SANTANDER is shutting 95 of its high street branches as part of a major shake-up.
The bank currently has 444 branches across the UK.
However it says it will be shutting a significant portion of these as well as making more of its branches counter-free and reduced-hours.
The move puts 750 employees at risk of redundancy.
Santander said closing branches was a “difficult decision” but it wanted to ensure its business is “fit for the future”.
Major banks have been increasingly turning away from the high street as more people move to online banking.
Traditional bricks and mortar banks have also faced stiff competition from online-only challenger banks, which are often able to offer more favourable rates to customers due to their lower costs.
What are the changes being made?
Announcing the changes this morning, Santander said the shake-up would mean it has 290 full-service branches across the UK.
A further 36 branches will have reduced hours, 18 will be counter-free, and five will be Work Cafes.
The new Work Cafe concept includes co-working spaces, superfast WiFi and dedicated event spaces which can be accessed for free.
Branches with reduced hours will be open on either Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 9.30am and 3pm, or Tuesdays and Thursdays 9.30am to 3pm and Saturdays 9.30am to 12.30pm.
The exception is the Caerphilly branch, which will be open Tuesdays and Thursdays between 9.30am to 3pm.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Santander’s £130 Million Recovery: What You Need to Know” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6366655601112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]The reduced hours will begin from June 30.
Counter-free branches won’t have the traditional banking teller behind a counter, but there will be Santander staff available.
The majority of services will still be available although customers will need to use the Post Office for transactions involving large cash withdrawals or coin.
Areas affected by branch closures will instead be served by “community bankers” who can provide “face-to-face money management and general support for customers, visiting local communities weekly, as well as attending local Banking Hubs”.
Santander says it will contact all potentially vulnerable customers affected by the closures by phone and try to find ways to help them.
There is also a dedicated phone number to provide customers with help and information on the closures.
To get more information, you can call 0330 678 2469.
A spokesperson for Santander said: “As customer behaviour changes, we are ensuring that our branches remain fit for the future…
“As a business, we must move with customers and balance our investment across all the places where we interact with customers, to deliver the very best for them now and in the future.
“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.
“However, we believe that the introduction of our new Community Bankers and the exciting plans we have for our remaining network of 349 branches and Work Cafes, alongside the rapid and innovative improvements to our award-winning mobile banking app, will provide the right balance of digital banking and human interaction when required.”
Santander says it has seen a 63% increase in digital transactions since 2019.
Transactions completed in branches has reduced by 61% over the same period.
Which branches are closing?
Here is the list of branches that are shutting in the coming months, and the dates they will close for good:
- Aberdare – 24 June
- Arbroath – 17 June
- Armagh – 1 July
- Blackwood – 23 June
- Blyth – 5 August
- Bognor Regis – 14 July
- Borehamwood – 1 July
- Brecon – 25 June
- Brixton – 11 August
- Caernarfon – 7 July
- Camborne – 7 July
- Canvey Island – 5 August
- Clacton – 16 June
- Cleveleys – 23 June
- Colne – 14 June
- Colwyn Bay – 24 July
- Crowborough – 23 July
- Croydon – 16 June
- Cumbernauld – 7 July
- Didsbury – 8 July
- Downpatrick – 6 August
- Dungannon – 23 June
- Edgware Road – 12 August
- Eltham – 23 June
- Exmouth – 15 July
- Falmouth – 21 July
- Farnham – 29 July
- Felixstowe – 16 July
- Finchley – 6 August
- Fleet – 30 June
- Formby – 11 August
- Gateshead Metro – 16 June
- Glasgow LDHQ – 24 June
- Glasgow MX – 23 June
- Greenford – 24 June
- Hackney – 15 July
- Hawick – 24 July
- Herne Bay – 8 July
- Hertford – 29 July
- Holloway – 14 July
- Holywell – 13 August
- Honiton – 14 July
- Kidderminster – 18 June
- Kilburn – 17 June
- Kirkby – 22 July
- Launceston – 16 June
- Louth – 17 June
- Magherafelt – 24 June
- Malvern – 2 July
- Market Harborough – 1 July
- Musselburgh – 30 June
- New Milton – 28 July
- Peterhead – 16 June
- Plympton – 14 August
- Portadown – 30 June
- Pudsey – 28 July
- Rawtenstall – 15 July
- Ross-On-Wye – 30 July
- Ruislip – 7 July
- Rustington – 5 August
- Saltcoats – 21 July
- Seaford – 15 July
- Shaftesbury – 23 July
- Sidcup – 11 August
- St Austell – 8 July
- St Neots – 30 July
- Stokesley – 31 July
- Strabane – 23 July
- Surrey Quays – 10 November
- Swadlincote – 30 June
- Tenterden – 7 July
- Torquay – 17 June
- Tottenham – 8 July
- Whitley Bay – 6 August
- Willerby – 13 August
- Wimborne – 4 August
- Wishaw, Date to be announced
- Bexhill, Date to be announced
- Billericay, Date to be announced
- Dover, Date to be announced
- Droitwich, Date to be announced
- Dunstable, Date to be announced
- East Grinstead, Date to be announced
- Holyhead, Date to be announced
- Ilkley, Date to be announced
- Larne, Date to be announced
- Lytham St Annes, Date to be announced
- Maldon, Date to be announced
- Morley, Date to be announced
- North Walsham, Date to be announced
- Redcar, Date to be announced
- Saffron Walden, Date to be announced
- Turriff, Date to be announced
- Uckfield, Date to be announced
- Urmston, Date to be announced.
