#FRA24: get to know your winners part two

At the Financial Reporter Awards 2024, we had the honour of rewarding some of the strongest talent in the industry, with our Brokers’ Vote deciding which firms and individuals to recognise for their outstanding efforts and remarkable impact on our sector.

Before we look towards #FRA25, we wanted to reflect on the success of our FRA24 winners, and get to know them better outside of the awards.

We spoke to several of our winning firms about their awards experience and what they’ve been up to since June. Here’s what they had to say:

Family Building Society - Best Later Life Lender

What did it feel like to win an award at the Financial Reporter   Awards 2024, and what impact has it had on your business?

Winning a well-known and respected industry award is always exciting. It  boosts morale for the sales team and has a positive impact on the entire business.

What made you want to apply?

We have been strong supporters of Financial Reporter, and we wanted to showcase our commitment by highlighting the many exciting changes we've introduced over the past 12 months to better meet our customers' needs.

Did your team do anything nice to celebrate together afterwards?

We plan to celebrate later this year with a team lunch, along with recognising the other awards we've won this year!

What achievements are you and your team especially proud of?

We've exceeded our business targets for 2023 and are on track to do the same in 2024. We provide full broker coverage with a dedicated Business Development Manager for every postcode in the UK and Northern Ireland. We've continued to enhance our products and criteria.

Additionally, we produced a range of materials, including podcasts, written articles, panel debates, trade events, and webinars, to educate brokers on available products in lending areas such as later life, Buy to Let, family support, and Expat lending.

Following this win, what are your team’s aims for the future?

We aim to keep listening to the broker market and align our product solutions with the evolving needs of their customers. We want to be at the forefront of the key areas we specialise in and to have a voice in shaping the future.

Roxanne Barker, Fix My Legals - Best Legal Services Provider

What did it feel like to win an award at the Financial Reporter Awards 2024, and what impact has it had on your business?

Winning the Best Legal Provider award was an absolute shock, which took weeks to really sink in!

To be recognised in this space was a huge achievement for me and my team and I feel utterly proud of what we have created and how many people we have been able to support. As a result of winning this award, we have been acknowledged by larger brokers in the industry who want to work with us as they feel we are reputable and feel they can trust us with their clients too.

How did it feel to be nominated? 

To be recognised as an entrepreneur is something I never thought would happen in my lifetime. I still, at times, have to pinch myself that I am a CEO of a successful business with a team of 14 and we truly are making a difference in the industry!

Did your team do anything nice to celebrate together afterwards?

Ohh the team was just the sweetest. We celebrated in the office with lunch and party music, the team got me flowers and a beautiful card. Some of my clients sent us cake, chocolate, and gifts for the team to embrace our success.

The emotions were high for several weeks after winning with many of our staff and clients congratulating us too.

What achievements are you and your team especially proud of?

We are most proud of helping more than 4,000 people move home, reducing their stress and uncertainty and being able to complete our home moves, on average, within 66 days rather than the industry timeframe of 118. We are also extremely proud of our 100+ 5-star reviews.

Following this win, what are your team’s aims for the future?

To embrace where we are and personally gain the confidence to accept I am a CEO, I am an entrepreneur and I truly can change people’s lives and make a huge impact in the industry to make home moving a more enjoyable experience for all involved.

Market Harborough Building Society - Best Short-Term Lender

What did it feel like to win an award at the Financial Reporter Awards 2024, and what impact has it had on your business?

Winning the Best Short-term Lender Award in 2024 was a real honour, especially as it was voted for by brokers.

We were the first mutual to offer bridging finance and have many years of experience. During the past year, we’ve made bold changes to enhance our offering and put brokers and their clients first - and we’re thrilled that our partners recognised this. It only adds to our drive to continue listening to brokers and finding ways to make it even easier for them to place cases with us.

What made you want to apply?

Building on its successful foundations as a bridging lender and complex case specialist, Market Harborough Building Society has made a real impact in the bridging market over the past year by extending its team, enhancing its product range, relaxing criteria and launching an online Case Hub.

We wanted to shout about this success and to show our mortgage teams how much we value their commitment to go the extra mile and provide consistently outstanding customer service.

The Financial Reporter Awards provided a great opportunity thanks to the broad range of awards and categories, and by offering a straightforward process to apply with fantastic communication along the way.

Did your team do anything nice to celebrate together afterwards?

We’ve recently moved to a new state-of-the-art head office with lots of space for colleague interaction and creative, collaborative working. We made the most of this and celebrated our award win with the whole Society by enjoying a visit from a local ice cream van!

What achievements are you and your team especially proud of?

Last year, thanks to our flexible and proactive approach, we were delighted to help even more brokers and clients with our bridging finance, including finding ways to say yes to complex cases, including some that brokers struggled to place with other lenders.

