Furness Building Societyr News http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/ A cash grant from Furness Building Society has given the joy of bike-riding freedom to 15-years-old Ashleigh Grove from Barrow who suffers from the rare condition Cri-du-Chat, a debilitating genetic condition that affects around 1 in 50,000 births. The £640 grant was used by Cerebra, the charity for brain injured children and young people, to purchase a special tricycle which gives Ashleigh valuable exercise as  well as the freedom to move under her own power. Ashleigh lives with her family, mum and dad Claire and Stuart and brother Liam, at Middlefield in Ormsgill and attends the George Hastwell School on Walney Island. Claire explains: “The trike has made a huge difference to Ashleigh because it means she can get around outside the home and play with other local children who are fantastic with her.  Importantly, it also provides a fun way for Ashleigh to exercise and helps maintain her fitness.  We never dreamed that she would be able to ride a bike, but she just loves it.” Here, Ashleigh is pictured putting her new trike through its paces with (from left) Furness Building Society Director of Sales and Marketing Martin Cutbill, dad Stuart and mum Claire. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/new-bike-gives-ashleigh-free-wheeling-freedom/ Tue, 20 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +0000 The British Heart Foundation has been handed an annual affinity account payment of almost £8,500 from Furness Building Society as part of the ‘You Save – We Give’ commitment to the UK charity. Area fundraising and volunteer manager Stephen Layden received the cheque from Furness Chief Executive Nigel Quinton.  Pictured with them are the BHF mascot Mr Hearty and local fund raising organiser Ray Short. Under the arrangement with Furness Building Society savers with British Heart Foundation affinity accounts receive healthy interest on their money, and the Society makes an annual payment from its own funds to the charity, equivalent to 1 percent of the average total deposits in the all of the BHF accounts. Stephen Layden commented: “The annual payment made by the Society is a valuable boost to our fund raising efforts and our supporters are earning money for the charity simply by saving in the affinity accounts without touching any of their own cash.  It is a perfect ‘win-win’ situation for the British Heart Foundation and our supporters.” http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/big-hearted-savers-boost-furness-affinity-account-payout-for-charity/ Mon, 06 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 The North West Air Ambulance dropped into Walney Airfield to pick up a cheque for more than £112,000 from Furness Building Society, the annual payment made to the charity under the Society’s ‘You Save-We Give’ affinity account scheme Mark Carroll Head of Development for NWAA received the cheque from Furness Building Society Chief Executive Nigel Quinton.  The annual payment is made as part of the arrangement with the charity under which supporters save in NWAA branded affinity accounts and receive interest on their money, while the Society makes an annual payment from its own funds equivalent to 1 per cent of the average balances in all of the Air Ambulance accounts. Mark Carroll explains: “A huge payment such as this can keep the Air Ambulance flying for a month saving lives across the North West, and so we are hugely grateful to all of our supporters who keep on saving in the Affinity Accounts.  They receive interest on their money and the Society recognises their commitment with the annual payment from its own funds.  It is a perfect partnership.” The North West Air Ambulance is a regular visitor to the BAE Systems airfield on Walney where the company supports the service by providing free fuel to top up the aircraft tanks, which extends their operational availability to respond to emergency calls. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/air-ambulance-drops-in-to-pick-up-112-000-furness-affinity-cheque/ Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Showstopping Performances in Furness Charity Challenge Final January 22 2012 The Furness Charity Challenge produced a sensational final show at the Lancaster Grand Theatre on Saturday with more than £3,000 handed out in prizes to the finalists from across the North West competing on behalf of charities. The competition was organised by Furness Building Society to spotlight the work of local charities and encourage people to get involved.  The impressive quality of all the finalists presented a tough job to the judges led by Furness Chief Executive Nigel Quinton, but they finally chose 3 winners to receive the top awards.  In first place was  17 years old Kingsley Judd, from Penwortham near Preston who delivered a show-stopping version of ‘Stars’ from West End hit show ‘Les Miserables’.  He collected a cheque for £1,000 to split between two charities; Headway, the UK brain injuries charity, and Twinkle House a charity that provides sensory-based practical support to children and young people in Lancashire. In second place was Emily Adams who wowed the audience with her powerhouse delivery of the Nina Simone classic ‘Feeling Good’.  Emily, aged 16, was presented with a cheque for £750 for the Trinity Hospice in Blackpool. In third place was the Revelation gymnastics and dance group which is part of City of Lancaster Gymnastics.  