NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, England, November 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Northern Rock has announced that it was commended in the Mortgage Finance Gazette Awards for its dedication to community service. The honours were given just six months after Northern Rock was heralded among the most responsible businesses in the UK.

After receiving Business in the Community's (BITC) national Big Tick for its work to tackle financial exclusion, the readers of Mortgage Finance Gazette have now commended the bank in its annual awards.

The magazine's readers nominated the lender in recognition of its work in the voluntary sector, and the judges, including journalists from the national press, industry experts, and the editors of 'What Mortgage' and 'Mortgage Finance Gazette,' were particularly impressed by the bank's staff involvement in the community as well as other fundraising and voluntary activities.

Representatives from Northern Rock collected the commendation in the 'Community Services Award' for large lenders at an event in the capital last night. The December edition of Mortgage Finance Gazette, a publication about mortgages and the mortgage industry, features coverage of the event.

Northern Rock's Customer and Commercial Director Andy Tate said: "We are absolutely delighted to receive a further commendation for our work in the community, and it is wonderful that our dedication to embedding this as part of our organisational culture is being recognised.

"Awards like this are further endorsement of the valuable role Northern Rock and its colleagues play in supporting its local communities, particularly those facing financial difficulty."

Judge Joanne Atkin, Editor of Mortgage Finance Gazette said that she and her colleagues had had had a difficult job and that those who had been highly commended were truly deserving. She added: "Community is at the core of Northern Rock's business strategy which is framed and communicated through four Cs - colleague, customer, company and community.

"Community within Northern Rock is about giving of both time and money. The Samaritans is Northern Rock's corporate charity of the year but it also works with a number of good causes: Women's Aid, a fight against domestic violence; The Cyrenians, which operates refuges for the homeless around the UK; Shelter, Crisis, The People's Kitchen and a partnership which enables a small community-based bank to relieve the financial hardship of individuals and families resulting from poor money management, unmanageable levels of high interest debt and no savings."

About Northern Rock:

Northern Rock plc. is a bank, authorised by the FSA as a deposit taker and mortgage lender from 1 January 2010. It offers savings accounts including an ISA, to customers in the UK and Ireland. It also offers mortgage products and a mortgage calculator to UK borrowers. New products are offered through both direct channels - including a national branch network - and mortgage intermediaries.

Northern Rock continues to operate within the compensatory measures agreed with the EC as part of the State Aid approval announced in October 2009.

In June 2011, Northern Rock was awarded a national Big Tick Award in Business in the Community's Awards for Excellence, in the category of Building Stronger Communities.

PR Contact
Jule Wilson
Northern Rock House
Gosforth
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE3 4PL
+44(0)191-279-4676
http://www.northernrock.co.uk

SOURCE Northern Rock