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The restaurant at the top
of the World…
The views across the City of Liverpool are, from this
height, quite stunning. – in the directors’ Dining Room each window has a
panoramic photograph showing the Liverpool Skyline.
Each photo is taken ten or more years after the last,
and this tradition is continued by Barclays, therefore creating a unique
record of the changing face of the City. All in all, this is a reminder to
the Staff of Martins that their Bank is a major player – the largest of the
“Small Six” banks, AND flying in the face of tradition, based far away from
the financial capital of London, and proud of it! If that doesn’t help your dinner go down
nicely, nothing else will…
The Liverpool Skyline from the eighth floor Directors’
Dining Room at Head Office 1951
The Liverpool Skyline from the eighth floor Directors’
Dining Room at Head Office 1968
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# Above: Two of the Panoramas, showing the
Liverpool Skyline as it was in 1951 and then 1968, by which time “St John’s Beacon” known now as
the Radio City Tower had been constructed. ! Left: The Directors’ Dining Room, May
2013. The open door at the end of the
room leads to a small kitchen. This room doubled as the hotel suite of the
character “Frau Bellinghausen” in the BBC TV Production “Close to the Enemy”
2016. With special thanks for these images, to Maria Sienkiewicz, Barclays Group Archivist. |
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In
its 1966 Handbook “Inside Information”, Martins Bank Staff Association
publishes everything an employee might need to know about working for Martins
Bank, from the binding “Service Agreement”, to overtime rates, Saturday
Morning Leave and cheap membership of the RAC. |
The Staff
Dining Room at London 80 Gracechurch Street Office
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By 1966, the provision of Staff restaurant Facilites
has extended to many different parts of the Country. This picture shows
(right) Thirty-three years after the first major dining room opens at Head
Office, there are 12 regional Staff Restaurants and the expectation of
more. The Staff Association is keen to
obtain the Bank’s Assurance that wherever possible, more staff Restaurants
will be opened. Whilst the big cities
are favoured with the provision of a subsidised mid-day meal, the provinces
are not so lucky, with Northern and Craven Districts missing out
altogether. The whole question of
staff lunches is covered by the following three short extracts from MBSA’s
“Inside Information”… |
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STAFF RESTAURANTS Restaurant Facilities for
the staff are available at the following locations:
Meals in these restaurants are served at reasonable prices
and are available to all members of the staff in the vicinity. The Bank has promised the Staff Association
that these facilities will be extended to other centres where there are
adequate concentrations of staff as and when premises can be found. LUNCHEON EXPENSES Members of the relief staff when away from their normal
headquarters may claim for luncheon expenses in cases where it is impossible
to reach one of the Staff Canteens.
The sum of 5s. 6d. per day, free of tax, is allowed. LUNCH BREAKS Following negotiations with the Bank, it has been agreed
that an allowance of 7s. 6d. per day shall be paid to those members of staff
of small Branches who are unable to leave the premises at lunch time. This allowance is paid subject to Income
tax which is deducted under P.A.Y.E.
At your service…
…our
Staff Restaurants(1) |
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At Head Office Left to right: Ursula, Sylvia, Daisy, Ann, Hilda Crawford, Hilda
Thomas, Carrie, Mary, May, Betty, Rene and Ada.
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Scene in the Head Office kitchen as the waitresses line up to collect the main dish… |
About 250 members of the staff avail themselves of these facilities. The first lunch is served at 11.50 a.m., the second at 12.25 p.m. and the third at 1 p.m. These arrangements necessitate a pretty tight schedule, and the preparation of the meal involves a lot of careful planning, as the menu comprises a choice of one of four dishes - two meat, one fish and a snack on toast, a choice of vegetables and creamed or chipped potatoes, a choice of sweets or cheese and biscuits, and tea or coffee. The quantities involved are interesting and give a good idea of the task of preparation - 3 cwt. of potatoes daily, 80 Ibs. of meat for roasting on the roast meat day and 75 Ibs. of fish every Friday. For the special Christmas lunch 260 Ibs. of turkey are required, while the Christmas puddings are "home-made."The Staff Restaurant is served by seven waitresses with the assistance of part-time helpers and, of course, washers-up. Five waitresses serve the three Management dining rooms. |
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So far as the actual cooking is concerned, Mrs. Lily Murray is
now Head Cook and is responsible for the Directors' haute cuisine with the assistance of Mrs. Burns. She joined
the staff in 1934 as a waitress but was quickly transferred to the kitchen.
