Elect James Sherwin-Smith to represent Nationwide building society members
Ben Martin, Financial Editor Friday June 26 2026, 3:10pm, The Times The last member of Nationwide Building Society to vie for a seat on its board has said he is “shocked and deeply disappointed” by the mutual’s treatment of the customer who is following in his footsteps. Alan Debenham, who unsuccessfully stood seven times as […]
The first building society began in a Birmingham pub. Now member-backed candidate James Sherwin-Smith is asking whether Britain’s biggest mutual still belongs to the people who own it.
Bigger image size: 2026 Nationwide AGM James Sherwin-Smith Paper Voting Form instructions A few weeks ago I wrote an article asking: Will ballot design matter in Nationwide’s 2026 Board Election? At the time, I did not know how the voting form would look. Now I do. Members began receiving their voting packs this week and […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Voting has formally opened in Nationwide Building Society’s 2026 AGM election. However, questions remain regarding both ballot access and the administration of the election process. 10 JUNE 2026, LONDON – James Sherwin-Smith, the first Member Nominated Candidate to stand for Election to the Board of Nationwide Building Society in more than 20 […]
The boss of Nationwide has seen her pay packet nearly double as she cashed in on bonus awards after steering the building society’s multi-billion pound acquisition of Virgin Money.
But the building society is facing criticism over its handling of the first member-nominated candidate to stand for election to sit on its board. […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
8TH JUNE 2026, LONDON — James Sherwin-Smith is the first Member-nominated candidate to stand for election to Nationwide’s Board in more than twenty years and the only candidate standing who has not been selected by the Board.
On Tuesday 9th June at 18:00, James will be joining Andy Agathangelou, founder of the Transparency Task Force, for a deep-dive discussion into governance, democracy and accountability inside the UK mutual sector.
Last month, Navendu Mishra MP (Labour & Co-operative, Stockport) submitted three important written Parliamentary Questions to HM Treasury about the future governance of Building Societies.
Yesterday, all three received exactly the same response from the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Rachel Blake MP…
James Sherwin-Smith says field tilted against him after decision to give members ‘quick vote’ against candidacy.
He said the move to make a vote against him the default was a “dangerous precedent for mutuals and democratic governance”. The Labour MP Navendu Mishra last week criticised “emerging governance issues” across the building society sector. Nationwide has also blocked Sherwin-Smith from […]
Dear Supporter, I wanted to update you on a major development in the campaign for greater accountability and member representation at Nationwide. Yesterday, after a piece published in The Times regarding the extended delay, Nationwide formally confirmed that the Board will NOT be recommending my candidacy for election to the Board at this year’s AGM. […]
The rebel Nationwide customer campaigning to join the building society’s board has accused it of orchestrating an “unfair fight” after the mutual urged its members to oppose him.
Britain’s biggest building society said on Thursday it was recommending that its members vote against James Sherwin-Smith’s election as a director at its annual meeting in mid-July because its board had concluded […]
Nationwide has been accused of picking an “unfair fight” with one of its members who has sought to clinch a seat on the building society’s board. The mutual has opted […]
The rebel member of Nationwide campaigning to join the mutual’s board has hit out at Britain’s biggest building society over its handling of the vote.
Nationwide confirmed in April that Sherwin-Smith had enough nominations from other customers to have his candidacy put to a vote. But the society has yet […]
Not since the keen-eyed Inspector Goole shattered the comfortable illusions of the Edwardian elite has an uninvited guest threatened to sour a private feast’s mood so sharply.
