HSBC to axe branches in Sheffield and Worksop as more customers bank online

HSBC has announced the closure of 82 branches, which will shut their doors between April and September.

The bank says more customers are turning to online services instead.

Sheffield Darnall branch will close in May and Worksop, Bridge Street in September .

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The bank said it aims to redeploy the vast majority of staff to nearby branches and does not expect any redundancies from the move.

Jackie Uhi, HSBC UK’s head of network, said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has emphasised the need for the changes that we are making.

“It hasn’t pushed us in a different direction but reinforces the things that we were focusing on before and has crystallised our thinking. This is a strategic direction that we need to take to have a branch network fit for the future.”

HSBC will retain 511 branches across the UK after the closures.

HSBC claims the closures are necessary due to the growth of online banking, which has resulted in fewer people visiting branches, and says customers will still be able to access many basic services at post offices in their neighbourhoods.

It said the number of customers using branches had fallen by a third in the past five years, and even factoring in the effects of Covid-19, 90 per cent of all customer contact was over the phone, internet or smartphone, in addition to contacts on social media.

But campaigners opposing bank closures say shutting banks lead to long journeys for those unable to use online banking and a loss of trade for small businesses in the area.

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