The Staff Restaurant Supervisor is Miss Caroline Knott. She joined the staff
in 1933 and rose to be head waitress.
On the retirement of Mrs. Cooper four years ago, she was
appointed Supervisor. Cooking for the Staff Restaurant is chiefly under the
control of Mrs. Cartwright with a staff of five women.There is also a
storekeeper, two part-timers to look after the coffee and one to wash up the
silver. The manageress of the entire restaurant, dining rooms and kitchens is
Mrs. Hamilton, who, in addition to her supervisory duties, is responsible for
the planning of the meals, the buying and the book-keeping. |
At Head Office Left to
right: Lily Murray (Head Cook), Winnie,
Ann, May, Beattie, Alice, Gladys and Joan |
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Head Office Management Waitresses Betty, Jean, Irene (Head Waitress), Mary, Sheila |
She came to us in 1951 following the marriage of her
predecessor, Miss Johnson.The feeding of over 400 people, day in and day out,
is no sinecure: some 130,000 meals a year is quite an impressive total and no
more eloquent tribute to her for the way in which she discharges her onerous
duties can be paid than by pointing to the fact that the restaurant is full
to overflowing and the facilities available are being taxed to the utmost.
Nor should it be forgotten that catering arrangements are often
and most willingly made for various social gatherings of the Bank - the quarterly
pensioners' reunions, meetings of the Society of the Arts and for those many
little celebrations when girls leave to get married or when men retire. The service of Mrs.
Murray and Miss Caroline Knott is deserving of special mention: they have
been with us since the beginning and almost a quarter of a century of good
and faithful service deserves to be placed on record. |
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The Men's Canteen, with its
own small kitchen, is on a different floor. Both are of the self-service variety
and there are no waitresses. Mrs. E. M. Bidwell attends to the requirements
of the Men's Canteen. In the Girls' Canteen Mrs. E. Martin is the cook and
Mrs. C. Dick the canteen assistant, with Mrs. H. Roberts as part-time
assistant. A Staff Canteen Committee is in charge of the catering
arrangements. On the management side,
there is also a private Dining Room which caters for the directors, the
District General Manager and his colleagues and for visitors. In addition
there is the usual service for morning coffee and afternoon tea. Mrs. S.
Johnson is the cook and she is in charge of the catering also. Her assistant
is Mrs. M. E. Douche and they also do the catering for such functions as the
periodic pensioners' meetings.
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Mr. F. Elliott, a messenger at
Spring Gardens, also acts as waiter. Special
mention should be made of Mrs. Johnson who has been at Spring Gardens for
over twenty years, a long record of faithful and most exemplary service.
Separate catering arrangements also exist at Brown Street and St. Ann's
Square. At the Brown Street canteen an average of 34 meals are served daily,
both men and girls being included in the arrangements. In addition, morning
coffee and afternoon tea are available, and the Messenger staff, too, are
included, also Trustee Department, but not the Management. The canteen in its
present form has been in operation since 1942. Mrs. G. Courcoux is the cook
and she is assisted by Mrs. A. Whitelegg, supervised by Miss N. Adams. |
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At St. Ann's Square up to a
maximum of 26 meals are served daily, both men and girls being included in
the arrangements, and, within limits, the staffs of nearby branches. As
usual, morning coffee and afternoon tea are served and the Messenger staff
is included. Mrs. M. J. Whalley is the cook and the catering arrangements
are supervised by Miss C. Rastrick: there are no waitresses.
