The number of UK bank branches that have closed permanently over the past nine years will exceed 6,000 on Friday, a milestone that highlights the significant impact on local communities.
Consumer group what? It published these figures as part of its efforts to draw attention to widespread closures and their harmful effects, and urged that this issue become the focus of attention in the upcoming general elections.
Eight Barclays branches are scheduled to close on Friday, bringing the total number of closures since 2015 to 6,005. Barclays alone is responsible for about 20% (1,216) of these closures, which tops the number among major banks.
Increase in closures
The rate of closures peaked in 2017, but appears to be slowing until the recent spike. any? He accuses banks of engaging in a “race to close branches” following the government’s 2020 announcement of potential laws to protect access to cash, which could complicate branch closures if there are no alternative provisions.
Banks justify these closures by pointing to a major shift in customer behaviour, with more people preferring online and mobile banking over traditional services. However, this trend has left many without easy access to personal banking services.
Banking black spots in the future
By the end of the year, 33 parliamentary constituencies, including Erith and Thamesmead, Dagenham and Rainham in London, and Sedgefield, the former home of Tony Blair, are expected to be without a single banking branch.
Impact on communities
While millions have turned to digital banking, a large number of people, especially those less tech-savvy, still rely on physical branches. The closures have forced some customers to travel long distances to obtain essential services, such as registering a power of attorney, which many banks require them to do in person.
Sam Richardson, deputy editor of What? While some may not notice their local branch closing, “for others who rely on face-to-face services, the impact could be catastrophic,” Mooney noted.
Call to action
With the general elections approaching, what? It calls for the next government to commit to establishing at least 200 banking centers during the first two years after the elections. These centres, manned by Post Office staff, offer services such as cash withdrawals, deposits, bill payments and other regular transactions, and essentially operate as standard banking branches.
Response from banks
Barclays, the bank with the highest number of closures, said: “As visits to branches continue to decline, we need to adapt to provide the best service to all our customers. When demand levels do not support a branch, we maintain a personal presence through our local Barclays network, live in over 350 locations, based in libraries, town halls, mobile vans and our banking units.
It is expected that constituencies will have no bank branches by the end of the year
Barnsley East (Population: 94,000)
Bolton West (98,000)
Bradford South (106,000)
Bury South (103,000)
Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (102,000)
Chatham and Aylesford (103,000)
Clwyd South (70,000)
Colne Valley (112,000)
Dagenham and Rainham (117,000)
Denton and Reddish (88,000)
Don Valley (99,000)
East Worthing and Shoreham (99,000)
Erith and Thamesmead (117,000)
Glasgow North East (88,000)
Liverpool, West Derby (94,000)
Mid Bedfordshire (121,000)
Mid Derbyshire (83,000)
Newport East (84,000)
North East Derbyshire (92,000)
Nottingham East (98,000)
Penistone and Stocksbridge (89,000)
Plymouth Moor Show (94,000)
Reading the West (112,000)
Rhonda (68,000)
Sedgefield (85,000)
Sheffield Hallam (85,000)
St Helens North (100,000)
to forbid (86,000)
Swansea East (81,000)
Warrington North (95,000)
Wentworth and Dearney (100,000)
Wirral West (68,000)
York exterior (92,000)
The continuing wave of branch closures underscores the urgent need for solutions to ensure access to banking services for all communities, especially those that rely heavily on face-to-face interactions.