Battle begins to save last bank in Brierley Hill town centre
A petition set up by traders in a bid to save Brierley Hill’s last town-centre bank has been signed nearly 1,000 times.
The planned closure of Lloyds Bank will leave the High Street with no banks – after HSBC and Barclays branches closed in the last year.
Brierley Hill market supervisor Steven Bridgewater started the petition, which has been supported by hundreds of traders and shoppers, and is planning to present it at the end of May to try to encourage Lloyds bosses into a u-turn.
Mr Bridgewater, who took over the running of the market in January, said banks and cashpoints are crucial to traders’ success.
He said: “Hundreds of people have signed the petition already – nearly 1,000.
“The market is doing really well as the moment but it seems a shame that the town is going the other way.
“We need that to get better and the last bank shutting really doesn’t help.
“Cash is especially important at the market and if the bank goes then its cashpoint will be going as well.”
The final day for the town’s Lloyds has been earmarked for July 18.
It comes after the bank announced 49 branches will close nationwide with more than 300 jobs lost.
Mr Bridgewater said the impact of the Brierley Hill branch closure will be keenly felt given it is the only remaining bank in the town.
And it has provoked strong feelings from shoppers and traders – with some asking to take paper copies of the petition away to gather more signatories, he added.
Mr Bridgewater said: “Everything is going positively for the market – it’s just the town which is a problem.
“Unfortunately I can’t control what happens in the town but I want to do what I can to help.
“I don’t know whether this petition is going to work, we wait and see.”
When the closure of Lloyds was announced, Brierley Hill ward councillor Zafar Islam said: “It is going to be another loss because the traders can go and do their night cashing if you have a high street bank and not every person particularly elderly people have access to online banking.
“I hope that Lloyds will consult their customers and they work out how they will be servicing through an alternative branch or branches.
“We are losing the post offices and losing the banks. It affects the community spirit.”
Lloyds were unavailable for comment.
