CUSTOMERS of Nat West bank's branch on Grays High Street have bemoaned the fact that it is to close.

An announcement yesterday (Friday, 30 January) confirmed that Grays is one of 32 branches to go in its latest round of cuts. It will shut for the last time on Monday, 15 June.

The closures are in addition to the 49 branches it shut last year, and the seven closures it confirmed earlier this week.

Nat West says it will be looking to set up a banking hub somewhere in the local Grays community or join an existing one. A banking hub is a shared space allowing customers from multiple banks to interact with bank staff but they are usually cashless.

The latest bank closures have been described as another nail in the coffin for those who prefer to use face-t-face banking services.

The letter sent to customers of Grays Nat West.

Martin Quinn, of Campaign for Cash, says: 'There are so many people who are digitally excluded. It's not just the elderly but the poorer sections of society, too, who don't have banking apps or even smartphones. They need to be able to speak to someone in a bank branch. The high street is being hollowed out by this.

'And there are not enough of the banking hubs. We need thousands of them - we need to turbo charge this. The industry isn't moving fast enough. It's just too slow.'

Between January, 2015, and December, 2024, 6,609 branches closed, figures shared with This is Money by consumer watchdog Which? show.

It means more than two-thirds of the branch network – 67 per cent – has been destroyed in just ten years as providers shut up shop in favour of online services, which typically cost less to run.

The worst offender was NatWest, which also owns the Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank. Between these three providers, some 1,431 branches have shut.

A customer of Nat West contacted Nub News today after receiving a leaflet from the bank in the post. He said: "It's another example of how big business doesn't really care about customers.

"Elderly people rely on banks. I can probably cope without it but my in-laws are in their 90s. Grays' Nat West is their bank and they go in there once a week. God knows what older customers who need face-to-face help will do."