Residents describe their ‘disappointment’ and say they ‘feel let down’ by the closure of banks in their towns and villages across East Devon.
Sharron Brown, a BSL enabler in Exmouth says she has switched banks after the branch in Exmouth closed.
Axminster Chamber of Commerce has spoken to local businesses who in between the banks closing and the banking hub opening have suffered greatly without a bank in the High Street.
Bank branches across the UK and in rural communities in Honiton, Axminster, Exmouth and Sidmouth are closing at an ‘alarming rate.’ Residents are forced to travel at least 10 miles away from Exmouth, to Exeter just to access a bank service.
Paul Hayward, Axminster Town Council Town Clerk spoke to the Herald about what happened after all banks closed in Axminster, and the Town Council’s, Richard Foord Member of Parliament for Honiton and Sidmouth’s work in getting the banking hub set up at the former Lloyds branch in the High Street.
Since 2021. banks, including Lloyds, HSBC and Natwest have all said that the reason behind closing is because of low footfall and the move to online banking. Residents have been telling the Journal their experience since the bank branches closed and what they are doing differently now they have to travel long distances to speak to someone at a bank.
In 2021, in Sidmouth two branches have closed. The largest, Lloyds in the high street which closed in 2022 still lays vacant and up for sale, with no buyers. Sidmouth has recently set up a banking hub which allows residents to access simple banking services in the town.
A banking hub is a shared banking space, similar to a traditional bank branch with different companies occupying a space each day, for example; Monday, Halifax, Tuesday Natwest etc.
It is a counter service that is operated by Post Office staff, where customers of any bank can withdraw and deposit cash, make bill payments, and carry out regular banking transactions1. Banking hubs are located in communities across the UK and are operated by Post Office in partnership with all the major high street providers and Cash Access UK.
This interactive map shows the bank branches open in East Devon, the ones that have closed and where residents can access a banking hub.
In Honiton, the HSBC closed in 2022 and has opened up as a branch of Domino’s Pizza. HSBC also closed its branch in Sidmouth in 2018.
In Exmouth, the only branches left are TSB in the Strand, Santander in Rolle Street and Nationwide, also in Rolle Street.
The only bank service keeping branches open to customers until at ‘least 2025’ is Nationwide. Halifax is set to close its doors in August with no plan to open a banking hub in East Devon.
National figures show how that around 5,791 branches have closed across the UK. In East Devon 12 banks have closed since 2019. And two banking hubs have been set up in Axminster in Devon and in Sidmouth, Devon. This is a rate of around 54 a month and is set to continue in the 2024 with major lenders confirming multiple closures
The closure of banks has also put more strain on the post office in the High Street, with residents reporting long queues in line, and extra stress on its staff as they cope with the extra influx of residents needing their help.
When the Halifax branch in Exmouth announced it was closing, it said: “Many customers are now banking online or using the phone instead of visiting the branch. Its figures show a 56 per cent fall in transactions over the counter or using the branch’s deposit machine between 2018 and 2023, and a 47 per cent fall in cash machine transactions during the same period.
“After the branch closes, a community banker will visit Exmouth regularly to help with face-to-face banking matters. Full details of these visits will be announced nearer the time of the closure.”
In 2023, when Natwest in Exmouth closed its branch it said: “Closing a branch is a difficult decision and not one we take lightly. We understand that this branch closure may be challenging for many and we’re working hard to help prepare our customers, and our colleagues, for the closure.
“We will introduce a community pop-up site following closure where a local colleague will be available to support face-to-face conversations around your day-to-day banking needs, support you with setting up and using our digital services, provide information and advice on how you can use your local Post Office for cash-based transactions, as well as provide advice on how to protect yourself against fraud and scams.”
Some residents have shared their thoughts with the Journal on their experiences since the branches in Exmouth High Street closed.
Sharron Brown – BSL interpreter in Exmouth told the Journal: “My job is I take my clients in, introduce them to the staff, make sure if they need aid but my clients are adults living independently I want the staff to engage and it would be really difficult, particularly Santander if that closed because they do deal with a lot of my particular clients now and the staff is really good with them.
