Matthew Stevens - Chief Executive 

Matthew Stevens is Chief Executive of HEY Credit Union. After a varied career including roles in transport, logistics and consumer credit, he started with the Credit Union in 2007, originally in the Lending Department. He was promoted to Project & Systems Manager and became the Chief Operating Officer in 2022.

Matthew was born in Essex but moved to Hull where he was brought up, and still lives. He is a keen runner and regularly competes at distances from 5km to ultra-Marathon.  He is enthusiastic about co-operatives and their potential to change people’s lives.

On his appointment to Chief Executive in May 2023 Matthew said: “Carrying on from the great work that has been done over the last 23 years and using the experience I have gained I hope to develop our Credit Union into one of the leading credit unions in this country”

John E Smith ACG - Governance Officer

From 2011 to 2022 John Smith was HEY Credit Union's first Chief Executive, and prior to that its Secretary.  In line with his retirement planning, he is now supporting the Board of Directors and Leadership Team as our part-time Governance Officer.

With a group of colleagues at Hull City Council in 1999, John was a founder-member. He has seen our organisation transform from a small savings club serving a single employer's workforce into a multi-functional region-wide business helping over 18,000 adult members and junior savers to enjoy good financial well-being.

John is a Chartered Governance professional and is passionate about the values and ethics of the co-operative movement. His lifelong service to the movement included a decade as a non-executive director of The Co-operative Group, one of the UK's largest businesses.

John was born and brought up in the Hull area, where he lives with his family. He was on the Governing Body of Appleton Primary School for 20 years and is a Member of the Thrive Co-operative Learning Trust.

Lauren Foley - Branches Manager

Lauren has served at HEY Credit Union in various roles since 2013. She started as a Member Services Officer and is now the Branches Manager. She enjoys her work in Head Office as well as making regular visits to our network of community branches.
Lauren graduated from the first year of the Credit Union Futures programme in 2017 and has recently been awarded a WOCCU Global Women’s Leadership Network Scholarship that she is looking forward to taking part in.
Outside of work Lauren has a young family which keeps her very busy.

Joseph Hendon – President

Joe was elected as a Director, at the AGM in 2021. A Hull resident, he has been a HEY Credit Union member for several years, using many of its available services and products. His current role as a SAFe certified Product Manager for Emis Group utilises his strong Sales and Marketing skills. He is community orientated and has expertise in the Pharmaceutical Industry (GMP Auditor), Chemistry (University of Leicester) and Engineering (AMRC Sheffield). Joe is also a certified Fairness Inclusion and Respect (FIR) Trainer.

Ken McCall - Vice President

Ken has worked in education in Hull for almost 20 years as a teacher of Secondary Computer Science, and as a school governor. In more recent years he has been the district secretary for the National Education Union in Hull, supporting and representing over 2,000 education staff across the city. He is the founder of the Unity Shop, who have been supporting families and vulnerable people in need with food and other household essentials since 2020. He is also a director of National Careers Week, a national not-for-profit set up to provide careers information & guidance to school students of all ages. Ken is also the communications secretary for the Hull and District Trades Council.

Andy Stankard - Vice President

Andy works for Hull City Council, in the Principal Opposition Support Office, supporting the  Leader of the Majority Opposition Group and the Shadow Cabinet, which is primarily a research and advice role. He helped to draw up the Cabinet reports that led to the expansion of the Credit Union in 2004. He is also a Senior Steward and the Branch Chair of the Hull City Branch of UNISON, and the Staff Side Chair for all the local council trade unions. He was the former President of the Hull and East Yorkshire Trade Union Council, Secretary of Hull and District Co-operative Members' Branch and a School Governor. He was our President from 2017 to 2024.

Alan Hignett - Secretary

Alan joined HEY soon after it was established. He hails from the West Midlands where he first became active as a volunteer in the Credit Union Movement. During this time Alan's varied career included working in car factories and managing distribution businesses, before going back to education aged 35. On moving to Hull he joined Hull Social Services and recently retired as a Social Worker in Child Care.
Alan first volunteered for the Credit Committee in 1999, became a Director in 2001, and served as President from 2013 to 2017. Since 2009 he has also been an elected Director of the Association of British Credit Unions (ABCUL), the national trade association. Alan is also an international Credit Union Educator (ICUDE 2012). 

Tony Craggs - Treasurer

Tony worked for Hull City Council for 30 years before being transferred to Kingstown Works Ltd in 2012 where he is the Finance Manager in Fleet. He played Sunday League football for many years and was Treasurer of the amateur football club. Tony has been a Credit Union Director since 2004, and represented the Board on the Credit Committee. He was also Secretary of the Yorkshire Forum for ABCUL Credit Unions.

Allan Davidson

Allan first became involved in HEY Credit Union as a workplace representative and in 2001 was appointed volunteer Credit Control Officer, before being elected to the Board in 2009.

Allan has worked in the Highways and Traffic Section of Hull City Council since 1988, and is currently Sustainable Transport Officer, with a particular interest in promoting cycling. He has also served as Treasurer for an investment club and other interests include cinema, theatre and architecture.

Chloe Birr-Pixton

Chloe currently works with Citizens Advice Bureau on their Health Inequalities Project, funded by the Integrated Care Board to improve financial wellbeing in the community.  She has worked for over 20 years in the field of Education across Early Years, FE and HE and in the VCSE sector, including 10 years of leadership experience with key roles in local and national charities.  Chloe is studying MSc Human Resources Management part time at Hull University.  Skills and expertise include leadership of people and projects, volunteer management, service delivery, training, learning and organisational development.  In addition, she is a ‘Clore Social Fellow’ - a UK wide network of leaders supported by the London based charity The Clore Foundation. Through their intensive year long leadership programme they develop leaders with a social purpose, so they can transform their communities, organisations and the world around them. 

Chloe has been a HEYCU member since 2014 and became a Director in 2019.

Theresa Vaughan

A retired Teacher and Mental Health Nurse, Theresa has lived in West Hull for almost 30 years. She is an enthusiastic advocate of co-operative values and principles, being Secretary of the Co-operative Party's Humber Branch and its (dis)Ability Network as well as a Co-op Press Board Member.  In her working life Theresa was a teacher, mental health nurse, political and community activist.  In recent years she has been involved with developing Equality Networks and hosted online events such as the Co-operative Party's 2023 Equality Conference.  She was elected to the Board in December 2023.