Virgin Money to close Brighton branch

Virgin Money is closing its Brighton branch alongside 38 other UK stores.

Staff at the branch in North Street are among 255 staff at risk of redundancy because of the closures.

The high street banker said it is closing the stores because of changing customer demand, with fewer customers using the branches every year.

It says the stores which are closing have seen an average reduction in customer transactions of 43% since March 2020 and 96% of customers in these stores are transacting less than once a month on average.

It says it looked at factors including the needs of vulnerable customers and the number of free cash machines and Post Offices nearby when deciding which branches to close.

Sarah Wilkinson, chief operating officer at Virgin Money, said: “The decision to close a store is never taken lightly.

“But as our customers continue to change the way they want to bank with us, by conducting fewer transactions in-store and adopting the convenience of digital banking, we must respond to that evolving demand.

“Our focus is on supporting our customers and colleagues. We have considered the number of vulnerable customers using each store very carefully throughout the review process as a key factor in our decision making, and will proactively provide enhanced, bespoke care to ensure any vulnerable customers affected are supported through the changes.

“For our colleagues, we will pursue all options to retain as many as possible within alternative roles, and have had great success previously with store colleagues moving to other customer operations roles, as their skills are highly transferable.”

Written notification will be sent to customers and posters will be displayed at least 12 weeks before they close, providing details on the alternative ways customers can continue to manage their accounts, including nearest alternative stores, ATMs and Post Office counters.

Virgin Money says it will support affected colleagues with finding alternative roles wherever possible.