Catalogue description THE NATIONAL GIRO

This record is held by Santander Group Archives

Details of GIRO
Reference: GIRO
Title: THE NATIONAL GIRO
Description: ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS GIRO/ARA: POST OFFICE ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 1965 - 1968 GIRO/ARA/PO; POST OFFICE REPORTS TO PARLIAMENT 1963 - 1968 GIRO/ARA/POR; PARLIAMENTARY PAPERS ON GIRO 1959 - 1968 GIRO/ARA/PP; PARLIAMENTARY ACTS 1957 - 1968 GIRO/ARA/PA. CIRCULARS GIRO/CIR: CIRCULARS 1965 - 1968 GIRO/CIR. HISTORY GIRO/HIST: HISTORY 1965 - 1968 GIRO/HIS. GIRO INTERNATIONAL SERVICES GIRO/IS: CEPT 1962 - 1967 GIRO/IS/CEPT; WORKING PARTIES 1963 - 1968 GIRO/IS/CEPT/WP; UNIVERSAL POSTAL UNION 1965 - 1968 GIRO/IS/UPU; CONGRESS PAPERS 1906 - 1967 GIRO/IS/UPUC; PAPERS ON OVERSEAS MONEY ORDERS 1938 - 1968 GIRO/IS/UPU/IMO. INTERNATIONAL MONEY ORDERS GIRO/IS/IMO: UK PAPERS 1871 - 1968 GIRO/IS/IMO/UK; UK INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS 1900 - 1966 GIRO/IS/IMO/A; GIRO INTERNATIONAL SERVICES 1966 - 1967 GIRO/IS; POST CHEQUES 1966 - 1968 GIRO/IS/PC. OPENING GIRO/OPEN: GIRO OPENING 1967 - 1968 GIRO/OPEN. PERSONNEL GIRO/PER: STAFF 1956 - 1968 GIRO/PER/STAFF COMMITTEES 1968 GIRO/PER/COM; POST OFFICE RULES AND REGULATIONS 1953 - 1966 GIRO/PER/POR; STAFF RECRUITMENT 1967 - 1968 GIRO/PER/STAFF/R; TRAINING 1966 - 1967 GIRO/PER/T. PROJECT GIRO GIRO/PG: POST OFFICE POLICY 1954 - 1968 GIRO/PG/POG; EARLY PLANING PAPERS 1959 - 1968 GIRO/PG/EP; PLANNING PAPERS GENERAL 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PG/PPG; THE PLANNING PAPERS 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PG/PP; PLANNING PROGRESS 1960 - 1968 GIRO/PG/P; PERT 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PG/PERT; POST OFFICE GIRO JOINT COMMITTEE 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PG/POGJ; COMMITTEES 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PG/C; COSTINGS 1964 - 1968 GIRO/PG/COST; ACCOMMODATION 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PG/ACC; CONTRACTS 1963 - 1967 GIRO/PG/CON; DESIGN 1965 GIRO/PG/D; DEPARTMENTAL PROCEDURES 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PG/DP; FORMS 1968 GIRO/PG/F; PO COUNTER RULES AND PROCEDURES 1959 - 1968 GIRO/PG/POC; DECIMALISATION/METRICATION 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PG/DM; GIRO AND THE CLEARING BANKS 1960 - 1968 GIRO/PG/CB. GIRO AND THE POST OFFICE PO/GIRO: POST OFFICE PAPERS 1932 - 1968 GIRO/PO/P; POST OFFICE RE ORGANISATION 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PO/REO; POST OFFICE LEGISLATION 1953 - 1968 GIRO/PO/L; MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS 1968 GIRO/PO/MISC. PR ADVERTISING AND MARKETING GIRO/PAM: ADVERTISING POLICY 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/ADVP; ADVERTISING 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/ADV; ARTICLES 1967 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/ART; BUSINESS DIRECTORIES 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/DIR; EXHIBITIONS TALKS AND SEMINARS 1965 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/ETS; LAUNCH OF THE SERVICE 1967 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/LA; LITERATURE 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/LIT; MARKETING 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/MAR; PRESS CUTTINGS 1959 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/PC; PRESS RELEASES 1968 GIRO/PAM/PRE; PR FIRMS 1966 - 1968 GIRO/PAM/PRF. RESEARCH GIRO/R: POST OFFICE PAPERS 1957 - 1968 GIRO/R/PO; GIRO PRACTICALITY 1960 - 1965 GIRO/R/P; GIRO POTENTIAL 1966 GIRO/R/S; GIRO EVALUATION 1967 GIRO/R/ES; GIRO BUSINESS DEMAND 1968 GIRO/R/BD; GIRO GROWTH 1968 GIRO/R/G; EXTERNAL RESEARCH 1965 - 1968 GIRO/R/ER. TECHNOLOGY GIRO/T: SYSTEMS GIRO/T/S; SYSTEMS POLICY PAPERS 1960 - 1968 GIRO/T/S/SPP; SYSTEMS PAPERS 1966 - 1967 GIRO/T/S/P; DETAILED SYSTEMS SPECIFICATIONS 1966 - 1968 GIRO/T/S/DSS; TRIALS AND TESTS 1968 GIRO/T/S/TT; TECHNICAL DRAWINGS 1968 GIRO/T/S/TD; ADP 1967 - 1968 GIRO/T/S/ADP; COMPUTER STANDARDS 1965 GIRO/T/S/CS; TRAINING COURSES 1967 - 1968 GIRO/T/S/TC; NATIONAL DATA PROCESSING SERVICE 1965 - 1968 GIRO/T/S/NPDS; COMPUTER PUBLICITY 1968 GIRO/T/S/CP; AUTOMATION IN THE POST OFFICE 1961 - 1966 GIRO/T/S/POA; EQUIPMENT GIRO/T/E; GENERAL 1966 - 1968 GIRO/T/E/G; ELECTRONIC RETINA COMPUTER READERS BY REI 1966 - 1968 GIRO/T/E/ERCR; BAR CODE READER SORTER 1967 - 1968 GIRO/T/E/BCRS; MAGNETIC INK CHARACTER READERS 1967 - 1968 GIRO/T/E/MICR; OPTICAL CHARACTER READERS 1966 - 1968 GIRO/T/E/OCR; DOCUMENTATION FOR MACHINES 1965 - 1968 GIRO/T/E/DOC; COMPANIES SUPPLYING TECHNOLOGY GIRO/T/F; RECOGNITION EQUIPMENT INCORPORATED 1967 - 1968 GIRO/T/F/REI; BURROUGHS CORPORATION 1967 - 1968 GIRO/T/F/BC; INTERNATIONAL COMPUTERS LTD 1968 GIRO/T/F/ICL; ENGLISH ELECTRIC LEO MARCONI 1965 - 1968 GIRO/T/F/ELM. GIRO VISITS GIRO/V: VISITS 1965 - 1968 GIRO/V.
Date: 1871-1968
Held by: Santander Group Archives, not available at The National Archives
Language: English
Creator:

