Ulster Bank has partnered with Women’s Aid to further strengthen its response to customers who may be impacted by financial abuse, with key frontline colleagues becoming the first bank workers in Ireland to receive specialist training from the charity, which will enable them to recognise the potential signs of financial abuse and respond to impacted customers in a meaningful way.

Recognising that reporting and seeking support for financial abuse can be an emotional and challenging time for those impacted by it, Ulster Bank is also introducing a specific online form so customers can contact the bank confidentially and securely, on their own terms. 

The training and form build upon the bank’s existing customers supports, including its Friends Against Scams fraud education and awareness programme, and its ‘Banking My Way’ platform, which enables vulnerable customers to privately share with the bank any challenges they face and outline what support they'd like from colleagues.

According to Women’s Aid, one in five women in Ireland experience domestic violence including emotional, physical, sexual and financial abuse. In 2019 alone, there were almost 21,000 contacts with the charity’s Direct Services and Women’s Aid heard over 2,034 disclosures of financial abuse within intimate relationships.

In addition to the specialised training programme provided and delivered by Women’s Aid to key Ulster Bank frontline colleagues, all customer-facing colleagues will receive Ulster Bank internal training to support them in understanding what financial abuse is, what its possible indicators are, and outline where to obtain further support and guidance.

The training provided by Women’s Aid to Ulster Bank comes towards the end of the charity’s 16-day public information campaign for 2020, the theme of which focused on raising awareness of abuse among women aged 18-25.

Read more about domestic violence and keeping safe or call Women’s Aid to talk to one of its Helpline workers on 1800 341 900. The Helpline is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.