A bank in Clitheroe is set to close its doors later this year, joining a number of other East Lancashire banking branches which have closed, or are set to close.

Lloyds Bank, in Church Street, is set to close on August 7.

A spokesperson for the bank said the branch closure is due to a fall in the number of visitors to the site. It has pointed to online banking as a possible explanation for this.

According to Lloyds, 75 per cent of its personal customers already use other ways of banking, such as mobile, internet or phone banking, as well as other branches.

A bank spokesperson said a Post Office is a short distance away, in King Street, which offers personal and business customers everyday banking services, access to cash, paying in of cheques, and more.

The nearest free-to-use ATM is a short walk away (160 metres), and there are seven free-to-use ATMs within half a mile of the closing branch. 

This is not the first banking branch to have closed in East Lancashire over the last year.

Barclays announced it was closing its Blackburn branch, on Darwen Street, in May. A statement was released stating that only a small number of people use the branch.

Last year, Barclays closed a bank on Church Street, Barnoldswick. A banking hub, consisting of five high street banks, has since opened in the town, based in the Bank Building in Skipton Road.

Earlier this year, Which? research revealed that just 29 major high street banks remain in towns across East Lancashire as the rate of their closure continues at a rapid rate.

In the run up to the branch closure, staff will be offering support and guidance for customers.

After the branch closes, a community banker will visit the area to face-to-face targeted support for as long as the community needs it. 

Lloyds will discuss with local communities which locations would be appropriate for its community banker to set up in.

Customers have also been advised they can use any Lloyds Bank branch for their banking, with the nearest being in Blackburn, Accrington and Burnley.

A Lloyds Bank spokesperson said: “As many customers now choose to bank through their mobile app or online, visits to our Clitheroe branch have fallen over recent years.

“The local Post Office offers everyday banking, with cash also available at close by free-to-use ATMs.

"Customers can also manage their money through our mobile banking apps, online, by calling us or speaking to a community banker.”