OKEHAMPTON is set to lose another bank, after Barclays announced that it will be closing its branch in the town in May.

Customers have each received a letter telling them that the branch in Red Lion Yard will close its doors for the final time on Friday, May 11. From then on, they will have to travel as far as Tavistock, Launceston or Exeter to bank with Barclays in person.

The news comes in the wake of NatWest announcing that it is shutting its Okehampton branch in June. This will leave just two banks in the town, Lloyds and TSB.

Barclays customer Derek Ellis, who has lived in the town all his life, described the news as ‘ridiculous’.

‘Our nearest branch will be Launceston and Tavistock, and we’ll have to get in the car to travel there. Although I’m 80, I am quite mobile, and I have got a car, but what are you supposed to do if you haven’t?’

He said he would not be switching to banking online or by phone as suggested by Barclays.

‘Old people don’t shop online or bank online. I don’t bank online, I don’t trust it actually,’ he said. ‘This is dreadful news. I like visiting the branch. The staff there are lovely.’

Community banking director for Barclays Devon and Cornwall Michael Watts said: ‘The way customers undertake their banking is changing as people increasingly use online, telephone and mobile devices. At Barclays Okehampton branch, customer usage has continued to decline and additionally 76% of our branch customers are also using other ways to do their banking such as online and by telephone.  We’ve also identified that only 146 customers use this branch exclusively for their banking.

‘We hope that the availability of our nearest Barclays branch at 6 Bedford Square, Tavistock, access to services at the local Post Office located at 8 George Street, Okehampton, along with our range of digital channels will help to ease the transition for our customers.’

Mayor of Okehampton Jan Goffey said: ‘I’m afraid this is a sign of the times. A couple of years ago there were four banks in Chagford, and now they haven’t got any. It is a case of use it or lose it, I’m afraid. It isn’t a massively busy branch, and it is very much a case that if there isn’t the footfall then banks will close.’

A regional spokeswoman for Barclays said that all three people who work in the Okehampton branch would be redeployed elsewhere and there would be no job losses.

Barclays said it would be holding ‘tea and teach’ sessions to bring Okehampton customers up to speed with online banking.