The team of 14 girls aged between 8 and 20 delighted the packed theatre with dance routines, daring lifts and acrobatics high in the air.  They received a cheque for £500 for their nominated charity – Daisy UK a charity supporting Disability Awareness in Sport.  Furness Building Society Chief Executive Nigel Quinton commented: “It was a fantastic show and the standard of all the performances was amazingly high.  It is wonderful that so many talented people are willing to stand up and do something for their chosen charity – but it certainly made our job as judges very difficult.” His views were echoed by Bay Radio presenter Darren Milby, another of the five judges:  “I helped judge the competition last year and the quality just keeps getting better.  There were some terrific performances tonight and any of them would have made a worthy winner.” None of the performers went away empty handed, however, because a place in the final automatically qualified them for a £100 payment to their chosen charity. Other standout talent on show in the final included Barrow finalists Megan Doherty, Jessie Conway, and Olivia Lumb. Megan aged 13, from Almond Walk, Barrow and was singing on behalf of Multiple Sclerosis Society.   She performed a stunning acoustic version of the Bruno Mars hit song ‘Grenade’. Jessie aged 25, of Bank Spring Brewery, Kirkstanton, was representing the British Heart Foundation and captivated the theatre with a beautiful rendition of ‘Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again’ from ‘Phantom of the Opera’. Olivia, aged 17, from Lancewood Crescent, Barrow-in-Furness performed an atmospheric acoustic version of the Bob Marley classic ‘Redemption Song’.  She was singing on behalf of Animal Refuge Furness The judges also had special praise for consultant oncologist Alison Birtle who took to the Charity Challenge stage at the last minute on behalf of Rosemere Cancer Foundation, after Barrow primary school teacher Katherine Smith had to pull out due to illness.  Katherine was due to perform on behalf of the Alice Pyne Bone Marrow Donor appeal.  Alison enchanted the audience with ‘Someone Like You’ from the hit musical Jekyll and Hyde on behalf of Rosemere which provides support for cancer services in South Lakes and Lancashire.  Another finalist who had to cancel on the very day of the show due to ill health was Heather Crozier who was due to appear for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Appeal. But there was still plenty of talent for the audience to cheer. Tom Seals from Crewe in Cheshire, aged 18, performing on behalf of Jayde’s Charity, sang Michael Buble’s ‘Home’ and then rocked the theatre with an impromptu rendition of ‘You Ain’t Nothin’ But A Hound Dog’ Josh Taylor from Bolton, aged 13, was performing on behalf of the campaign to save Bolton Theatre Church, and sang the New Dimension hit ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. Hannah Jowle, aged 15, from Blackpool gave a breathtaking "Pie Jesu" from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Requiem Mass.  She was singing on behalf of Lancashire Boys and Girls Clubs. Finally, the Baines School Ukulele Orchestra provided a rousing tongue-in-cheek version of Gloria Gaynor’s ‘I Will Survive’, performing to raise money for Baines School in Blackpool. And a special guest who entertained the audience while the judges made their deliberations was Amy Jo Clough, the winner of last year’s final representing the Ryan Stanford Appeal.  Amy dedicated her performance this year to Ryan, and also paid special tribute to Ian Bell, General Manager Marketing and Development for the Furness who originally conceived the Charity Challenge, but who tragically died last year just as the new competition was about to start http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/furness-charity-challenge-final/ Mon, 23 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Showstopping Performances in Furness Charity Challenge Final January 22 2012 The Furness Charity Challenge produced a sensational final show at the Lancaster Grand Theatre on Saturday with more than £3,000 handed out in prizes to the finalists from across the North West competing on behalf of charities. The competition was organised by Furness Building Society to spotlight the work of local charities and encourage people to get involved.  The impressive quality of all the finalists presented a tough job to the judges led by Furness Chief Executive Nigel Quinton, but they finally chose 3 winners to receive the top awards.  In first place was  17 years old Kingsley Judd, from Penwortham near Preston who delivered a show-stopping version of ‘Stars’ from West End hit show ‘Les Miserables’.  He collected a cheque for £1,000 to split between two charities; Headway, the UK brain injuries charity, and Twinkle House a charity that provides sensory-based practical support to children and young people in Lancashire. In second place was Emily Adams who wowed the audience with her powerhouse delivery of the Nina Simone classic ‘Feeling Good’.  Emily, aged 16, was presented with a cheque for £750 for the Trinity Hospice in Blackpool. In third place was the Revelation gymnastics and dance group which is part of City of Lancaster Gymnastics.  The team of 14 girls aged between 8 and 20 delighted the packed theatre with dance routines, daring lifts and acrobatics high in the air.  They received a cheque for £500 for their nominated charity – Daisy UK a charity supporting Disability Awareness in Sport.  