A NEW community project providing affordable furniture to residents in north Durham was unveiled in Stanley by Lady Elsie Robson this morning.

Lady Elsie, a trustee of the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, officially opened The Store – an initiative set up by housing association Derwentside Homes to allow residents buy new top brand furniture, electrical items and white goods without getting into debt.

Customers pay for their items weekly, with a proportion of each payment being deposited into a credit union account, encouraging regular saving.

Set up in partnership with the Prince Bishops Community Bank and Social Housing Enterprise Durham (SHED), the aim of The Store is to steer people away from loan sharks and other high cost borrowing options.

The official opening ceremony was held at The Store shop in Front Street, Stanley, with Lady Elsie joined by Derwentside Homes’ tenants and staff to mark the occasion.

Lady Elsie said: "It was a privilege to officially open the Store in Stanley – it’s a wonderful communal facility for local people who want to buy affordable furniture and it was a pleasure to meet the team behind it.

"I am also grateful to Derwentside Homes for generously contributing to the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation today. The donation is much appreciated and will be put to good use helping people in our region fighting cancer."

Keith Tallintire (CORR), Derwentside Homes’ director of resources, said: "We already offer a furnished tenancy package which allows tenants to rent furniture, but we wanted to extend this to give local people the option to buy too.

"There has been extensive coverage in the news about the increase in people turning to expensive credit providers and we have also had problems with loan sharks operating in the areas in which our tenants live.

"The aim of The Store is to help residents buy their own furniture without getting into financial difficulties and to encourage regular savings at the same time."

The Store offers a range of products, including televisions, cookers, fridge-freezers, bedroom and living-room furniture.

Customers pay for their products weekly, with the total cost around 40 per cent lower than some other repayment stores.

They can then chose to have their items delivered and installed by SHED – a social enterprise set up by Derwentside Homes and East Durham Partnership, which provides training and job opportunities for unemployed local people by offering home-improvements such as gardening, internal and external decoration and small repairs.

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