Residents of a city suburb have spoken of their frustration after it was left without a bank. All of the banks in Mapperley have now closed, with locals confused at how the "vibrant" suburb had been left without a branch.
People living in Mapperley said that the elderly in particular had been inconvenienced by the closures. Duncan Thompson, 76, who has lived in Mapperley for over 30 years, said that the suburb had been left "with no choice".
"It is shocking that there is no bank here, we just have ATMs and the Post Office, there's no choice for people. The confusing thing is that there is a lot of stuff to do in Mapperley, with all the eating and drinking places but I wish there was a bank.
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"It is a comfort thing, I'm on online banking but a lot of elderly people aren't. You have to go into the city or elsewhere for a proper bank it's not convenient. It is really built up here but there's not one, yet you have Arnold which has a few banks."
A prospective new bar at Mapperley's former TSB bank was previously granted permission to be allowed to serve alcohol until 1am on weekends. The venue, named ‘Old Bank Mapperley’, hopes to become a “high-end Italian restaurant” and will take over the old bank building on Plains Road, Mapperley.
Joan Swannell, 84, who lives at Parry Court, said: "The only place now is the Post Office, that's why there's always a queue outside.
"The nearest bank is in Sherwood now, I don't really understand why we don't have one. When Barclays was here it was always quite busy before the pandemic.
"It is such a lovely place to live, we have a lot of independent businesses here. But then we don't have a bank at all, I don't know what older people would do without the Post Office."
Doris Smith, 96, who also lives at Parry Court in Mapperley, said: "I can't easily get into Sherwood and town to banks. Every bank is now gone and some people, usually older, really need them.
"It's a vibrant place to live with a lot of entertainment and shops, but to not have a bank branch is odd. It would just be convenient for elderly people like me to pop to the bank to see a person and not have to go online."
The suburb still has a Nottingham Building Society on Plains Road, at Mapperley shops. But the former Barclays building has remained vacant since its closure.