We are especially proud of the amazing feedback we receive from brokers and our consistent five-star rating on Feefo. Earlier this year we won a Feefo Platinum Trusted Service Award, following three years as a Gold Award winner. This is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our mortgage teams.

Following this win, what are your team’s aims for the future?

We are driving to become best for brokers and their specialist lender of choice for bridging finance and complex cases. We’ve recently refreshed our brand, building on our roots to give us a strong identity now and for the future. We also launched our ‘Best for Brokers Promise,’ our commitment to putting broker needs first every time with five simple pledges:

Yes means yes – our daily Credit Committee gives quick decisions you can rely on

Five-star service – Award-winning service from our complex case experts

Human touch – easy access to your dedicated underwriter and regular updates

No surprises – we guarantee at least 24 hours’ notice of any product withdrawals

Easy as 1,2,3 - Hassle-free journey with 24/7 Case Hub access

We’re a forward-thinking, ambitious organisation with lots more to come, so watch this space for the next exciting announcement!

Paradigm - Best Mortgage Club

What did it feel like to win an award at the Financial Reporter Awards 2024, and what impact has it had on your business?

Winning this award was fantastic; it felt immensely gratifying to see our hard work and dedication recognised. The impact has been significant; it has boosted our team’s morale and reinforced our commitment to excellence.

Additionally, it has enhanced our reputation in the industry, opening up new opportunities and strengthening our relationships with clients and partners.

Did your team do anything nice to celebrate together afterwards?

Yes, we did! Many of the team had the chance to celebrate this recognition. We also took our office team out for a nice meal to celebrate those behind the scenes who sometimes don’t get the same chance to celebrate as others.

We are so proud of all of the team, especially those who help us deliver our excellent customer service day in and day out.

What achievements are you and your team especially proud of?

Over the past year, where we’ve stood out from the crowd is our comprehensive Consumer Duty support both ahead of implementation and then the reporting phase, which has been made available, free of charge to intermediaries across the entire industry.

We care about making a difference and adding value to firms, and have done so through our Relationship Manager team, enhancements to our Mortgage and Protection helpdesks, CPD events, additions to our Mortgage and Protection panels, developing our CPD Academy and Test Zone, offering free technology, extensive marketing support and much more.

We have an experienced and highly-motivated team who are committed to ensuring the best customer outcomes. We pride ourselves on offering a personalised approach and delivering exceptional service.

Following this win, what are your team’s aims for the future?

We’re hoping to build on what we have achieved so far, ultimately hoping to maintain our position as the ‘best mortgage club’, by offering extensive support and guidance to intermediary firms, making it easier and quicker for them to get the help they need to support their clients.

We’re fully committed to this goal and have lots of exciting things planned for the future.

Richard Howells, PRIMIS Mortgage Network - Best Network

What did it feel like to win an award at the Financial Reporter Awards 2024, and what impact has it had on your business?

It means a lot to receive this recognition from Financial Reporter – an important and widely read mortgage publication. I’m so proud of the whole team across PRIMIS who have all contributed to our winning this award.

It’s very gratifying for us as a team to be recognised by the brokers they partner with every day. Being recognised as the best in the industry is a wonderful way to celebrate those partnerships.

What made you want to apply?

An award from Financial Reporter really underlines the effort, expertise and experience we try to bring to every intermediary relationship. Our colleague and broker communities are made up of incredible people and we believe industry recognition for what they’ve achieved in the last year is an important part of our communication to the market. They deserve this acknowledgement for all their hard work, in delivering for brokers and customers.

Did your team do anything nice to celebrate together afterwards?

We had a fantastic evening at the Financial Reporter Awards ceremony! You may have seen the recent photos on LinkedIn, where our colleagues across both our Solihull and Chippenham offices had confetti cannon and party popper filled celebrations.

Our whole team contributed to this achievement, so we’ll be raising a glass together under one roof at our end of year party. It might mean that my speech is even longer than it needs to be though. 

What achievements are you and your team especially proud of?

I’m particularly proud of brokers voting for us.

To get acknowledgement from your customers is simply the best feedback you can get. I’m very proud of the team, the way they work and their passion for delivering for our brokers. Our brokers are part of the PRIMIS family and I’m so proud of how they deliver for all their customers.

Following this win, what are your team’s aims for the future?

This is a fantastic success for us, and we’ll continue to support brokers whatever their aspirations are. We are committed to delivering exceptional service, helping keep brokers safe, supporting their growth ambitions and working with them to build value.

It’s great to win, but we’re not resting on our laurels. There are big transformations in progress; we’re investing in our technology and our proposition. We’ll be back next year even stronger to compete for and keep our title.

If you want to be involved in the Financial Reporter Awards 2025, you can now register your interest here on our website! Just head to our home page and click the Register Your Interest button to fill out the form and let us know how you want to be involved.