About HSBC UK

HSBC UK Bank plc is a British multinational banking and financial services organisation based in Birmingham. HSBC UK are committed to creating an inclusive culture for their colleagues, and an inclusive bank for their customers, enabling everyone to thrive and prosper.

The challenge

Through surveys and focus groups with colleagues with a range of diverse disabilities, abilities and lived experiences, HSBC identified some common problems faced by disabled people when accessing branch services. These included:

• Customers with sight loss experiencing problems with overall branch design and availability of braille signage.
• Wheelchair users reporting issues with finding enough space to turn full circles.
• Customers and colleagues with hearing loss stating that conversations with the teller at glazed branch counters were not always easy to understand.

The project

In response to these issues, HSBC UK opened their new Sheffield City branch in December 2023. This is HSBC’s most accessible, inclusive, sustainable, and digital branch yet.

The branch has an industry leading range of accessibility, sustainability, technology, and wellbeing features, and reflects their ambition to be the one of the most accessible banks for disabled and neurodiverse customers, and the employer of choice for disabled and neurodiverse colleagues.

In addition to the branch features, HSBC created a comprehensive training programme for front line colleagues in the Sheffield City branch on the new accessibility elements. This includes the new Empathy Box (EBOX) which uses VR simulations of individuals with autism and sight loss to give a real understanding of the lived experiences of their customers and colleagues with disabilities.

Furthermore, this training covers disability terminology, assistive technology, and supporting customers who may be struggling with their mental health. Their teams are now looking at how they can incorporate and scale this training to other customer facing roles.

Using learnings from the Sheffield City branch, HSBC have introduced Global Minimum Design Standards for Accessibility and Inclusion, which are now mandatory in the design of all branches and offices globally. In addition, HSBC have created the Global Accessibility and Inclusion Design guidelines. These guidelines add more detail to the Minimum Design Standards and provide design best practice to enable the consistent delivery of accessible and inclusive branches and workplaces. HSBC are committed to building accessibility into design at the outset from the ground up.

The result

The project has been awarded the prestigious ‘Inclusive Environments Recognition’ certification at ‘Project Level’ by the Construction Industry Council.

Going forward

Going forward, HSBC will use the Sheffield branch as a blueprint for sustainable and inclusive branch design globally.