Graham Godwin-Pearson and Jeff Savage are disappointed to learn that Lloyds bank plans to close its branch on Bath Street in Cheddar in January 2023. They have today written to James Heappey, as follows:-
Dear James,
We hope that you are well. You will doubtless have received correspondence from constituents who are concerned about the planned closure of the Lloyds bank branch on Bath Street in Cheddar village in January 2023. We too have received letters from Axevale residents.
Clearly, the high footfall of the branch no longer adequately offsets the overheads of maintaining a High Street presence to provide the profitability required.
It is inevitable that people in Cheddar and the surrounding villages have in the past switched their personal and/or business accounts to Lloyds because the Cheddar branch is the last remaining of any bank in the local area. The closest now are Burnham-on-Sea or Wells, depending on where constituents live.
We have seen the letter that Lloyds has sent to its customers. Account-holders are asked to use the Post Office, PhoneBank or Internet Banking, with a helpline for first-time users. It also refers to a Community Banker, but is light on detail - the linked page on the Lloyds website currently makes mention only of a Community Banker in the Isles of Scilly, which will not fill Cheddar residents with confidence.
Certain groups will likely be disproportionately affected by the closure - particularly those without Internet access, or lacking transport to take them to a different branch. Small, cash-heavy companies, voluntary organisations, charities and people with disabilities all rely on a local bank branch much more than others.
We are aware that it is entirely at the discretion of Lloyds to operate whatever branches they deem profitable, but is there anything we can do to encourage the bank to make alternative provision - perhaps, for example, offering free in-person training for members of the public unfamiliar with online banking?
More generally, we risk the gradual attrition of essential services from semi-rural locations, with a knock-on effect on local shops. Is there any scope within the levelling-up agenda to encourage banks, Post Offices, pharmacies and the like to establish their links with settlements like Cheddar once again?
We would be interested to hear your thoughts.
Yours sincerely,
Cllr Graham Godwin-Pearson (Axevale, SDC) and Jeff Savage
