SAVERS went home and away when it came to spending credit union cash.

The low-cost loans offered by Nelson Community Credit Union were snapped up by members like never before.

And their main targets were holidays and home improvements when they spent the money.

Latest annual figures for the 700-strong union show 321 loans worth a total of £450,000 were made during the year. Some 70 applications were for household improvement or repair.

And holidays took second favourite spot, accounting for a fifth of approvals. New furniture was next on the list, with car and caravan purchases in fourth most popular spot.

The union, which announced record returns, loaned £77,000 more than last year, says the annual report.

Savings were also well up and the union announced a 4.5 per cent dividend for adult members and five per cent on the savings of the 145 junior members.

Guest speaker at the annual meeting was Sue Davenport, manager of Leeds City CU - the biggest union in England and Wales.

She added £100 to the £250 donation presented by the Union to Nelson Civic Choir to support its trip to Canada in November.

Other local credit union annual meetings are as follows: Burnley Lane - Monday, February 24th at St John's, Ivy Street; Burnley West - March 3 at Yatefield Club; Brun Lea - March 13 at Burnley Miners' Club, Plumbe Street.

All meetings begin at 8.0pm.

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