{"id":515449,"date":"2025-10-20T22:26:34","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T22:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/515449\/"},"modified":"2025-10-20T22:26:34","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T22:26:34","slug":"the-greater-manchester-town-that-is-about-to-lose-its-last-bank","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/515449\/","title":{"rendered":"The Greater Manchester town that is about to lose its last bank"},"content":{"rendered":"

Halifax bank is due to shut its doors for the last time in January – just eight months after Natwest closed\"HalifaxHalifax bank, Middleton Gardens, Middleton(Image: Google Maps)<\/p>\n

It is just a matter of months until Middleton\u2019s last bank closes.<\/p>\n

Halifax was the last holdout after Natwest on Long Street closed its doors for the last time in April. But bank bosses have announced that January 8, 2026 is the date Halifax will cease to have a physical presence in the Greater Manchester town.<\/p>\n

Customers changing the way in which they do their banking is cited as the main reason for the closure of the Middleton<\/a> Gardens branch.<\/p>\n

Join the Manchester Evening News <\/strong>WhatsApp<\/strong> group <\/strong>HERE<\/a><\/p>\n

A review from Barclays explaining the decision said: \u201cBefore we close any branch, we look at how customers are doing their banking. Most customers prefer to use our mobile app, online banking or call us.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of this, we\u2019ll be closing our Middleton branch.\u201d<\/p>\n

The review went on to say the Oldham<\/a> branch remains open and a banking hub in Heywood<\/a> is also available for customers.<\/p>\n

This is the end of an era for in-person banking for Middleton. However, a pop-up Barclays local is still available to locals, three days a week, at the Lighthouse Project Community Hub within Middleton Shopping Centre.<\/p>\n

Since it\u2019s closure back in spring, a plan to convert the vacant Natwest bank on Long Street into a church has already been submitted.<\/p>\n

\"VacantVacant Natwest bank on Long Street, Middleton(Image: Google Maps)<\/p>\n

Planning papers from the Churches of God read: \u201cThe proposed change of use from bank to Church of God will preserve the character and appearance of the Middleton Town Centre Conservation Area while providing valuable community facilities.<\/p>\n

Join our Christmas in Manchester WhatsApp group HERE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe retention of the existing building envelope ensures no harm to heritage assets, while the new use will ensure the building\u2019s continued contribution to the vitality of Long Street.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Churches of God are currently represented on five continents and in 19 countries. The sect of Christianity has roots in the Holiness or Pentecostal movements that began in the late 19th century.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Halifax bank is due to shut its doors for the last time in January – just eight months…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":515450,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8813],"tags":[748,393,4884,2465,9548,1232,1170,1171,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-515449","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-manchester","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-manchester","12":"tag-middleton","13":"tag-money","14":"tag-rochdale","15":"tag-rochdale-council","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115408849554740970","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=515449"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515449\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/515450"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=515449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=515449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=515449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}