The value of mortgages arranged by one of the UK’s largest adviser networks rose 24% to a record high last year while there are “reasons to be more cheerful” about the UK economy, its annual conference heard yesterday (Mon).
Stonebridge hosted over 500 guests at the world-famous Celtic Manor Resort in Wales, where it revealed that it arranged £16.2 billion of home loans in 2025.
Network members gathered for a day of industry updates, education and networking, where they heard from double Olympic gold medal winner Dame Kelly Holmes, who provided ample motivation for delegates when she took to the stage for her keynote speech.
Dame Kelly taught the hundreds of entrepreneurs at the Stonebridge National Conference how to maintain a winning mindset and embed resilience into their businesses to turn any challenge into an opportunity.
Guest speakers came from across the world of mortgages and protection. They included mortgage and protection experts and sector leaders such as Lloyds Banking Group Managing Director for intermediaries Esther Dijkstra, Santander UK’s Head of Homes David Morris, and Stephanie Charman, chief executive of AMI.
Liz Martins, UK Economist at HSBC UK, said there were “reasons to be more cheerful” about the UK economy as she continued to predict the Bank of England base rate would fall to 3% by the end of 2026.
She told the Stonebridge delegates: “There is a path for things to get better from here. It is a narrow path. There are plenty of pitfalls and risks along the way but there are reasons to be more cheerful for this year.
“The first is lower inflation. Our forecast is that we’ll be back down to 2.1% by April. We’ll briefly dip below the Bank of England’s target in the summer. We’ll be back around that more normal 2% level and I think all of us will really benefit from that because, as households, we all feel the impact [and] as businesses it’s a problem.
“It’s a problem for Rachel Reeves as well because it keeps interest rates and Gilt yields higher. Lower inflation will help everybody I think.”
Martins went on to say that, despite ongoing concerns over unemployment figures, wages have been rising more than inflation and interest rate cuts will help unlock that money so it can be spent in the economy. She also pointed out that the Chancellor built herself a bigger cushion in the last Budget, so 2026 should be a quieter year for fiscal policy, while business confidence is on the rise.
Throughout the day, delegates were given a masterclass in how to compete stronger, covering everything from performance trends typical of the fastest-growing ARs and upcoming market opportunities to AI document processing and new regulations.
A particular focus was the need to introduce conversations about protection earlier in the mortgage application process, following publication of the FCA’s interim Pure Protection Market Study, which highlighted the protection gap as a key concern.
The network’s financial update reported that Stonebridge ARs completed 24.3% more mortgages last year, running significantly ahead of the network’s 11.3% growth in adviser numbers.
Rob Clifford, Chief Executive at Stonebridge, said: “It was a wonderful day and there was so much energy in the room. Dame Kelly was an inspiration and, with so much to celebrate at the network, the sense of self-belief and pride was palpable.
“I always enjoy seeing our members interact with each other because it’s the one time in the calendar where they really get to see how they’re part of something bigger. They see the culture they build with us reflected in advisers they’ve never met before, but will go on to build lasting relationships with.
“This is all being captured in the sector-leading growth we’re delivering, both in lending figures and adviser numbers. The day itself is never just a meet-and-greet, although it’s always superb fun. We send all our advisers away with a deeper understanding of the opportunities and challenges in front of them, and a lot of what happens on the day shapes how we amend our services over the next 12 months. It’s incredibly valuable all round.”
Stonebridge is the second-largest mortgage-focused network by number of ARs firms, adding more ARs than any other similar network last year for the fourth year running.
