RBS 2008 Annual Report Download - page 20

19RBS Group Annual Report and Accounts 2008
•continued to offer customers the additional security for online
transactions afforded by two factor authentication, with over
three million customers now registered to use it;
•increased the use of online customer identification and
address verification systems.
Given the importance to stakeholders and to RBS of customer
service, it was encouraging that, according to leading
independent research RBS retained top position and NatWest
was again joint second for customer satisfaction among main
high street banks. Saturday opening was extended, so that 40%
of the RBS/NatWest branch network now opens on Saturdays.
We increased the number of Customer Advisers in NatWest
branches by 200 in 2008.
To respond to stakeholders’ interest in our approach to how
we market and sell our products we:
•increasingly focused our service on customers who get into
financial difficulty; and
•developed our ‘Expert Managed Solutions‘ product
proposition enabling customers to access industry-wide
fund management expertise.
Investing in financial education
Understanding and confidently managing money are crucial life
skills. RBS has a long-standing commitment to financial
education, one which was expanded in 2008 to help people
navigate difficult economic times.
The Group’s financial education activities are built around the
MoneySense programme which has been running for more than
15 years. It provides free and impartial guidance about money
and financial services, and is the largest financial education
programme of its kind. MoneySense aims to ensure that an
ever-increasing number of people – whether or not they choose
to bank with the Group – are able to make informed decisions
based on a solid understanding of their money and how
financial products and services work.
MoneySense for Schools is accredited by the Personal Finance
Education Group, an independent charity that helps schools to
plan and teach personal finance education.
The core of MoneySense for Schools is lessons delivered to
young people in their classrooms. Since 2004 alone, more than
two million MoneySense lessons have been delivered to pupils,
with the figure for 2008 exceeding 700,000. Some lessons are
delivered by RBS and NatWest employees who visit schools in
their local communities and others by teachers. Resources have
been developed to support teachers and include:
•online tutorials;
•a free telephone helpline which gives teachers the
opportunity to speak to MoneySense educational experts; and
•Teacher Zone, an area from which registered users can
download support materials and resources for the modules.
School Money allows young people to practise the skills they
have learned. It is a school bank, run by pupils and for pupils
and was established in 2006. Last year saw the opening of the
100th inner city school bank, with a total of 332 in operation.
Building financial capability is important for adults as well as
young people. That is why the programme was extended to
include MoneySense for Adults. It offers advice and guidance