A BUILDING society says it is going from strength to strength after reporting a rise in members.

Darlington Building Society now has a membership of more than 86,000 customers and has a savings balance of £52m.

Posting its end of year results, the society says total assets increased by just under nine per cent to £665.8m.

A total of £138m was lent to help people purchase or refinance their homes, including £9m which was loaned to assist first time buyers in the region.

Profits were lower than in 2018, as had been planned, due to an increase in the average rate paid to saving members and because of further investment in the long-term future of the society.

The investment was used to refurbish branches, provide new platforms to enable members and brokers to interact digitally with the society, and recruit more staff to service increased business volumes, provide an excellent level of service to members and ensure the future sustainability of the society.

Chief executive Andrew Craddock, said: “With the growth in our mortgages, deposits and reserves, we continue to go from strength to strength.

"Our success as a society has been built on our commitment to our members, being both our owners and our customers.

"We remain committed to support our savers both young and old, whilst helping our borrowers buy or re-mortgage their home.

“We are passionate about helping those in and around our community, and I believe that our financial strength provides members with confidence in our society in uncertain times.”