TSB to close 70 more branches in 2022

689
4
TSB to close 70 more branches in 2022

TSB is going to close 70 more branches next year, nearly a quarter of its remaining network will be closed due to more customers switching to digital banking.

The bank said the decline in use of branches by customers had been accelerated by the Pandemic and added to the 164 closures announced in 2020 by the lender, described by the trade union Unite as a bitter blow.

The TSB said 150 employees would be affected but all were to be offered alternative roles at the business.

The bank, which had been swallowed up by Lloyds in the 1990s, reappeared as a separate brand with more than 600 branches in 2013 and was taken over by Spain s Sabadell, its current owners.

After the latest round of closures in line with cuts across the banking industry, it will be left with just 220 sites, which it said will be the seventh largest network in the UK.

The bank set out a strategy two years ago to scale back its high street network and invest in digital services in recent years and saw a significant decrease in branch use in recent years.

EasyJet sees a softening of bookings as COVID restrictions grow amid Omicron uncertainty.

The shift away from branch services has been accelerated by the COVID 19 pandemic, with customers shopping and doing more online, according to TSB.

Over 90% of customer transactions are now carried out digitally and video banking accounts for over 90% of their mortgage appointments. It said the branches that are to close carry out around 32% fewer transactions than the TSB national average, and there is a Post Office or free-to-use cash machine within a mile of each affected site.

Robin Bulloch, TSB's chief customer officer, said: "It is an incredibly difficult decision to make, but we have to respond to the changes in the way people bank and to provide the right mix of services for all our customers now and into the future. The TSB said it was upgrading around 140 branches and opening pop-up services in communities where it takes longer to reach the nearest branch.

Sabadell has no plans to sell TSB after rejecting an unsolicited offer from Co-op Bank.

British banks have stepped up branch closures in recent months, with Lloyds cutting 48 and Virgin Money closing almost one in five branches.

Sharon Graham, Unite General Secretary, said that TSB axed a quarter of its branches in 2022, on top of the numbers already closed, is a bitter blow for many communities.

The banking regulators and government need to take action urgently to ensure cash remains readily available in all communities, because Unite is very concerned by the drastic cuts in the number of branches across the whole banking sector. Here is a list of affected branches and closing dates next year:

Aylesbury 1 -- 3 Market Street on April 19

Bath 10 Quiet Street 15 June

Bishop's Stortford 3 The Corn Exchange 26 May

Bromley 58 High Street 18 May

Bury St Edmunds 8 Guildhall Street 26 May

Camberley 54 High Street 5 May

Cambridge 6 St Andrews Street 20 April

Cleveleys 77 Victoria Road West 8 June

Colchester 2 Culver Street West 31 May

Denton 38 Ashton Road 17 May

Ealing 31 New Broadway 5 May

Eastbourne 76 Terminus Road 17 May

Ellon 36 Bridge Street, Ellon on April 19, 19

Exeter 6 High Street 21 June

On April 14 at Forfar 20 East High Street, Forfar 20

Forres 156 High Street was closed on April 27.

Fort William 6 Tweedale High Street 20 April

Garston 6 Speke Road 9 June

Gateshead 264 High Street 10 May

15 June, Sydenham House, Gillingham, Dorset.

Greenwich 6 Crescent Arcade 28 April

Harlesden 58 High Street 28 April

The court of Horsham was held on May 12, 2012.

Kirkintilloch 4 Alexandra Street 28 April

London West End 68 Baker Street 4 May

Longbridge 1401 Bristol Road South 28 June

Louth 11 -- 13 Eastgate 24 May

Maidstone 16 High Street 10 May

Maryport 109 111 Senhouse Street 10 May

Melton Mowbray 23 -- 25 High Street 1 June

Morden 66 London Road 11 May

Nelson 23 Manchester Road 18 May

Newbury 26 Northbrook Street 7 June

Newton Aycliffe Unit 3 B, Greenwell Road 3 May

Northallerton 164 High Street 3 May

Norwich 65 Magdalen Street 28 June

Ossett 3 Wesley Street 17 May

Oxford 17 George Street 7 June

Redcar 87 89 High Street 4 May

Redditch 4 Unicorn Hill 2 June

Carolgate 1 Retford 1 May 24,

Romford 3 Stewards Walk 31 May

Ross-On Wye 9 a Gloucester Road 22 June

Rushden 133 High Street 21 April

Sherwood 583 Mansfield Road 29 June

Shrewsbury 45 High Street 28 June

Solihull 58 Poplar Road 1 June

Southend-On- Sea 32 London Road 2 June

Stranraer 21 Castle Street, Stranraer 21 on April 28.

Sutton 79 Ellamsbridge Road 26 May

Swaffham 61 Market Place 24 May

Thornbury 9 St Mary's Way 9 June

Thurso 12 14 Traill Street 21 April

Tunbridge Wells 62 Mount Pleasant Road 19 May

Uxbridge 24 Chequers Square 4 May

Weston-super Mare 12 Walliscote Road 23 June

Wilmslow Emerson Court, Alderley Road, 14 June

Wimborne 5 The Square 13 April

Winsford 160 High Street was opened on June 21.

Woodseats, Sheffield 1 Abbey Lane 15 June

Worcester 24 Mealcheapen Street 21 June

Yeovil King George Street was opened on April 12, 2019.