MORE patrons of Droitwich Spa have welcomed news of the future arrival of a banking hub in the town.
Droitwich Spa has this week been recommended for a banking hub alongside the less welcomed news that its last bank remaining bank branch – Santander – will be closing in the future.
Banking hub’s are operated by Cash Access UK and the Post Office and are assessed for eligibility by LINK, who run the nation’s cashpoint network. They protect residents and business owners’ right to access to cash and other financial banking services when retail banks shut up shop in local communities.
Residents, business owners and local authority representatives have long been calling for one in the town as it has continued to face bank branch closures over the last few years.
Alongside the town MP, Nigel Huddleston’s efforts, residents, the town council and many other community organisations have been making the case for a banking hub.
More than 1,700 residents responded to a survey organised by Droitwich Spa Place Board and Droitwich Spa Town Council to encourage LINK to create the facility in the town.
Matt Nicol, chairman of the Droitwich Spa Place Board, held a meeting with the chief commercial officer and head of banking at LINK to discuss the previous assessment made in September 2024 which concluded that Droitwich did not need a banking hub as it retained a Post Office and had nearby bank branches in Bromsgsrove.
Mr Nicol said: “This is fantastic news. Our research showed 81 per cent of respondents rely on face-to-face banking for essential services such as cash deposits, withdrawals, and financial advice.”
“A big thank to the community for their support and comments, but in particular to the senior team at LINK who listened to our points and were good enough to look again at their original assessment in the light of the information from our survey.”
Santander is not expected to close its Droitwich Spa branch until the town’s Community Banking Hub is up and running.
Although there will be a temporary stay of execution for Droitwich’s Santander branch, the survey found that only 14 per cent of respondents bank with Santander, the sole remaining branch in the town.
The majority are customers of banks that have closed their local branches including Lloyds, HSBC, NatWest and Barclays.
Mark Keld, town clerk of Droitwich Spa Town Council, said that a long career in retail banking before his local government role made him determined that Droitwich Spa should get a Community Banking Hub.
He said: “Droitwich Spa has a significant elderly population which is less inclined or able to adopt digital banking solutions.
“We are delighted with Links decision to open a Community Banking Hub, particularly for our older residents who are disproportionately impacted by a lack of local personal banking services.”
