Carluke Credit Union launch delayed

Plans to set up the union in St John’s Church imminently were scuppered when an unnamed local group – due to share the church premises with the union – withdrew.

Credit union support worker Allister Cassels (41) explained: “We had originally targeted getting 10 volunteers for Carluke Credit Union.

“But this figure was reduced to six when we thought that we’d be sharing St John’s Church with this other group, whose withdrawal means that we now need to find another four volunteers before we can get started.

“From my perspective this delay is very frustrating.

“I’m really keen on having a Carluke Credit Union. It is almost my pet project.”

Allister said that a recruitment drive was being launched to find the extra four volunteers; he was hopeful that the Carluke branch – an outreach centre of Blantyre and South Lanarkshire Credit Union – would be open “by the end of the year”.

Carluke Community Council chairman Ray Ashe said that the credit union’s base would now likely be the Q and A office in Kirkton Street, with the opening hours between 10am and noon on Mondays.

Ray said: “We are a wee bit disappointed that we can’t move into St John’s Church straight away. We are negotiating over moving into the Q and A office instead. That will be ideal as it has counters and good security.”