HSBC set to close Market Drayton branch
Banking giant HSBC is to close another of its branches in Shropshire.
The company is set to close its branch in Cheshire Street, Market Drayton, in January.
The move could mean hundreds of customers will have their accounts transferred to the nearest branches in either Stafford or Newport.
The bank said many customers were now using services differently, with the rise of internet and telephone banking.
Town councillors today spoke of their sadness at the closure.
Mayor of Market Drayton, Councillor Roy Aldcroft said: "It is a great shame. We get a limited service from other banks already and this closure will also take some footfall from the High Street.
"It is a shame as Drayton is growing and getting busier. They will wish they hadn't moved when they see how much it grows.
"The staff in HSBC have always been so helpful so it is also a shame for them."
The closure in Market Drayton is the latest in a line of closures in Shropshire's towns in recent years.
Since 2012 HSBC has closed branches in Church Stretton, Craven Arms, and also Ellesmere.
Other banking giants have also left Market Drayton – in July last year Santander, in Cheshire Street, closed its doors.
It now leaves Market Drayton with NatWest and Lloyds Bank.
Councillor Roger Hughes, who represents Market Drayton West on Shropshire Council, said: "I shall be closing my account with HSBC and taking my business elsewhere.
"I only had it open to support local jobs and the branch. Now I will move my account.
"It is very disappointing."
Steve Gracey, from HSBC, said: "We never take the decision to close a branch lightly, and we understand it's unsettling for the local community.
"Unfortunately, with an increase in the use of online and telephone banking over the past few years the use of the Market Drayton branch has fallen significantly, and we have taken the difficult decision to close it.
"We will be working with customers who use the branch to help them understand their options, which include being able to use the local post office to check their balance and withdraw and pay in cash and cheques to their personal HSBC account.
"There are also a number of fee-free cash machines in the local area."
The branch will close at 3.30pm on January 15.
Managers said they will be working with the branch employees to assign them to another local branch.
