NatWest in Leighton Buzzard to close in October

The branch will shut on October 28 – and follows the closure of the town’s Halifax branch in January and Lloyds Bank in November last year.

In a letter to Leighton-Linslade South councillor Chris Leaman, Matthew Blake, Local Director Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes, wrote: “As we adapt our services to meet the changing needs of our customers, we have taken the difficult decision to close the NatWest Leighton Buzzard branch on 28 October 2025.

“In making this decision we have considered a wide range of factors including, but not limited to; impact on customers; the level of financial vulnerability in the area; the nearest available branch; Post Office and free ATMs and regular transport links. 

“All branches marked for closure are submitted for an independent LINK assessment. LINK will flag any concerns or access to cash recommendations for the community in question and, where applicable, we will work with LINK and Cash Access UK to ensure that an appropriate solution is in place before a branch is closed. LINK will also communicate the outcome of the review to elected members. 

“We are communicating with our customers affected by the closure and contacting regular branch users. Those that still need branch services will be able to use the NatWest Aylesbury branch, Leighton Buzzard Post Office and Luton - Bury Park Banking Hub.

“NatWest recognises that some people will need assistance to make this transition, particularly those in vulnerable circumstances. To help these customers and to complement the support our colleagues in branch will provide, our Customer Support Specialists are proactively contacting those who use the branch to provide dedicated support.”

Cllr Leaman said efforts to secure a banking hub in the town would be stpped up in the face of this latest closure.

A NatWest spokesperson added: “Our customers are using digital banking more than ever before – over 80% of our active current account holders now use our digital services and over 97% of retail accounts with us are now opened online.

“Like any business, we strive to meet our customers’ changing needs and expectations and we’ve been responding to the industry wide shift towards digital services by investing to broaden what customers can do themselves and to offer them greater personalisation. While we are increasingly engaging our customers digitally, our branch network remains important to us."

They continued: “While we know that this is disappointing, we have carefully considered how best to invest to make sure we have a sustainable network for the future. We consider each branch individually and review a wide range of factors, including but not limited to, impact on customers, the level of financial vulnerability in the area, the nearest available branch, Banking Hub, Post Office and free ATMs and regular transport links.

“We’re committed to ensuring the transition of UK banking services on to digital platforms is managed compassionately and we recognise that some people still need help to adapt, particularly our vulnerable customers. We are also committed to supporting our elderly customers, with almost half of over 70s with active current accounts now accessing digital banking.”