A TOWN centre bank which has been running for more than a century is closing.

Barclays, in Kingsway, Dovercourt, has announced that the branch will be closing on Friday, September 29.

The bank said the decision was a result of an increasing trend in online banking with customer usage at the Dovercourt branch declining.

Jon Clows, community banking director for Barclays Essex, said: “At Barclays Dovercourt branch, customer usage has continued to decline and 30 per cent of our customers now regularly use alternative branches, which is why we have taken the difficult decision to close it.”

Garry Calver, Harwich town councillor, said: “It’s a great concern we are losing another bank from Dovercourt town centre. The full impact of how this will affect the town is unknown at this stage. It certainly is not good news for the town.”

There will be no redundancies caused by the closure and staff from the branch will be offered positions at nearby branches.

The nearest Barclays will be a ten-mile drive away in Manningtree High Street.

The bank – which has been running since 1905 – said customers will be able to undertake every day transactions at the post office.

Mr Clows added: “We do not take the decision to close any branch lightly and we are committed to adhering to the UK access to banking standard.

“All our customers will receive a letter, our decision to close, and documents and posters will be displayed in branch and colleagues will be on hand to assist customers with any concerns they may have.”

“We will be proactively engaging with local businesses and the wider community to discuss the alternative ways customers will be able to undertake their banking locally, before the branch closes.”

Barclays will be hosting tea and teach sessions for customers wanting to learn how to do digital banking.

Natwest bank closed its branch in Dovercourt High Street in 2014.