TSB reveals full list of 82 branches closing next year putting 370 jobs at risk
TSB has revealed the full list of 82 branches it plans to close next year, putting roughly 370 jobs at risk.
The bank first announced the move to axe branches on Monday, which comes as part of a revamp to get rid of older and less busy premises.
TSB said it will try to find new roles for the affected workers, and added that 65 per cent of the population will live within four miles of a TSB branch.
The Spanish-owned bank currently has 540 UK branches and is battling to restore its reputation after last year’s huge IT failure, which hit 1.9million customers.
At the end of last week, some TSB customers were also left without cash as wages and payments failed to hit accounts.
TSB customers living in the Midlands and the South East are among those who will be hit the hardest by the move, which will see 13 and 12 branches axed in each area.
'The branch announcement is ill-timed'
THE Sun's business editor, Tracey Boles, shares her views on the recent announcement.
TSB was always going to get a kicking for closing 82 branches as it pushes deeper into online banking.
Its reputation is still too fragile following an IT fiasco last year that locked thousands out of their online accounts.
And the plan comes against a backdrop of more than 3,300 closures industrywide over the past five years.
Although this puts some customers at a disadvantage, the fact is that branch usage is falling generally as digital banking grows in popularity.
The branches to be shuttered at TSB have become unviable according to boss Debbie Crosbie. They are in locations that do not see enough footfall or have poor facilities such as a lack of parking.
TSB insists will maintain a geographically dispersed network.
Crucially it has promised to invest £120million in digital initiatives.
However, it needs a sustained period without any IT glitches before it wins back trust.
Earlier this month an IT failure meant wages and other payments were not paid into some of its customers' accounts.
In light of that, the branch announcement looks ill-timed.
Londoners will also lose 12 branches, while TSB is axing 17 branches in Scotland. You can check out the full list in the box below.
The news comes as more than a third of the UK's bank branches have shut their doors since 2015 in a blow to the elderly and others who rely on them.
Hundreds more which remain open have slashed their opening hours, with some open for just one or two days a week.
Jenny Ross, Which? money editor, said the decision will hit communities hard, as many Brits still rely on traditional banking services.
She said: "Our research has found two thirds of people would find life difficult without convenient access to a branch, while 11million people lack the confidence to carry out basic banking tasks online.
"If banks want their customers to go online they must ensure they can deliver consistently reliable services - instead of the current rate of regular IT glitches that people endure."
Full list of closing TSB branches
BELOW are the branches which are set to close and when customers can expect them to disappear.
North:
- Wigton (June)
- Newcastle Upon Tyne – Chillingham Road (September)
North West:
- Urmston (June)
- Chester (June)
- Chorlton, Manchester (October)
- Congleton (October)
- Warrington – Penketh (October)
- Leyland (November)
- St Annes-on-Sea (November)
- Ormskirk (November)
Yorkshire/Humber:
- Headingley, Leeds (February)
- Thorne (April)
- Skipton (May)
- Hull – Willerby (May)
- Normanton (May)
- Todmorden (June)
- Brough (July)
- Market Weighton (July)
- Shipley (November)
- Harrogate (November)
East Midlands:
- Leicester – Cavendish Road (May)
East:
- St Albans (September)
- Ipswich – Felixstowe Road (September)
West Midlands:
- Birmingham – Great Hampton (April)
- Coventry – Walsgrave Road (April)
- Pershore (May)
- Cannock (September)
- Rugby (September)
- Warwick (September)
- Birmingham – Stirchley (September)
- Lichfield (October)
- Stourbridge (October)
- Coventry – Jubilee Crescent (November)
- Leamington Spa (November)
- Sutton Coldfield (November)
- Bearwood Road Smethwick (November)
South West:
- Moreton-in-Marsh (May)
- Okehampton (May)
- Stroud (June)
- Poole (October)
- Salisbury (October)
South East:
- Abingdon (April)
- Burgess Hill (April)
- Sidcup (June)
- Amersham (June)
- Guildford (July)
- Ashford (September)
- Woking (September)
- Redhill (October)
- Basingstoke (October)
- Worthing (October)
- Fareham (October)
- Cowley (November)
London:
- Elephant and Castle (February)
- Holborn (May)
- Finchley (June)
- Barkingside (September)
- Wandsworth (September)
- Bayswater (September)
- St James’s Park (September)
- Chingford (November)
- Gidea Park (November)
- Old Street (November)
- Twickenham (November)
- Potters Bar (November)
Scotland:
- Barrhead (April)
- Glasgow – Govan (May)
- Bishopbriggs (May)
- Milngavie (May)
- Dunbar (May)
- Portobello (May)
- Jedburgh (May)
- Kinross (May)
- Tain (June)
- Uddingston (June)
- Edinburgh – Clerk Street (July)
- Carluke (July)
- Brechin (July)
- Dumbarton (July)
- Clarkston (July)
- Edinburgh – Morningside (September)
- Wishaw (September)
She added: "The next government should urgently intervene with legislation that protects access to cash as a vital backup and for as long as it is needed."
Robin Bulloch, customer banking director at TSB, said: "We have made the difficult decision to close 82 branches, today announcing the locations.
"We will fully support customers through this transition.
"We realise this is difficult news for our branch partners and will do everything to support those affected to offer voluntary redundancies and redeploy as many people as we can to other roles."
Most read in money
The move follows claims by experts that mobile banking will overtake the use of high street branches by 2021.
Data in May revealed that 1,700 previously free-to-use cash machines began charging users in the first three months of the year.
Meanwhile, nearly 500 cash machines are being axed every month leaving millions unable to withdraw funds.