Larne Credit Union celebrates 50 years of serving the community

A spokesperson for Larne Credit Union said that when it comes to write the story of an individual credit union’s existence, one is aware of the many similarities in that credit union’s story and those of every other credit union in the country.

"Every credit union was set up in response to a need that existed at the time of its coming into being and the main difference between credit unions might be an indicator of the extent and the depth of the need in the areas they served.

“In the early 1970s Larne was a relatively prosperous or perhaps a relatively less deprived area in the area covered by Chapter 2 of the Irish League of Credit Unions. It had a busy port and road and rail connection to Belfast. It was the site of large engineering factories and better than average employment opportunities. The town was growing rapidly and there was an influx of new people coming in from outside the town to avail of the opportunities created.

"New homes and new schools were being built and with many young families to cater for there was a need for the financial services which a credit union could provide. It is possibly because of the relatively good employment opportunities in the area that the need for a credit union had not been as obvious in Larne as elsewhere. It is the case that many of the people who finally decided that a credit union was necessary were coming into the town from other places where credit unions had been established and where the benefits of membership were appreciated.”

Larne was the last area in Chapter 2 to have a credit union established and it was through the auspices of Chapter that the story began. Two members of Ballycastle Credit Union were invited to Larne to address a meeting that had been called to inform people about credit unions.

The meeting was held on a Sunday evening in late August 1971 in the parochial hall existing at that time on Victoria Road. The two men, Michael O’Cleary and Bernard Black, explained to the group, most of whom had never heard or at best had some hazy notion of what a credit union was, about the essentially simple idea that was and is credit union.

Following their suggestion, a study group was set up at a subsequent meeting and the process of establishing Larne Credit Union Limited began.

As the secretary, Miss AJ McGovern, recorded in the Directors’ Report at the first Annual General Meeting held on Wednesday, January 30, 1974: ‘The affiliation of Larne Credit Union to the Irish League of Credit Unions on 15 th February 1973 brought to fruition nine months of persevering study and weekly meetings by a group of interested people.’

The study group had chosen at its organisation meeting in February 1973, eight people from its members, five directors and three supervisors, as the eight people needed at that time to form a credit union.

From that time the Board was holding meetings twice monthly and the various sub-committees were also holding meetings. As the credit union was still in its early formative stage all the elected personnel were carrying out all the duties necessary to keep the credit union going and everyone was involved in making decisions and implementing them.

It was soon realised that a board of directors of only five needed to be enlarged and so at the first AGM the number of directors was raised to nine. This is the size of the board today.

The original eight were: James Long, William Breen, William Hutchinson, Arthur Cash, Margaret McIlgorm, John McAuley, Eugene McKermitt and AJ McGovern (secretary). Messrs Hutchinson, McAuley and McKermitt were the Supervisory Committee.

At the first AGM the following were elected directors to bring the number up to nine: Mrs M. McCaughan, Mrs A. O’Boyle, Mrs R. Watson and H. McGoldrick.

While the study group had held its early meetings in the Laharna Hotel (now demolished), it found rented premised from which to serve its members at 118 Main Street. This proved to be a short stay as after a few months it was no longer available and the operation was moved to an upstairs premises in Dunluce Street above a greengrocers. A couple of years later the operation was moved back to the Main Street at No. 20A.

The next move was to 31 Circular Road, a terrace house which was purchased for £2,500 which is still Larne Credit Union’s registered office. Shortly after the house next door was acquired and some time later the one on the other side became available.

The Credit Union’s new home became 29-33 Circular Road and undertook the complete redesign and rebuilding of the office to meet the needs of a growing membership and increased opening hours.

Chapter 2 had an influence on the development of Larne Credit Union. As was reported at the first AGM, ‘Regular meetings of Chapter 2 of which your credit union is a member, were held during the year in Toomebridge and it is to Larne’s credit that delegates from here attended every one of the meetings to keep fully informed of new developments, to put forward their own views and exchange ideas’.

Over the intervening years several members of Larne Credit Union have taken leadership roles in the Chapter.

During 1974, its second year of operation, the credit union sought to serve a greater area of our common bond which stretches north from Larne to Waterfoot. It began to have a collection point in Glenarm which operated for a few years before it moved further north to Carnlough.

"We originally operated from an office at the harbour where we shared a room with the Carnlough Development Association using it on a Saturday when it was free for our sole use,” said a Credit Union spokesperson. “In order to better serve the members using the Carnlough office we eventually decided that we needed our own premises and so the search began for something suitable. Eventually a piece of ground became available on the High Street where we designed and built a two-storey building with the credit union office on the ground floor and a three-bedroom apartment upstairs. This was opened in 2006.”

Larne Credit Union now also serves members in Islandmagee, Whitehead, Ballycarry and Carrickfergus and has grown to have over 8,000 members with assets over £20 million.

"As we celebrate our 50th anniversary we acknowledge the help and assistance we have had from Chapter over the years and look forward to a continuing close relationship with all the members of it,” said the spokesperson.