BANKING at Barclays in Bracknell's High Street will cease as the branch closes its doors for the final time today.

Barclays, located at 1 High Street, announced early this year that it would be closing the Bracknell branch this year among several others also axed from high streets.

In a report released by Barclays, it outlined that only 130 customers regularly use their branch services as their only way of banking.

The closure comes as the number of UK bank branches to shut their doors in the past nine years passes 6,000 on Friday, according to Which?.

The consumer group said the milestone highlights the impact this “avalanche” of closures has had on high streets and the need to provide replacement services for millions of people who rely on them.

Which? said that Bracknell was among eight Barclays branches were shutting their doors on Friday, taking the total by the end of the day on May 17 to 6,005.

This equated to over 60% of the bank branch network since Which? began tracking closures in 2015.

The eight Barclays closures relate to branches in Alperton in Wembley, London: Andover in Hampshire; Bangor in County Down, Northern Ireland; Bracknell in Berkshire; Hornchurch in Essex; Inverness in the Highlands in Scotland; Liverpool; and Streatham in London.

Barclays has closed 1,216 branches, according to Which?

NatWest Group, which comprises NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank, has closed 1,360 branches and Lloyds Banking Group, made up of Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, has shut 1,146 sites, the consumer group said.

Which? said 200 closures by various banks are already scheduled for the rest of 2024.

Currently, 24 more bank branch closures have been scheduled for 2025, although more are expected to be announced later this year and next, it added.

While millions of consumers have made the switch to banking digitally, there remains a significant number of people who are not yet ready or willing to make that jump, underscoring the need for accessible alternatives, Which? said.

There are various initiatives to help plug gaps in the cash access network, as bank branches close.

The 50th banking hub was recently opened. Banking hubs allow banks to share facilities. They have a counter service operated by the Post Office, allowing customers to conduct routine banking transactions.

The Post Office also recently reported that cash transactions at its branches totalled a record £3.48 billion in April. The Post Office has an agreement with many banks, allowing their customers to carry out everyday banking over its counters.

Sam Richardson, deputy editor of Which? Money, said: “This milestone of more than 6,000 bank branch closures in just nine years underscores the seismic shift that has taken place in terms of our banking habits and the character of the British high street.

“While some may hardly notice the closure of their local branch as they seamlessly switch to online banking, for others reliant on face-to-face services, the impact can be disastrous.

“It’s not about halting closures altogether, but ensuring that essential banking services remain accessible to those who still rely on them.”

A Barclays spokesperson said: “As visits to branches continue to fall, we need to adapt to provide the best service for all our customers.

“Where levels of demand don’t support a branch, we maintain an in-person presence though our Barclays Local network, live in over 350 locations, based in libraries, town halls, mobile vans and our banking pods.

“We also support access to cash with our cashback-without-purchase service, 24-hour deposit-taking ATMs and by working alongside the Post Office and Cash Access UK.”