The three things that make credit unions stand out from other financial organisations is our community ownership structure, service to members , and social responsibility. These are the three pillars that are embedded in our culture and support everything we do.
Community Ownership
Credit unions are owned and managed by the members in the community. Credit unions were built out of the self- help ethos where people in the community come together to save and thereby enable others in the community to borrow to achieve their financial goals. This ownership allows members have a voice in building a better community for themselves and their children by cooperating for a greater good
Service to Members
People aren’t just customers they are members .They are people who grew up together ,played together , prayed together ,they are ,friends , neighbours, cousins They are family and community . Community is made up of the values we all share that connects us all at a human level and define us as a community. The credit unions dedicated to supporting these values of integrity,self help and improving the economic well-being of all by encouraging thrift through savings and thus provide loans and other services.
Social responsibility
Credit unions seek to bring about human and social development. Their vision of social justice extends both to the individual members and to the larger community Credit unions actively promote the education of their members, in the economic, social, democratic, and mutual self-help principles of credit unions
Survey
These principles support how credit unions do business and their success was demonstrated in a recent survey carried out by Amárach Research for the Irish League of Credit Unions and was published last August
Credit unions are becoming a more relevant to people's needs than the large financial institutions, the results of a recent survey reveal.
Of those surveyed, 79% said that they were unhappy with the service provided by their bank, and more than two thirds believed that credit unions had an important role to play in economic recovery.
The results also show that, in a time of branch closures and other cutbacks by the main banks, people greatly value the 'face to face' interaction provided by their local credit union. In fact, 95% of the respondents said that such a personal approach is what they sought most.
Other findings by the survey include:
- 65% of those surveyed in the Republic are credit union members,
- In the Republic, membership is spread across all age and socio-demographic groupings,
- The principal reasons people join a credit union include family tradition, ease of obtaining loans and the way members can save.
- Credit unions are perceived by members and non-members to be stronger financially than the banks.
- Almost all believe that credit union services have improved or remained consistent, unlike other financial institutions.
These findings underline the unique role of credit unions in this country, and should be noted by those who would seek to place legislative restrictions on their potential for growth. They also show that credit unions can thrive in adversity and contribute in a huge way to the future of the country. There are many challenges ahead, including an expansion of services if the movement is to compete as an alternative banking system—but, as the survey demonstrates, the foundations for the future are securely in place.
