Loans
Any member over the age of 18 may apply for a loan. To become a member you need to live or work in the geographic area covered by Stroud Valleys Credit Union. See the details at here
You can complete both forms at the same time at one our collection points, please see our locations and opening times. You will need to provide evidence of your address and identity at the same time so have these ready. Alternatively you can join on line and when you have become a member apply for a loan either in person or online.
Members can apply online at using our online form , or you can complete a paper application form. Bring a paper form to any of our collection points (see locations and opening times) or post it.
We take around a week to decide if we can lend you the money. This relies on you completing all the sections in the form and providing anything else we need, such as bank statements. If we have to come back to you for more information it may take longer.
To qualify for a lower interest rate savers loan you will be required to keep at least half the outstanding value of the loan in your saving account. These savings are held as security against the loan and repayments will be taken from here if you are unable to pay. You can access other savings, but during the term of the loan you are encouraged to keep saving.
Loans are covered by life cover at no extra cost up to age 80 (conditions apply). In the event of a claim, loans are paid off without further liability.
Savings
You can join online or you can complete a membership application form at one of our collection points, where you must provide 2 forms of identity, one must show your current address. The minimum first deposit is £5.00 and the annual membership fee is £4.00.
You must make a minimum deposit of £5.00 and pay a membership fee of £4.00 to open your account. Each year after the first, we will deduct the membership fee of £1 from your account balance. You must keep a minimum of £5.00 in your savings account to keep your account open.
We encourage members to save regularly, whatever they can afford. Saving regularly is the first step to being good with money. As a member, you must keep a minimum balance of £5.00 to remain as a member. The maximum account balance is £15,000.00. If you exceed this we will notify you and you will need to transfer the excess over £15,000.00 elsewhere.
Yes, your savings are safe. We only lend money to members within our common bond and we take all precautions to lend responsibly. All your savings are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This scheme guarantees individual savings up to £85,000.00, so higher than our maximum of £10,000.00. Details of this scheme can be found on the FSCS website.
Stroud Valleys Credit Union is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
You can pay in cash cheque at any of our customer service points or transfer money using your bank’s mobile or internet banking. You can set up a standing order to come from your bank regularly. If you set up a standing order, we will allocate the payment to whichever accounts you want when it reaches us. We can even split the payment when it arrives if you want us to.
We like our members to keep using their accounts as regular saving is part of good money management. If your account is left inactive for a lengthy period you might have to contact us here at the Stroud office to re-activate it and then make a further deposit.
You can withdraw by cheque or BACS transfer. We don’t hold cash at our customer service points.You can withdraw a cheque by request at our customer service points, or by contacting the main Stroud office. Please allow a couple of days as the cheque needs to be signed by 2 officers.You can withdraw by BACS (electronic transfer directly to a bank account) this can be processed within 1 working day. You will be asked to verify your Identity when applying or making withdrawals. Withdrawals will be refused if your loan is in arrears
Most of our accounts are intended for saving and we would not expect you to withdraw money very often. You can request a withdrawal using BACS. We process withdrawals every working day, but if we receive your request after 2pm it will be done on the following working day. Transfers can take some time to clear into your account, but should be there the same day they are processed.
For Savers loans, some or all of your savings are held as security against your loan should you not repay it. These savings means we can offer a better rate of interest. Members with Saver loans, must keep a proportion of their loan balance (usually one half) in savings.
You can only withdraw from attached shares the equivalent to the amount of the loan you have paid off. This may take a little while to calculate and does need special approval. Once your loan has been repaid in full your attached shares will normally be transferred back into your savings account.Your savings balance must always equal at least half the amount you still owe on your loan. So, for example, if you borrowed £400 with savings of £200 then you can’t make a withdrawal. When you have repaid £100 of your £400 then you can withdraw £50 from savings and so on. This does take a while to calculate and needs special approval so you must give us notice. Once you have cleared your loan you can withdraw as normal.