How one bank has made a difference

BEING ABLE TO SUPPORT OUR CUSTOMERS THROUGH THIS CHALLENGING TIME HAS BEEN SO REWARDING SAYS ROB TINSLEY, BANK MANAGER AT LLOYDS BANK IN CENTRAL LEICESTER

provide an essential service to the public and to businesses, so it is critical they remain open and safe during the pandemic. The Leicester High

branch of Lloyds Bank is the bank’s largest in the city and has been open to customers throughout the year.

Rob Tinsley has been with Lloyds Bank for eight years and has been manager of the Leicester High Street branch for the past 18 months. Rob stresses how important it has been for the bank to have adapted to offer the right services and support that people need: whether they want to talk over the phone, or safely to Lloyds’ staff in person in branch.

Access to banking services has been vital for the elderly and the vulnerable who may have been more feeling isolated by the pandemic – and indeed it has been a lifeline to many. “We usually see the same elderly people come into the branch. For many, it’s a chance to get out and talk to someone,” he explains.

Lloyds also offers free help accessing online services to customers who are unable to visit a branch. “We ask customers who come into the branch about their internet access,” Rob says. “I saw one gentleman recently who we’d got set up online. He said he now felt more confident logging into his account, which was great to hear.”

DEDICATED SERVICES

Since the start of the pandemic, Lloyds Bank has offered services for customers who most need them with dedicated priority numbers for workers and those aged over 70. For the latter, the bank also shared guidance on how to stay safe from fraud, as well as how to get online, with help from the bank’s digital inclusion team.

In addition to providing hundreds of thousands of customers with breathing space and payment holidays, for those facing reduced income or financial insecurity, the bank shared tailored advice from its partnership with Mental Health UK to help customers manage the stress that money worries can create. “Lloyds Bank colleagues all over the country have been calling customers to see how they are coping. They really felt they were making a difference for elderly people who weren’t getting out this year,” Rob recalls. “Often, they were so happy to speak to someone.” With lower footfall in Leicester City Centre and the student population away for much of the summer, the pandemic has been tough on local businesses. The High Street branch adapted quickly to help. “Some customers are out of work or on a reduced income, so we have been working to find out how we can help with payment holidays, or reduced payments,” Rob explains. “Whatever the circumstances, customers shouldn’t worry about asking if they need help.”

Providing more bespoke support to customers is something the bank has done more of in recent months. This has included contacting local customers who have worked for companies that have announced mass redundancies and also people whose income has dropped by 20% or more, about the specific help and support available.

TEAM SUPPORT

To help staff manage the day-to-day challenge of Covid-19, the branch has been focusing on wellbeing and supporting each other. “What we’ve all discovered as a team is that people do amazing things in troubled times,” Rob says. “There’s a real sense we’re all in this together. And if people are happy at work, that comes across.”

Rob concludes: “You want to see the good in everyone and the staff are proud of how we’re coming through it. I’m hugely proud of the way we’re supporting our customers right now.”

Rob Tinsley