When your child develops a saving habit at a young age, it will stay with them for life. Saving provides a sense of responsibility and independence to a child, and gives them decision-making skills and promotes maturity.

Saving money is one of the best ways to teach children to make decisions and act responsibly. Here are our children savings guideline:

Give your child a savings goal

Let your child pick out a toy or game, and work out how long it will take to save for it. That way, they will have a reward to look forward to when they reach their goal, and will be encouraged to continue saving.

Give saving advice to children

but let it up to them to decide how to spend their money

Encourage children to recognise impulse buying

Children do not have the same level of foresight as adults, so explain that a purchase now means they won’t have as much money later.

Link their pocket money to household chores 

Pocket money should be earned, the same way as Mum or Dad earn their money by going to work. By associating money with work, children will be able to put a value on their savings and it might even encourage them to help out around the house more often!

There are many options available to you to help your child save with Skibbereen Credit Union. You can open an account for your child in the same way you opened your own account, or set up a sub-account within your own account. Your child can also use our School Savings Stamps to begin developing their habit. Saving Stamps are available in schools throughout our common bond and cost €1 each. A full book can be exchanged in any of our offices in Skibbereen, Schull and Drimoleague.

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) have said they are very concerned at the reliance of Irish people on legal and illegal moneylenders. Some families use them to keep up with their weekly expenses, while others turn to moneylenders at more expensive times of the year, especially in September when children return to school and December as Christmas approaches.

Some of these moneylenders can charge up to 270% annual interest on the money they lend, while illegal moneylenders can charge up to 400%.  Families who borrow from moneylenders face huge repayments, which they sometimes can’t afford without borrowing more money.

MABS has called for struggling families to come to them before they borrow from a moneylender. They can check to see if families are receiving all the entitlements they are eligible for and inform them of other services that they may not be aware of.

Skibbereen Credit Union offers a free and confidential money managing service to our members. We can help you create a plan to tackle debt problems and take the first step towards financial health. For more information, you can visit our website here, or call us on 028 21883. 

The launch of the 142 registration plate lead to the biggest day in car sales in six years, according to SIMI (Society of the Irish Motor Industry). 4,264 were registered on the first day of 142 registration sales, compared to 1,924 cars on the first day of 132 registration sales.

New car sales were up by 23% in the first half of the year, which is far more than was sold in all of 2013. Cork has seen a 27.5% increase in new car sales in the first six months of 2014 as compared worth the same time in 2013. It is expected that this trend will continue for the second half of the year.

There are many options for financing your new car. If you are considering buying a new car this year, why not borrow from Skibbereen Credit Union. We currently offer a New Car Loan with a rate of 5.99%, which is one of the cheapest rates in the marketplace to own your car. Come into one of our offices in Skibbereen, Schull or Drimoleague to talk to a member of staff, or call us on 028-21883. And don't forget, you can use our Loan Calculator to see your potential repayments or even apply for your loan online.

Looking for something to do this month? Be sure to check out these local festivals and events coming up in the next two weeks!

Have an event you want us to mention? Email treasurer@skibbereencu.ie or call 028-21833.

I think most of us have started our new years resolutions by now. What are yours? Our resolution at Skibbereen credit union is to get West Cork saving for 2012!

We know this is much easier said than done and we are aware January can be a particularly bleak month financially for many people. Whilst saving for the short term and putting your money away for a rainy day to earn some interest whilst still giving you the flexibility to access your money at short notice might be what you are looking for, more and more of us are struggling to put away some of our well earned cash. After all, who knows what tomorrow might bring? We can never be TOO careful with our finances. We know we can't turn water into wine but we certainly feel we can help improve family finances in West Cork with our experience and advice.

So how about you start by putting as little as €1 to €5 away a week? Every little helps and before you know it, you will have a nice little nest egg.

For the best savings advice call in to us at the credit union today to discuss your options and to listen to some expert advice! 

We would like to send our deepest congratulations to the Skibbereen RFC J1 & J2 teams on their amazing current form. Both teams are undefeated and top of the league! 

The J2's had a great win on Sunday, the November 6th at Mill Road, while the J1 team won an exciting game against Waterpark on the same day.

Next weekend will see them facing the Old Christans in Rathcooney who won against Skibbereen in the nailbiting County Cup final last season. Best of luck from all at Skibbereen Credit Union.

Here at the Skibbereen Credit Union we are proud to announce that we will be sponsoring the Skibbereen Arts Festival which takes place from July 18th to July 30th this year. The festival is shaping up to be one to remember as many musicians, comics, artists along with film industry experts come together to form what is arguably the greatest line up the festival has had to date and one that will cater for all ages and tastes!

On Friday the 29th of July,  a night of laughter with comic Colin Murphy will take place in Skibbereens Town Hall.

As usual, the music line up at this years festival is very exciting. Following their fantastic success and popularity, the phenomenal Kilfenora Ceili Band will play at the West Cork Hotel on the 23rd. The Dublin Guitar Quartet comes to town on the 22nd of July.  Another show not to be missed is the Gala Concert featuring Nollaig Casey and Arty McGlynn, Dermot Byrne and Floraine Blancke which is taking place on the 24th of July. Earlier on that day, renowned guitar player Arty McGlynn will also host a Guitar Workshop. Band members from Si Schroeder and 3epkano will assemble on the 27th of July to perform their live soundtrack to the film 'Pour la Suite du Monde.'

The festival also features various film screenings and workshops. Conor Horgan who has over 70 TV commercials and pop videos to his name, will host a Film Workshop on the 30th of July. The film he directed 'Wildfire Films', is just one of the many screenings to be shown across the fesitval.

Art exhibitions will take place throughout the festival including the 'Working Artist Studios.' This exciting exhibition consists of a collect of art-objects and drawings representing a period of time in a specific location, while also includes the activity and surrounds of Skibbereen.

Other acts include the Cronin Sisters, St. Fachtna's Silver Band, an Evening with Poet  Paul Durcan, the work of Guillaume Beauron, The Travelling Sounds Library plus GAA Gold!

Best of luck to Brendan and the team from everyone here at the Skibbereen Credit Union!