c/o St Mary's Community Centre, Bramall Lane, SHEFFIELD, South Yorkshire S2 4QZ Telephone:  0114 223 0225 - Fax:  0114 223 0226 - EMail

FINANCIAL EXCLUSION

COMBATING INTEREST RATES OF 300%APR

On 22 November 2002, IMPACT hosted an event to bring together organisations who have an interest in financial exclusion.  The accounts of individuals and considerable research has shown that people who live in our poorest communities are continually targeted by predatory lenders; their interest charges are frequently in excess of 300% APR.   Often people who live in these communities have no other means of obtaining even small loans because high street" banks and building societies withdrew from these communities in the 90s.

A recent survey in one street in the North East revealed that £15,000 is being paid out annually in interest and administrative charges, to predatory lenders, by people on the lowest incomes. This survey is part of the research, undertaken by Church Action on Poverty (http://www.church-poverty.org.uk/) that has led to their "Debt on Your Doorstep" campaign.

The IMPACT event provided an opportunity to hear how issues of financial inclusion have been addressed in both Portsmouth (by the Portsmouth Area Regeneration Trust) and in Belfast by Aspire Micro Finance Ltd. As a consequence of these an similar initiatives in other parts of the UK people  are now able to access loans at reasonable rates of interest, business have been able to develop, people have freed themselves from loan sharks/predatory lenders, jobs have been created and micro businesses have been able to access loans in order to take up business opportunities.

Also, because they are paying substantially lower interest charges, people living in the most deprived communities are more likely to be able to recover from debt, they are more likely to play an active part in their community's regeneration and the possibility exists for them to start to save.

The Key Speakers at this event were:

Bob Kerslake- Chief Executive, Sheffield City Council

Mandy Aitken- Lead Organiser, IMPACT Communities in Partnership for Action & Project Leader for the Community Reinvestment & Education Organisation (CREdO)

Godfrey Doyle - Retired General Manager, Portsmouth Area Regeneration Trust & GD Solutions (adviser to the CREdO Project)

Niamh Goggin - General Manager, Aspire Micro Finance, Belfast & Chair of the Community Development Finance Association

Peter Armstrong - Chair, North West Sheffield Credit Union

The event was attended by over 60 people from local and regional organisations.