A DECISION to close the Otley branch of Barclays bank has been branded 'hugely disappointing'.

The company sent out letters last week announcing that its offices on Manor Square will shut on December 14.

After that local customers will have to travel to Guiseley, Horsforth or Ilkley for face-to-face transactions.

Barclays says the closure is due to the changing way people are banking, with a decline in branch visits and an increasing reliance on online and phone services.

Explaining the reasoning behind the closure on its website, the bank says: "The number of transactions has gone down in the previous 24 months, and additionally 77 per cent of our branch customers use other ways to do their banking such as online and by telephone."

"Customers using other ways to do their banking has increased by 17 per cent since 2012."

The move means Otley will have lost four bank branches - NatWest, TSB and HSBC have also closed their offices - in a matter of four years.

Councillor Sandy Lay (Lib Dem, Otley & Yeadon) believes that is unacceptable. He said: "This is the fourth bank to leave Otley taking their customers and cashpoints with them, and with little regard to the wider community.

"The continuing bank closure rates has to be a concern and what's galling is that it always seems to be Otley that bears the brunt of the changing banking world.

"Access to banking in the high street should apply just as much to rural and semi-rural communities as it does to urban areas, and whilst I'm not a great interventionist in general it's time the Government set out some guidelines for 'place based' banking in all our communities.

"A Government led review of community banking would be a start."

Stephanie Ferguson, who has been a customer at Otley's Barclays branch for more than 40 years, said: "I thought this closure was on the cards as I kept getting texts asking for feedback after I had been to the bank.

"It's disgusting. If Barclays paid their top executives less and stopped wasting cash on things like their 'technical eagles' small branches like ours could be saved.

"Many older people do not use or trust online banking and want to deal with friendly and helpful staff in person."

Otley Town Council Chairman Councillor Ray Georgeson (Lib Dem, Danefield) added: "This is hugely disappointing news from Barclays and, while we recognise there is a national trend of increasing numbers of bank closures, this is no consolation to the many Otley customers some of whom will have been loyal customers for decades.

"While the dominance of Internet banking is undoubtedly here to stay, this does not work for everybody and all the banks have an increasing duty to find new ways to serve their loyal, long standing customers for whom personal banking is still important.

"Surely this is an issue the banks and Government should be addressing as a matter of urgency?"