It wants to further support customers who struggle with number comprehension
The West Bromwich Building Society (West Brom) has become the first building society in the country to become a Plain Numbers partner.
Plain Numbers, which was founded in 2021, shares best practice with regulated organisations on how to present and explain numbers as clearly as possible to improve customer understanding.
As part of the three-year partnership, the West Brom will put forward 15 colleagues to become Plain Numbers practitioners.
“Misunderstanding and lack of confidence when dealing with finances can lead to unnecessary worry and stress for many people, especially during these difficult times we’re currently facing,” Jonathan Westhoff, chief executive at the West Bromwich Building Society, said. “It’s important to us that our customers understand their finances and the options available to them, so we’re delighted to have partnered with Plain Numbers.
“We’re looking forward to working with them to identify opportunities to further enhance peoples’ understanding of our offerings as we drive forward on our purpose, increasing the access to homeownership for more and more people.”
“Research has shown that adult numeracy levels are consistently lower than literacy levels in the UK,” Mike Ellicock, chief executive and co-founder of Plain Numbers, pointed out. “It’s estimated that almost half of working adults have the numeracy skills expected of a primary school child, so we’re excited to start a partnership with the West Brom and with a new sector.
“They are the first member of the Building Societies Association to become a partner, and we are delighted to be working together to help their customers make better informed choices around numbers. We can’t wait to welcome the first set of practitioners from West Brom on to the training.”
