opportunities are for elected positions, but many are run on an appointment basis. You could:
- Spend a few hours a week welcoming and helping visitors as receptionist at our shop.
- Learn some simple financial skills to accept deposits and loan repayments.
- Help to run a collection point in your local area.
- Represent members interests while developing the business by serving as a Director.
- Keep an eye on the integrity of our services on the Supervisory Committee.
- Guide our loan decisions on the Credit Committee.
- Assist with our quarterly mailings.
- Become a social event organiser.
Please contact Mr James Gardner, the Credit Union Manager, Mrs Lisa Treece, the Administrator or any member staff of the Board of Directors to find out more about volunteering and to let us know when you might be available.
A short history of Lewisham Plus Credit Union Limited
ACTS Credit Union Limited was registered on 2nd March 1992 at the end of a two year process initiated and led by volunteers from churches in Sydenham and Forest Hill, with support from the Southwark Credit Union Development Agency. This was the result of cross-denominational work looking at the needs of the locality and the role of the churches in the late 1980s in response to the “Faith in the City” report. ACTS Credit Union was created for a number of reasons including:
- To strengthen local community through mutual respect and self-help;
- To reduce financial inequality and promote fair access to fair credit for all – the people with least in our society are either refused credit or pay far more interest than the more well off;
- To alleviate or prevent the suffering and family breakdown caused by indebtedness;
- To encourage a savings habit to create more disciplined and stable lives;
- To witness to the relevance of the Christian faith to everyday life including money matters (see The Acts of the Apostles Ch2 v44-45 – this is a deliberate link with our chosen name);
- To provide a focus for Christians of different denominations serving together, doing something which would have been too difficult for any individual church to do alone; and
- The credit union is a self-funding initiative dependent on volunteer time and support in kind (e.g. premises use) but not requiring ongoing fund raising
The initial proposal to form a Sydenham Credit Union was rejected by the Registry of Friendly Societies in mid 1991, so ACTS was launched as an Associational credit union open to anyone ‘actively and continuously’ associated with one of the 22 founding churches and living within a defined area of South London.
During the first ten years the Credit Union grew slowly but steadily. ACTS broke even in its first full year of operations and reached 214 members with £76,000 in savings after five years in 1997. At the end of the 1990s it became clear that the Associational ‘common bond’ was constraining the expansion of credit union services across the community. The rules governing credit unions had also relaxed by this time so a case to change to a ‘Living and Working’ common bond was submitted to the Financial Services Authority in the summer of 2001. The new common bond was accepted in January 2002 and enabled the expansion of the credit union across the community.
By June 2004 ACTS had more than 1,250 adult and 450 junior members, with over £400,000 in adult savings and £40,000 in junior savings, and £250,000 on loan to members. The move into new shop premises in June 2004 marked the beginning of a new phase. The shop was originally a purpose built Barclays Bank, refurbished with substantial assistance from a Single Regeneration Budget grant through Crystal Palace Partnership and with the support of the London Boroughs of Bromley and Lewisham, and a number of local housing associations.
With the new facilities and the change of name in 2006, Lewisham Plus plans to extend community financial services throughout Lewisham and the north Bromley postcodes SE19, SE20, SE26, BR1 and BR3, and create a stronger network of local collection points. We will retain our links with the churches in Sydenham and Forest Hill and aim to become a sustainable, long term asset contributing to the financial, physical and spiritual health of many people in our neighbourhood.
Photo of ACTS Credit Union launch at The Grove Centre on 2nd March 1992 by Jim Dowd, then Mayor of Lewisham. Founder members on the picture left to right are Gail Birch, Elizabeth Ballaster, Barbara Coe, Liam Carlisle, Arthur Coe, Andy McKeown, Jim Dowd, Frank Whittle, Paul Treece, Lisa Treece, Tim Samuel and Alice Pollard.
Reasons for credit unions
The main reasons why people come together to form or join credit unions are:
- To encourage thrift by helping themselves save on a regular basis thereby building up a fund of money for their own benefit and that of other members.
- To create a source of credit for the benefit of members at a fair and reasonable rate of interest.
- To help members use their resources to the best advantage.
- To promote the welfare of the community.
Credit unions put people first
Credit unions have been very successful in helping people gain a greater measure of control over their personal finances. They are an effective means of teaching the value of voluntary action and community development. The members are the credit union. They provide services to themselves.
- The members own and control the credit union.
- The credit union deals only with its members.
- The members decide on the distribution of surpluses.
- The credit union management is of a voluntary nature.
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08 September 2010
