Hundreds of people sign petition to keep Warwick bank

In November 2019 TSB made the announcement that they would be closing down branches across the country and both the Leamington and Warwick sites face being axed.

In response to this, Warwick residents Alan and Margo Skillicorn set up a petition objecting to the closure.

The pair worked with around 11 businesses and shops in the town to collect signatures.

They recently collected the petitions, which gained hundreds of signatures and are now preparing to send them to the ombudsman.

Alan said: "We will be sending a letter off to the ombudsman with all the petitions we have got we will see what happens.

"We have between 300 and 400 signatures. The petition at Warwick Books did particularly well - just goes to show you how many people go in buying books.

"We are pleased with how many signatures we have. We didn't go and stand anywhere we just let it be and the shop keepers had it available and on show for people to see. There was no pressure on anybody to sign.

"We are very pleased with the response we have got from the public and for the support for the petition. We are also grateful to the shops and businesses that held the petitions for us."

Over the last couple of years Warwick has lost a few banks including Natwest, HSBC and Barclays.

The closures of the other banks concerns Alan. He said: "Natwest, HSBC and Barclays have gone, leaving just TSB and Lloyds and soon we will be left with just Lloyds and who knows how long Lloyds will stay.

"However we do have places like the Coventry Building Society and the post office."

When the Courier shared a story about the petition, TSB responded with the following statement: “The decision to close the Warwick branch was not taken lightly, but over the past few years we have seen the usage of the branch continue to fall.

"Over 80 per cent of customers at the branch either use alternative TSB branches in the area or they use online, mobile or telephone banking to access their banking services.

"There are now only 11 customers who actually use the branch on a regular weekly basis. As a result, keeping the branch open is now no longer financially viable."

Warwick TSB is due to close on September 15.