Title five years running for mutual

A Stafford-based building society which has managed to beat the credit crunch has won a prestigious national award for the fifth year running.

The Stafford Railway was given What Mortgage magazine’s much coveted Lender Of The Year title and also came top in the magazine’s National Building Society category.

The society, which is 130 years old this year, beat off tough competition from more than 100 banks and building societies, including Halifax and HSBC.

Chief executive Mike Heenan said: “We’ve proved once again that you don’t have to be the biggest to be the best. The awards show we can successfully compete with high street and on-line mortgage providers.

“To win the awards for the fifth year running is a fantastic achievement and I’d like to thank all staff and members for their ongoing commitment.

“We’ve achieved success by refraining from introducing headline-grabbing rates and instead concentrating on offering straightforward products and consistent good value rates.”

The awards, which What Mortgage magazine has been running for more than 10 years and which are based on the interest charged on a £100,000 mortgage over five years, were handed out at a ceremony in London.

In April the Railway succeeded in making increased earnings on the market because of its surplus liquidity through refusing mortgages to anyone outside the area.

Mr Heenan said the step was taken to protect the 9,000 members of the society, which is one of 61 remaining UK mutuals.

“We have had a considerable increase in the flow of applications for mortgages since the beginning of March,” Mr Heenan said at the time.

“At the end of the day we have to balance what we get in savings with what we lend out. Restricting lending to the local area is not a sign of weakness. We have not withdrawn from offering mortgages and we have not put our 5.99 per cent rate up.”