Start Saving and Get £25 Free

The first 50 members of staff who join East Sussex Credit Union’s BSUH workplace savings scheme and save £10 a month for three consecutive months will each receive £25 - free.

The cash-to-save incentive is being funded by the *England Illegal Money Lending Team with money recovered from crime, including from loan sharks.

Emma Brown, Business Development Manager with East Sussex Credit Union (ESCU), a not-for-profit savings and loans co-operative, says: “We’re not a bank and we don’t have shareholders. We’re a membership organisation. It’s about local people’s money being used to help local people.”

Currently ESCU has 7,500 members, including some at the Trust, as well as from other major employers such as the city council, Brighton and Hove buses and the University of Brighton. “When I talk to people about workplace savings schemes,” Emma says, “they often say it’s something they were meaning to do, but they never got round to it.

We’re hoping the free £25 vouchers will encourage more people at the Trust to join. “Members say that once it’s set up and the £10 is coming out of their salary each month, they begin not to notice it. Then when they look at their account they’re surprised at how much is in there. A lot of people use their savings account for specific things – for children’s school uniforms, Christmas or going on holiday.”

.The offer to BSUH staff closes on 31 March. There is a one-off £5 membership fee and you need to have £1 in your account to keep it open.

*The £25 bonus is funded from the Proceeds of Crime - money that has been taken from criminals, including loan sharks. ESCU is working in partnership with the England Illegal Money Lending Team. To report a loan shark, call 0300 555 2222 or visit www.stoploansharks.co.uk. All reports are confidential.