Furness Building Society Chief Executive Nigel Quinton commented: “It was a fantastic show and the standard of all the performances was amazingly high.  It is wonderful that so many talented people are willing to stand up and do something for their chosen charity – but it certainly made our job as judges very difficult.” His views were echoed by Bay Radio presenter Darren Milby, another of the five judges:  “I helped judge the competition last year and the quality just keeps getting better.  There were some terrific performances tonight and any of them would have made a worthy winner.” None of the performers went away empty handed, however, because a place in the final automatically qualified them for a £100 payment to their chosen charity. Other standout talent on show in the final included Barrow finalists Megan Doherty, Jessie Conway, and Olivia Lumb. Megan aged 13, from Almond Walk, Barrow and was singing on behalf of Multiple Sclerosis Society.   She performed a stunning acoustic version of the Bruno Mars hit song ‘Grenade’. Jessie aged 25, of Bank Spring Brewery, Kirkstanton, was representing the British Heart Foundation and captivated the theatre with a beautiful rendition of ‘Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again’ from ‘Phantom of the Opera’. Olivia, aged 17, from Lancewood Crescent, Barrow-in-Furness performed an atmospheric acoustic version of the Bob Marley classic ‘Redemption Song’.  She was singing on behalf of Animal Refuge Furness The judges also had special praise for consultant oncologist Alison Birtle who took to the Charity Challenge stage at the last minute on behalf of Rosemere Cancer Foundation, after Barrow primary school teacher Katherine Smith had to pull out due to illness.  Katherine was due to perform on behalf of the Alice Pyne Bone Marrow Donor appeal.  Alison enchanted the audience with ‘Someone Like You’ from the hit musical Jekyll and Hyde on behalf of Rosemere which provides support for cancer services in South Lakes and Lancashire.  Another finalist who had to cancel on the very day of the show due to ill health was Heather Crozier who was due to appear for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Appeal. But there was still plenty of talent for the audience to cheer. Tom Seals from Crewe in Cheshire, aged 18, performing on behalf of Jayde’s Charity, sang Michael Buble’s ‘Home’ and then rocked the theatre with an impromptu rendition of ‘You Ain’t Nothin’ But A Hound Dog’ Josh Taylor from Bolton, aged 13, was performing on behalf of the campaign to save Bolton Theatre Church, and sang the New Dimension hit ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. Hannah Jowle, aged 15, from Blackpool gave a breathtaking "Pie Jesu" from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Requiem Mass.  She was singing on behalf of Lancashire Boys and Girls Clubs. Finally, the Baines School Ukulele Orchestra provided a rousing tongue-in-cheek version of Gloria Gaynor’s ‘I Will Survive’, performing to raise money for Baines School in Blackpool. And a special guest who entertained the audience while the judges made their deliberations was Amy Jo Clough, the winner of last year’s final representing the Ryan Stanford Appeal.  Amy dedicated her performance this year to Ryan, and also paid special tribute to Ian Bell, General Manager Marketing and Development for the Furness who originally conceived the Charity Challenge, but who tragically died last year just as the new competition was about to start. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/showstopping-performances-in-furness-charity-challenge-final/ Mon, 23 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Furness Staff raise funds for NSPCC Furness Staff turned out full of festive spirit in support of Barrow's Christmas Markets which were held over the weekend 9th-11th December.  Barrow town centre was full of festive log cabins with live music and mulled wine on offer in the town.  Over the weekend Furness staff teamed up with NSPCC fundraisers and operated a tombola and name the toys competition raising a fantastic £625 for NSPCC.  Furness staff also handed out balloons and goody bags which promoted Furness Building Society products such as the Furness Festive Bond, Furness Festive Lifestyle Saver, Furness Junior Cash ISA and the NSPCC Affinity Account.   To find out more about the savings accounts and our full range of affinity accounts visit our savings pages http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/making-barrow-magical-with-the-furness/ Mon, 12 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0000 Local people have donated almost £3,580 for the East Africa Crisis Appeal through Furness Building Society’s branch network. The cheque has now been sent to the Disaster Emergency Committee co-ordinating fund-raising to help famine and drought victims in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya where millions of people are struggling to survive. Investment Administration Manager Jill Probert who co-ordinated the collection said: “Local people have been extremely generous in supporting the appeal and we were delighted to hand over this substantial amount to such a worthy cause.” Jill is pictured (far right) with the cheque for the East Africa Crisis Appeal donations, and (from left) Yvonne Athersmith, Area Manager for Barrow and branch assistant Joe Constantine. