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Barclays Bank has confirmed its branch in Bargoed town centre will close this April, citing a fall in the number of customers who use it.
Shutting the branch on Hanbury Road means Bargoed no longer has a bank after HSBC closed its doors in 2014 and Lloyds Bank closed in 2019.
The closure, slated for April 14, is the latest in a long list of high street banks closing branches across Caerphilly County Borough.
Councillor Dawn Ingram-Jones described the news as “devastating”.
She said: “There are members of our community who need the bank. Perhaps they choose to pay for things in cash – that’s their choice and that’s what it’s about really.
“It’s a shame that a town the size of Bargoed won’t have a bank anymore. I know they have been winding it down for quite a while and I think a lot of the community guessed [it was closing].
“But there was no consultation – I’m a county councillor and I knew nothing about it until the letter came through the door.”
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Barclays said it will offer a pop-up appointment service for people who need to speak to staff face-to-face and is working on a possible location. It said the branch had 11 regular customers who used it as their sole means of banking with Barclays – ie not using online services.
A Barclays spokesperson said: “Our customers’ behaviour has changed significantly in recent years, with the majority now choosing online banking. This is reflected at Bargoed branch, and as we adapt, we are finding new ways to support our customers by maintaining our community presence with options for customers who still require in-person support.”
The spokesperson said no one is being made redundant because of the closure and customers can still access a range of services from the town’s post office and its branch in Ystrad Mynach.
The closure in Bargoed is yet another example of banks shrinking their physical presence on the high street. HSBC in Blackwood is due to close on July 25.
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