TSB set to close Edinburgh and East Lothian bank branches amongst 36 UK wide closures

TSB has announced they are to close 36 banks in the UK this year – including branches in Edinburgh and East Lothian.

Among 10 Scottish branches set to shut in September 2024 are TSB’s banks on Leith Walk and Court Street in Haddington.

TSB has said the closures across the UK, which will see 250 jobs across the business, are part of efforts to move to a better balance of digital and face-to-face services. It said its customers were now doing most of their banking digitally.

TSB said it had decided to close the local branches because not enough customers were using them. About 96% of all the bank’s transactions take place outside of a branch, with the number of in-store transactions falling by 43% over the past four years.

A spokesman for TSB said: “The decision to close a branch is never taken lightly, but our customers are now doing most of their banking digitally and we need to move to a better balance of digital and face-to-face services.

“We remain committed to a national branch network and through innovation and integration with video, telephone, digital, branch and other face-to-face services TSB customers have more ways to bank with us than ever before.”

Trade union Unite said the decision by the UK high street lender was a “grave mistake”.

“These workers perform essential work in the fraud departments and across the branch network,” Unite’s regional officer Andy Case said.

“Through extensive negotiations Unite has been able to substantially reduce the number of jobs at risk. However, that isn’t sufficient, the union is pressing TSB to urgently reconsider its damaging bank branch closures plan.”

Unite said it will be holding fresh negotiations with TSB about ways to further reduce job losses and to support members affected by the changes.

Age Scotland has also responded to TSB’s announcement, calling it a “disappointing move”.

Age Scotland’s Chief Executive, Katherine Crawford, said: “This is a disappointing move from TSB, and unfortunately is the latest in a continuous stream of banks abandoning high streets across Scotland in favour of a digital-by-default approach that does not consider the needs of all of their customers.

“Access to cash and in-person banking services are vital for many older people in Scotland. In fact, we know that 34% of over 65s prefer to bank in person.

“We also know that 31% of over 65s feel uncomfortable with the idea of online banking for a variety of reasons, including lack of trust in online services, lack of necessary IT skills and a fear of falling victim to fraud and scams.

“With branches disappearing at a rate of knots, an increasing number of communities are being left with either one local bank or facing the prospect of travelling further afield to do their banking. This is especially concerning for older people in rural and remote areas.

“We need greater growth in the network of banking hubs as an overreliance on the fragile Post Office network isn’t sustainable. Banks must take their responsibility to customers and communities seriously.”

TSB will have 175 branches across the UK after the latest round of closures.

The lender said it is opening two more “Pods” in local communities, where customers can speak to an expert and get help with using mobile and online banking, and withdraw and deposit cash.

It will also be opening a pop-up service in six new locations which people can visit for face-to-face support, including making payments, getting product information and help with digital banking.

In February, TSB said it was setting aside £29 million for a programme of cost-saving initiatives. It was working on reducing business expenses and generating more income by simplifying the business and making it more efficient.

It has already closed 10 branches over the past year.