Counter-free branches (effective dates):
- Abingdon, 16 June
- Accrington, 16 June
- Bracknell, 7 July
- Bromsgrove, 30 June
- Camberley, 11 August
- Eastleigh, 23 June
- Edgware, 23 June
- Gravesend, 4 August
- Hartlepool, 14 July
- Liverpool AR, 4 August
- Neath, 23 June
- Northwich, 30 June
- Nuneaton, 14 July
- Orpington, 11 August
- Rotherham, 11 August
- Sittingbourne, 30 June
- Stirling, 16 June
- Streatham, 30 June.
Which other banks are closing branches?
Santander is just the latest high street bank to announce a series of closures.
Lloyds Banking Group is also shutting 20 branches this month as it shifts more towards digital banking.
Lloyds Bank is closing 13 locations, including branches in Surbiton, Newquay and Ealing, between March 3 and March 31.
Halifax will shut an additional six sites, with closures in Portsmouth, Camberley and Didcot scheduled between March 4 and March 27.
Meanwhile, Bank of Scotland will close a single branch in Montrose, Angus, on March 10.
Lloyds Banking Group has shut 537 bank branches across its three brands since June 2022.
A further 203 branches are set to close by 2026.
Since 2022, Barclays has also announced 394 closures.
Several banks including HSBC and Nationwide have no current plans to close further branches in 2025.
HSBC has said it will not make any closures until at least 2026, while Nationwide has made the same commitment until the start of 2028.
What to do if your local bank is set to close
If you still need to access basic banking services, you won’t necessarily have to venture to another town.
You can use the Post Office to perform many basic banking tasks, although you won’t be able to open new bank accounts or take out personal loans or mortgages.
You can find your nearest Post Office branch by visiting postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder.
Many banks also offer a mobile banking service, where they bring a bus to your area offering services you can usually get at a physical branch.
You may also be able to find mobile banking services in buildings such as village halls or libraries.
It’s worth contacting your bank to see what mobile services they have available, and when they might next be in your area.
There are also new super ATMs being rolled out in areas where branch closures have left residents unable to access essential banking services.
These ATMs allow customers to withdraw funds, access their balance, change PIN numbers and deposit cash.
You could also look out for banking hubs, which are similar to traditional bank branches but are available to everyone.
LINK, which helps people access cash services, has said 19 new locations can now expect to see banking hubs open on their local high street in the future as a result of the closures.
These are:
- Bexhill-on-Sea (East Sussex)
- Billericay (Essex)
- Dover (Kent)
- Droitwich (Worcestershire)
- Dunstable (Beds)
- East Grinstead (West Sussex)
- Holyhead (Isle of Anglesey)
- Ilkley (West Yorkshire)
- Larne (Antrim, NI)
- Maldon (Essex)
- Morley (West Yorkshire)
- North Walsham (Norfolk)
- Redcar (North Yorkshire)
- Saffron Walden (Essex)
- St Annes on Sea (Lancashire)
- Turriff (Aberdeenshire)
- Uckfield (East Sussex)
- Urmston (Great Manchester).