Provident Financial plc today announces that it has joined the Northern Powerhouse Partner Programme, underlining the company’s commitment to working with partners to increase economic growth in the North of England by creating skills and employment opportunities, improving its transport infrastructure and addressing key social mobility challenges.
The Northern Powerhouse Partner Programme is a network of partner organisations working collaboratively to represent the voice of major business and civic leaders and develop consensus about how the North can be more successful.
Malcolm Le May Chief Executive Officer of Provident Financial plc commented:
“As a major employer in Bradford and business with strong links to the city and the north, Provident Financial has a long history of supporting the local economy by creating jobs and using suppliers and contractors. We also have a long history of community investment in Bradford and other northern towns and cities where we support a number of partners and initiatives which seek to address key barriers to social inclusion and help people overcome them. This has seen us work in partnership over the past 18 months to help raise education standards and promote social mobility for children and young people in Bradford. We are therefore delighted to become a Northern Powerhouse Partner today as it further underlines our commitment to improving the success and prosperity of Bradford and the north.”
Minister for the Northern Powerhouse, the Rt Hon Jake Berry MP, said:
“It’s a pleasure to welcome Provident Financial plc, a listed member of the London Stock Exchange and part of the FTSE 250, to our expanding network of over 300 Northern Powerhouse Partners.
“Building upon the record £694.5 million of Local Growth Fund investment we’re making available to level up the whole of Leeds City Region, we’re working with businesses like Provident Financial in Bradford to grow the Northern economy and create a wealth of employment opportunities. This is an integral part of our vision to drive prosperity throughout the Northern Powerhouse as we prepare to leave the EU on 31 October.”
Enquiries
Media
Richard King, Provident Financial
Tel: 0203 620 3073
Nick Cosgrove/Simon Selzer, Brunswick
Tel: 020 7404 5959
Notes to Editors
Provident Financial
Provident Financial plc is a leading provider of credit products which provide financial inclusion for those consumers who are not well served by mainstream lenders. The Group serves 2.4 million customers and its operations consist of Vanquis Bank, Moneybarn, and the Consumer Credit Division (CCD) comprising Provident home credit and Satsuma.
About The Northern Powerhouse
The Northern Powerhouse is Government’s vision for a more prosperous North with good-paying jobs for hard-working people, better roads and railways, higher-performing schools and world-beating universities.
The Northern Powerhouse Partner Programme is an essential part of creating the Northern Powerhouse.
Government is looking to build a network of partners who all believe strongly in the economic potential of the North, and support the need for a combined effort by government and business to realise that potential. There are currently over 230 businesses and organisations signed up to the Partner Programme.
Prospective partners can email NorthernPowerhouse@communities.gov.uk for more information about the Partners Programme and how to apply.