She noted that the Group will aim to meet again to continue this discussion on the cost of living crisis in early 2023. Karen Wallace, CEO of Right Way Credit Union, provided the following update on the credit union’s context of the cost of living crisis: • Right Way Credit Union is a community-based credit union, currently in a ‘growth period’, with 5000 members across West Scotland, £4.5m in member savings and £3.2m in loans to members • Responded strategically to the Pandemic • Noted that the credit union is facing the following challenges due to the cost of living crisis: o Loan applicants not meeting lending criteria and increase in loan application declines by 300% in 2022– as responsible lenders credit unions need to ensure borrowers can afford to pay their loans back o Existing borrowers struggling to repay and contacting credit union to reduce their loan payments o Increase in missed payments and defaults o Less members able to save or are withdrawing from their savings o Finding that the most squeezed are the middle earners, earning £20- £30k, which is the credit union’s target market o Due to increase in missed loan payments, the CU’s provisioning bad debt has had to increase by 50% • Highlighted the following ways that the credit union is helping members with the cost of living crisis: o Staff trained as ‘Money Guiders’ with the Money and Pensions Service, particularly on how to identify vulnerable members and how to support them in difficult times 4 o Working with Third Sector Interface in Renfrewshire to highlight the risk of illegal money lenders and how credit unions can be a better option o Included benefit calculator on the credit union website, looking to include this as a step for o Using small marketing budget to utilise social media to reach members and recently started a podcast featuring partner organisations, to give members tips on budgeting and saving Tess White MSP and John Mason MSP thanked the group for the meeting as they needed to leave at this stage.