E-mail below, re: closure of the NatWest Bank in Churchtown.
Dear John,
We have taken the difficult decision to close the NatWest Southport Churchtown branch on the 17 November 2015.
As you would expect we will ensure there are a range alternatives for people in the area to continue to bank with us including:
- Post Office: We
have reached an agreement with the local Post Office, which is 0.8 miles
away from the branch so that our customers can check their balance,
deposit and withdraw funds, and business customers can get coinage.
There are 5 Post Offices within 2 miles of the branch.
- ATMs: We
intend to retain our ATM in the local community, and there are also 5
other free to use ATMs within one mile of the branch.
- Other branches: Our
nearest branch,
The number of transactions taking place at
Southport Churchtown branch has dropped by 22% since 2011 and only 104
customers use the branch on a regular weekly basis. 67 of these customers
already use other branches in the area.
Customer communication
We are writing to all of our customers who
use the branch well in advance of the closure date, and will also display
posters in the branch throughout this period of time. We will work hard
to engage with all of our customers, local businesses and the wider local
community between now and the closure date to ensure they are aware of the
alternative ways of accessing their banking with us in the local area, and to
answer any questions they might have.
We are committed to following the UK
Government protocol on branch closures, and we have made the decision following
careful consideration of a wide range of factors including branch usage and the
alternative ways our customers can bank with us locally.
New ways of banking – changing customer
trends
There are now more ways of banking with
us than ever before, and as a result our customers are increasingly using
alternative ways of banking with us. Across
our network, branch transactions have declined by around 36% since 2010 whilst
online and mobile transactions have grown by more than 300%, and only 9% of our
total transactions are now undertaken in our branches in comparison to 25% in
2010. The decision to close a branch is never taken lightly, but we have
to respond to these changes in consumer behaviour.
We do understand that some people do not want
to use our online or mobile phone facilities and would prefer face to face
banking. Our branch network will remain the cornerstone of our service to
customers and we will continue to have the second largest branch network in the
UK UK UK UK
Investment in customer service
We
are investing over £1bn over the next few years to give customers greater
choice in how they bank with us, such as improving our online and mobile
banking. As part of this, we are investing £231m in 2015 alone to upgrade
nearly 500 branches across the UK
I hope I have managed to explain the reasons
for the closure and the mitigating actions that we are taking.
Please don' t
hesitate to contact me if you need anything further,
Best regards
Chris
Chris Maguire | Head of Public Affairs –
Personal & Business Banking | Communications & Marketing | RBS
