Customers of major high street banks will soon witness numerous branch closures in the upcoming weeks as five leading banks have announced shutdowns. Financial giants like Lloyds, Halifax, and NatWest are set to eliminate in-person services across various high streets, with a total of 11 closures planned for this week alone. NatWest customers in Abingdon, Birmingham, New Market, Willerby, and Yate will bid farewell to their local branches this week.
In a similar vein, Halifax will be closing branches in London Clapham Junction, Rhyl, Erdington, Cirencester, and Walkden this week, while the Lloyds branch in Leeds Armley is also on the chopping block. The rationale behind these closures is the increasing trend of customers utilizing online and mobile banking apps for account management, making the viability of in-person branches more challenging. Despite this shift, many customers and small businesses still heavily rely on their neighborhood branches for day-to-day banking needs.
Notable closure timelines include NatWest branches shutting down between now and November, Lloyds branches set to close by the year-end, and Halifax branches scheduled for closure within the same timeframe. Bank of Scotland closures are anticipated to occur between now and March 2026, while Santander branches are also expected to close, although no specific dates have been provided.
According to Which?, over 6,400 bank and building society branches have shuttered since 2015, with an average closure rate of 53 branches per month, signaling a significant transformation in the operational landscape of UK banks. In the event of your bank’s closure, alternative options such as utilizing Post Office branches for basic banking services, with nationwide availability at 11,684 branches, or accessing mobile banking services that bring banking facilities to areas lacking physical branches, can be explored.
To locate the nearest Post Office branch, visit postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder, and for further details on mobile banking services, contact your bank directly.