Newbury Building Society was established in 1856 under
the name of " the Newbury Permanent Benefit Building and Investment Society".
At the first Annual General Meeting in November 1857, it was reported that mortgage
advances totalling £840 had been granted. the re were 57 members and
the profit for the year was £14 and 10 shillings.
In January
1894, a struggling rival, Newbury and District Industrial Building Society,
merged with the newly named Newbury and Permanent Benefit Building Society.
In 1896 the Society's original rented premises in Northbrook Street were purchased
for £525 and it operated here until 1934 when offices in Bartholomew
Street were acquired (now occupied by Sovereign Housing Association).
In 1932,
the Society's name was changed to "Newbury Building Society". the first branch was opened in Aldershot in 1962 and in the 1970s and early 1980s
the Society expanded its network by establishing branches in Oxfordshire,
Berkshire and North Hampshire. In 1982, the Society's central administration
moved to a purpose built building behind the offices in Bartholomew Street
and the front offices became the Newbury branch.
In 1993,
Newbury branch moved to Northbrook Street and the offices at the front of
Bartholomew Street were sold to Sovereign Housing. In 1995, Head Office was
extended to incorporate the growing number of staff, a measure of the increased
success of the Society.
Today,
the Society is stronger than ever. Total assets are just over £430 million.
the future looks bright for a Society committed to the values of a traditional
building society and to remaining the spirit and practice of a mutual organisation,
operating exclusively for the benefit of borrowers and savers.
