A rural community is celebrating partial victory after saving its only town centre cashpoint – for the time being at least.

Residents in Alston have been fiercely campaigning against the closure of their last remaining bank.

Barclays is due to close its Front Street branch on December 4. It follows the closure of Alston HSBC in June. The move would also leave the town with no central cashpoint.

Despite a high-profile campaign, Barclays has refused to reverse its branch closure decision. However, a public meeting heard this week that the cashpoint has been given a temporary reprieve.

Subject to approval from its security team, the ATM will be left running for the next 12 months – during which time Barclays will monitor the activity to see if there is a case to keep it open permanently.

Use of the town’s only other cashpoint, the Clydesdale Bank ATM at the Spar store on the edge of town, will also be monitored.


Alix Martin Alix Martin, chairwoman of Alston Moor parish council, is now urging residents to use the Barclays machine – or lose it.

“What the community needs to do now is make sure they use it. Barclays have assured us that if the uptake goes up, they will leave it in place after the year,” she explained.

Efforts are already underway to clean up the cash point area and install some planters to improve the appearance.

The news was positively received at Tuesday night’s well-attended meeting, held in the town hall, about how the Alston Moor community could mitigate the impact of the pending Barclays branch closure.

Despite requests, the bank did not send a representative. However, there was a presentation from the local Post Office, which has confirmed it is committed to remaining in Alston.

Representatives also confirmed they can offer a full cash handling service for the customers of most banks, with both Barclays and HSBC customers able to pay in cash and cheques and make cash withdrawals.

These same services are also now available to business customers, meaning local traders no longer have to make long journeys from Alston Moor to pay in takings at other towns.

Adrian Rush, chairman of EdenSave Credit Union, also explained the services it now offers to local residents.

This includes community banking services, which were launched in Alston in January 2014. He said 16 per cent of its members are now Alston residents, most of who are regular savers.

EdenSave has also made a number of loans to Aston residents and Mr Rush encouraged more people to sign up.

He also used the opportunity to pay tribute to the “huge amount of work” put in by Mrs Martin to try and get the best outcome possible for the local area on the banks issue.