The catering arrangements were
first started in 1948, but the Management are not included in them. In Leeds,
canteen arrangements are in operation at Park Row and an average of 36 meals
per day are now served, including the staffs of neighbouring branches and the
Messenger staff. Morning coffee and afternoon tea are also served. In
addition, the Management, visitors and Directors are catered for in the
Management Dining Room. There are two waitresses and there is a kitchen staff
of two which includes the Manageress, Mrs. E. Gibson, who is in charge of the
catering. |
At Leeds Left to right: Phyllis, Evelyn
(Mrs Gibson), Mary and Ethel |
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At Newcastle upon Tyne (they even have their own food mixer!) Left to right: Mrs Ashby, Madge, Mr Lancaster, Cook
(Mrs O Cairns), Mary and Mrs Crow. Mrs Barker, the remaining member was unfortunately
absent through illness when the photograph was taken. |
In Newcastle upon Tyne an average
of 100 meals are served every day at 22, Grey Street, and here again both men
and girls are included in the arrangements, also the staffs of neighbouring
branches and the Messenger staff.Morning coffee and afternoon tea are also
served. On the Management side, the Managers' dining room caters for the
Management plus any invited guests and the members of the North-Eastern Board
of Directors. Mr. F. Thompson, of North-Eastern Premises Department, holds
the job of Messing Officer and the ordering is done by the caretaker, Mr. L.
Lancaster. The kitchen staff totals four, which includes the cook, Mrs. O.
Cairns, and there are two waitresses. In the near future, reference will be
made on this page to our catering staffs in London and Birmingham, but from
what has been said it will be obvious that a large and important contribution
to the daily comfort and well-being of a great many members of our staff is
made by the people whose photographs appear in connection with this article.
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Most
of them come into the limelight very little or not at all and this is our
opportunity to pay our tribute to them and to say “thank you” for a good job
well done.
Second helpings,
anyone? Readers of the
article above are promised that “In the near future, reference will be made
on this page to our catering staffs in London and Birmingham”, and as if not
to disappoint, no-one has to wait long to hear about their catering
colleagues in the midlands and London.
The Summer 1958 edition of Martins Bank Magazine picks up where the
Spring issue left things, and brings us more information and photographs of
those with arguably one of the most important jobs in the Bank – keeping the
workers fed and watered… |
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…our
Staff Restaurants(2) |
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Limited
catering took place at 68, Lombard Street before the erection of the present
building, but only since the new building was opened in 1930 has it been
possible to tackle the catering problem at all adequately, and there is not
much difference between the daily number of meals served now at Head Office
and at Lombard Street. In London an average number of 375 lunches are served
daily, making a rough total of over 100.000 meals a year against the Head
Office rough total of 130.000. The catering facilities arc open equally to
both men and women and the staffs of nearby branches are also eligible to
attend. As in the case of all the other canteens, morning coffee and
afternoon tea are served and the combined total reaches the figure of between
500 and 550 daily. Catering responsibility is divided into three parts. Mr.
Lee is the chef responsible for the Directors' luncheon and he has a staff of
two to assist him; Miss Grainger looks after the Managers’ luncheon and Mr.
Fuller supplies the needs of the Staff Canteen; Miss Grainger also has a
staff of two to help her. |
At
London Office Left to right: Mrs. K.
L. Lee, Mr. T. C. Lee and Mrs. C. Briers.
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Left to right: Miss H.
Grainger, Mrs. G. A. Read, Mrs. G. K. Spartley. |
Left to right: Mrs. E.
