In the second half of March, it was announced by Santander that it’s branch at The Avenue Shopping Centre in Newton Mearns would close over the next few months.
Santander justified the decision on the basis that larger numbers of it’s customers are now using online, mobile and telephone banking with fewer transactions taking place at the branch compared with previous years.
The company published an impact assessment into how residents in Newton Mearns interact with the bank and Santander advised that 94 percent of its customers in the local area use a variety of ways to do their banking.
More specifically, Santander also advised that 78 percent of people who banked with the Newton Mearns branch use online, mobile or telephone services.
Following the announcement of the closure, the branch then shut it’s doors permanently on the afternoon of Monday 23rd June.
Whilst there is a shift towards online banking, the decision of Santander to close the branch at The Avenue was nonetheless a blow to many local residents who rely upon face-to-face services.
Once the bank in Newtons Mearns had closed, the nearest Santander branches to the Avenue were in East Kilbride and Glasgow at respective distances of 10 and 12.5 miles.
Clearly, neither branch is particularly accessible for residents in Newton Mearns and particularly for people who are elderly and do not drive.
Santander notified me directly of the proposed closure as the constituency MSP and set out the reasons for why the organisation had made the decision.
In the communication I received from Santander, there was also a note that the bank would aim to set up community hubs in areas where branches had been shut down.
I responded to Santander to express concerns about removing the branch from The Avenue and the possible impact it could have on local residents who are elderly and people who prefer to conduct their banking transactions in person.
I also pressed the company on the issue of a community hub and asked for the bank to provide more details about this possible initiative.
I also requested that Santander explore establishing one in Newton Mearns to at least partially alleviate any difficulties my constituents would experience because of the branch closure and potentially in partnership with other banks.
Santander responded to inform me that it was going to introduce community bankers to Newton Mearns and the hub would be based in a local facility such as a library.
The community bankers would be present in the locality one-day per week.
Following this communication, the bank confirmed that the community hub would be located next to The Avenue Shopping Centre and at Mearns Library.
The community bankers are now available in the library on Mondays and from the hours of 9.30am to 4.30pm.
Whilst the one-day per week is clearly inferior to a fully fledged bank that is open on a daily basis, it is nonetheless better than having no provision at all from Santander in Newton Mearns.
As the hub facility at Mearns Library becomes established, I hope that Santander will consider increasing the number of days where it’s community bankers are present and to facilitate more opportunities for local residents to bank in a face-to-face setting.
