DARLINGTON Building Society has announced its financial results for 2019.

The Society has continued to perform well, despite the ongoing political and economic uncertainty of 2019.

Overall, the number of members has increased and now stands at more than 86,000.

Savers were supported in a low interest rate environment, leading to an increase in the savings balances of £52 million.

Total assets increased by just under nine per cent to £665.8m and £138m was lent to help people purchase or refinance their homes, including £9m assisting first time buyers in the region.

In an extremely competitive market, their profit was slightly lower than 2018, although this was planned, and primarily caused by two factors. Firstly, an increase in the average rate paid to our saving Members and secondly, 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 recruiting more staff to service increased business volumes, provide an excellent level of service to our Members and ensure the future sustainability of the Society.

Chief Executive Officer, 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, while 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.”