Market Harborough Building Society reaches £1m community giving milestone
Added by Love Business East Midlands | 23 April 2026
Market Harborough Building Society marks £1 million milestone in community giving
Market Harborough Building Society has reached a significant milestone, committing £1 million to local good causes that matter most to its customers and communities over the past three years, with funding already delivered alongside further investment currently held within the Society’s Charitable Foundation to support future impact.
The achievement reflects more than the scale of its giving. It tells the story of how the Society’s Thrive! Agenda has evolved from a single act of community support into a clear, long-term commitment that now shapes how the organisation operates and serves its members every day.
While the Society has always supported local causes, this milestone marks a shift from traditional, sometimes quiet community giving to a more deliberate and joined up approach, fully rooted in the purpose of a mutual.
Three years ago, the Society took time to reflect on whether the way it supported its communities truly reflected what it stands for. That reflection led to the creation of Thrive!, a single shared agenda designed to help customers and communities not just cope with challenges but move forward with confidence.
The first step came in January 2023, when the Society made a £100,000 donation to local foodbanks across its heartland, helping families facing the rising cost of living. It was a response to an immediate need, but also the starting point for something wider.
Since then, Thrive! has grown into a long-term commitment focused on making a meaningful and lasting difference, with its most recent initiative ‘Thrive Forward’ forming a central part of the Society’s approach to supporting young people through financial resilience, mental wellbeing and employability skills.
Alongside this, funding has been directed towards practical, everyday needs within local communities. This includes support for families facing the cost-of-living crisis, restoring access to essential banking services through the introduction of the OneBanx machine in Market Harborough after high street banks withdrew, opening up its head office for use by local community groups, and backing smaller grassroots organisations through its partnership with Leicester & Rutland Community Foundation.
Speaking about the milestone, Iain Kirkpatrick, Chief Executive of Market Harborough Building Society, said:
“Reaching £1 million is something we are incredibly proud of, but it is not about the number. It is about what that support makes possible for the people and communities we serve. As a mutual, our success is shared. Every savings account, every mortgage and every decision we make feeds back into helping our customers and communities thrive.”
The Society is currently supporting over 1,300 young people develop important life skills through the Thrive! Forward programme, in the last year it has welcomed more than 5,000 people to community activities and events at its Newcombe House head office and has supported over 300 local groups and organisations working at the heart of their communities, through volunteering, community hub space, funding, and prize draw donations.
Today, Thrive! is no longer seen as a standalone initiative. It is embedded in the Society’s culture and decision making, guiding how it does business and how it reinvests profits for the benefit of members and communities.
What began as a single good action has become part of who Market Harborough Building Society is today. The Thrive! Agenda continues to shape its role as a community focused mutual, committed to delivering real, measurable impact and playing its part in building stronger, more resilient local communities for the future.
For more information on the Society’s Thrive! Agenda visit www.mhbs.co.uk/thrive/
