FR: When we last interviewed you around a year ago, you outlined your key priorities for the next year. How have these changed for 2026?
Last year was very much about clarifying who we help and how we help them. In 2026, the focus has shifted from definition to delivery.
Those four key areas of lending still stand, but the emphasis has moved towards refinement and outcomes making sure our solutions continue to deliver fair value, remain relevant in a changing market, and genuinely work for brokers and borrowers in practice, not just on paper.
We’ve spent the last year stress testing our approach against real world pressures higher living costs, ongoing affordability challenges, evolving credit profiles and regulatory expectations. As a result, our priorities now centre on resilience, consistency and speed ensuring that our crafted lending model remains sustainable, scalable, and predictable for brokers, even in a more complex environment.
FR: How has the Society adapted to best support brokers and borrowers amid a challenging lending environment?
The last year has reinforced just how important clarity and confidence are for brokers.
We’ve adapted by doubling down on what sets us apart experienced manual underwriting, clear communication, and a pragmatic view of risk while also tightening processes, so brokers know exactly where they stand.
That’s meant:
• Continuing to evolve criteria were market conditions demand flexibility,
• Ensuring Consumer Duty is clearly embedded in product design and broker messaging,
• Improving turnaround times and decision quality, even as cases grow more complex.
From a borrower perspective, affordability, credit resilience, and life events are increasingly intertwined. Our approach has been to look beyond the headline numbers and focus on sustainability helping people not just secure a mortgage but maintain it with confidence.
FR: How do you see the building societies sector continuing to evolve more broadly?
Building societies have always thrived when the market is uncertain and that remains true today.
The sector is increasingly positioning itself as an alternative to rigid, automation led, policy driven lending. As customer circumstances become more diverse and less predictable, mutuals are well placed to lead on thoughtful, case-by-case decision making. More broadly, I think the sector will continue to champion fair value and long term borrower outcomes, support underserved but creditworthy segments of the market, and act as a stabilising force when availability tightens elsewhere. Rather than trying to compete on volume alone, building societies will continue to compete on judgement, trust and relationships particularly with brokers.
FR: Can you offer a new key takeaway for brokers in 2026?
In 2026, the key message for brokers is this: Don’t self-filter good cases out too early.
As lending criteria across the market continue to tighten in places, there’s a real risk that perfectly viable borrowers assume they have no options. Our role and the role of brokers is to look beyond surface complexity and into the story behind the application. We love a story at the Buckinghamshire.
Whether it’s income that doesn’t follow a traditional path, historic credit issues driven by life events, or affordability that needs a more nuanced assessment, there are still solutions available. The earlier brokers engage with lenders who can take that wider view, the better the outcome for everyone.
FR: If you could read one headline about the mortgage/specialist lending markets this year, what would it be?
“Specialist lending proves its value as tailored solutions help borrowers weather uncertainty.” Because that’s exactly what we’re seeing and what building societies were designed to do.
