Good business is built on relationships
We were delighted recently to learn that Cambridge & Counties Bank has received a 2026 Fast Payer Award from Good Business Pays.
The award recognises large UK organisations that demonstrate consistently strong payment performance, and for us, it is particularly meaningful because it reflects something that sits at the heart of how we want to do business: treating the people and organisations we work with fairly, responsibly and with respect.
Paying suppliers promptly may sound like a relatively small part of running a bank. But for the businesses on the other side of those invoices, particularly SMEs - reliable cash flow matters.
It is also part of something much bigger.
Relationships are built through actions
At Cambridge & Counties Bank, we have always believed that good banking is about more than products, processes and transactions.
Whether we are working with a customer, broker, supplier or partner, we want the experience of dealing with us to reflect the same principles: being responsive, straightforward, dependable and, importantly, human.
That means doing what we say we are going to do. It means communicating clearly. It means understanding that there is a person and a business behind every interaction. And it means recognising that the way we operate can have a real impact on the organisations we work with.
Our Fast Payer Award is one example of those principles in action.
Keeping people at the heart of service
The banking industry has changed enormously in recent years, and technology continues to create opportunities to make services quicker, simpler and more efficient.
We absolutely embrace that progress. But we don't believe efficiency needs to come at the expense of personal service.
Our relationship-led approach is something our customers regularly tell us they value. We measure that experience carefully through customer satisfaction and Net Promoter Score. We also increasingly see that reflected in independent customer feedback. Our current Trustpilot rating of 4.4 out of 5 includes customers talking about quick responses, clear communication, helpful colleagues and, perhaps most importantly, the value of being able to speak to a real person when they need support.
Those comments matter to us because they describe the experience we are trying to create.
Listening is as important as measuring
Of course, good customer service isn't simply about achieving a score.
CSAT, NPS, reviews and awards give us useful indicators of how we're performing, but their real value lies in what we learn from them.
Positive feedback tells us what customers value and what we need to protect as we grow. Equally, when someone tells us that their experience hasn't met expectations, we need to listen, understand why and use that feedback to improve.
For me, that commitment to listening and continuous improvement is essential. Customer expectations don't stand still, so neither can we.
Responsible business goes beyond customers
The same principle extends beyond customer service.
Being a responsible business means thinking about the impact of the decisions we make across all of our relationships.
Our suppliers are an important part of our business ecosystem. Paying them promptly isn't simply an administrative measure; it's a reflection of the standards we set ourselves and the kind of organisation we want to be.
That's why receiving the Fast Payer Award matters to us.
We're proud of the recognition, but more importantly, we're proud of what sits behind it: colleagues across the Bank making thousands of everyday decisions and interactions that collectively build stronger relationships.
Because ultimately, whether someone is borrowing from us, saving with us, introducing a customer to us or supplying a service to us, we want them to feel that Cambridge & Counties Bank is an organisation that understands their needs, values the relationship and delivers on its promises.
That's what good business looks like to us.
Tina Hayton-Banks, Chief Operating Officer, Cambridge & Counties Bank
