We are one! And we are celebrating our first birthday by reaching a £2 million lending milestone and welcoming over a thousand new members. This past year has been amazing for us as we surpassed our initial goals and experienced remarkable growth, thanks to the unwavering dedication of our staff and volunteers, as well as the support from our members. We eagerly anticipate many more years of collaborative community service.
“It has been a fantastic first year for Acorn and none of us can believe it has passed so quickly. In the months leading up to Christmas we saw an increasing demand for loans, though this has recently eased up a little. The cost-of-living issue continues to put pressure on people’s budgets, and we are seeing this when we assess their affordability when they apply for a loan. Now that inflation is easing, we are preparing to support our members as they take new steps in their financial journey, perhaps looking to fund home improvements, cars and holidays.” – Clive Henly CEO, Acorn Community Bank.
Here are some of our achievements over the past year:
Increase in Membership: We introduced 1124 new members to Acorn Community Bank, and we are glad that more and more people are becoming aware of the services we offer and joining us to become financially stable.
Savings Incentives: Our aim is to encourage our members to save, even if it is just a little at a time, as it all adds up to something good. Our saving incentives in collaboration with the STOP LOAN SHARKS team have been well-received, with 470 participants saving £42,600 to date. Most of our members are first-time savers who have never been able to put money aside in savings in the past, but our incentive schemes have helped them build a savings pot by putting aside as little as £1 a week. .
Access to Affordable Credit: We reached a £2.2 million lending milestone in the last year. Our loans help all members of the community have access to affordable and ethical credit. All our loans come with an element of savings with members putting aside a small portion of their repayment towards savings so that once their loan is fully paid off, they have built a nice little savings pot for themselves.
Community Events: We hosted our first-ever Comic Relief at the workplace event this year, which helped us raise £145 in donations. We hope to continue doing more similar community events in the future and creating a nice social environment for the community to come together and have a good time.
Awards and Recognition: We won the Wiltshire Life Awards 2023 for Community Group of the Year. This award is a lovely recognition of our efforts and motivates our office team to continue delivering exceptional customer service to our members. Additionally, we are thrilled to announce our nomination for Best Credit Union (South) 2024 by Consumer Credit Awards. If Acorn community bank has helped you or your loved ones , please show your support and vote for us so we can win.
Community Banks, owned and operated by their members, offer affordable loans to individuals who may struggle to access credit elsewhere, aiming to deter them from resorting to payday loan companies or loan sharks. Members can open savings accounts and, upon meeting loan criteria, can access loans repaid on a monthly or weekly basis as per their convenience.
At Acorn Community Bank, our main focus is to empower the community by promoting financial strength and resilience. We strive to bridge the gap between our members’ needs and the limited availability of inclusive financial services. With a significant increase in loan applications for Christmas and school uniforms last year, we introduced the Xmas Saver and Uniform Saver programs in 2024. These initiatives encourage individuals to save for these expenses, ensuring our members are well-prepared for the upcoming year.
Additionally, we express our gratitude to all our dedicated staff members and volunteers. Their invaluable support has been instrumental in our success over the past year. We eagerly anticipate continued collaboration in the future, aiming for even greater achievements – BIGGER, BETTER & BOLDER!!!