Pontardawe banking hub snub "doesn't take into account full facts on the ground"

Sioned Williams MS challenges LINK assessment that no further cash services needed following closure of last bank in Swansea Valley

Sioned Williams MS has written to LINK to challenge their verdict that no further cash services would be needed in Pontardawe following the closure of Lloyds branch – the last physical bank in the Swansea Valley.

After Lloyds announced the planned closure of their branch this November, LINK carried out an assessment of the cash services that would remain in Pontardawe high street and confirmed they would meet the community’s needs.

Despite opposition to that decision, and many calls by the community for a Banking Hub, LINK has stuck by their original assessment, and so Ms Williams has compiled a pack of supporting evidence to lend weight to her challenge, which includes numerous letters from local businesses, charities, councillors, residents and the local football club.

Ms Williams’ challenge centres on the “facts on the ground” which include the real distances between Pontardawe and neighbouring communities, the practicalities for people who are reliant on public transport, the location of ATMs, the number of businesses acknowledged by LINK, and the fact that so many businesses in the town are cash based.

While Lloyds Bank has promised a ‘Community Banker’ for Pontardawe which will provide face to face support, this will not be able to handle transactions, and Lloyds have indicated that this would only be available once a fortnight in Pontardawe.

Sioned Williams MS, Plaid Cymru Member of Senedd for South Wales West, said:

“When LINK assessed Pontardawe in the wake of the news that Lloyds Bank will close – the last bank in the Swansea Valley – they concluded that there were sufficient banking services nearby. This is a decision that I am still disputing after hearing the feelings aired in the public meeting I held, in ongoing conversations with residents and local businesses, and because this is my town and my bank, and so I know only too well that the alternatives suggested by LINK are not practical.

“Many of our local businesses operate in cash only, and having to travel to Neath to do their banking will likely require them to close their shop for an extended period of time, particularly those reliant on public transport. Anyone who has tried to make the journey from Pontardawe to Neath by public transport will know there is just one bus route, the 256, which runs no more than 10 times a day, with a large gap in the afternoon. I also have concerns about the low number of businesses identified by LINK.

“The LINK assessment also doesn’t take into account the wider community that will be impacted by this closure – including residents of adjoining villages and towns such as Rhos, Clydach, Gwaun-cae-Gurwen, Cwmllynfell and Ystalyfera.

“While the people of Pontardawe and the wider area are under no illusions that financial services are changing, all they – and I – ask is that their request for a banking hub be given proper and full consideration with appropriate attention paid to the facts on the ground.”