Santander has announced a series of branch closures across the UK as the government moves closer to fulfilling its banking hub pledge.
Santander is set to close over 95 branches across the UK, putting 750 jobs at risk. In addition to the closures, Santander will also modify some branches, introducing 18 counter-free locations and 36 branches with reduced hours. These will be alongside the bank’s 290 full-service branches and five Work Cafes.
A Santander spokesperson said: “As customer behaviour changes, we are ensuring that our branches remain fit for the future. Our new combination of full-service branches, alongside Work Cafés, counter-free branches and reduced hours branches, aims to provide the right balance between digital banking and face-to-face money management and guidance.”
The bank stated customers can also receive support from Community Bankers, offering face-to-face assistance, along with access to 11,000 Post Offices and 112 Banking Hubs, which have been established as more banks transition to digital banking.
Behind this initiative is LINK, which is working to deliver on the government’s pledge to open 350 banking hubs in areas Labour has called ‘banking deserts’.
LINK confirmed, amid this Santander news, that shared banking hubs are expected to open in 19 new locations in the near future, bringing its total recommendations to 224.
John Howells, CEO of LINK, said: “Banking hubs continue to prove popular, and we’re delighted to announce 19 new locations that will benefit from their services in the future. The hubs will make a real difference for the millions of people who still rely on cash. We’re committed to keeping cash on the high street, and will continue recommending banking hubs where they are needed.”
As noted above, these closures are attributed to a shift in customer behaviour as younger demographics bank online. This is the case for Santander, which states that it has seen a 63% increase in digital transactions since 2019 while financial transactions completed in branches reduced by 61% in the same period.
The bank’s spokesperson concluded: “As a business, we must move with customers and balance our investment across all the places where we interact with customers, to deliver the very best for them now and in the future.”
