High streets in the UK are set to become even more desolate this year with many more banks closing their doors for good.
In November alone banks are shutting dozens of branches across the country as customers increasingly turn to online and mobile banking.
The number of bank branches has dwindled gradually in recent years. Consumer watchdog Which? says that 6,522 bank branches have shut since January 2015 – around 53 every single month.
While hundreds of branches have closed this year already, there are more in the pipeline in coming weeks and into the following year.
Many people, such as older or disabled customers or small business owners, rely on local bank branches.
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The issue is worse in rural areas, which may have poor broadband or mobile phone signal, making internet banking difficult.
How popular is online banking in the UK?
Closures of high street banking branches is often linked to the rise in people managing their finances online.
Some 88% of adults in Britain use online or remote banking, according to data from Finder UK.
That accounts for around 48million people across the country.
In 2025, 2 in 5 Brits have a digital-only bank account. This allows customers to shop around and directly compare banking options anc access in-app customer support.
Advice on the app-based bank accounts available can be found on MoneySavingExpert.com, which rates Starling, Chase, Monzo and revolut highly in this category.
An estimated 57% of Brits have or plan to open a digital-only banking account, with the strongest pull being the higher interest rates.
Sam Richardson, deputy editor at Which?, said: ‘The milestone of more than 6,000 bank closures in just nine years underscores the seismic shift that has taken place in terms of our banking habits and the character of the British high street.’
Lloyds, Halifax and the Bank of Scotland are also changing their opening times at many branches which are not closing down.
From September 25, all branches will open from 9.30am rather than 9am, and all shut around an hour earlier, between 3.30pm and 4.30pm. Most will also open at 10am on Wednesdays instead.
Not every bank is closing branches, however. HSBC pledged last year that it would not announce any closures until at least 2026.
Nationwide went a step further and promised not to close any branches until at least 2028. On its website, it said: ‘We know that our customers still value speaking face-to-face, that’s why we have the UK’s biggest branch network with more branches than any other banking brand.’
Metro Bank and Barclays have also confirmed to Metro that there will be no closures this year.
Here is the list of branch closures coming up:
Lloyds closures
Lloyds has said that decisions to pull down the shutters on banks take into account how it will ‘impact customers’.
Many of its branches are set to close this month:
- Coventry (Foleshill), November 4
- Dunstable, November 4
- Feltham, November 4
- Plymstock, November 4
- Biggleswade, November 5
- Hexham, November 5
- Manchester (Newton Heath), November 5
- Bristol Bishopsworth (Church Road), November 6
- Blandford Forum, November 10
- Chard, November 11
- Sheffield (Woodhouse), November 11
- Shipston-on-Stour, November 11
- Debden, November 12
- East Grinstead, November 12
- Loughton, November 12
- Ferndown, November 17
- Pontardawe, November 20
Closures that have already taken place this year are as follows:
- Bury, October 21
- Hornchurch, September 11
- Kidderminster, October 16
- Leeds (Armley), September 22
- London (Tooting), October 8
- London (Walthamstow), October 22
- Monmouth, September 12
- Southall, October 15
- Stoke-on-Trent (Trent), October 10
- Thetford, September 12
More bank closures are to come, however:
- Briggs, March 3, 2026
- Catheram, March 5, 2026
- Falmouth, March 5, 2026
- Glossop, March 9, 2026
- Houghton-le-Spring, March 10, 2026
- Hucknall, March 4, 2026
- Leominster, March 3, 2026
- Peterlee Yoden Way, March 3, 2026
- Seaton, March 11, 2026
- Sleaford, March 12, 2026
- Thornbury Avon, February 26, 2026
- Tunstall, March 9, 2026
- Wymondham, March 12, 2026
NatWest closures
At least 53 NatWest branches have been or will be closing down for good across the UK in 2025.
Some branches do not have a closure date set – NatWest says they will stay open until a banking hub is opened or renovation has been completed.
NatWest told Metro that more than 80% of its current account holders use digital services, and over 97% of retail accounts are opened online.