James Sherwin-Smith, the man attempting to clinch a seat at that exclusive dinner party otherwise known as Nationwide’s board could be just […]
A spokesperson for Nationwide made a series of statements in today’s article in The Guardian reporting of Nav Mishra MP’s letter sent to the Nationwide chairman, Kevin Parry. I think these statements are worth placing in context – both in terms of the timeline of the pertinent events, and the corresponding data. I will leave […]
Labour MP writes to chair amid concerns building societies are overusing quick votes and failing to add members to boards Kalyeena Makortoff. Banking correspondentSun 24 May 2026 12.00 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/may/24/nationwide-governance-agm-building-societies-boards Nationwide is under pressure to address “emerging governance issues” across the building society sector, amid concerns bosses are bundling voting options and failing to […]
21 May 2026, London — Following publication of Nationwide’s 2026 Preliminary Results (LSE Regulatory News Service), James Sherwin-Smith, a Member Nominated Candidate for election to Nationwide’s Board of Directors in 2026, commented: Nationwide’s latest preliminary results confirm that the Society remains financially strong and continues to gain in scale following the Virgin Money acquisition, alongside […]
Members were never given a say on the mutual’s biggest takeover since it was founded in 1884 — now they are going to see whether it was worth it Ben Martin, Banking Editor Sunday May 17 2026, 2.40pm Link: https://www.thetimes.com/business/companies-markets/article/nationwide-results-virgin-merger-integration-member-director-57bt8tfbh When Nationwide revealed in March 2024 that it was spending £2.9 billion snapping up Virgin […]
A decade after Theresa May spoke of radical reform, the mutual faces a bid that is testing the limits of democracy Kalyeena Makortoff, Banking correspondentSun 17 May 2026 11.00 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/may/17/nationwide-customer-boardroom-corporate-governance-mutual [NB The Monday 18th May 2026 print edition carried an abridged version, shown below. The full text follows beneath. Accompanying posts made on […]
A number of “one member, one vote” organisations in the UK have adopted the use of the ‘Quick vote’ (QV) mechanism – see Restore Trust’s 2023 report (The effect of the Quick Vote on democracy at the National Trust). In most cases this has not been specifically agreed by the membership, but instead co-opted by […]
I am grateful to Mr Navendu (Nav) Mishra MP for writing to both the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) and Kevin Parry OBE (the Nationwide Building Society chairman), regarding emerging “governance issues within the building society sector”, with Gareth Thomas MP copied, as chair of the APPG for mutuals. These are […]
My thanks to a supporter for bringing this to my attention. Nationwide: democratic deficit “Top marks for perseverance,” said Nils Pratley in The Guardian. James Sherwin-Smith – a long-term customer campaigner for more transparent governance at Nationwide – has secured the necessary 250 nominations to get his name on the ballot paper for elections to […]
Updated 8th June 2026 Now that I have been successfully nominated for election to the Nationwide Board, one thing is certain: my name will appear on the 2026 ballot paper. What remains uncertain is how, and where, my name will appear, and what impact that will have on my election chances, and the precedent it […]
James Sherwin-Smith’s candidacy is a test of the building society’s commitment to mutual values By Nils Pratley, Finance EditorMon 27 Apr 2026 19.05 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2026/apr/27/nationwide-should-give-its-boardroom-challenger-a-fair-run James Sherwin-Smith, who is aiming to become the first customer to be voted onto the board of Nationwide in nearly 25 years, deserves top marks for perseverance. A year […]
27 April 2026 15:35 “The Nationwide Building Society could have one of its customers in its boardroom for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century. The society is owned by 9 million savers and borrowers, who elect the directors who oversee the business. One customer, James Sherwin-Smith from West Sussex, has secured […]
Nationwide faces an AGM in July after one of its longtime members secured enough support for a spot on the lender’s annual ballot. By James Rodger, Content Editor09:57, 27 Apr 2026 Link: https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/cost-of-living/nationwide-makes-historic-announcement-17-33842956 Nationwide could have its first customer on its board for nearly 25 years. Nationwide, which has branches in Birmingham, faces an AGM in […]
A campaigning customer has secured a board ballot spot for Nationwide for the first time in 21 years By Ben Martin, Banking Editor Link: https://www.thetimes.com/business/companies-markets/article/nationwide-faces-board-challenge-from-member-hgw5t6twz About nine million members of Nationwide will have the opportunity to elect one of their own to the board of the mutual for the first time in 21 years after […]
By Patrick Tooher, Consultant City Editor Link: https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-15767241/Member-candidate-cleared-stand-Nationwide-board.html Nationwide is to hold its first vote in over two decades to elect a member-nominated candidate to the building society’s board. In a surprise move Britain’s biggest financial mutual, which is owned by its 16million members, has agreed to allow campaigner James Sherwin-Smith’s name to go on […]
James Sherwin-Smith will be up for election after securing more than 250 nominations to run alongside existing directors Kalyeena Makortoff, Banking correspondentMon 27 Apr 2026 07.00 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/apr/27/nationwide-first-customer-on-board-nearly-25-years Nationwide building society could have a customer on its board for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century after one of its longtime […]
LONDON, 27 APRIL 2026 07:00 – Nationwide Building Society has confirmed that I have receivedthe required valid nominations and will appear on the ballot for election to the Board at the2026 AGM. This creates the opportunity for Nationwide Members to elect a Member Nominated Directorfor the first time in over 20 years, at an important […]