This relates to
The Skipton Building Society ("the Society")
One of its former investing customers, referred to as Mr C
Mr B referred to in other articles on this website
All information herein
relating to the correspondence between Mr C and the Society is based
solely on a meeting with Mr C and papers produced by him. We have
not contacted the Society.
The
Society publishes a regular magazine, entitled "Mutual Matters", for
members. Some of the content relates to charites supported by the
Society, through the Skipton Charitable Foundation.
Mr C wrote to the Society, as follows:
The Chairman
Skipton Building Society
21 June 2011
Dear Mr Findlay
I still have the Spring
2010 edition of "Mutual Matters". I only read parts of it last
year but, today, I have read the remainder.
On p8 is a statement "In
2009, one charity we helped was the Sangat Community Centre in
Keighley..." and, on p9, is a photograph with the caption "Sangat
Centre users enjoy ... a nourishing hot meal - with help from Skipton".
I refer to the material re: slaughter of animals on www.cronies.org.uk.
I do not know whether the
Sangat Community Centre provides meat from inhumanely killed animals
but please assure me that, in future, the Society will take reasonable
steps to avoid supporting any organisation which does.
Yours sincerely
He received a reply as follows:
24 June 2011
Dear Mr
Account No XXXXXXXXX
Thank you for your letter of 21 June 2011 to our Chairman Mr Alistair Findlay.
I would explain Mr Findlay recently stepped down as Chairman and his successor is Mr Michael Ellis.
Mr Ellis has seen your letter and asked me to respond on his behalf.
Your interest and comments on the charities the Society, and the
charitable foundation, support are much appreciated. I will
ensure the relevant teams are made aware of your concerns.
Thank you for your continued support of Skipton. If I can be any further help please let me know.
Yours sincerely
Mrs Kathryn Qattan
Customer Relations Manager
He wrote again, as follows:
28 June 2011
Dear Mrs Qattan
I thank you for your letter of 24 June 2011 but it does not contain any
assurance of the type requested in my letter of 21 June 2011.
Yours sincerely
He received a reply as follows:
06 July 2011
Dear Mr
Account No XXXXXXXXX
Thank you for your letter of 28 June 2011.
The Skipton Charitable Foundation supports charities working with children and the elderly.
They will therefore ensure the charity meets their charitable purpose and that their ethos aligns with that of the foundation.
The foundation does take all reasonable steps to ensure the charities
they support have an appropriate ethical and social responsibility
practice which is consistent with that adopted by the foundation.
Yours sincerely
Mrs Kathryn Qattan
Customer Relations Manager
He wrote again, as follows:
12 July 2011
Dear Mrs Qattan
Thank you for your letter of 06 July 2011.
Is the ethos of the Skipton Charitable Foundation such that it will not
knowingly support any organisation which provides meat from inhumanely
killed animals?
Yours sincerely
He received a reply as follows:
15 July 2011
Dear Mr
Account No XXXXXXXXX
Thank you for your letter of 12 July 2011.
I believe that neither the
Society nor the Charitable Foundation would knowingly support any
organisation which in any way condones the inhuman treatment of animals
in contravention of prevailing legislation.
I trust that I have
answered your query to your satisfaction and will understand that we
cannot enter into any further correspondence on the matter.
Yours sincerely
Mrs Kathryn Qattan
Customer Relations Manager
He wrote again, as follows:
26 July 2011
Dear Mrs Qattan
Your letter of 15 July 2011 does not answer the question in my letter of 12 July 2011.
The prevailing legislation permits inhumane slaughter. This is clear from the website referred to in my letter of 21 June 2011.
Yours sincerely
On 10 September
2011, when Mr C showed us his file, he said that he
had not received anything further from the Society. (In view of
the last clause of Mrs Qattan's letter of 15 July 2011, we were not
surprised.) He showed us
a Certificate of Posting, which proved that an item had been sent to
the Society on 26 July 2011 but not that it had been delivered.
However, we said that this did not matter to us because the
correspondence up to and including Mrs Qattan's letter of 15 July 2011
had proved that the Society had been persistently evasive and the copy
he had shown us, reproduced above, of the letter of
26 July 2011, contained nothing except facts of which she should
already have been well aware.
On 25 September 2011, we invited Mr B to comment and he did so, as
follows: "Mr C has done an excellent job but I have something to add.
Even if I didn't care about cruelty to animals, I
wouldn't lend money to any financial institution, which, to my
knowledge, had evaded a legitimate question from anyone on any aspect
of its business, unless and until it had apologised and been reformed
to my satisfaction."
Last updated 25 October 2011