Pendle MP's outrage at Barclays' shock decision to close Barnoldswick bank branch

According to Barclays, they will be closing their Barnoldswick branch from Friday April 14th. The bank says they “will still have a new and alternative physical presence” but did not provide detailed information of what this would involve. The nearest Barclays branches are in Skipton and Burnley.

Mr Stephenson only found out about the news when contacted by concerned Barnoldswick residents and slammed the bank for not talking to the town’s political representatives before making the decision.

Mr Stephenson said: “Barclays’ decision to close its Barnoldswick branch has shocked me and will be of deep concern to residents of Barnoldswick and the surrounding West Craven area. It is disgraceful that they did not consult with those elected to represent the town before making this outrageous decision.

“This will leave a major town without a proper bank branch, in breach of commitments made by the high street banking sector around people having access to banking. For those who rely on the branch for their banking and don’t want to bank online, this will be a hammer blow.

“I am pursuing an urgent meeting with Barclays. They must provide the town with clearer information about their plan to serve their customers and to honour their commitments.”

Barclays closed its Nelson and Colne high street branches in 2019. The bank cited the increasing use of online and mobile banking as the reason behind a drop in customers at the branches.