DON'T BANK ON IT
Map reveals 57 locations where locals took on bank branch closures and won
Read on to find out how you can ask for your own banking hub
THE sleepy seaside town of Prestatyn seems like an unlikely place for a revolution.
Yet its historic centre was recently the site of a battle between the residents of this small town and some of the world’s largest banks.
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Locals in this town in North Wales were forced to take matters into their own hands after its last bank branch closed three years ago.
One by one, big banks including TSB, Barclays, HSBC, NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland had shut up shop.
Without a bank branch, residents and businesses were forced to travel more than five kilometres to the town of Rhyl to do their banking.
But a campaign by locals, and the town’s MP Dr James Davies, fought back - and won.
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"As an MP I had lots of constituents contact me who were not happy," Davies said.
"Prestatyn has quite an elderly demographic and many people used the branches to access face-to-face services."
Ironically, there were huge queues of customers outside of the branches right up until they shut, he explains.
"I went to Link and made the case for Prestatyn to be assessed and we convinced it that on a number of factors, there was the rationale for a banking hub," Davies adds.
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The town got confirmation that it would get a hub in November 2022 and the site officially opened its doors in December last year.
Banking hubs have become a vital lifeline for towns which have been left without a bank branch to access key services.
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Banks have closed more than 6,000 branches since 2015 as providers push customers to use online and app-based services instead.
In response, banking hubs have been created to give residents the chance to manage their money face-to-face and speak to staff from all of the major banks.
Most banking hubs are open from Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm each week.
They are owned by Cash Access UK and are operated by the Post Office.
What services do banking hubs offer?
BANKING hubs offer a range of services to bridge the gap left by the closure of local branches.
They are operated by the Post Office and allow customers to perform routine transactions such as make deposits, withdrawals and balance enquiries.
Each hub has private booths where customers can discuss banking matters with staff from their respective banks.
Staff from different banks are available on a rotational basis, which ensures that customers have access to a wide range of banking services.
Customers can also receive advice and support on various financial products and services including mortgages, loans and savings accounts.
Inside there is a counter where you can pay in cash and cheques, withdraw money, pay your utility bills and top up your gas and electricity.
Anyone can ask for a hub by making a request to the ATM network LINK.
It will then assess access to cash in the area and will recommend a hub if it thinks the town or region needs one.
It typically takes around 12 months to get a banking hub.
Most of them are set up by Cash Access UK, which is a not-for-profit company owned and funded by ten of the big banks.
It took Prestatyn just over a year to get its own banking hub because it was one of the first towns to put itself forward.
But now 56 other areas have successfully requested a banking hub after all their local branches closed.
Hubs are already up and running in 22 of these towns, including Dartmouth in Devon, Haslemere in Surrey and Helston in Cornwall.
Meanwhile, a further 35 are set to open in towns including Harpenden in Hertfordshire and Filey in North Yorkshire in the coming months.
But it was the small harbour town of Maryport in Cumbria which was the first to successfully request its own banking hub after a campaign led by its MP.
The picturesque town once had NatWest and TSB branches but both were forced to close their doors.
In response, Maryport also fought back.
Former member of parliament Mark Jenkinson was one of the first MPs to contact LINK about getting a banking hub.
He submitted a cash access request to the ATM network and an assessment was done on behalf of the town.
Cash Access UK then recommended that the town needed a hub and found a suitable property - a former branch of NatWest.
The hub now provides services for five different banks including Barclays, TSB, NatWest, HSBC and Halifax on alternate days of the week.
Prestatyn residents voice their frustration
The residents of Prestatyn protested when their last bank branch closed.
Here's what they wrote at the time to their MP Dr James Davies:
- "I would like to say how difficult it is now there are no banks in Prestatyn. The nearest is in Rhyl and entails a drive or bus ride to access. It would be a good idea to open a Banking hub in Prestatyn, particularly for those without their own transport."
- "While I understand the financial reasons for these banks closing, it is going to cause hardship for so many people within the community. I propose one possible solution to this problem: a shared banking service."
- "After being with Natwest for over 30 years, I moved when it closed, to RBS, then they closed the RBS and I had to move to Barclays!"
- "Without HSBC in Prestatyn, my family, who are local dairy farmers, will have to drive into Rhyl to handle the business for farm accounts, which is a massive inconvenience coming from the country side, and I'm sure many other farmers in the area would agree. Please do everything in your power to incentivise HSBC to keep that brank open."
Several towns have also been given temporary banking hubs until permanent locations can be found.
Under rules introduced in September, banks and building societies must assess whether an area has good access to cash before they close a branch.
If not, they need to provide more facilities, such as a shared hub, before they can close a branch.
But this does not cover all circumstances, Davies said.
"Cash access assessments don't catch all situations, particularly ones where the reduction in service has already happened," he said.
"So that's where the request is really important."
One of the areas to benefit from this rule change is Hessle, a seaside town just five miles west of Kingston upon Hull.
Last month the town received its own temporary banking hub, which has been set up in the local library and community centre.
Staff from TSB, Santander, NatWest and Barclays visit the hub every week.
From this month Lloyds staff will also make a weekly visit to the site and from next month members of the Halifax team will do so too.
The news was welcomed by local residents who protested against the closure of the last bank branch in the town last year.
Campaigners launched a petition calling for plans to close the town’s Halifax branch to be reversed.
But Halifax said it was forced to shut up shop after the branch saw a decline in visitors as people started to bank in other ways.
Gareth Oakley, CEO of Cash Access UK last month, said: “We are working hard to secure a permanent home for the hub and hope to provide an update to the community soon."
How can you get a banking hub in your town?
If you are worried about accessing cash or paying cash into your account where you live, you can ask LINK to do a review.
This is called a “cash access request”.
Anyone can make a cash access request if they find it hard to access cash in their local area.
You can ask if you are an individual, a group or an organisation.
All requests must be made in writing by completing a form.
You can fill in the form online through LINK’s website.
You can also print the form and send it to: LINK Scheme Ltd (Cash Access Request), Central House, Otley Road, Harrogate, HG3 1UF.
The form will ask for information about you, your community, the services you need and any cash facilities near to you.
How does LINK decide who will get a hub?
LINK will assess your area based on how many people live there, what other services are available and what impact cash access is having on the area.
If it thinks a community needs better cash services then it may visit the area.
Once this is done and it decides a hub is needed it will pass on the case to Cash Access UK, which is responsible for setting up the banking hub.
It will find a location, negotiate with the landlord, get planning permission and refurbish it.
Usually, it takes 12 months from when a banking hub is recommended to its opening.
LINK may decline a request if it is already doing a review or has done one in the past year in your area.
Your application may also be declined if you do not have a good reason to ask for a review, which you will need to mention in your request.
If there are cash services near you then LINK may tell you about them and decide that there is no problem, so it will not do a review.
Before you make a cash access request, check if there is a bank branch, Post Office or ATM in your local area.
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Consider whether you could use it to pay in or withdraw cash or to check your balance.
You can do everyday banking such as paying in cash and cheques, withdrawing cash or checking balances at the Post Office.
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