West, Mrs. M. Morgan, Mrs. F. Hyland, Mrs. N. E. Fulker, Mrs. G. Rose, Miss
D. Harper and Mrs. J. Wallace. Mrs. I. Satchell (Canteen Manageress) was
away when the photograph was taken. |
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Unlike
the Head Office restaurant, at Lombard Street the arrangements take the form
of a counter service cafeteria, manned by a staff of seven, there being no
waitresses in the usual sense. The kitchen staff totals six. The arrangements
are not so convenient as those at Head Office, three different floors being
involved. The kitchens are on the sixth floor, the staff canteen and
Managers’ dining room on the fifth, and the Directors’ dining room is on the
fourth floor. At Gracechurch Street, also, there are facilities for the
service of morning coffee and afternoon tea totalling more than 250 a day,
and the canteen is open at lunch time for light refreshments for those of the
staff who occasionally prefer sandwiches. The catering staff consists of one
person with assistance from Lombard Street during morning coffee and
afternoon tea.
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At Birmingham Left to right: D. P. Nicholls
Miss A.Fraser, Mrs. L. V. Canham, Miss A. Harvey, Mrs. R. P. Cashman,
Mrs. J. Craymer, A. W. Fuller (Chef).
BIRMINGHAM
is the new boy so far as these arrangements are concerned, but the canteen
now in operation there under Mrs. Coulbeck and her staff is doing an
excellent job which the staffs working in the City of Birmingham greatly
appreciate. |
Left to right: Mrs. E.
M. G. Jones (since resigned), Mrs. D. Lee and Mrs. E.
L. Coulbeck.
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In
this brief outline of the excellent job of work which the catering staff of
the Bank performs we would like to place on record our acknowledgment of it
and our appreciation of it. No praise was more justly deserved. This article
and the one in the Spring issue would not be complete without mention of the
work done by the clerical staffs of Premises Department at Head Office and in
the various District Offices. Typing of menus, calculation of wages, sale of
lunch tickets, recording of weekly invoices, payment of the monthly accounts,
and the maintenance of staff records is no small contribution to the smooth
running of this excellent job.
Feeding a growing
trend… As the Bank expands –
opening new Branches and departments across England and Wales right up to the
Merger with Barclays – the number of hungry staff also increases to the point
where in Liverpool, a second large catering facility is required. So, on 2 March 1965 Martins opens a new
one-hundred-and-thirty-seater restaurant above Heywoods Branch in Brunswick
Street. It seems somehow fitting that
in the twenty-first Century, the whole of the former Branch is open to the
public as a restaurant! Back in 1965
everything is still shiny and new; Martins Bank Magazine runs a special
article in its Summer issue, directing praise and compliments at the Bank’s
Architect Mr Silcock, whose ingenious design allows for a total capacity of
one hundred and sixty hungry Bank staff if required!
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Above: Two views of the main restaurant. Table tops are of melamine in
a dark timber finish with chairs in black. Dark magenta curtains offset the
grey and white of ceiling and walls, the flooring tiles being blue and
off-white.
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The senior staff dining room on the second floor
preserves the character of this 85-year-old room and now has a carpeted
lounge area, with curtains in
kingfisher blue, a green and orange mixture carpet, mustard-coloured doors,
pale grey walls and a white ceiling.
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The coffee lounge adjoining the main restaurant on
the first floor, with seating for 42 and a counter for serving coffee, tea
and soft drinks. The original ceiling mouldings have been retained and the
predominant colours in the furnishings and decorations are green and rust. |
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A minimum of structural
alteration has retained much of the former Exchange Club atmosphere in a
brighter and more spacious setting. Two goods lifts, seen in the centre of
the photograph at bottom right, bring food from the kitchen above to the
self-service area which has strip lighting and a ventilation system above the
counter as well as shutters which can close the long frontage to the
restaurant converting this into a banqueting hall.
At Heywoods The restaurant staff in the self-service area Left to right: Mrs F. E. Hamilton (acting manageress), Muriel
Alexander, Mary Lundy, Kathleen Whelan, Marie Moran, Ivy Ball, Selina Brown, Mary White, Clare Finn, Daisy Taylor, Lily
Mordaunt, Winnie Eagles, Bessie Leary.
X |
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