Virgin Money suggests more bank branch closures to come amid 'digitisation' push - full list of closed sites

Virgin Money said it was on track to meet its target of saving £200million a year through restructuring.

So far, the bank has made 39 bank branch closures in the latest three-month period with a loss of around 150 full-time jobs.

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As a result of this decision, Virgin Money has slashed its total branch network by 30 per cent, leaving the business with only 91 physical locations.

The bank said it believes it has spent about £275million on restructuring costs, including improving IT systems, changing property spaces and cutting roles.

David Duffy, Virgin Money’s chief executive officer, said: “We’ve delivered growth in new accounts, deposits and target lending segments, at stable margins and with ongoing cost efficiencies.

“We are encouraged by both our customers’ resilience and improving sentiment in the mortgage market as interest rates have peaked. We carry good momentum into 2024 as we continue to successfully execute our strategy.”

More than 5,828 bank and building society branches have closed since January 2015, according to Which?.

Concerns have been raised over whether communities will have sufficient access to cash services with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) set to get more powers to assess the necessity of closures.

Aside from its restructuring plans, Virgin Money reported a 2.2 per cent decline in mortgage lending to £57.1billion in the three months to December, down from £58.4billion in the same period a year earlier.

According to the lender, this fall was indicative of a more disciplined approach to lender amid a “subdued” market.

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Despite this development, Virgin Money cited early signs of improvement in the housing market last month. This was reflected with residential and buy-to-let mortgage applications being in line with 2019 levels before the Covid-19 pandemic.

In its predictions for the future, the bank forecast lower mortgage rates will give consumer sentiment a boost considering interest rates have likely “peaked”. Over the period, provisions for bad loans increased to almost £640million from £617million in the last quarter more households struggled to make mortgage repayments.

Here is a breakdown of the 39 bank branches that were shut down by Virgin Money in 2023:

• Unit 1A The Gosforth Centre NE3 1JZ, Newcastle upon Tyne - 08/11/2023
• 151 High Street KA12 8AD, Irvine - 20/11/2023
• 28 Market Street AB41 9JE, Ellon - 27/11/2023
• 1 Main Street AB53 4AA, Turriff - 28/11/2023
• 76 Saddler Street DH1 3NP, Durham - 06/11/2023
• 5 Cattle Market NE46 1NJ, Hexham - 07/11/2023
• 7 Stricklandgate LA9 4NB, Kendal - 06/12/2023
• 28 St. Peter's Street DE1 1SL, Derby - 17/10/2023
• 58 High Street PH33 6AH, Fort William - 22/11/2023
• 83 Victoria Street DG8 6NL, Newton Stewart - 15/11/2023
• 53 Lord Street L2 6PB, Liverpool - 05/12/2023
• Poltalloch Street PA31 8LL, Lochgilphead - 21/11/2023
• 34 The Town EN2 6LU, Enfield, London - 21/11/2023
• 36 Market Square BR1 1NF, Bromley, London - 30/11/2023
• 307 Station Road HA1 2TA, Harrow, London - 23/11/2023
• 30-31 Haymarket SW1Y 4EX, London - 29/11/2023
• 2 Golders Green Road NW11 8LH, Golders Green, London - 22/11/2023
• 160 Friar Street RG1 1HE, Reading - 15/11/2023
• 15-17 Castle Street KT1 1ST, Kingston upon Thames, London - 28/11/2023
• 12 North Street GU1 4AF, Guildford - 14/11/2023
• 154-158 Kensington High Street W8 7RL, Kensington, London - 27/11/2023
• 26-27 Sidney Street CB2 3HW, Cambridge - 25/10/2023
• 10 Castle Street NR2 1PD, Norwich - 26/10/2023
• 170 North Street BN1 1EA, Brighton - 09/11/2023
• 18-19 Trinity Street CF10 1BH, Cardiff - 02/11/2023
• Unit 16, Norfolk House, Wellesley Road CR0 1LH, London - 13/11/2023
• 83 High Street CM1 1DX, Chelmsford - 20/11/2023
• 67 Queen Street WV1 3BY, Wolverhampton - 18/10/2023
• 6-8 Watergate Street CH1 2LA, Chester - 19/10/2023
• 215 High Street GL50 3HH, Cheltenham - 30/10/2023
• 5 Lockey House AL1 3LP, St Albans - 24/10/2023
• 10 Regent Circus SN1 1PW, Swindon - 31/10/2023
• 502 Silbury Boulevard MK9 2AD, Milton Keynes - 23/10/2023
• 5 Wellington Place BT1 6GA, Belfast - 13/11/2023
• 112 Old Christchurch Road BH1 1LU, Bournemouth - 07/11/2023
• 10 College Place SO15 2FD, Southampton - 08/11/2023
• 60 South Street EX1 1EE, Exeter - 06/11/2023
• 129-129A High Street OX1 4DF, Oxford - 16/11/2023
• Unit 2, Transom House, Victoria Street BS1 6AH, Bristol - 01/11/2023.