DARLINGTON Credit Union has won a share of NatWest’s £2.5 million Skills and Opportunities Fund.

Following a public vote, Darlington Credit Union has been awarded £34,741.60 from the fund which supports organisations in disadvantaged communities.

The money will be used by the credit union to provide financial education to people aged 15 or over, who are or are at risk of being financially excluded.

The funding will pay for the creation and delivery of an in-depth financial education package, to help increase the long term money management skills and financial awareness of the most vulnerable.

Richard Topliss, chairman of NatWest’s North Regional Board, said: “It was a challenging decision because of the standard of entries we received. But the panel felt that all of the organisations would make a massive impact in their local communities.

“Our congratulations and best wishes go Darlington Credit Union and I’d encourage anyone who wasn’t successful this time to try again when applications open in August for the next round.”

Darlington Credit Union chief executive Tony Brockley said: “The funding from NatWest will allow DCU to build upon the excellent work that we had begun over the last three years with our MoneyWorks project.

“This new project, MoneySmart, targets a smaller group but with a more tailored approach to achieve the best outcomes.

“We would not have been able to take on this additional work if it had not been for the funding.”

More than 900 organisations applied to this year’s fund.