“A lot of the banks have set up video calling for Deaf clients now, which is great. Some banks have signed up for that. However, that’s great if the if you are deaf. And there’s no other issue. And then you’re quite capable of using an iPad or a phone and going on and going through the process. But certainly none of my services would be able to do that. And they all live independently.
“They would always need support to do it, whereas at the moment they can, most of them are still independent and can still go into the banks on their own. So it’s only if it became a complex issue I would go in to stand and advocate for them. Yes, other than that they can do that independently. You take that away.
“I have an older lady who’s got communication needs. So I sign and I speak at the same time, so she gets a full picture. Having the same core as staff all the time so I have no idea what would happen if the branch closed.
“There’s always a queue at the bank and the post office There is never enough staff and they also have plastic panels. My clients struggle with that because they are trying to lip read and look at facial expressions. The idea that banks are closing in Exmouth are such an alarming rate really scares me, I really wouldn’t know what my clients will do if they dont have a particular branch to speak to someone face to face.
“I changed banks when I heard that Halifax was closing, having a physical branch in Exmouth is really important to me, so if I can’t have that I look elsewhere. I have changed banks three times now every time they announce their local branch is closing.”
Jill Elson – Exmouth Community Transport said: “We have an elderly client base which only deals in cash. We had to set up all the Internet banking and get a card reader, which is another expense for us and obviously we then taken a percentage from the transaction. So as as a business that’s an extra cost. Which means we then have to put the fares up. Trying to set up internet banking for the business which was a nightmare
“So for us it was a total inconvenience because we have Barclays. So that meant you couldn’t go into Barclays and discuss how you’re going to change. You gotta go into Exeter or somewhere else to get advice on an ISA. The only bank we have left in Exmouth is Nationwide and Halifax and I was told by the former MP for East Devon that we cant have a banking hub in Exmouth because we already have some banks still open.
“I do feel sorry for the older people and they wouldn’t feel comfortable discussing their financial affairs with family or friends. They can’t do it.
“We have a lot of money changing hands. You can only pay the money in the post office, and the rest must be done virtually on the Internet or phone. That’s if you can get through on the phone.”
Jane Rockett – Chair of Axminster Chamber of Commerce said: “One by one HSBC, NatWest, Barclays and Santander all closed in Axminster leaving us with Lloyds Bank as our only bank. Many people switched banks to join Lloyds thinking they would stay (some reported changing from HSBC to NatWest and then to Lloyds.)
“Lloyds closed in November 2022 leaving us with only our Post office until the Banking hub opened in November 2023. Footfall dropped in the high street as people did their shopping in neighbouring towns whilst going to do their banking. With the loss of the bank also went the loss of the cash point machine in the centre of town – nearest was Tesco cash point which again takes shoppers away from the town centre.
“Feedback from businesses to the loss of the last bank in town was extreme disappointment and a feeling of being let down. Not everyone is capable of doing online banking eg the vulnerable or the dyslexic – those living with dementia also struggled with the changes, not everyone drives and public transport is lacking in the area (one response from Lloyds at the loss of the cash point machine was that there is one in Musbury – this was impractical for many). Also many small businesses do not have spare staff to release to visit banks outside of town.
“As a business community we were thrilled to hear that Cash Access UK were setting up the banking Hub in Axminster. It was hoped that footfall would return and banking processes would be made easier. I think that the fact that we were without a bank for a year was too long and some have got used to going elsewhere. Our members reviews of the Banking Hub are mixed with most recognising that the Hub helps to keep cash in the town centre rather than in other towns whilst others question what they consider to be a limited range of services.
“One local solicitor reported that having the Hub has enabled them to service all their client accounts and that it has saved them trips to Exeter (that they had to do before the Hub opened). Our Pharmacist reported a similar positive experience enabling them to pay cash in and get change out – it also saved them trips to Exter which were time consuming, inconvenient and costly. Several reported that it was reassuring to talk to someone face to face from their bank if they had any problems or unusual activity on their account,
“Perceived frustrations were that cheques take longer to clear than before, many business accounts are still directed to their business banking helpline for queries and some have difficulty in accessing change for their businesses. Axminster Chamber recognises that the Banking Hubs are a relatively new venture and we would welcome working with Cash Access Uk to promote better understanding of the facilities that are available at the Banking Hub. We would also hope that they will consider installing an external cash point machine. “
