New building society branches are preparing to open across district (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

New building society branches are preparing to open across district

9:00am Tuesday 29th May 2012 in News By Dolores Cowburn, Bradford Chief Reporter

Fourteen jobs will be created when Yorkshire Building Society opens three new branches across the district in Bingley, Ilkley and Pudsey in the coming weeks.

They are the first of 12 planned over the next two years.

Pudsey opens on Thursday, May 31, closely followed by Ilkley on Friday, June 8, and Bingley on Thursday, June 14.

Ian Bullock, sales and marketing director for YBS, said work on the Bingley branch was coming along nicely. “We are on course to open on June 11. Bingley will be the third branch opening in next three weeks, with offices in Pudsey and Ilkley opening in the next fortnight,” he said.

“The openings are part of our plans to extend our branch network with a further 12 offices over the next two years, taking the total number of Society branches in the Yorkshire region from 43 to 55 by the end of 2013.

“Being a building society is about more than just offering award-winning products and great service, it’s about serving the communities in which we are based and listening to what matters most to our members.

“Investing in our branch network shows just how much we believe in face-to-face service and we’re actively opening new branches at a time when many financial service providers are closing theirs and stepping away from face-to-face interaction with their customers.”

Mr Bullock said that YBS had been helping Yorkshire people get on the housing ladder and providing a safe and secure home for their savings for almost 150 years and said that they offer “a credible mutual alternative to the high street banks.”

Teams from Pudsey and Bingley, the branches yet to open, have kickstarted their support for projects by volunteering to transform part of the Old Coach House at the St Ives estate in Harden.

They painted rooms and set it up as an Information and Education Centre.

The teams supported the St Ives Estate as part of the Yorkshire’s Actionteering scheme where staff are encouraged to help the community.

Howard Martin, of Bingley Chamber of Trade & Commerce, said that anything that reduces the number of empty shop units in Bingley can be viewed in a positive light and, in this respect, the Yorkshire Building Society is no different.