STAFF at the Bradford & Bingley in Bolton are taking part in a country-wide campaign aimed at retaining mutual building society status. Manager Angus Williamson and members of his team donned T-shirts bearing the words "Better off as a building society." The anti-carpetbagger message is the same at 220 branches and 400 local agencies throughout the UK as efforts continue to mobilise support for the Society's view that it should not be converted into a bank.

The hope is that the proportion of members voting on AGM resolutions should increase to more than 50 per cent from below 20 per cent last year.

Mr Williamson said: "As far as the Society stands in the Bolton area we have almost 16,000 members who will be eligible to vote - we urge those members to exercise their vote. "The deadline for handing votes in to the branch offices is April 20 and it is April 23 for postal votes to arrive with the scrutineers."

He added: "I have worked for the Society for more than 26 years - the last 14 as branch manager in Bolton - the mutuality vote is the most critical one I can recall in those 26 years."

Bradford & Bingley, the country's second largest building society, says that in 1998 it returned £2 million a week of profits to members in the form of cheaper mortgage and higher savings rates.

The Society has also announced a new look for the next Millennium.

The "Mr Bradford & Mr Bingley" logo is being retired and replaced with a matrix of 20 multi-coloured bowler hats.

A spokesman said research showed that the former brand was regarded as old-fashioned and sexist.

The rebranding follows the acquisition in April last year of Black Horse Agencies from Lloyds TSB.

The Black Horse symbol belongs to Lloyds and so the estate agencies had to be rebranded under the society name as Bradford & Bingley Estate Agents.

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