Post Office, 1636

National Giro, 1968-1978

Subjects:
  • Banks
Administrative / biographical background:

In 1957 a Committee was set up to investigate the "Working of the Monetary System in the United Kingdom". This Committee reported in 1959 and one of its main recommendations was that the introduction of a Giro System would be advantageous to the Country and if neither the Commercial Banks nor the Trustee Savings Bank took it up, there was a case for investigating the possibility of the Post Office introducing such a system. This recommendation became a practical reality in 1965 when the Labour Government issued a White Paper "A Post Office Giro", which outlined a system which would use the Post Office and Sub Post Office Counters as its business outlets and have a fully automated central system for processing all transactions.

 

The White Paper had laid down the criteria needed to be eligible to open an account and the basic services which the Giro was offering. Any person over the age of 16 and any company, institution etc. would be able to open a Giro account with an initial deposit of not less than £5. The basic services were transfers between accounts, deposits into the account, and payments in the form of withdrawals and by post "cheque" to a third party. There was no interest on the account and no overdraft facilities. A statement was provided every time there was a change in the balance and the clearing time for each transaction was to be 24 hours. Charges for some deposits and payments were laid down and stationery was to be provided at cost. Transfers between accounts, deposits into your own account and postage to Giro were free. The charges for businesses were worked out on an individual basis depending on a number of factors.

 

The White paper estimated that within 5 years from the inception of the service there would be some 200,000 business accounts and about 1 million personal accounts. It was estimated that the National Giro would cost between £4 and £5 million to set up and £15 million to operate annually, once the system was in full swing. The income from charges was estimated at some £10 million per annum, the balance needed to cover the expense and provide a reasonable return on the capital investment, was expected to come from appropriately spread investments at gilt-edged rates. To achieve this the Giro would need an average annual balance per account of between £100 and £150, which seemed a reasonably obtainable target.

 

The setting up of the Giro office covered both the development of Computer systems and the physical requirements for a site, building, machinery and people. By 20 September 1965 the site had been chosen in Bootle in Lancashire. This was part of the Government's regionalisation programme for large civil service departments. It was also strategically placed to be able to deal with the whole country and Speak Airport near Liverpool, provided a centre for collection and distribution by air and a night service. The Ministry of Public Buildings and Works drew up the plans using the 18ft modular building system and the contract went to Tersons Ltd, in March 1966. The first buildings were ready by October 1967 and the whole complex was handed over in March 1968.

 

This centre was opened by Mr. Harold Wilson on the 18 October 1968. The National Giro was seen as complimenting the Clearing Banks by providing a simple, cheap and efficient money transfer service for both personal and business customers. It was envisaged that it would meet the Banking needs of the lower income groups who didn't usually have an account with a Clearing Bank

 

The Giro had received 60,000 applications to open accounts by October 1968, of which about 33% were from businesses. The figures for December showed that 44,000 accounts, with a balance of £10 million, had been opened. The Giro also had a London Office which played an essential role in forging links with the money markets, the Bank of England, other financial institutions and key corporate customers, and in dealing with the Post Office and the Government. The Post Office Act 1961 gave full legal powers for the investment of Post Office funds, and it was agreed in 1968 that this included Giro funds. These funds, made up of money remaining in the system, were to be invested in the London Discount Market, the Treasury, Local Authority, Bank and Fine Trade bills. Initially investments were limited to periods of less than 5 years, but it was hoped that longer periods would be allowed once experience had been gained. The dealings were conducted from the London Office.

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