The Bank's records show that, in May 1938, the purchase of 10,000 additional Home Safes was approved. These were to be purchased from Messrs Wilkins & Wright Ltd at a cost of 2s 11d (15 pence) each. Based on the above statistics, it would seem that these additional safes met demand until the mid-1950s when the above correspondence occured.

 

Periodically, Home Safes needed to be returned to the manufacturer for repair. A report to the General Manager in 1947 stated that 1,081 safes were with Messrs Wilkins and Wright Ltd for this purpose. But the process was not proceeding smoothly - the safes had been dismantled but repairs had been delayed due to a shortage of labour. Wilkins and Wright stated that the cost of repairing, reassembling, re-coppering and re-bronzing would be 5/- (25 pence) each. They would, however, be prepared to undertake the repair of a further 500 (at a cost of 2/6d (12½ pence) each) if the finish was by cellulose spraying in black instead of re-bronzing. The cheaper cellulose spraying alternative seems to have subsequently been the standard method of repair, resulting in many safes having this finish.

 

The Bank's home safe incorporated a slot at the top of one end, through which the saver deposited coins; the safe's mechanism preventing the coins being extracted via the slot. Emptying the safe was only possible through a locked door on the bottom - the key being held by the Bank. Periodically, therefore, the depositor took the safe into the Bank for its contents to be credited to his or her account. Opening the safe would sometimes reveal non-monetary items: small objects pushed in by infants; or even earwigs.

In due course, a small hole was added to the home safe at the opposite end from the slot; this was used to deposit rolled-up bank notes. Later issues of home safes included a smaller, oval design in nickel, and a book-shaped version. These were manufactured by Automatic Recording Safe Co Ltd (of London), and Pearson-Page-Dewsbury Co Ltd (of Birmingham), respectively.

Each safe was stamped with the unique number recorded in the Home Safes Received and Distributed Record Book, which was recorded on the depositor's ledger sheet and passbook when the safe was issued, following completion of the appropriate form. When the home safe was presented at the Bank to be opened, the cashier marked the deposit slip (eg "H/S") to indicate the source of the cash. Each day, at each branch, the number and amount of deposits by home safe was required to be entered into a record book - this record forming the basis of the annually reported statistics. These statistics can only be regarded as a rough guide, given the propensity of bored junior clerks to make up the figures when the task had not been done for a few days!

It was the task of each branch to balance its stock of home safes each month. This almost universally loathed task was accomplished with the aid of the Home Safe Agreement Form (MB 76) - new forms representing issues, and cancelled forms denoting returns.

The humble home safe was a very popular facility that introduced and encouraged the savings habit to many depositors. It became outmoded as the Bank moved away from its savings roots. The issuing of free safes which could only be opened by the Bank was discontinued in 1974. A few years earlier, plastic 'thrifty boxes' (complete with a key) were introduced for sale at branches.

 

Following the discontinuation of issuing the original style of Home Safes, a stock of surrendered safes accumulated. Although, Britain's First Municipal Savings Bank had described the safes as being of steel construction (and an Annual report saying they were 'neat little steel receptacles'), it was generally understood by bank staff that they were made of bronze. An attempt was made to cash in on the redundant stock by selling them as scrap metal, but they were found to be made of a bronze alloy, and were thus worthless.