Stroud & Swindon HQ to close after merger agreed

The merger, which is subject to the approval of Stroud & Swindon’s 235,000 eligible members, is expected to take effect from September 1.

A further 27 positions will be cut at the society’s Brockworth-based customer contact centre.

All responsibilities of its purpose-built HQ in Rowcroft, Stroud, will be transferred to Coventry over an 18-month period following the merger date, it was announced yesterday, Tuesday.

However, its branch network of 22 offices and 21 agencies will be maintained without closures for at least 12 months from September with no planned redundancies to take place among branch staff.

Around 100 vacancies will be created at the Coventry head office for Rowcroft employees willing to relocate and a series of job-seeker workshops will be staged there in the coming months.

A meeting of members eligible to vote on the merger will be held on June 16.

The newly enlarged society, which will have assets of more than £21 billion and 91 branches across the Midlands and the south west, will be called the Coventry Building Society.

It is not yet known if the historic Stroud & Swindon name will be retained at branches in the county. Stroud MP David Drew, who met with the society’s chief executive John Sutherland and chairman Laurence James on Thursday, urged members to think about the implications for Stroud before voting on the merger.

News of the amalgamation was released separately to the announcement that Stroud & Swindon recorded a pre-tax loss of £5.8 million in 2009.

The Coventry reported a record pre-tax profit of £56.2 million for the same period.

As a result, Stroud & Swindon savings members can expect increased rates in line with equivalent variable rates offered by the Coventry, while borrowers will benefit from reduced mortgage repayments.

Mr James, chairman of Stroud & Swindon said: "The merger is in the best interests of the society so we urge members to vote in favour."