The bank has several closures coming up:
- Garstang, November 10
- Ashby-de-la-Zouch, TBC
- Cromer, TBC
- Evesham, TBC
- Launceston, TBC
- Portishead, TBC
- Torquay, TBC
But many branches have already shut their doors this year:
- Abingdon, September 24
- Birmingham (Acocks Green), September 16
- Birmingham (Edgbaston), September 11
- Birmingham (Shirley), October 1
- Birmingham (Smethwick), September 25
- Bicester, September 30
- Bridgwater, October 27
- Bridport, October 29
- Bristol (Fishponds), September 4
- Cardiff (Canton), September 16
- Cardiff (Llanishen), September 11
- Chippenham, October 15
- Cirencester, September 17
- Cwmbran, September 1
- Dorchester, October 22
- Ely, September 10
- Halesowen, September 3
- Hinckley, September 17
- Honiton, October 21
- Luton (Leagrave), September 15
- Leicester (Melton Road), September 2
- Leicester (Oadby), September 10
- Leighton Buzzard, October 28
- Llangefni, September 4
- Lowestoft, October 15
- Melton Mowbray, September 29
- Midsomer Norton, October 8
- Mold, October 21
- Neath, October 13
- Newmarket (Suffolk), September 24
- Northampton (Weston Favell Shopping Centre), September 15
- Paignton, October 2
- Rayleigh, September 2
- Redditch, October 14
- Ringwood, October 1
- Romsey, October 13
- Leamington Spa, October 1
- Stevenage, October 7
- Stratford-upon-Avon, October 8
- Sudbury, September 30
- Trowbridge, October 16
- Wellingborough, October 7
- Wickford, September 18
- Willerby, September 22
- Wisbech, September 1
- Yate, September 25
Santander closures
Santander had closed dozens of banks over the summer and still has with 19 more set to shut their doors.
But the banking giant has confirmed the closure date of just one, Santander said in June.
Most closures were chalked up to increasing use of mobile and online banking, while other closure memos said customers use other local branches instead.
- Surrey Quays, November 10
- Bexhill, TBC
- Billericay, TBC
- Dover, TBC
- Droitwich, TBC
- Dunstable, TBC
- East Grinstead, TBC
- Holyhead, TBC
- Ilkley, TBC
- Larne, TBC
- Lytham St Annes, TBC
- Maldon, TBC
- Morley, TBC
- North Walsham, TBC
- Redcar, TBC
- Saffron Walden, TBC
- Turriff, TBC
- Uckfield, TBC
- Urmston, TBC
On the closures, a spokesperson for Santander UK said: ‘As a business, we must move with customers and balance our investment across all the places where we interact with customers, to deliver the very best for them now and in the future.’
‘Closing a branch is always a very difficult decision and we spend a great deal of time assessing where and when we do this and how to minimise the impact it may have on our customers,’ the statement added.
The hours of the following branches also had their hours reduced since the change made on June 30:
- Alton
- Banbury
- Barry
- Beeston
- Bicester
- Braintree
- Bury St Edmunds
- Caerphilly
- Chippenham
- Cirencester
- Cricklewood
- Durham
- Ely
- Grantham
- Great Yarmouth
- Harlesden
- Hitchin
- Irvine
- Kendal
- Kettering
- Kilmarnock
- Lowestoft
- Newark
- Penrith
- Petersfield
- Retford
- Spalding
- Stamford
- Stevenage
- Stroud
- Sudbury
- Trowbridge
- Washington
- Wellingborough
- West Bridgford
- Worksop
Halifax closures
Decreasing in-person banking has also hit Halifax, which is itself a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group.
Branches of Halifax set to shut soon are as follows:
- Wickford, November 10
- Hexham, November 11
- Bolton, November 25
Many closures have already taken place so far this year:
- Barrow-in-Furness, September 10
- Bexleyheath, October 23
- Blackpool (Lytham Road), October 29
- Brentwood, September 10
- Bristol (Kingswood), October 8
- Carmarthen, October 6
- Castleford, September 8
- Cirencester, September 25
- Crewe, October 14
- Derby, October 23
- Eltham, October 29
- Epsom, September 15
- Erdington, September 24
- Folkestone, October 9
- Hayes (Hillingdon), October 6
- Hove, October 20
- London (Clapham Junction), September 23
- London (Woolwich), October 1
- Long Eaton, September 18
- Mold, October 16
- Monmouth, September 30
- Morecambe, September 29
- Northwich, September 3
- Rhyl, September 23
- Richmond (Surrey), September 16
- Sittingbourne, October 15
- Skegness, September 3
- Southport, October 7
- Stevenage, October 23
- Stretford, October 15
- Telford, October 22
- Thetford, October 1
- Walkden, September 25
- Wallasey, September 4
But even more Halifax branches have been earmarked for closure next year:
- Birmingham (Beardwood), March 2, 2026
- Lytham Road, February 24, 2026
- Nelson, March 4, 2026
- Peterlee, March 3, 2026
- Sleaford 114, March 12, 2026
Bank of Scotland closures
November closures for Bank of Scotland are as follows:
- Thornhill, November 3
- Moffat, November 19
The bank has already closed several other branches recently:
- Edinburgh (Corstorphine), October 29
- Callander, October 30
- Pitlochry, October 30
Like with the other banks, Bank of Scotland have said several other branches will close next year:
- Alexandria, March 3
- Annan, March 2
- Bishopbriggs, March 4
- Bellshill, January 12
- Castle Douglas, January 22
- Dingwall, March 25
- Erskine, January 13
- Gairloch, January 15
- Glasgow Anniesland, January 12
- Helensburgh, March 5
- Largs, March 25
- Larkhall, January 8
- Nairn, January 20
- St Andrews, January 20
- Tain, January 12
This article was first published on July 26, 2025
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