Saffron Building Society

The Saffron Building Society is a regional building society which has branches and agencies in the East of England, spanning Essex, Hertfordshire and Suffolk. It is a member of the Building Societies Association.

Saffron Building Society

Company type	Building society (mutual)
Industry	Banking and financial services
Founded	January 1849
Headquarters	Saffron Walden, England, UK
Number of locations	8
Key people	Nick Treble,[1] Chairman Colin Field,[1] Chief Executive Officer
Products	Savings, mortgages, investments, loans, insurance
Net income	£3.1 million GBP (December 2007), 84.6% on 2006
Total assets	£784 million GBP (December 2007), 10.4% on 2006
Number of employees	181
Website	www.saffronbs.co.uk

History

Saffron Building Society was established in Saffron Walden, Essex, in 1849.^[2] It began life as the Saffron Walden Second Building Society and was founded by the Revd John Marten, who became the first Secretary.^[3]

The society acquired the Saffron Walden and Essex Mechanics Permanent Building Society in 1968.^[4] It then bought Royston & District Building Society and became the Saffron Walden & District Building Society in 1972.^[4] It merged with the London and Essex Building Society (previously North Bow & Manor Park) and became the Saffron Walden & Essex Building Society in 1979.^[4] After that, it merged with the Herts & Essex Building Society based in Bishop's Stortford and became the Saffron Walden, Herts & Essex Building Society in 1989.^[4] Finally, it changed its name to Saffron Building Society in 2006.^[5]

In 2019, it closed branches in Sawbridgeworth, Great Dunmow and Frinton, reducing its network to eight branches in Bishop's Stortford, Brentwood, Colchester, Halstead, Haverhill, Royston, Saffron Walden and Ware.^[6][7]