Santander bank: opening hours cut at hundreds of UK branches - full list of time changes and locations

Santander is cutting its opening hours across hundreds of UK branches as part of a huge shake-up.

The bank said the changes, which will take effect from July, are in response to long-term trends in customer behaviour.

The number of customers using its branches fell by a third (33%) over the two years before the Covid pandemic, followed by a further 50% in 2020 and 12% in 2021.

Santander said there will be no compulsory redundancies or a reduction of employee working hours as a result of the changes.

The bank instead plans to beef up its telephone support for customers and said branch staff will be trained to help on the phone alongside their current face-to-face roles.

What are the new opening hours?

From 18 July, the bank will operate from 9.30am to 3pm on weekdays, instead of until 4.30pm.

Branch staff will still be available for pre-booked face-to-face appointments between 3pm and 5pm if customers need support that cannot be provided through alternative channels or earlier in the day.

A handful of branches situated in shopping centres will be excluded from the changes, including:

The Work Cafe in Leeds will also be open on weekdays between 9am and 4.30pm, Santander said.

The shake-up will also see 316 branches move from being open from 9.30am to 4pm on Saturdays to operating a half-day service, closing at 12.30pm. Face-to-face appointments can still be made at these branches until 4pm.

Meanwhile, 76 branches will retain their current half-day opening hours on a Saturday, and 58 sites will remain closed on a Saturday.

Santander said there will be no branch closures as part of the changes and all of its 450 sites will remain open every weekday.

There will also be no change in the number of branches open on a Saturday, with 87% sites operating from 9.30am to 12.30pm.

The bank said the move reflects a thorough review of when customers use its branches. Richard Owen, head of branches at Santander, said: “These changes will enable us to maintain our existing branch network while providing significant additional capacity to help customers who want to talk to us by phone.

“We have seen a continuing reduction in branch usage over several years, both before and since the peak of the pandemic, with many customers preferring to transact digitally or contact us by phone.

“We want to make sure we have the right mix of channels to help our customers however they choose to bank with us.”

Santander said it will be writing to regular branch customers to explain the new opening hours and to offer support.

Where is Santander reducing branch opening hours on Saturdays?

The following Santander branches will move to half day opening hours on Saturdays, closing at 12.30pm, from 18 July: