Twitter Handle:

@VickyHartleyMS

The main beats that I cover are:

Mortgages, financial advice, property, financial policy and regulation, SMEs, the economy, diversity and inclusivity.

So don’t waste time telling me about:

Football (sorry) or a company’s new logo.

The biggest influence on my journalism career to date is:

Or rather has been, the generous, collegiate attitude of top-flight journalists like Hilary Osborne, Samantha Partington, Heather Greig-Smith and Nick Cheek. Journalism is such an individual pursuit, teamwork and jolly people lift the spirit. 

The proudest moment of my time working in financial journalism has been:

Winning the B2B Mortgage Journalist of the Year categories at both the Headlinemoney Awards and Santander Awards.

The piece of advice I'd give to someone starting out in financial journalism is:

Always triple check your stories/submit clean copy. Mind your manners for a long-lasting writing career. People keep coming around.

My favourite media outlets for financial news are:

A face-to-face meeting, plus the FT and Guardian. 

The best times for PRs/press offices to contact me are:

I work flexibly nowadays, so Tuesdays and Wednesdays best.

My relationship with PRs could be improved if:

We worked up exclusive stories together. They get huge hits. Sorry to moan but news commoditisation/the press release churn has been a backwards step for journos and PRs alike. 

My favourite financial expert is:

My colleagues. Always useful to knock ideas about with Nick Cheek, Shekina Tuahene, Anna Sagar and Paloma Kubiak.

The financial interview I’d most like to arrange is:

Adam Applegarth, ex-Northern Rock CEO. I'd love to ask him about the risk decisioning behind the Together Mortgage.

The piece of financial services research I’d most like to read is:

Anything in-depth on the mortgage advice market. There’s too little forensic insight overall on a sector responsible for placing approaching 90% of the home loans in the UK.

My view on the humble press release and how it could be improved is that:

Essential reading. But in some cases, more research/backstory would be helpful, with maybe less people being ‘delighted’ about something.

My dream job in financial journalism would be:

I feel like I already have it. Although an unlimited team/budget would be spiffy.

Are there any recent campaigns/features you and your team have worked on that you would like to highlight?

The Diversity and Inclusivity Finance Forum (DIFF). The Mortgage Solutions team runs podcasts, seminar events and an annual lunch in a bid to create a more ‘balanced and fair’ mortgage industry. Past topics have included women’s rights, social mobility, the menopause, neurodiversity and racial discrimination. I’m really looking forward to the session exploring the term ‘wokeism’ in June. Hosting and driving DIFF forward is incredibly rewarding and the events have already changed policy in the industry. There’s a lot of work to do – and an almost unlimited sphere to explore, so, please get in touch with ideas. 

The one piece of kit I cannot do without as a financial journalist is:

A double expresso.

Given £1,000 I’d invest in:

My mortgage. It could do with the boost.

You won’t know this, but I’m really good at:

Back diving. Although I haven’t tried for a while to be fair.

You won’t know this, but I’m hopeless at:

Packing. 

And finally… what’s your go-to karaoke song?

'Footloose' or 'Summer of 69'.