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/east-africa-crisis-appeal/ Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000 Up, up and away Piers Cleaver, Lancaster Area Manager and his colleague Kirsty Brown are set to take part in a reverse bungee challenge in aid of The Christie New Patient Centre, Manchester. The challenge will take place on Sunday 27th November at the Toby Carvery, Lancaster Road in Morecambe and Kirsty and Piers are booked in for 5 pm.  The brave pair will be seated in an open framed twin seated metal cage and will be catapulted skyward to 200ft in less than 1.4 seconds !! If you would like to help raise money for this worthy cause, why not visit http://www.justgiving.com/Kirsty-Brown6 and make a donation. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/up-up-and-away/ Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000 Furness Building Society raises vital funds for RNLI              Barrow lifeboat Coxswain Shaun Charnley (left) is pictured with Yvonne Athersmith, Furness Building Society area manager for Barrow and John Falvey from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, receiving a cheque for £514 raised by the ‘Brew for a Crew’ event at the Society’s Duke Street branch. Furness Building Society members and Royal National Lifeboat Institution crew members and supporters shared cakes and cuppas to support the charity. RNLI Ladies Guild members ran a tombola and raffle, and Furness staff also promoted the new RNLI affinity account.  The RNLI account offers supporters the opportunity to raise money.  Open an RNLI affinity account and the Furness will make a cash payment each year of 1% of the total of all of the balances held in RNLI affinity accounts.  Yvonne Athersmith commented: “Visitors to the branch obviously enjoyed the opportunity to support the charity, and we also opened a number of new affinity accounts so it was a tremendous response from Barrow.” http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/furness-building-society-makes-a-brew-for-the-crew/ Wed, 19 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000 You may have heard that Chief Executive, Rob Cairns will shortly be retiring.  We have arranged a couple of Member Talkback Sessions so that Rob can say goodbye to as many of you as possible.  Accompanying Rob will be Chairman Peter Hensman who will be very keen to hear members' views and any ideas or suggestions for the Society. There are two sessions, one in Preston and one in Barrow The sessions are taking place very soon so, if you would like to attend please get in touch - by phone on 01229 845211, or by email at ask@furness-bs.co.uk. We really value our members' feedback and would love to see you and hear your views. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/member-talkback-sessions/ Wed, 28 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0000 Furness Building Society has strengthened its mortgage team by appointing two new regional development managers.  The society has developed new mortgage products that have achieved “Best Buy” status on Moneyfacts comparison website.  Business through mortgage brokers has reached its highest level for more than a year and increased by around 75 per cent over the last month. Ian Bell, General Manager, Marketing and Development said “There has been an excellent response to our new fixed rate and discounted mortgage products which is bringing in new mortgage customers from across the country, in particular through the mortgage brokers.  “Strengthening our regional development team will enable us to further build our relationships with mortgage brokers and extend to them the same sort of friendly personal service that customers get across the counter in our branches when taking advantage of these industry-leading products”. The regional development managers are John Thompson, Tina Bowles and Phil Lawford. John has been with the Furness for almost 30 years.  He lives in Ulverston and covers the north of England from Barrow across to the North East, up to the Scottish Borders and down to Preston.  Tina Bowles spent 15 years with the Skipton Building Society supporting mortgage brokers and also worked with the Mortgage Brain mortgage broker intelligence web service before joining the Furness.  She is based in Knutsford, Cheshire and will support brokers in the area from Preston south to Cheshire, and across Liverpool, Manchester and north Wales. Phil Lawford is based in Stafford and will support brokers across Staffordshire, the Midlands and central Wales for Furness Building Society. He previously worked in a similar role with the West Bromwich Building Society and most recently worked for one of the UK’s largest finance brokers.     http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/meet-the-team/ Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000 Supporters of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) can now save lives while they save money, thanks to a new affinity account just launched by Furness Building Society.   The lifeboat charity could receive thousands of pounds a year thanks to the link-up with the building society.  