Hundreds more bank branches to shut including HSBC and Barclays - see map

06 December 2023 , 14:57

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Hundreds of bank branches have closed across the UK this year (Image: Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Hundreds more high street banks will be closing over the coming few months.

Eight banks have closed this week alone, with another four set to shut by Friday as banks continue to vanish at an unprecedented pace. By the end of this year, 630 banks will have closed - a 46% increase on the 431 banks that were lost on the high street in 2022.

Another nine branches are facing the axe but have yet to be given an end date. The closures are continuing at speed into next year with the names of another 187 branches to shut in 2024 announced already.

It comes after a voluntary agreement saw the major banking groups commit to assessing the impact of every branch closure from February 2022. That agreement was made to “ensure that no community is left without the cash access and deposit services it needs”.

The LINK initiative - which was agreed by all the major banks including Barclays, HSBC, Natwest, Lloyds and Halifax - was set up to ensure vulnerable customers and small businesses were not left behind in the switch to cashless payments and virtual banking.

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You can see which banks are closing or have closed in your area using our interactive map.

However, since its launch 1,259 bank branches have either closed or are set to shut, with banking hubs or free ATMs set up in areas left without any local bank.

The wave of bank closures has affected every part of the UK, with a total of 1,059 lost in England alone, plus another 88 in Scotland, 74 in Wales, 37 in Northern Ireland, and one in the Isle of Wight. Around a quarter of those closures (341) have left the surrounding community with no branch of any bank nearby.

The charity Age UK has already raised concerns about the loss of so many banks and has called for the remaining branch closures to be put on hold until more banking hubs have opened in areas with no alternative services.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director for Age UK, said recently: "The continuing avalanche of bank branch closures means that by the end of this year, there will be considerably fewer opportunities for face-to-face banking than there were even just a couple of years ago.

"Older people living in rural and semi-rural areas are likely to be the hardest hit but those in towns and cities are not immune. The reality is that for almost everyone, it is getting progressively harder to bank face to face, leaving millions of older people who are not online potentially high and dry.

"Being able to manage your money is key to living independently as you age, but the rush towards digital banking means millions of older people are being deprived of this, simply because they do not use computers."

John Howells, CEO of Link, said: "More and more people are banking and shopping online, meaning they're not visiting ATMs or bank branches as often as they used to. It's still critical that we're able to provide free access to cash and face-to-face banking services.

"That's why LINK has assessed each and every bank branch closure and has so far recommended that 101 new banking hubs are opened in communities up and down the country. These hubs will help bring life back to the High Street and ensure that communities can still access cash and basic banking services locally."

Richard Ault