Rochdale Nationwide one of first to offer dedicated support for customers with communication difficulties

Nationwide, Rochdale

The Rochdale Nationwide Building Society has become one of 10 branches across Greater Manchester to pilot a new support service for customers with communication difficulties.

Communication aids and staff support to meet the needs of members will be provided under the pilot scheme for three months, which will then be rolled out to all Nationwide branches if successful.

The move means Nationwide has become the first financial service provider in the UK to offer dedicated support for customers with communication difficulties.

The service, called ‘Speak Easy’, consists of a custom-made set of printed cards with phrases and pictures.

It will be available in branch for customers with communication difficulties – from those who are non-speaking to people who struggle to speak due to a range of causes, from autism and cognitive disabilities to stroke or motor neurone disease and aphasia.

The cards were developed in partnerships with a range of key charities.

Nationwide customers can use the cards to ask a range of common banking questions, such as asking for financial support and advice, reporting a lost or stolen card and even asking for help to understand if they have been scammed.

Staff in the pilot areas will receive specialised training to help support customers use the tool ad support them with their needs.

In 2020, Nationwide launched its partnership of the Disability Sunflower lanyard scheme which aims to support those who have non-visible disabilities in accessing appropriate services and support.

The Speak Easy pilot builds on the aims of the Sunflower Scheme by providing a further practical way to aid communication difficulties in face-to-face settings.

Mandy Beech, director of retail services at Nationwide, said: “We recognise that many of our members may be unable or have difficulty speaking and by having this tool available, we can make our branches even more accessible. By allowing our non-speaking members to have a voice, we can support them and meet their needs more effectively by giving them the confidence and reassurance of coming into a branch. We hope to take learns from this pilot with the aim of extending the scheme across all our branches, so we can help support more of our members across the UK.”

Jennifer Gardner, associate director for the Northwest at the Stroke Association, said: “We want to thank everyone at Nationwide who has been involved with this pilot scheme. It’s fantastic to see the Speak Easy tool being rolled out across Greater Manchester and we really hope it’s one thing that can help make a big difference to the daily lives of people living with aphasia.”