Major high street banks to close 55 more branches for good

A MAJOR high street banking giant will close 55 more branches for good.

Lloyds  Banking Group will shut down a number of branches across its Halifax, Bank of Scotland (BoS) and Lloyds brands.

A total of 32 Halifax branches are set to close, while 19 Lloyds branches and four BoS locations will also close their doors in 2025.

This latest round of closures means that 128 Lloyds branches will close in total this year and next, as well as 119 Halifax sites, and 45 BoS locations.

The majority of the sites are based in England, with several in Scotland too.

The firm has already reduced its portfolio of physical branches in recent years, as young customers favour online banking.

It comes after the banking group told The Sun 19million customers now use its banking apps.

Lloyds is just one of many banking groups making cuts to its estate, with peers such as Barclays and TSB also shaving down the number of branches they operate.

Here is the full list of bank branches which are set to close for good.

Lloyds 

• 391-393 Harehills Lane, Leeds, England, LS9 6AP – January 08, 2025
• 3 North Brink, Wisbech, England, PE13 1JT – January 22, 2025
• 812 Osmaston Road Allenton, Derby, England, DE24 9AA – January 23, 2025
• 64-66 Mill Street, Macclesfield, England, SK11 6NH – January 28, 2025
• 77 Shirley High St Shirley, Southampton, England, SO15 3TX – January 08, 2025
• 11 Finkle Street, Kendal, England, LA9 4AG – February 10, 2025
• 38 High Street, Brecon, Wales, LD3 7AR – February 11, 2025
• 1 Claremont Road, Surbiton, England, KT6 4QS – March 04, 2025
• 20 Market Place, Dewsbury, England, WF13 1DF – March 10, 2025
• 1 Bancroft, Hitchin, England, SG5 1JQ – April 07, 2025
• Exchange Square, Beccles, England, NR34 9HH – May 06, 2025
• 27 Norwich Street, Fakenham, England, NR21 9AH – May 06, 2025
• 11 Causeway Lane, Matlock, England, DE4 3AR – May 07, 2025
• 18 Monnow Street, Monmouth, Wales, NP25 3XH – May 08, 2025
• 35 King Street, Thetford, England, IP24 2AX – May 13, 2025
• 47 Station Road, New Milton, England, BH25 6HU – May 13, 2025
• 413 Bitterne Road Bitterne, Southampton, England, SO18 1DA – June 09, 2025
• 52 Town Street Armley, Leeds, England, LS12 3AE – September 08, 2025

Halifax

• 200 Edgware Road, London, England, W2 2DW – January 06, 2025
• 92-94 Church Street, Eccles, England, M30 0DA – January 07, 2025
• 6 Royalty Mall Arndale Centre, Morecambe, England, LA4 5DS – January 07, 2025
• Duke Street Wellington, Telford, England, TF1 1BJ – January 07, 2025
• 642 Prescot Road Old Swan, Liverpool, England, L13 5YS – January 08, 2025
• 24 Market Street Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, England, ST3 1BG – January 08, 2025
• 256/258 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, England, N13 5TU – January 09, 2025
• 177B Stratford Road, Shirley, England, B90 3AQ – January 09, 2025
• 39 High Street, Tonbridge, England, TN9 1SQ – January 09, 2025
• 32 Low Street, Sutton-in-Ashfield, England, NG17 1DG – January 16, 2025
• 129 High Street, Winchester, England, SO23 9AX – January 20, 2025
• 8 Commercial Road, Bulwell, England, NG6 8HA – January 21, 2025
• 28 Market Place, Wisbech, England, PE13 1DQ – January 22, 2025
• 7/11 Monnow Street, Monmouth, Wales, NP25 3EF – January 23, 2025
• 3 High Street, Walton-on-Thames, England, KT12 1EA – January 27, 2025
• 100 Bedford Street, North Shields, England, NE29 6DD – January 28, 2025
• 58 Station Road, Port Talbot, Wales, SA13 1RD – January 29, 2025
• 4/4A King Street, Thetford, England, IP24 2AP – February 04, 2025
• 21/23 Highgate, Kendal, England, LA9 4DA – February 10, 2025
• 11 Church Road, Burgess Hill, England, RH15 9BB – March 04, 2025
• 7 Orchard Street, Didcot, England, OX11 7LG – March 10, 2025
• 20/22 High Street, Camberley, England, GU15 3TG – March 11, 2025
• 60/61 High Street, Gosport, England, PO12 1DR – March 12, 2025
• 8 Wheelgate, Malton, England, YO17 7HP – April 08, 2025
• 49 Market Place, Chippenham, England, SN15 3HU – April 15, 2025
• 16 Northbrook Street, Newbury, England, RG14 1DJ – April 16, 2025
• 91 High Street, Northallerton, England, DL7 8QT – April 28, 2025
• 6 Bailey Street, Oswestry, England, SY11 1PS – April 28, 2025
• 35 Orchard Walk Halton Lea, Runcorn, England, WA7 2BS – April 29, 2025
• 22 Market Street, Tamworth, England, B79 7LR – April 29, 2025
• 29 High Street, Witney, England, OX28 6XP – April 30, 2025
• 400/402 Bitterne Road Bitterne, Southampton, England, SO18 5RS – June 09, 2025

