Metro Bank, the UK’s community bank, recently welcomed Wera Hobhouse, Member of Parliament for Bath to its Stall Street store.
Hosted by Bath Metro Bank’s Local Director, James Rowsell, Wera enjoyed a tour of the bank including the vault, safe deposit boxes, private viewing rooms and Magic Money Machine, while James explained about the Bank’s community focus, relationship banking and its aim to exceed expectations on service. Wera was pleased to hear that the store operates in the evenings and weekends and appreciated the face-to-face service that local businesses enjoyed as each is assigned a local business manager.
James explained how his team supports local businesses, including SMEs and charities. “We talked about Metro Bank’s commitment to the local community and the many ways in which we proactively engage with and support local businesses and individuals, on top of providing access to cash and face-to-face banking services. Our relationship-based approach really helps local businesses thrive and sets us apart from other high street banks.”
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, commented: “Visiting Metro Bank provided an interesting opportunity to learn more about their community-focused work. Their commitment to breaking down barriers faced by those with limited access to or knowledge about technology is impressive. It was particularly pleasing to hear about their efforts to support Ukrainian refugees set up accounts. It is always a pleasure to see businesses take such an active role in supporting our local community.”
Wera and James spoke about the current cost of living challenges and how they are impacting people and businesses in the heart of bath. Wera was also interested to hear about the store team’s range of activities in the local community, including hosting business networking events, so business customers can connect with each other. James also mentioned that the Bath store supports local charities via activities such as the Big Bath Sleep Out in March and delivers the Money Zone free financial education programme in local schools. Metro Bank’s physical presence in the community is central to its ambition of becoming the number one community bank.
Metro Bank’s Bath store is located at 18-19 Stall Street, Bath, BA1 1QB. The store is open Monday to Saturday: 8.30am to 6pm, Sundays: 11am to 5pm. Bath Metro Bank is also part of the Safe Space scheme – the store is available to anyone experiencing, or at risk of domestic abuse, providing the opportunity to safely call a helpline, support service or loved one.