Santander, the bank which promotes “togetherness” in its ads, is desperately trying to save face after first refusing an account to a “family-friendly” circus group because of its burlesque act, only to claim it was a “misunderstanding”.
The row first emerged after Circus Uncertainty co-founder Joshua Morris applied for a Santander business account in a Bristol branch, and was given no indication the application would be an issue.
However it is understood that when staff looked at Circus Uncertainty’s website, featuring co-founder Lucy Tucker (pictured) in a showgirl costume, dressed in a bikini and feather bustle, they panicked.
Morris told the BBC: “They were beating around the bush trying not to say it, but eventually said it was a problem because we sell showgirl and burlesque acts.”
The refusal sparked uproar as the company also runs family friendly workshops and events and had wanted to set up the business bank account to enable it to apply for Arts Council funding to help run a charity programme. Tucker had planned a non-profit scheme to entertain terminally ill children in Bristol this summer, with the funding intended to help pay for costumes.
A spokeswoman for the bank, whose strapline is “Together we are Santander”, said: “We are committed to supporting the local business community and we have reviewed this account application following some clarification of the nature of the business.
“We are now in discussions with the business owner about his application and we hope to reach a positive outcome in the coming days.
“We are very sorry for any concern or inconvenience that our initial misunderstanding may have caused.”
However, Morris said he was in two minds as to whether to accept the Santander deal. He said: “They wouldn’t get in contact with us until we went to the papers. We’ve been offered accounts with other banks now.”
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