Five bank branches are set to disappear from high streets in north London at the start of this year.

Barclays, Halifax, Lloyds and NatWest are all slashing the number of branches they run as customers turn to online banking to manage their finances.

Across the UK more than 170 branches are already due to close this year.

Lloyds banking group – which also runs the Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands – is set to shut 45 branches across its network this year.

The Halifax branch in Barnet is among those set to close, with the banking group claiming that transactions have reduced by 60% in the last five years.

NatWest will shut another 19 branches in the early part of this year, with almost 200 Barclays branches set to leave high streets in the coming months.

The Willesden Green NatWest is among those set to close, with the group claiming just two personal customers used the branch on a regular basis in 2022.

Announcing the closures last November, a Lloyds Banking Group spokesman said: “The way customers choose to bank with us has changed rapidly in recent years, and we now offer a wide range of options for their everyday banking needs.

“This includes our mobile app, online and over the phone.

“Customers can also bank with us through the Post Office, in a Banking Hub, or by speaking to a Community Banker.”

Consumer group Which? said at the end of last year that banking customers are being “left on a cliff-edge” by the swathes of banking closures and called for a faster rollout of community banking hubs.

Jenny Ross, Which? money editor, said: “These closures are yet another nail in the coffin for the UK’s high street banking infrastructure and will see some towns lose more than one bank within a matter of days or weeks – suggesting little thought has been given to the impact on the communities they serve.”

She said that almost 6,000 bank branches had closed since January 2015.

Full north London closure list

 

  • February 27 – Willesden Green NatWest
  • March 1 – Crouch End Barclays
  • March 8 – Palmers Green Barclays
  • March 12 – Barnet Halifax
  • March 21 – Willesden Green Lloyds

Some reporting by PA.