Banking and Post Office Services are Vital for Our Rural Communities. Earlier this month, I spoke in a Parliamentary debate about the much-needed provision of essential banking and post office services in rural areas like ours. As a rural MP, one of my core focuses is ensuring that residents across South West Norfolk’s 3 market towns and 72 villages can easily access these services in-person. Over the last decade, we have seen many banks reduce their high-street footprint, impacting rural areas like ours, without much consideration from these companies about what the impact will be. A point I repeatedly stress in my meetings with banks and Post Office Limited, is that rural communities cannot be unfairly impacted by decisions that are made in inner-city offices, without assessing what that removal of services will mean for the communities they are there to serve.
Unless you have lived in a rural area, you do not understand the impact of a post office or bank closing. In South West Norfolk, it could mean having to travel two villages over, which, if you don’t have a car or can’t drive, adds another layer of rural inequality.
Whilst it can be argued that many of these services can now be accessed online, not everyone has that option. Poor broadband speeds and unreliable connectivity can mean that large parts of rural communities still rely on physical locations for these services. I understand that for many companies, they operate in a digital-first approach, but holding a conversation with a real person about something as intricate and important as one’s own personal finances, should, I feel, be given greater importance by these organisations.
It is estimated that 25% of people aged 55 and over still use cash as their primary method of payment. In South West Norfolk, the median age is higher than the UK average, so this is a particularly important issue for us here.
ATM access is another aspect I regularly raise in my meetings with banks and Cash Access UK – the organisation that operates banking hubs. I was pleased, following my calls for them to do so, Cash Access UK added an ATM to their Downham Market banking hub earlier this year and Nationwide increased their ATM capacity across South West Norfolk.
The Government is clear on its commitment to ensuring access to these essential services, which is why it pledged to roll-out 350 banking hubs by the end of this Parliament in 2029. Already, more than 235 have been opened.
The Treasury also launched an Access to Banking Services Review in May, which has gathered evidence on the impact of changes to in-person banking services and will help inform recommendations to Government on ways to improve in-person banking services.
One recommendation I called for in the debate is for the Government to require a Rural Banking Impact Assessment before any rural branch closure, with a banking hub or equivalent alternative in place before – not after – closure.
Terry Jermy MP.
