Rotherham Barclays closure “hugely disappointing” says council leader

The branch, on Bridgegate, will close on November 2, and the nearest branch will be at Attercliffe – almost four miles away.

A shift to online banking has led to a decline in the number of customers visiting local branches up and down the county – with hundreds of branches in the UK serving an average of 65 customers who rely on its services.

Just 59 customers rely on the Bridgegate branch exclusively for their banking, with 87 per cent of customers using online and telephone banking, according to Barclays.

Councillor Chris Read, leader of Rotherham Council said people queue to use the branch, adding that regulation may be needed to ensure access to physical branches.

“The proposed closure of the Barclays bank in the centre of Rotherham is another hugely disappointing move from the big banks which are deserting our communities.

“Of course people want to access banking online and over the phone. But people also need to be able to speak to real services face to face, to hand over cash or deal with more complex transactions.

“Too often that’s becoming difficult to do. When I went past their Rotherham branch earlier this week, people were queuing in the street to use it.

“But if the banks won’t do the right thing by their customers we must surely be reaching the stage where regulation requires a certain physical presence so that no one gets left behind.”

Rotherham’s MP Sarah Champion called the closure of a “key business” “disappointing”, adding that the loss of the bank will “weakens the reason to come into town and support all the other excellent shops Rotherham has.”

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