The firm said it secured a pre-tax profit of £3.2m for 2021, the biggest profit for any year since it was founded in 1856.

It also reported its highest levels of cash on its balance sheet at £752m, even after it said it had invested to modernise the business, recruit additional staff and improve terms and conditions for its existing employees.

Chief executive Andrew Craddocks says the record-breaking performance was helped by the buoyant housing market, leading to a significant increase in lending, and a recovery on the economy from the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

“The great thing about 2021 was not just one individual thing, but the way we were able to balance the various elements of the operation,” he says.

“To achieve record-breaking financial results while investing in new systems to improve the member experience, and to do it in a single year, amid the most challenging circumstances, is incredible.”

Craddock paid tribute to the resilience of his staff, adding that in many ways 2021 was “even harder than 2020 because nobody expected the pandemic to drag on so long”.

He added that when the Bank of England raised the base rate in December, it passed on the full 0.15% increase to all variable rate savers, and held its mortgage standard variable rate (SVR). After February’s rise, however, 0.25% was passed to junior and regular savers, 0.15% to other savers, and the SVR increased by 0.15%.

Elsewhere, the firm donated £88,000 to  28 different local charities and good cause, in excess of its commitment to donating 5% of profits.

The firm’s annual general meeting will be held on 25 April at the Great North Air Ambulance Service headquarters, however, the company is encouraging members to vote online to reduce the event’s environmental impact.