Furness Building Society

What Furness Building Society does

Furness Building Society is a mutual financial institution founded in 1865 and headquartered in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. It operates as a member-owned building society under the Building Societies Act, regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority (registration number 159624), with deposits protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £120,000. The society's core business is split between residential and buy-to-let mortgage lending and deposit-taking via savings products, with operations primarily focused on the North West of England while serving residents across England, Wales, and Scotland.

The society operates a multi-channel distribution model combining a physical branch network in the North West, a telephone contact centre, a digital self-service platform (the Furness Savings mobile app for iOS and Android and a web-based eSavings portal with biometric authentication), and a dedicated intermediaries portal for mortgage brokers. Its mortgage range spans first-time buyer, self-employed, buy-to-let, holiday let, lending-into-retirement, apprentice, and remortgage products, supported by a product transfer catalogue of 47 products. Savings products include regular savers, notice accounts, fixed-rate bonds, cash ISAs, and fixed-rate ISAs (e.g., a 1-year fixed ISA at 4.45% Tax Free/AER), with insurance offered via an introducer arrangement with Uinsure Limited. The society's revenue mechanics are traditional net interest margin driven, augmented by mortgage-related fees (application fees of £995-£999, valuation fees, early repayment charges, exit fees) and a referral income stream from the Uinsure partnership.

Customer segments span individual consumers (first-time buyers, self-employed borrowers, buy-to-let investors, holiday-let owners, retirees, apprentices, and existing members) and B2B partners (mortgage intermediaries and an approved solicitor panel). Marketing is conducted through content marketing on its website, organic social (Facebook, LinkedIn for intermediaries, Twitter/X for financial intermediaries), email newsletters, and community engagement programmes such as "Heart of the Community" and Education and Rewards, the latter integrated into the mobile app with discounts from retailers including Barrow AFC, Amazon, and Starbucks.

Name

Furness Building Society

Legal name

Furness Building Society

Website

https://furnessbs.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1865

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Furness Building Society is a mutual building society founded in 1865, headquartered in Barrow-in-Furness, offering residential and buy-to-let mortgages plus savings products to consumers in England, Wales, and Scotland through branches, digital channels, and intermediary brokers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Retail Banking (Building Society)

SIC

Savings Institution, Federally Chartered (6035)

akta.pro primary industry

Building Societies (Mutual Mortgage/Retail Banks) (FSABAEAE)

Keywords

• Mortgage lending
• Savings accounts
• Building society services
• Buy-to-let mortgages
• Cash ISAs

Headquarters

HQ city

Barrow In Furness

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Mortgage Lending: Interest income from mortgage lending including residential mortgages (moving home, first-time buyers, self-employed, remortgages), buy-to-let mortgages, holiday let mortgages, short-term lending, and lending into retirement. Revenue generated through mortgage interest rates and associated fees including application fees, completion fees, and valuation fees.
2. Savings Accounts: Deposit-taking through various savings products including regular savers, everyday savings, notice accounts, fixed rate bonds, fixed rate ISAs, cash ISAs, partnership accounts, community accounts, and young savers. FSCS protected up to £120,000.
3. Mortgage Fees and Charges: Various one-time and recurring fees including application fees (e.g., £999, £995), completion fees, CHAPS fees (£25), valuation fees, re-valuation fees (£125), re-inspection fees (£90), early repayment charges, mortgage exit fees (£120), deed handling fees (£50), and arrears fees (£30).
4. Insurance Referral: Furness Building Society acts as an introducer to Uinsure for insurance products. Uinsure Limited is authorised and regulated by the FCA (No. 463689) for general insurance distribution.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Furness Building Society is a UK mutual building society that provides residential, buy-to-let, holiday let, and specialist mortgage lending alongside a comprehensive range of savings accounts including ISAs and fixed rate bonds. It distributes these products through regional branches in the North West of England, telephone contact centres, digital self-service channels (mobile app and online portal), and a mortgage intermediary broker network, serving individual members and mortgage brokers across England, Wales and Scotland.

Product overview

Furness Building Society operates as a regional building society offering a unified financial services platform centered on mortgage lending and savings products. The core offering comprises residential and buy-to-let mortgage products (including fixed rate, discounted variable rate, and tracker options) alongside a comprehensive range of savings accounts (regular savers, everyday savings, notice accounts, fixed rate bonds, ISAs, and young savers). Insurance products are provided through Uinsure. Digital services include the Furness Savings App (iOS/Android), web-based Digital Savings Portal, and a dedicated Intermediaries Portal for mortgage brokers. Affordability calculators and ESIS request functionality support the intermediary channel. The society also provides financial education and rewards features within its mobile application.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Best Building Society for Customer Service award at The Personal Finance Awards 2025
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Uinsure LimitedcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerFurness Building Society acts as an introducer to Uinsure Limited for insurance products. Uinsure is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (No. 463689). Registered address: Uinsure Limited, Po Box 5524, Manchester M61 0QR. This partnership allows the society to offer insurance products to its members through a regulated insurance provider.
• Barrow AFCminorOthersCommunity partnership with Barrow AFC football club offering exclusive discounts at the Clubstore through Furness Building Society's Education and Rewards programme accessible via the mobile app.
• Law SocietycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFirm must be registered with the relevant Law Society. For England: 2 SRA approved managers required. For Scotland: 2 Scottish Partners required. Panel solicitors approved to act in mortgage lending provision.
• Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFor England: 2 CLC Licence Holders required for solicitor panel. Licensed conveyancers must supply evidence of registration with the Council of Licensed Conveyancers for panel application.

Scale indicators5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Principality Building Society: Welsh regional mutual building society offering residential, BTL, and holiday-let mortgages plus savings. Similar mutual/regional incumbent operating in an adjacent UK region with comparable product set.
• Nottingham Building Society: UK mutual building society offering residential mortgages and savings. Close small-mutual comparable to Furness in scale, product focus, and member-owned governance.
• Cumberland Building Society: UK mutual building society headquartered in Cumbria, North West England, offering residential and BTL mortgages plus savings accounts. Closest geographic and product peer to Furness given overlapping North West footprint and similar mutual-led model.
• Skipton Building Society: One of the UK's largest mutual building societies, offering a comparable product mix of residential, BTL, and holiday-let mortgages alongside savings and ISAs. Direct product peer operating under the same UK building society regulatory regime.
• Newcastle Building Society: UK regional mutual building society offering residential mortgages, BTL, and savings products through branch and digital channels. Comparable regional-mutual positioning and member-owned structure to Furness.
• Darlington Building Society: Small UK regional mutual building society offering mortgage and savings products. Similar size and operating model, making it a close small-mutual benchmark for Furness.
• Bath Building Society: Small UK regional mutual building society focused on mortgage and savings products. Similar product range and small-mutual operating profile to Furness.

Broad incumbents

• Yorkshire Building Society: One of the largest UK mutual building societies, encompassing Yorkshire, Bristol & West, and Chelsea BS brands. Larger mutual competitor operating similar mortgage and savings products at greater scale.
• Coventry Building Society: Top-tier UK building society offering a wide range of mortgage and savings products. Larger incumbent mutual in the same product categories as Furness, including specialist lending segments.
• Nationwide Building Society: The UK's largest building society and dominant mutual mortgage/savings provider. Comparable product categories and mutual governance model, but at massively greater scale and national reach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/furnessbs
• Facebookfacebook.com/furnessbuildingsociety
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/showcase/furnessbs-for-intermediaries

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Furness Building Society