In the last five years building societies have:
 

• Helped almost half a million first-time buyers get on the property ladder

• Paid savers more than £5.4 billion more interest than the big banks

• Increased their share of high street branches to 30% (from 20%) 

Customer-owned building societies and credit unions prioritise customers over profit. Their culture, behaviour and decisions are different to banks which results in their customers getting better products, fairer rates and better services.

Building societies’ reason for existing is fundamentally the same as it was when the first building society was set up 250 years ago – to provide a place for people’s savings and to use these to help ordinary working people to buy a home of their own. 

The main difference to banks is that building societies do not have any external shareholders. They are owned by their 25 million customers, who automatically become a member when they take out a mortgage or open a savings account. So whilst banks’ primary focus must be on maximising profits to pay out to their external shareholders, building societies make enough profit to ensure they remain safe and sustainable, with any further profit reinvested back in the business and local communities, giving their customers overall better value and service. 

Supporting homeownership
 

Building societies have a strong history of offering innovative mortgage products to overcome the barriers faced by people trying to buy their own home, particularly first-time buyers. In the last five years they have helped almost half a million (496,760)¹ aspiring homeowners by providing them with a mortgage to buy their first home. 

Indeed, it is building societies which have provided almost all of the recent growth in the mortgage market (89% in the nine months to Sept 2024). Strong evidence that they continue to find solutions to the challenges facing today’s homeowners and aspiring homeowners.

Supporting savings aspirations
 

Helping people to build financial resilience and make the most of their savings is equally important to building societies as supporting people into homeownership.  

In the last five years, building society savers received an extra £5.4 billion more in interest² than if they had been paid the average rates offered by large banks. 

It’s not surprising that with better overall value provided by building societies, in the nine months to September 2024 they attracted £20.7 billion in cash savings, accounting for more than a third (34%) of all the growth in UK savings balances.

Supporting communities
 

In prioritising their customers, building societies and credit unions support and invest in their local communities, through charitable partnerships, community projects and employee volunteering. 

Building societies are more likely than banks to retain their branches, providing 30%* of current high street branches, 50% more than their share (20%) five years ago.  Some have committed to retain high street branches and others are innovating to develop the branch of the future. 

No wonder 72% of building society customers said they are an important part of their community, compared to just 54% of bank customers .

Robin Fieth, Chief Executive of the Building Societies Association (BSA) said:
 

“Building societies have never lost sight of their purpose to help their members to save and to become homeowners. 

“Their business model doesn’t rely on profit maximisation to line the pockets of external shareholders, it prioritises the needs of their customers, the members, and delivers value to them and their communities. At 250 years old, you could say they are the original B Corp!  

“I am proud that the way customer-owned building societies and credit unions do business is different to the banks. We are the original money movement, set up by ordinary working people, for ordinary working people and to help local communities to thrive. 

“Anyone who is looking for a new mortgage or savings account, I’d recommend consciously thinking about who you choose to do business with. You could find an organisation that genuinely cares about their customers, who treats them as an individual, and keeps them at the heart of every decision they make.”  

[ENDS] 

Notes to Editors:

*Doesn’t include the branches of Virgin Money or Co-operative Bank which are now owned by building societies.

¹ In the five years to Sept 2024
² 2019-2023 additional savings interest vs average market rates

Find out more: visit https://theoriginalmoneymovement.co.uk/

Building Societies
Building societies have been around for 250 years and now have total assets of almost £525 billion and together with their subsidiaries, hold residential mortgages of over £395 billion, 24% of the total outstanding in the UK. They also hold £399 billion of retail deposits, accounting for 19% of all such deposits in the UK. Building societies account for 40% of all cash ISA balances. Savings held with building societies are used to fund the mortgages that they provide. 

With all their headquarters outside London, building societies employ around 52,300 full and part-time staff.  In addition to digital services, they operate through approximately 1,300 branches, holding a 30% share of branches across the UK.

You can find out more about building societies’ purpose and its impact here.

Credit Unions
Credit unions are member-co-operatives, providing savings and loans to members who all share a common bond. This typically means they are either based in their local community or their members work in the same sector. Credit unions promote regular savings, offer personal loans and some also provide mortgages. Their members’ needs are at the heart of their business.

The first credit unions in the UK started in the 1960s, often founded by immigrants with experience of credit unions in the West Indies and Ireland.

The Building Societies Association (BSA)

The BSA represents all 42 UK building societies and both mutual-owned banks as well as 7 of the largest credit unions. 

Press contacts:

Tanya Jackson, tanya.jackson@bsa.org.uk  Tel: 07881 501098
Katie Wise, katie.wise@bsa.org.uk  Tel: 020 7520 5904
Lauryn Willis, lauryn.willis@bsa.org.uk Tel: 0207 520 5922