Banking giant HSBC is to offer a community banker at Acton’s Banking Hub starting from Thursday (25 January 2024) following Nationwide’s decision to pull out from the local service based at The Oaks shopping centre.
The new community banker will support local HSBC customers with their personal banking needs and replaces Nationwide which has decided to leave and serve customers directly at its own branches in Ealing and Chiswick.
Set up by Cash Access UK, the Acton Banking Hub located inside The Oaks opened in June 2023. It is open Monday to Friday and offers a personal banker from one of five banks signed up to the service.
The Hub offers a community banker service for Barclays, NatWest, HSBC, Lloyds and Santander where customers can talk to their own banking provider about more complex issues and needs. The community bankers are available on a specific day of the week for their banking customers.
The Acton Banking Hub rota is:
- Monday: NatWest
- Tuesday: Barclays
- Wednesday:Lloyds
- Thursday: HSBC
- Friday: Santander
Each day, regardless of which bank a person belongs to, locals can do everyday banking tasks including deposits and withdrawals from their account using the Banking Hub’s Post Office counter service.
Cat Farrow, chief operating officer, Cash Access UK said: “It’s six months since we opened in Acton and we’re so pleased with the response to date. Acton is the busiest hub with around 150 customers visiting every day and growing. Alongside using the counter service from Monday to Friday, we’re pleased to welcome a community banker from HSBC UK, who will join the Hub every Thursday.”
A HSBC UK spokesperson said: “We welcome the opportunity to play our part and support the Acton Banking Hub. Our Bankers have been prepared, trained and we are able to support the vast majority of queries, services and products in our Hubs that we support currently in our branch network. We very much look forward to meeting our customers in Acton.”
At the time of its launch last year, Dr Rupa Huq, MP for Ealing Central and Acton: “I’m sure this banking facility will prove invaluable to the residents of Acton, including the many (often elderly) who are not online or even those of all ages who prefer the personal touch. We are proud to have the first ever of these in an urban area and I can see it being a positive model widely rolled out.”
 following Nationwide's decision to pull out from the local service based at The Oaks shopping centre.){kind=link}