Naomi Kingsley, LRS founder and chief executive, said Pritchard’s appointment alongside Simon Green, Richard Butler and chair Steve Round gave LRS its strongest board to date.
She said: “With backgrounds in sectors as diverse as equity release, renewable energy, insurance and equalities, the current board members have the expertise and experience to take LRS through to the next stage in realising our vision of fair and affordable financial services for all.
“They have joined LRS at an exciting time. It is an organisation that is no longer dependent on grants, generates sustainable revenue, delivers quantified social impact and remains at the forefront of social innovation.”
LRS was founded over 10 years ago and has ambitions to be a community bank with 10,000 members. It’s remit is to finance and support enterprises and organisations that have a positive environmental and social impact. It also provides finance for individuals struggling to access affordable finance and credit through its mutual aid fund.
LRS also offers a home improvement scheme and Shimmer, a digital service that lets people manage their finances through their TV.
With the home improvement scheme, homeowners are referred to London Rebuilding Society through their IFA, local authority, service provider or care agency. LRS then provides the homeowner with a bespoke package of services for their housing, health and financial needs – from home improvements to debt advice. It then pays all costs upfront and takes a second charge on the property, which is then redeemed on death or sale.
Pritchard said: “LRS is something rather exceptional. The capital we raise is invested to make a real difference to people’s lives. We lend, borrowers repay, and the capital is returned and invested again and again. Basically we make money work hard to make London a better place.”
Kingsley added: “Our work behind the scenes, lobbying government and bringing organisations with similar missions together to speak with a unified voice has established LRS as a leader in a new financial sector that is showing that there really is an alternative to the big banks.
“That alternative is a financial sector which cares about people – not just profit. It is a financial sector whose purpose is to serve its customers, not just exploit them for short-term gain: a financial sector that contributes to sustainable economic growth, flourishing local communities and a healthy environment.”
