Bank branches closing add to high street decimation - have your say

Santander has revealed plans to shut down almost 100 branches, putting an estimated 750 jobs in jeopardy. The banking behemoth confirmed that the first wave of closures will commence in June, with four on the doomed list in Cornwall.

Have your say! Is one closing near you? Will a shift towards more online banking affect you or people that you know? Join in the conversation.

Alongside the 95 closures, Santander is also planning to reduce operating hours at 36 sites and convert 18 branches into counter-free locations. This revamp will affect over a third of its existing network of 444 branches.

Post these changes, the Spanish-owned bank will operate 349 branches, including 290 full-service sites and five 'work cafes'.

The bank has cautioned that these changes could potentially put around 750 jobs at risk, which represents over 4% of its 18,000-strong UK workforce. These job cuts will be subject to approval following consultations with unions, according to the Mirror.

Most of these potential redundancies are tied to the branch closures, but approximately 12% are due to the proposed reduction in operating hours.

Santander attributes this significant overhaul to a shift in customer behaviour, with a growing number of customers preferring online banking. The company reported a 63% surge in digital transactions since 2019, while branch transactions have seen a decrease of 61%.

Santander UK is set to shut down a total of 95 branches across the UK, comprising 71 in England, 10 in Scotland, seven in Wales, and seven in Northern Ireland, impacting every region in England.

A spokesperson for Santander UK stated: "As customer behaviour changes, we are ensuring that our branches remain fit for the future. Our new combination of full-service branches, alongside work cafes, counter-free branches and reduced hours branches, aims to provide the right balance between digital banking and face-to-face money management and guidance.

"Closing a branch is always a very difficult decision and we spend a great deal of time assessing where and when we do this and how to minimise the impact it may have on our customers."

The majority of Santander's reduced-hours branches will adopt a three-day week schedule from June 30, with hours set either for Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:30am to 3pm, or on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30am to 3pm and Saturdays from 9:30am to 12:30pm.

Eighteen locations will become counter-free branches as of June 16, with staff on hand to provide face-to-face support, averaging eight employees per branch. The bank plans to recruit 95 new community bankers in areas affected by the closures, with the aim of reassigning some staff from the closed branches to these new roles.The new team of community bankers is expected to serve local communities weekly, operating out of places such as libraries and community centres.

This latest transformation comes on the heels of the closure of 111 branches in 2021, which represented about a fifth of its network at that point, following on from its previous significant network revision.

The Santander branches set to shut with known dates:.

• Aberdare, Glamorgan, Wales, June 24.
• Arbroath, Angus, Scotland, June 17.
• Armagh, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, July 1.
• Blackwood, Gwent, Wales, June 23.
• Blyth, Northumberland, August 5.
• Bognor Regis, West Sussex, July 14.
• Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, July 1.
• Brecon, Powys, Wales, June 25.
• Brixton, London, August 11.
• Caernarfon, Gwynedd, Wales, July 07.
• Camborne, Cornwall, July 7.
• Canvey Island, Essex, August 5.
• Clacton, Essex, June 16.
• Cleveleys, Lancashire, June 23.
• Colne, Lancashire, July 14.
• Colwyn Bay, Clwyd, Wales, July 24.
• Crowborough, East Sussex, July 23.
• Croydon, Surrey, June 16.
• Cumbernauld, Lanarkshire, Scotland, July 7.
• Didsbury, Greater Manchester, July 8.
• Downpatrick, County Down, Northern Ireland, August 6.
• Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, June 23.
• Edgware Road, London, August 12.
• Eltham, London, June 23.
• Exmouth, Devon, July 15.
• Falmouth, Cornwall, July 21.
• Farnham, Surrey, July 29.
• Felixstowe, Suffolk, July 16.
• Finchley, London, August 6.
• Fleet, Hampshire, June 30.
• Formby, Merseyside, August 11.
• Gateshead Metro, Tyne & Wear, June 16.
• Glasgow LDHQ, Lanarkshire, Scotland, June 24.
• Glasgow MX, Lanarkshire, June 23.
• Greenford, Greater London, June 24.
• Hackney, London, July 15.
• Hawick, Roxburghshire, Scotland, July 24.
• Herne Bay, Kent, July 8.
• Hertford, Hertfordshire, July 29.
• Holloway, London, July 14.
• Holywell, Clwyd, Wales, Aug 13.
• Honiton, Devon, July 14.
• Kidderminster, Worcestershire, June 18.
• Kilburn, London, June 17.
• Kirkby, Merseyside, July 22.
• Launceston, Cornwall, June 16.
• Louth, Lincolnshire, June 17.
• Magherafelt, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, June 24.
• Malvern, Worcestershire, July 2.
• Market Harborough, Leicestershire, July 01.
• Musselburgh, Midlothian, Scotland, June 30.
• New Milton, Hampshire, July 28.
• Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, June 26.
• Plympton, Devon, August 14.
• Portadown, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, June 30.
• Pudsey, West Yorkshire, July 28.
• Rawtenstall, Lancashire, July 15.
• Ross-On-Wye, Herefordshire, July 30.
• Ruislip, Greater London, July 7.
• Rustington, West Sussex, August 5.
• Saltcoats, Ayrshire, Scotland July 21.
• Seaford, East Sussex, July 15.
• Shaftesbury, Dorset, July 23.
• Sidcup, Kent, August 11.
• St Austell, Cornwall, July 8.
• St Neots, Cambridgeshire, July 30.
• Stokesley, Cleveland, July 31.
• Strabane, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, July 23.
• Surrey Quays, London, November 10.
• Swadlincote, Derbyshire, June 30.
• Tenterden, Kent, July 7.
• Torquay, Devon, June 17.
• Tottenham, London, July 8.
• Whitley Bay, Tyne & Wear, August 6.
• Willerby, East Yorkshire, August 13.
• Wimborne, Dorset, August 4.
• Wishaw, Lanarkshire, Scotland, July 22.

Have your say! Is one closing near you? Will a shift towards more online banking affect you or people that you know? Join in the conversation.

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