Double whammy as Shropshire bank going but web connections remain poor

Parish councillors said people living in rural areas of north Shropshire were being asked to carry out their banking online in the event of branch closures – but were struggling with poor broadband speeds and in some cases no internet connection at all.

The issue has been raised by members of Wem Rural Parish Council, which said many people who used NatWest in Wem's High Street would be left in limbo when it closes on July 13.

Neighbouring Wem Town Council has already written a letter of complaint to NatWest about the decision.

The branch closure is one of several announced by major banks in the region in recent months. NatWest will also close its branch in Wellington and reduce hours at Bridgnorth, while HSBC has closed branches in Market Drayton, Chirk, Llanfyllin and Llanfair Caereinion. Last month Whitchurch's Co-Operative bank also closed.

Parish councillors in Wem Rural said the recent announcement of the closure of the NatWest branch in Wem had brought the poor internet speeds in rural areas back into the spotlight.

Councillor Len Staines said: "As a customer of the bank I received their recent letter announcing the closure, and along with many others was upset and disappointed.

"One of the alternatives to banking that was offered was to use online facilities.

"For many Wem rural residents, online banking is not a feasible option especially as in parts of Wem Rural the internet connection is very poor, and has not been improved with the recent Connecting Shropshire scheme."

Councillor Jon Murgatroyd said: "In a recent parish council newsletter we asked for comments on the speed of broadband.

"Unsurprisingly the overwhelming response we received was one of disappointment and frustration at the poor bandwidth and reliability of the broadband supply in the parish.

"The parish council has been working hard to look at how we can help to improve the broadband in the parish and ensure that it is 'fit for purpose'.

"One of the avenues we are exploring is a Community Fibre Partnership where we're working with BT and Shropshire Council.

"We need as much support as possible from our residents in areas outside Wem who are struggling to obtain decent broadband connections.

"If you could contact us through the parish council's website we will register your interest."

Bosses at NatWest said the closure of the Wem branch was due to a "reduction of usage" when they announced the closure last month. They described it as a "difficult decision" but they would do all they could to answer customer questions in the lead-up to the closure.

The bank has seen the number of transactions on the High Street branch reduce by 18 per cent since 2011.