Treasurer praises ‘vital’ Gleneely NS savings
scheme
THE treasurer of the Gleneely National School
Savings Scheme believes traders in Inishowen
will suffer this Christmas following the
significant drop in the numbers taking part in
saving schemes in Inishowen in 2009.
At the start of last December, Bishop Hegarty
announced that he would be suspending the parish
savings scheme in the Derry Diocese in 2009
owing to the uncertainty in the financial
climate.
However there were assurances from Department of
Finance that all monies on deposit with Irish
banks and building societies had a State
guarantee.
“I feel that a lot of shops will feel a hit this
Christmas. There will be a lot less money in the
local economy,” said the treasurer of the
savings scheme, which will pay out at the start
of December.
The treasurer estimates that numbers taking
parting the scheme this year are well down on
the numbers who participated in 2008.
“Last year we circulated letters from the bank,
guaranteeing the savings. Even then the numbers
taking part were well down on 2008, upwards of
100 less. Some people were very scared that they
would lose their money.”
The bank interest earned by the Gleneely
National School Savings Scheme allows the
parents' committee to fund school equipment,
trips away and improvements to the school
grounds, among other things.
One local parish reported that it earned around
€40,000 in interest from its 2008 scheme.
However, fewer people saving means less interest
for the parents committee and the treasurer is
hopeful that the successful completion of this
year's scheme will give people in the area the
confidence to come back to it next January.
“I think that when people who didn’t take part
in the scheme this year see the cheques going
out in a couple of weeks time, they will wish
they’d taken part. It should restore a bit of
confidence in those who had doubts about how
safe their money was.”
The Gleneely National School Savings Scheme has
been in existence for around ten years.
“It’s a vital time, there will be a lot less
money available from the Department of Education
in the near future and that’s why it’s important
that this scheme continues. I think it’s very
sad to see savings schemes around Inishowen not
happening just for the lack of a bit of work.”
(Inishowen Independent) |
