The Cumberland has revealed the full extent of the help it offered to mortgage holders and businesses during the pandemic in its annual report, which it has released this week.

The building society says it has delivered ‘a robust financial performance’ over the past 12 months with increased profits, but the most striking figures in its annual report are perhaps those that show the scale of the support it gave during the Covid-19 crisis.

Over 10 per cent of mortgage customers took a payment holiday with many of those 2,000 residential customers also needing additional overdrafts and mortgage offer extensions.

And more than 1,000 business also took the option of a payment holiday, accounting for over £250 million of mortgages across the hospitality, tourism and holiday let sectors.

The Cumberland also helped 55 charities and community projects with £198,000 worth of donations during the last 12 months.

Chief executive Des Moore speaks in the annual report of his pride in seeing how The Cumberland and its team responded to the crisis.

He says: “The challenges brought by the crisis are some of the toughest our business has faced in its 171 years, and certainly the most difficult anyone currently at The Cumberland has ever experienced.

“And yet I look back at the year with immense pride. The Cumberland has customers, communities and people at its core. The past 12 months have truly demonstrated that we have a business anchored in its values and united behind its purpose.

“The vital role we play in our communities has been reinforced."