Bank of Scotland

• Main Street, Golspie, Scotland, KW10 6RJ – February 04, 2025
• 31 High Street, Montrose, Scotland, DD10 8LT – March 10, 2025
• High Street, Langholm, Scotland, DG13 0JH – April 07, 2025
• 60 High Street, Leven, Scotland, KY8 4NA – May 07, 2025

Earlier this year, Lloyds banking group said it would shut down 60 branches after the use of the locations had fallen by an average of 52% to 68% over the last five years.

You can read the full list of these locations and the dates they will close here.

Llyods is not the only lender shutting branches.

Natwest Group plans to close a total of 98 stores this year, including 20 Royal Bank of Scotland sites and 10 Ulster Bank locations.

Meanwhile, Santander has rid itself of over 470 locations over the last nine years.

Many, particularly the elderly, still rely on in-person services and the closures will make it more difficult for these people to access services.

But there are still a number of ways in which affected customers can access basic banking services without having to venture to the next town.

If the latest raft of closures will leave you with no bank in your town, you should be able to do most basic tasks at your local Post Office. 

You can use one of the Post Office’s nearly 12,000 branches to perform basic banking tasks — but not open new bank accounts or take personal loans and mortgages.

Many banks also offer a mobile banking service, which is where your bank brings a bus to your local area that has the services that are usually available at your branch.

You should call your bank to see if it runs such a service and they will be able to tell you where and when it will be parked.

Other banks use buildings such as village halls or libraries to offer mobile banking services.

Banking hubs, which offer traditional shared services, have also been set up in several locations around the UK to help plug the gap — including Brixham, Cambuslang, Cottingham and Rochford.

Why are bank branches closing?

Thousands of bank branches are closing across the UK, leaving some without one for miles around.

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveals that the number of bank branches in operation across the UK fell from 14,689 in 1986 to 5,745 in 2023.

Over the same period, the number of building society branches in operation fell from 6,954 to 1,925.

The FCA recently said it would ban lenders from shutting down too quickly under new rules to help people access cash.

Under the policy, launched by the UK’s financial watchdog, banks will be required to plug the gap for customers impacted by the rise in physical branch closures.

The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) ruling will come into effect on September 18.

However, the changes cannot prevent the closure of bank branches but instead ensure banks offer alternatives for customers.

The watchdog said the new rules will require banks and building societies to fill gaps in cash access with measures such as banking hubs, ATMs and Post Office facilities.

Banking hubs, which were created in response to rapid branch closures, offer traditional shared services in new locations across the UK.

They consist of a counter service operated by Post Office employees, where customers of any bank can withdraw and deposit cash, make bill payments and carry out regular banking transactions.

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