And to mark the launch, executives from the Furness will visit Barrow RNLI lifeboat station on 7 July to meet volunteer crew members and find out more about their lifesaving role. Alec Moore MBE, Barrow RNLI coxswain, said the RNLI Affinity Account managed by Furness Building Society would be a great boost to the RNLI. He added: ‘We were delighted to hear the Furness wanted to support the RNLI in this way. As a charity, the RNLI relies on the generosity of the public to keep our lifeboat service running and this is giving people a new way to help us without it costing them anything. I’m looking forward to meeting the team from the Furness and showing them how their support will help our volunteer crew save lives at sea.’ Furness Building Society has 11 branches in the north of England but the RNLI affinity account is open to investors throughout the UK.  Investors can open an account with as little as £1 or up to £250,000 and can have access to their money without notice or penalty if they want to make a withdrawal. Savers can receive a higher rate of interest on their savings because it is calculated on the rate for the total of the deposits in the RNLI affinity accounts nationwide. The Society will make an annual cash payment to the RNLI from its own funds equal to 1% of the average balance held in all the affinity accounts. In 2010, Furness Building Society paid out more than £368,000 to its charity affinity partners, with a local hospice and air ambulance service each receiving more than £100,000. The RNLI hopes to match these amounts.  Furness Building Society Chief Executive Rob Cairns said: ‘We are delighted to be partnering the RNLI with an affinity account.  As a mutual building society the wellbeing of the community is at the heart of our business and affinity accounts offer mutual benefits that work for everyone concerned because the more supporters save, the more the Society gives.’ This is the first time the RNLI has gone into partnership with a building society to offer its supporters an affinity savings account. Catherine Kaye, RNLI Corporate Partnerships Manager, said it was an exciting opportunity to forge a partnership with a long-established organisation. She added: ‘Just like the RNLI, the Furness has its heart in the local community and shares many of our values, such as trustworthiness and dependability. With the recession starting to bite, we have to find new and innovative ways to fund our lifeboat service. This new relationship with the Furness will hopefully provide a substantial amount of funding for our charity, enabling supporters to contribute to the RNLI without it actually costing them a penny.’ To open an account, investors can call into a local Furness branch or agency, or to open an account by post simply download an application form at www.furnessbs.co.uk.  The website also lists locations of Furness branches and agencies.  Alternatively call Furness Building Society on 0800 834312. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/save-lives-while-you-save-money-with-the-rnli-and-furness-building-society/ Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000 Branches and Agencies Manager Barry Fitzsimmons is to cycle from Barrow to Manchester to raise funds for both hospitals who treated his daughter Mary, here Barry tells us story behind the cycle ride.  Mary was born on 24th August 2010 with Downs Syndrome. Whilst she is now enjoying a full and active life her first 6 months were extremely turbulent as she had to endured the majority of her time in hospital.   Her problems stemmed from having hypertension, heart problems and failing to thrive. During November last year Mary's health deteriorated rapidly after picking up bronchiolitis which compounded her heart problems. Her conditions resulted in an emergency transfer from Barrow to the Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital where she stayed for over 31 nights. For 20 of those days she was supported by a life support machine, we were told during this time that her chances were no more than 50/50 for survival. Whilst in hospital she also had to cope with heart surgery then two collapsed lungs.   Thankfully since January, Mary has been fit and healthy and we are now raising money for both the Children's Ward at Furness General Hospital and the Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Manchester Hospital by cycling between both hospitals on the 17th September. We are doing this as a way of saying THANK YOU to both hospitals and in doing so, helping the hospitals maintain the excellent care they provide.    Whilst all monies donated on Barry's just giving page will go to the Furness General Hospital, the total donations overall will be split between Furness General Hospital and Royal Manchester Hospital. The final amounts will be calculated using the Just Giving page totals and amounts collected from sponsor forms.  If you would like to help please visit Barry's just giving page below. http://www.justgiving.com/Barry-Fitzsimmons/1 Thank you very much for taking time to read Barry and Mary's story. Barry (Mary's dad) http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/cycle-ride-from-furness-general-hospital-to-royal-manchester-childrens-hospital-for-mary-fitzsimmons/ Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000 WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS Ulverston Rangers celebrated victory in the FA Under 18s Lancashire Youth Cup competition sponsored by Furness Building Society.  The team turned out with the trophy at the local branch to meet Ulverston area manager Ian Quayle, who attended the match and was full of praise for the iron nerves of the team in a nail-biting penalty shoot-out . Rangers were locked in a 0-0 stalemate with Wigan-based Ashton Athletic after 90 minutes of the game played at Leyland in Lancashire.  