Barclays has delayed the closure of a London bank branch, but the area is still set to lose all of its current bank branches within the next 12 months.
The bank announced the Willesden Green bank branch in High Road would shut last month, stating it would close on May 3, 2024.
However, it subsequently changed the closure date to January 31, 2025.
The new branch closure notice, published on its website on February 14, reads: “Willesden Green branch will now be closing on or before Friday 31 January 2025 at 12:00pm.”
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Barclays has delayed the closure of the Willesden Green bank branch
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Barclays went on to say less than 10 customers use the branch regularly as the only way to do their banking.
The bank said the nearest Barclays for local residents will instead be the Finchley Road branch in Golders Green, which is 2.3 miles away, according to Google Maps.
Alternatively, customers are directed to travel 2.8 miles to the Wellington Road branch in St Johns Wood.
Despite the bank remaining open for longer than initially expected, the neighbourhood was set to be left without a bank branch by this time next year.
GB News understands LINK has recommended a Shared Banking Hub requirement for Willesden Green, meaning the branch will remain open until it is live in the community, or for up to 12 months.
A Barclays spokesperson said: “As visits to branches continue to fall, with the majority of people preferring to bank online, we need to adapt to provide the best service for all our customers.
“In Willesden Green, a shared Banking Hub has been recommended by LINK and the branch closure has been deferred until this site can be launched.”
NatWest announced in November last year that its Willesden Green branch in Station Parade would close on February 27, 2024.
Lloyds Bank will permanently close its Willesden Green branch in Walm Lane on March 21, 2024.
In a joint letter to Lloyds Bank and Barclays recently, ward councillors for Willesden Green, Cllr Saqhain Choudry, Cllr Janice Long, and Cllr Tom Miller, called the closures “deeply disappointing” and called for a “banking hub” so local residents can do their banking in a physical premise.
“With uncertainty over the future of other branches looming, too, Willesden Green has now fallen victim to the surge of branch closures that is blighting local small businesses, the elderly, and other vulnerable groups,” the councillors said.
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They added: “We therefore will be submitting a formal request to LINK to undertake a review of Willesden Green in light of these branch closures, asking that they assess the viability of opening a banking hub to guarantee that residents and independent businesses still have access to these essential services.”
NatWest said they had to make "tough choices" as fewer people are visiting the branch as more people use mobile and online banking.
They said the branch was used by two personal customers and 82 business customers on a "regular basis" in 2022.
Lloyds Bank also said they had seen a fall in branch visits and pointed out there is another branch 1.41 miles away in Kilburn.
NatWest's nearest branch to Willesden Green is 1.45 miles away, in Kilburn.
