Building society pledges to keep branches open

The UK’s biggest building society, the Nationwide, has pledged to keep all of its 696 branches open until at least 2030.

This is a two-year extension to the promise it had already made not to close branches, after it reported a rise in customers using them in the last year.

The UK bank and building society sector has seen widespread branch closures in recent years, as many customers have switched to online and mobile banking.

Charities have expressed concerns over vulnerable people’s access to cash and other financial services, while reports have highlighted the impact of closures on UK High Streets.

Debbie Crosbie, Nationwide’s chief executive, said branches were important for “customers and communities”.

Over a 10-year period, Nationwide closed 152, or 20% of its branches, before it made its non-closure promise in 2023.

Last year, a Nationwide advert featuring actor Dominic West that claimed the building society was not closing branches was banned.

West featured as the boss of a fictional big bank who mocks customers while planning branch closures.

In the last decade, more than 6,000 UK bank branches have closed, according to consumer group Which?.

Banks say this is in direct response to customers’ changing habits, with relatively few now going into branches regularly.

The Nationwide took over Virgin Money last year, and its 91 branches are part of the new promise.

The group has reported customers increasingly using in-branch cash machines, with security named as one of the reasons behind this.

And the building society said it wanted to protect vulnerable people and offer more support services.

At one of its busiest branches in Reading, senior branch manager Jessica Bleasby, said some customers needed reassurance.

“In branches, we are making an impact financially and on a personal level,” she said.

Some may question whether banks, as competitive businesses, should feel obliged to offer wider support, especially to those who are not their customers.

Building societies, which are owned by their members, may have a greater responsibility.

Lynn Wheeler has worked at Nationwide for 39 years in a series of roles. She is now a customer representative.

She said her job included protecting people from scams. Among those was an elderly man who calmly said he wanted to close down an account.

After questioning, it emerged that fraudsters wanted his money and they had told him to get a taxi to the branch.

Lynn followed the protocol that brought police officers into the branch to talk to him, along with a member of his family, saving him from any further losses.

Nationwide is not unique in investing in a branch network. Newcastle Building Society has notably bucked the trend by opening new branches.

That includes a new, five-floor flagship branch in Newcastle, and counters in shared spaces such as libraries and community centres.

“Branches sit at the heart of our strategy. Local savings generate funding which we use to offer mortgages. Branches are also a place for face-to-face accessible financial advice provided in community settings to anyone, regardless of wealth levels,” said Deborah Walker, head of branches for Newcastle Building Society and Manchester Building Society.

Separately, nearly 200 shared banking hubs have been opened across the country, mostly run by the Post Office and accepting customers from all banks to make payments and withdrawals as well as using other services.