With no extra-time being played, the game went straight to penalties.  A couple of excellent saves by Ulverston’s man-of-the-match Jarek Bitner and a match-winning penalty from Liam Curwen sealed the win for Ulverston. Manager Steve Tweddell said: “It was a fantastic win for the under-18s and for the club; they deserved it with all the hard work that has been put in previous rounds and in training. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/ulverston-rangers-trophy/ Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000   Barrow AFC’s Holker Street Stadium is to be renamed Furness Building Society Stadium under a sponsorship deal agreed for the start of the new season. It will be the first time Holker Street has been formally named since it became the home of Barrow AFC in 1909, the year after the club won promotion to the first division of the Lancashire Combination League. Barrow AFC chairman Brian Keen welcomed the sponsorship by Furness Building Society.  He explained: “Both the club and the Society have long histories and are an integral part of Barrow and its character – it is a natural pairing which we hope will develop as a winning combination for the Club, the Society and the town itself.  In these tough economic times football clubs need to build relationships with local businesses and we are delighted that the Furness has stepped up to support Barrow AFC.” Furness Building Society Chief Executive Rob Cairns, who is an enthusiastic Bluebirds supporter, said he was delighted that the stadium would now carry the Society’s name. He commented: “We are all extremely proud to be connected with Barrow AFC in such a high profile way.  The club’s importance as a symbol of Barrow cannot be underestimated and we are hopeful that there will be further success in the coming season and, who knows, perhaps another trip to Wembley.” Sponsorship of the stadium is the latest in a long relationship between the Furness and Barrow AFC which includes the Bluebirds Affinity Account operated by the Society.  Under the arrangements for the ‘You Save – We Give’ account, the Society makes an annual payment to the Club from its own funds based on a percentage of the average total balance in all of the Barrow AFC affinity accounts, while savers receive interest on their money in the instant access accounts. The new signage for the ground will be seen by the fans for the first time on Saturday at the home game against Tamworth which kicks off the season. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/barrow-afc-holker-street-home-renamed-furness-building-society-stadium/ Tue, 16 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000 The Grange branch staff of the Furness Building Society recently attended the Holker Show to promote ‘www.asktom.net’ and our investment products to attendees of the show. In addition, the branch also got involved helping out our Ulverston branch making cupcakes to support the Ulverston Carnival and St Mary's Hospice. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/holker-show/ Thu, 11 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000 The Ulverston branch of the Furness Building Society recently got involved in the Ulverston Carnival with the branch staff making cupcakes in the run up to the event and selling them in branch to support the event's main sponsors, St Mary's Hospice. Our efforts were recognised in both the local press and radio and we were congratulated for our ingenuity and community spirit. http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/ulverston-carnival/ Thu, 11 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000 After over 23 years on the Board at Furness Building Society, Chairman Avril Willis retired at last week’s Annual General Meeting. She will be replaced by Peter Hensman who became a non-executive director of the Furness in 2003 and has spent the last three years as Vice Chairman of the Society. Mr Hensman studied Engineering at Cambridge University and subsequently qualified as a Chartered Accountant. He was Finance Director and then Managing Director of Gilbert Gilkes and Gordon, the Kendal engineers, between 1980 and 2000 and presently he is a director of various tourism related businesses including Ullswater Steamers and the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway. He is also a member of the Board of the Northwest Regional Development Agency, a director of Business Link Northwest as well as being Chairman of Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency and Kendal Futures Board. Rob Cairns, Chief Executive of Furness Building Society, stated that 'after making such a tremendous contribution to the Society for approaching a quarter of a century, the wise counsel of Avril Willis will be very much missed but it is excellent for the Society to be able to replace her with someone as aptly qualified as Peter Hensman.' Peter Hensman commented 'I am delighted to be taking on the Chairmanship of such a successful and strong Building Society as the Furness. The Society plays an important role not only as a safe home for savings and a source of good value mortgages but also as part of the community in the Furness area and across the North West. I look forward to working with the excellent team at the Furness to ensure that this continues.' http://www.furnessbs.co.uk/news/change-of-chairman-at-the-furness/ Thu, 21 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0000