Southdown Housing Colleague? Join us today!
Why join The Money Co-op?
An easy way to save – or borrow – direct from your pay! Joining The Money Co-op means becoming part of a community where your financial wellbeing comes first. Whether you’re saving for the future or need a low-cost loan, we’re here to help you manage your money with confidence. As a member, you’ll benefit from fair, flexible finance options designed to fit your life. With our support, you’ll be in control of your money while contributing to a community that cares.
Member benefits
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Save and borrow direct from your wages: simple, straightforward and easy to manage.
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Fair finance: Access affordable loans with competitive rates and build savings as you repay by Payroll deduction.
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Savings support: Start building your savings with just £5 a month. Earn an annual dividend, or interest payments on savings.
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Community impact: Contribute to a community that supports and benefits its members.
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Free membership: Join for free, with no hidden fees or charges.
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Grow money confidence: Receive tailored guidance and tools to help you manage your finances.
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Free membership for Southdown Colleagues
Membership of The Money Co-op is free for all Southdown Colleagues and comes with a range of benefits.
Join now and start saving with us from just £5 a month. Want a loan too? You can apply to Join & Borrow at the same time.
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Don’t have time right now? We’ll send you some info later.
No pressure, no spam – just the good stuff!
Testimonials
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“Very satisfied and really glad I joined. It’s helped me a few times.”
Chris
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“I cannot stress enough how happy I am to be a member. The staff are amazing, so helpful!”
Ella
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“Love being a member! It’s the first time I’ve been consistently able to save.”
Farah
FAQs
You can join online by completing our online membership application. Membership is free, and you can start saving with as little as £5 per month.
You will need to join the credit union first, then once your membership is completed, you can apply for a loan.
Take a look at our loan products to find the option that best suits your needs.
You can join The Money Co-op straight away if you:
- work for one of our payroll partners
- work in retail, co-operatives, charities, NHS, health and social care, housing, education or local government
- are a co-op member
- are a member of Usdaw
Not sure if you qualify? You can still apply here, and we’ll help guide you through the joining process.
As a member of The Money Co-op, you’ll have access to affordable loans, flexible savings accounts and a range of tools and support to help you manage your money.
Members may also receive annual dividend payments on eligible savings balances, as well as being part of a community-focused organisation that puts people before profit.
The credit union is a co-operative. That means that we are owned by our customers – the people that use our services. That’s why our customers are called members.
So, when you use our services you become a member and part-owner of the credit union. And because we’re a co-op, each one of our members has one vote regardless of how much you invest with us or how often you use the service.
We are only here to serve you, our members, and we do not have separate owners who want to make as much money from you as possible. We make decisions based on what our members want us to do and we have an incentive to reward our savers as well as we can with an annual dividend payment, and to keep our interest rates for borrowers as low as we can.
You get to use your vote when we want to change our rules on how we operate and to elect directors who sit on our board and represent your interests in setting our plans on what products to offer, how much to charge in interest, what dividend we pay, and how to invest our income.
No, the credit union does not charge any fees to be a member and save with us.
The credit union is open Monday-Friday, 9am-4.30pm except on bank holidays and occasional days where we are closed for staff training.
Already a member? The quickest and most secure way to get in touch is by sending us a message via your online member account.
Not yet a member? Visit our contact us page for a range of ways to get in touch.
With our member app or online portal, you can check balances, request a withdrawal, send secure messages, manage your nominated bank accounts and apply for loans.
If for any reason you can’t access our online member services please get in touch.
The best way to request a withdrawal is via our app.
Any withdrawal request submitted by 3pm on a working day will be processed the same day and paid into your nominated bank account by 6pm the same evening. If you miss the 3pm deadline, your withdrawal will be processed on the next working day.
Regular savings held in the credit union attract a dividend. The dividend rate is paid based on the credit union’s financial performance and market conditions. It is not agreed in advance, but proposed and voted on at the AGM every January.
In 2025, the credit union paid 2%. We always aim to pay as much as we can reasonably afford to.
We also offer a ’Saver Plus’ account offering a guaranteed rate of interest.
We work with a wide range of employers across a variety of sectors to offer payroll deduction, making it easy to save or repay a loan directly from your salary.
You can join The Money Co-op if you:
- Work for one of our payroll partners
- Work in retail, co-operatives, charities, the NHS, health and social care, housing, education, or local government
- Are a co-op member
- Are a member of Usdaw
Not sure if you’re eligible? Don’t worry – you can still apply, and we’ll help guide you through the joining process.
If you pay into your credit union account by payroll deduction then your employer’s payroll department will know that you are a member of the credit union but otherwise they do not have any information. Payroll departments operate under strict confidentiality rules and so none of the information regarding your deduction is shared with anyone else in the business. They are also not aware of what your deduction amount is used for – they don’t know if you’ve got a savings or loan account, just that you have an account.
No. If you leave your employer, you can still keep your account with us and continue to access the same services as before. If your account is funded through payroll deduction, we’ll simply help you set up an alternative payment method.