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We Have a Social Impact

We Have a Social Impact

In a nutshell:

Social impact comes naturally to Credit Unions. Where other organisations will need to work hard to prove their social impact, the culture and ethos of credit unions is such that having a positive influence on society and communities is the very purpose of the movement.

The initiatives undertaken by credit unions that have a positive social impact are too numerous to detail in this short guidance and in any event will be well known already. Instead we’ll focus here on a handful of areas directly linked to the concepts of sustainability and how the work that credit unions do as second nature can be categorised and presented externally.

What this means:

Social impact might be presented in annual reporting to Members, helpful in this regard might be to categorise all initiatives under a number of pillars, for example;

  1. Access and affordability of financial services;
  2. Social impact;
  3. Community initiatives.

In the table below we suggest some key considerations under each of these pillars along with sample initiative and corresponding metrics:

 

Access and affordability of financial services Social impact Community initiatives
Considerations –               What range of financial services are offered?

–               Do they meet the needs of the population of the common bond?

–               Can they be readily accessed?

–               Are they available at fair value?

 –               Does the credit union help in solving societal issues? – topical at the moment would be the housing crisis.

–               Does the credit union support the long-term prosperity of its Members?

 –               Does the credit union support local charities and community organisations?

–               Does the credit union support local sustainable initiatives? e.g. local Sustainable Energy Communities
Sample initiatives –               Review branch network to ensure it meet the needs of the community and are opening hours suitable for the membership.

–               Ensure alternative access channels are available – phone and online.

–               Review product suite, are products aligned with the needs of members and are they available at fair value?

 –               Investment in fund to support social housing initiatives.

–               Partnership with Local Authority on tenant purchase scheme

–               Lending to small businesses with high potential to create employment locally

–               Lending to small businesses where the promoter is returning to the workforce

–               Lending for education

 –               Supporting local charities

–               Supporting local sporting, cultural and community organisations

–               Support or establish Sustainable Energy Community
Sample Metrics –               Number of branches

–               Duration of opening hours

–               Utilisation of alternative channels (phone, online)

–               Value of lending

–               Proportion of lending to underserved members

–               Training for staff in financial inclusion

–               Other products offered – savings accounts, insurances, current accounts

 –               Value of investment in social housing fund

–               Value of mortgages advanced for tenant purchase scheme

–               Value of lending to SMEs creating employment opportunities

–               Number of jobs created by SMEs supported

–               Value of lending towards educational purposes

 –               Value of donations / sponsorships

–               Quantity of staff hours dedicated to volunteering

–               Profile of community organisations supported

–               Value of lending advanced to Sustainable Energy Communities

 

Deep dive on Sustainable Energy Communities:

Sustainable Energy Communities bring people together in formal networks supported by the SEAI. Often they will be people of all backgrounds, homeowners, business owners and local subject matter experts who come together in devising an Energy Master Plan to make their community more sustainable. There are over 750 SECs already in Ireland, so many credit unions might have the option to get involved with local initiatives.

 

Sustainable Energy Community Case Study:

In September 2020, Capital Credit Union based in South Dublin established a Sustainable Energy Community. They began work on an Energy Master Plan which was completed in November 2022, this threw up some interesting findings;

  • 66% of energy use in Capital SEC came from the residential sector
  • 93% of the housing stock in Capital SEC was below the B2 standard
  • 27% could be brought up to the standard with a shallow retrofit

Some other key milestones for Capital Credit Union’s Sustainable Energy Community;

  • Sep 2020 – CCU registered as a Sustainable Energy Community and begins planning our Energy Master Plan
  • Oct 2020 – Launches inaugural Going Green (GG) grants, this is now an annual initiative
  • Dec 2020 – 4 secondary schools are awarded €500 each in Going Green grants, 17 of these have been awarded since its inception
  • Feb 2021 – Sustainability is made a criterion for sponsorship requests from Community Council which has an annual budget of €60,000
  • Mar 2022 – CCU relaunch internal Sustainability Committee who oversee a range of initiatives to reduce waste and consumption
  • Oct 2022 – Sustainability Committee propose installation of Solar Panels along with an electric company vehicle along with other initiatives
  • Nov 2022 – CCU formally launch EMP to members and prepare Member Engagement Campaign, donated €2,000 to Reforest Nation

Steps that won’t take much effort:

  • Begin collating all of the initiatives the Credit Union already works on in one place, it might be helpful to categorise under a number of pillars as outlined above.
  • Establish a forum where stakeholders can give input on whether there are any other initiatives the credit union might work on. Members, staff and local people will all have valuable insights.
  • Integrate all initiatives identified into your Sustainability Strategy. Ensure each initiative has a corresponding target so your progress can be tracked over time.

 

 

Steps that will have a big impact:

  • Partner with or establish a local Sustainable Energy Community. These are groupings of local people, currently there are over 750 nationally, who are assisted by the SEAI. They begin with the development of an Energy Master Plan which then directs the activities of the SEC.
  • Establish a community fund that will allow the Credit Union to contribute to local causes that are aligned with the targets and objectives of your Sustainability Strategy. In particular, consideration might be given to headline issues like supporting social housing development.
  • Partner with other credit unions to work collectively on issues at a national level. The shared learnings from others can be fed back to each Credit Unions own activities locally.

 

Resources:

SEAI – Overview of Sustainable Energy Communities –

https://www.seai.ie/community-energy/sustainable-energy-communities/

Organising for sustainability success: Where, and how, leaders can start – McKinsey Article –

https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/organizing-for-sustainability-success-where-and-how-leaders-can-start

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