{"id":95921,"date":"2026-08-02T20:56:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T20:56:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/95921\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T20:56:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T20:56:15","slug":"new-look-in-jackson-square-to-shut-and-barclays-bank-to-take-its-place-two-years-after-quitting-the-town-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/95921\/","title":{"rendered":"New Look in Jackson Square\u00a0to shut and Barclays Bank to take its place, two years after quitting the town centre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

News that New Look is shutting its Bishop\u2019s Stortford shop will come as little surprise to consumers who have become used to national high street chains closing branches and axing jobs as they cut costs in pursuit of healthy profits, if not collapsing altogether.<\/p>\n

In Stortford alone, fashion shops Dorothy Perkins, Burtons, Monsoon Accessorize, Claire\u2019s and Sports Direct have left, along with retailer Wilco, restaurants Giggling Squid, Franco Manca and Zizzi, and Halifax bank.<\/p>\n

Now New Look is ending its 23-year presence in the town. It originally opened in the current FatFace unit at the Potter Street entrance to Jackson Square shopping centre before moving further inside the precinct about 15 years ago. It will close on Wednesday, August 19.<\/p>\n

\"New\"NewNew Look in Jackson Square will shut on Wednesday, August 19<\/p>\n

But what will come as a shock is that later this autumn Barclays Bank will be moving into the vacant unit next to Sainsbury\u2019s.<\/p>\n

For Barclays, it marks a return to the town centre after a two-year absence, having closed its branch in North Street<\/a> in April 2024.<\/p>\n

At the time, the decision to shut was criticised by customers concerned at the impact on the elderly or infirm who are uncomfortable with internet banking or unable to travel further afield to other branches. As it happens, a Barclays Local operation was launched at South Mill Arts a week after the town centre withdrawal, with \u201cin-person banking support\u201d available weekdays.<\/p>\n

\"Barclays\"BarclaysBarclays Bank\u2019s former branch in North Street has been vacant since April 2024<\/p>\n

In a January 2024 statement on the closure, Barclays said: \u201cBack when we opened this branch, visiting us in person was one of the only ways to do your banking. Now, as there are lots of ways to manage your money without even leaving your home, we\u2019re seeing many customers choosing to bank using our app, and online or telephone banking.\u201d<\/p>\n

It said that 94% of people who used its North Street branch had also banked using those other means in 2024. Fewer than 10 regular customers used the branch as the only way to do their banking and 17% had used nearby branches in the previous 12 months.<\/p>\n

Since 2015, Barclays has closed up to 1,140 branches in the UK, leaving 206 traditional outlets. So why is it returning to Bishop\u2019s Stortford town centre, albeit not with a high street facade but, nevertheless, right next door to a major supermarket in a shopping centre?<\/p>\n

In April, The Times reported that the banking giant was set to widen its presence by opening new branches, enlarging some existing sites and reintroducing the \u201cbank manager\u201d job title.<\/p>\n

Barclays UK chief executive officer Vim Maru, who took charge in 2024, said he took an \u201cearly decision\u201d to halt branch closures and was working towards a larger network than the current 206 locations.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end of our plan we\u2019ll have more than those,\u201d he said. \u201cI truly believe that the combination of great digital and great human touch is the future of banking. What we\u2019re trying to do is something that allows us to differentiate in front of our customers.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course we\u2019re going to be great in digital \u2013 but we\u2019re going to be there for you when you need some help and support. You\u2019re not going to be stuck in some chatbot trying to get out of the loop and trying to speak to someone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maru said the planned openings, which he did not put a number on, would be additional to shared banking hubs run through the Post Office, where several major banks provide services from a single site.<\/p>\n

He said the effort was aimed at personal customers and newer businesses, which \u201clove a bit of human touch\u201d.<\/p>\n

As for New Look, which sells clothing and accessories for women, men and teens, it has almost halved its high street presence in the last eight years, reducing the 600 UK outlets it held in 2018 to 338 currently, including 14 lost last year.<\/p>\n

In 2024, the brand \u2013 founded by Tom Singh in Taunton, Somerset, in 1969 \u2013 said that around a quarter of its then estate of 364 UK stores would be at risk when their leases expire, which is what has happened in Stortford.<\/p>\n

Jackson Square manager Michael Smith said: \u201cBarclays\u2019 decision to open at Jackson Square is a strong vote of confidence in both the centre and Bishop\u2019s Stortford. This is about delivering what people genuinely need: accessible, face-to-face banking from a name they trust.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cThe high street is changing, and Jackson Square is changing with it. We\u2019re not just a shopping destination; we\u2019re a community hub that provides essential services alongside quality retail.<\/p>\n

\u201cSecuring Barclays demonstrates our ability to adapt, respond and continue attracting leading brands that enhance the everyday lives of our visitors.\u201d<\/p>\n

The arrival of Barclays builds on recent momentum at Jackson Square, including the openings of TK Maxx and Rituals, the refurbishment of Vodafone and Superdrug\u2019s newly transformed store.<\/p>\n

A spokesman said: \u201cTogether, these developments reinforce the centre\u2019s commitment to remaining Bishop\u2019s Stortford\u2019s leading destination for retail, services and community connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

Excluding New Look, Jackson Square is home to: ALMAMIA Collection, Art House, Bishop\u2019s Stortford Library, Caf\u00e9 Mocha, Clarks, Eurochange, F Hinds, FatFace, Grape Tree, H&M, Hays Travel, Holland & Barrett, Hotel Chocolat, Mamdani Opticians, Mountain Warehouse, Nando\u2019s, Next, O2, Pandora, Pret A Manger, Sainsbury\u2019s, Smiggle, Starbucks, Superdrug, The Entertainer, The Fragrance Shop, The 3 Store, Unique Hairdressing, Urban Spa, Vinegar Hill and Vision Express.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"News that New Look is shutting its Bishop\u2019s Stortford shop will come as little surprise to consumers who…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":95922,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[21264],"tags":[3343,22475,633,9129],"class_list":["post-95921","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-barclays","tag-barclays","tag-bishops-stortford","tag-business","tag-consumer"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@UnitedKingdom\/117027916184405474","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95921","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95921"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95921\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/95922"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95921"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95921"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95921"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}