Jon, Brighton - OK. That’s a good question. The question is who would give me a sense of belonging? Ok. Is there something, an answer, that you’d need to have straight away?

Susan, Belfast - Hello, you are through to bank accounts; can you confirm your name for me please? And what can I do for you today?
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What or who, like just in life or a job? Don’t know, I’ve never been asked that question before. What do other people say?

James, Cardiff - Welcome to 118 118 how may I help you?
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Not working in a call centre for a start. Actually it’s rather impersonal working here, because I don’t speak to anyone all day apart from on the phones. Any sense of belonging is usually when I go home. It’s not the type of call centre where you speak to people really. For eight hours a day you’re talking to customers, obviously the rest of the time people are on a different shift, it’s a twenty-four-hour business. I don’t even know the other people which are on my team as it where… I don’t think all call centres are the same, I think it’s just this type of business, the calls are so short, and because e it’s a twenty-four-hour business, that effects it, basically. I’ve worked in a call centre before and the people in my team, we got to be quite close friends. Not the directory enquiries business. You’ve got to be extremely thick skinned; they can tend to be very insulting at times, especially of a Saturday evening. Thank you.

Julia, Chatham - Afternoon, Nat West, how may we help you?
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That’s an unusual request, because the only things I can deal with are actual things to do with the bank accounts. Can I ask your name please? Ok, and the company you are trying to work for? Ok. It’s alright, I’ll just make sure I’m allowed to talk to you about things like this. (Pause).
Hello there. Hi there. I’ve just been speaking to the supervisor now, I’m sorry, we are not allowed to give out any personal information over these phones. It’s calls only to do with the banking or any bank problems you have, it’s to do with the data protection policies we hold. So we can’t give out any personal information over the phone. I’m sorry I can’t help you there. Ok then? I’m sorry I wasn’t able to help you there. Ok, thanks a lot then, bye bye.

Jon, Brighton - Good afternoon, you are through to Jon in card services, your card details are coming through now, if I can now take your name please. Thank you and how are you today, are you ok? Ok, jolly good. I can see you’ve had a problem, though, coming through to us with your password. It’s four numbers long, if I can verify the one you’ve chosen. It’s something that you set up a couple of months ago, do you want to just have a quick go and see what those four numbers might be? Lets see if that works. No that’s the wrong numbers. What we will actually do, we will have for security purposes your mother’s maiden name and also your date of birth please. Thank you, for our records your home telephone number. Right, thank you. We’ll now get your password reset now for you, if you would like to just think of four numbers, like a relative’s birthday or another memorable date. Although you cannot have your own date of birth set up as the security code on your own card. So which four numbers would you like to have please? Are those the ones you’d like to have, yes? And would that be a memorable date for you? That’s a new numeric password there for you, ok? How can we help you today?
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Right, ok. That’s a good question. The question is who would give me a sense of belonging? Ok. Is there something, an answer, that you’d need to have straight away, or is there something we can perhaps come back to you on. If we take a contact telephone number for you. Ok? Is there something I can actually phone you back on, later on this afternoon? I just have a quick think about that, would you like to just hold the line for a moment?

Kevin, Newcastle - National Rail Enquiries, which station are you travelling from?
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Who me, personally? What gives me a sense of belonging? In what way? You mean, are you asking if I belong to a certain group, like, I mean, I’m a white guy, or…? (Pause). I socialise, I support a football team. I suppose it’s a very strange question, you’ve got me well unawares. Belonging at work? No, I hate this place. Tell me someone who likes their job, I don’t suppose you like your job. To turn the question round, what about you, what’s your sense of belonging? (Pause). Well I mean I’ve got no allegiance to work, I hate this place, it’s not the best place to work in exactly. I suppose my family is probably a big thing, my partner as well. Do you do this often do you? It’s a very strange question, do you not want any train times or anything? Ok then, bye.

Steve, Bangalore - Thanks for calling AOL technical support, my name is Steve can I have your home phone number please? Thank you for this information, how can I help you?
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I do feel a sense of belonging with my family; with family I do, with friends I do, and with my co-workers. I have always liked the Beatles, and I like cricket, I always like the underdogs most of the time. Thanks for calling AOL technical support.

Michelle and Sinead, Belfast - Hello, you are speaking to Michelle on bank accounts servicing, can you confirm your name please? And how can I help you today?
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Right ok, bare with me one wee second, the reason being you’ve actually come through…I don’t actually deal with this account that you have, ok? Bare with me one wee second sir, thank you. (Pause).
Hello, hi, you are through to Sinead Stevens how may I help you?
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Belonging? In what way? Well I think, certainly within the position of working in the Halifax we all work in a team, we all work together. We are all part of a team. Halifax is a good place to work, they keep the motivation going, we all work as part of a team. It makes you feel like you belong here, and want to stay here as well. Obviously I’m a mother so, I’m part of a family, there’s that. Ok? Bye.

Gareth, Yorkshire - Good afternoon, thanks for calling BT, you are speaking with Gareth, can you confirm your name and telephone number please? And are you the account holder? Do you have your account number to hand? That’s fine, I can see you told us that you use the Internet at home, is this still the case? What is it I can do for you today?
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Right. Is it ok to just hold the line for just one second? (Pause). Hello sir? Sorry about that. Right. We are meant to be a sales line so we are not meant to answer questions like that, but what I’ve just been informed is that if you can send a letter into BT, right, we actually do this type of survey ourselves with our colleagues and that, in work. So if you send a letter in they might possibly actually send you out one of these surveys so that you can see it yourself. Is that everything sir? Thanks for your call, bye.

Susan, Belfast - If I didn’t get on with the people I work with, I wouldn’t really feel like I belong, part of the Halifax team. You have to get on well with the people you work with. It applies everywhere, generally people that you communicate with, you can feel like you belong somewhere. I feel that with some people at work, not everyone. People that are on the same level as you, maybe people who are managers, you feel a bit different, you wouldn’t really feel like you belong when you are talking to them, they don’t see the things that you see, they don’t really do the same stuff as you would do.
I feel like I would be part of Belfast, I would feel like I would want to support – if Belfast on its own was in a big competition – I would feel like I want to support people from here, more than people from anywhere else. I suppose that’s just the way many people would feel. I quite like living here, I’m quite proud to say that I am from Belfast. Most people would say that too wouldn’t they? I feel like I belong here, I don’t know what else to say, you know? You see, living here though, I feel like, its strange – you might not understand – everyone knows everyone. It’s quite small, you always find someone, who knows someone else you know, everywhere you go. And any time you go out, maybe at a weekend you’ll always find someone you know. So it’s quite, maybe, homely, like that. That’s good, there’s always someone that you know, or always someone to speak to. Maybe why in a big city, maybe like London you wouldn’t really know as many people or you wouldn’t bump into them as often. Here it’s quite friendly. That’s it really. Bye bye.

Chris, Midlands - You are through to the BT customer support team, how can I help?
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It’s the company isn’t it, the people you work with and the company you work for. Outside of work, family and friends and stuff. That’s it really. Are you looking to start off your own call centre or something? I don’t understand what you mean, anything which makes you feel like you belong? It’s all that kind of stuff. Belong to what though? Ok? Bye, thanks for your call.

Jon, Brighton - Hello there. I’ve had a think of something here for you, which is just one sentence I guess. In answer to the question, what I would say is that, what gives me a sense of belonging is working in a team, and experiencing building up a rapore with people. Would that be satisfactory? Is that ok? Ok, well it’s certainly been nice speaking to you; hope you found it helpful anyway. Thank you for calling American Express. Goodbye now.