United Trust Bank has announced the appointment of two bridging underwriters, who will be based in its new Manchester base.

Hayley Evans joins as senior bridging underwriter, bringing over a decade of experience in the property finance and banking sectors. Most recently with Together, her CV also includes roles at the Co-operative Bank, TSB and Embrace Financial Services.

Also joining the team is Harvey Wood, whose background spans bridging and development finance at lenders such as SoMo, SDKA and Together. His experience includes residential, commercial and mixed-use schemes, with particular expertise in property conversions, HMO developments and tranche funding structures.

Both underwriters will be based permanently at UTB’s Manchester office in Hardman Square, which opened earlier this year in the heart of the city’s business district. The premises host personnel from across the bank’s lending and deposits divisions, including property development, mortgages, asset finance and structured property finance.

While some staff are stationed there full-time, others use the location as a regional hub to meet brokers and clients from the Midlands and North.

Sundeep Patel, director of bridging at United Trust Bank, said: “Manchester has proven to be an ideal location for our satellite office and I am delighted that Hayley and Harvey have become bridging’s first hires to be permanently based there.

“Both have considerable local experience and excellent relationships with bridging brokers operating in the region and having ‘boots on the ground’ is delivering tangible results with improved business and service levels.”

He added that the government’s recent pledges to invest in transport infrastructure across the North and Midlands would further support regional regeneration, and said the bank was well placed to support property investors and developers in making the most of the opportunities.