Introduction to the Fair Banking for All Campaign
Millions of people aren’t able to borrow money from a bank at a fair rate when they need it. Businesses across the UK can’t grow because they can’t borrow money to do so. We want to change that, through a new law, a Fair Banking Act. This would mean more people and businesses can have fair access to affordable credit, and fewer people have to turn to high-credit (like payday loans) or illegal lending.
The campaign is supported by a coalition of 35 organisations from across the UK, as well as actor Michael Sheen. It’s coordinated by the charity, Finance Innovation Lab.
A Fair Banking Act would mean that banks have to share information on who they currently lend money to and be giving a rating. If they’re found to be excluding people or businesses, they will have to take action. This could be through themselves lending to a wider range of people and business, or by the bank supporting local non-profit lenders such as credit unions.
For more information on how the law would work, please see our briefing here.
Who we’re looking for to take part in the campaign
We’re looking for people who have experience of not being able to access credit and who are happy to share their experiences.
This could mean you have:
- been declined for a loan from a bank – either for yourself, or for your business
- used high cost credit such as payday loans or illegal lending
- after having issues accessing credit, got support from a credit union or CDFI.
At the moment we are looking for people who live in London OR are women entrepreneurs.
What’s involved
Being involved in the campaign means you would attend online and in person sessions.
Online sessions:
- Attending around 4 online sessions, each 1 hour long, together with other people from London who have also had issues not being able to access affordable credit.
- Sharing your experiences with the group.
- Learning more about the campaign and getting decision-makers to listen to your experiences.
- Planning an action to support the campaign, for example meeting with your MP.
In person:
- Hold your action, such as meeting with your MP.
You do not need any previous experience to take part. Support will be provided by Kay Polley and Sam Rex-Edwards from Finance Innovation Lab who will be leading the sessions.
As a thank you for giving us your time and expertise we will give you a £20 voucher for taking part in each session. To receive the voucher, you need to attend the whole session and actively participate. Receiving vouchers could affect any benefits you receive, and it would be your responsibility to look into this. Your local Jobcentre Plus or Citizens Advice can give advice on this if you are not sure.
To register your interest, please complete the form below. If we are oversubscribed we will select people who have experience most relevant to the campaign. We will be in touch by email to let you know whether or not we are able to invite you to take part.
If you have any questions, please email Kay and Sam: sam-kay@financeinnovationlab.org.