Gillingham’s bid to get a banking hub in the town after the news of Lloyds Bank’s imminent closure has failed.

The town applied to Cash Access UK for the status after hearing that Lloyds is to close on January 8, leaving Gillingham without any bank branches.

Banking hubs are owned by Cash Access UK, a not-for-profit company funded by major high street banks, and run by the Post Office.

However, the town apparently failed to meet the set criteria for a hub, somewhat to the surprise of business figures here.

The decision was based on key criteria used to determine the suitability of towns for banking hubs, which include both population size and the number of retail shops that regularly use cash. While Gillingham has a strong and growing population – currently over 11,000 adults near the town centre, with significant housing developments planned that will increase this number further – the number of retail shops using cash regularly falls short of the threshold required.

Specifically, Gillingham currently has 48 relevant retailers, below the usual minimum of 70 shops needed to support a sustainable banking hub.

Gillingham does, however, have two well-established post offices and several ATMs within the town centre, which are currently able to provide access to cash services for residents and local businesses. The post office has expressed full support for serving the community’s banking needs, and ongoing monitoring will ensure these services continue to meet demand.

The banking hub assessment also considered public transport accessibility and demographic factors, including a significant elderly population who rely on convenient cash access. While retail is shifting away from the traditional high street towards other commercial hubs around Gillingham, this change impacts the evaluation criteria focused on high street retail units.

The authorities acknowledge Gillingham’s growth potential and its designation as a hub town for North Dorset, serving surrounding villages. They apparently remain ‘open’ to revisiting the application in the future as new housing developments come online and if retail numbers increase sufficiently to meet the required thresholds.

A statement from former mayor Barry von Clemens, who is Chair of Gillingham Chamber of commerce and industry, and deputy chair and Rob Hoskins said: ‘We’re extremely disappointed at the outcome of our application as the GCCI feel that Gillingham does need a bank hub to service both businesses and residents. We will continue to talk with LINK to see if we can get the town reassessed in the future.’

They added: ‘In the meantime, residents and businesses are encouraged to continue using existing cash services and to report any difficulties accessing cash or banking services.’