Therese has welcomed the news that LINK - the organisation that’s responsible for assessing banking hubs – has agreed to re-evaluate the need for a hub in the Leiston area following the impending closure of Barclays Bank.
Therese said: “I know how much of a life-line local banking facilities are for the community, especially local businesses and the elderly. So, I’m delighted that LINK is re-evaluating the need for a hub here in Leiston.”
Therese added: “Every previous application for a hub in Suffolk Coastal has been turned down so, I joined a roundtable at the Treasury with the Minister and representatives of the banks recently, including LINK and Cash UK. For the first time, LINK shared their assessment that they only consider the impact of a bank or cashpoint closure on a town plus a 1km circumference. I was astounded by this as that is not how the rural economy with market towns work and robustly made the point that they also need to consider villages further afield, which they now seem to be doing.”
“I’m hopeful that this reassessment gets done quickly, so we can try and keep continuity of banking in Leiston.”
