Pictured above: Sarah Allen and Nick Cooper

BCRS (Black Country Reinvestment Society) is strengthening its staff team to meet the demand for small business loans, after reporting a 70% increase in lending to local businesses at its recent Annual General Meeting. It has appointed a new Business Development Manager along with a Marketing & PR manager and plans to lend £3million in the next 12 months to local businesses turned down by the banks.

Nick Cooper joins BCRS as a business development manager following a long career in Commercial Banking and brings with him a wealth of business lending experience. He will be based at the head office in Wolverhampton Science Park and in the field. A Prince's Trust advisor, Nick lives near Lichfield and is a keen Skier.

Following his 25 year career in the Commercial Banking sector, Nick moved into a business advisory role for seven years which saw him help businesses meet their strategic aims.

"I thoroughly enjoy customer contact. I like to help people and I like to help businesses. BCRS have a more ethical approach to lending by putting their clients at the forefront. For me, joining BCRS was an easy decision as I believe I fit in well with the company's philosophy."

Nick's banking experience includes operational administration, commercial lending and strategic projects.

"I am looking forward to helping our business clients achieve their strategic goals by lending over £1 Million in Staffordshire over the next nine months.  Being both a Prince's Trust advisor and now a part of the BCRS team means I come into contact with all kinds of businesses, from start-up to established, and as we have money to lend I'm delighted to be able to have the authority to say yes."

Sarah Allen joins BCRS following a diverse career in PR and Marketing. Sarah will be based at the head office in Wolverhampton Science Park. With over 7 years' experience, Sarah will be drawing on her extensive PR and marketing knowledge, both on and offline, to promote BCRS's established capabilities in providing financial help to businesses in the Black Country and Staffordshire.

On her appointment Sarah comments, "I'm delighted to be joining BCRS. 2011 is already shaping up to be a great year for the company and I am really excited to be a part of it. My main responsibility will be to devise and execute a PR and Marketing strategy to drive awareness of BCRS amongst potential customers in our key areas."

Paul Kalinauckas, chief executive of BCRS, said; "We are very pleased to add another two experienced people to our growing team. Nick understands what makes the Staffordshire region tick, Sarah has the experience to help develop the reach of the BCRS name within the Black Country and Staffordshire and both are personally committed to our ethos. We want more businesses to know that if they are turned down by the banks they have the alternative to borrow from us."