A statement released on Friday by the Southborough doctors’ surgery indicates that the practice has once more changed its mind. Instead of moving to the Yew Tree Road Car Park the surgery will now move to nearby Pinewood Court at the end of August.

(UPDATE: The doctors’ move to Pinewood Court went ahead and they are now there. UPDATE SEPT 30: The doctors now plan to move back to their old site before the end of the year after repairs to the roof and floor are completed.)

It is thought that arrangements to construct temporary modular buildings and associated utilities could not be completed in time for a direct move to the car park. It is also believed the planning authorities had concerns.

This is the latest statement from the St. Andrew’s medical practice:

“We can now confirm that we will be leaving our current premises after the close of evening surgery on Friday 26th August 2016.

“It has been necessary to secure an interim site at Town and Country’s Pinewood Court from 30th August 2016. This interim move allows us to continue our medical services in Southborough whilst we seek to secure the permissions required for the new temporary surgery to be built at Yew Tree car park.

“Our address from August 30th will be: Pinewood Court, Pinewood Gardens, Southborough, Kent. TN4 0NP

“We apologise to all our patients for the inconvenience caused and are very grateful for all the support received in helping to ensure that St. Andrew’s continues to remain in Southborough.”

Also on Friday, Southborough News obtained the full statement from the former Southborough doctors who own the existing site, which they issued to the Courier on June 30th, 2016.

It remains unclear why the site’s owners and the current doctors were unable to reach a compromise deal to allow the practice to continue operating in their current premises.

Dr Paul Bowden, a co-owner of the building and who was responsible for the building of the surgery in 1987, said: “We started negotiations for a new lease to the St. Andrew’s Partnership in June 2012 and Heads of Terms for a new lease of 15 years were agreed and signed by both parties in March 2013.

“The form of the lease was broadly agreed by January 2015. In March 2015, the partnership served notice that the taking of a lease on the building would not be in their best interests and they offered to purchase the building at well below market value. This was declined by the owners.

“In June 2015, the Partnership tried to re-negotiate the entirety of the arrangement in particular the lease to be for a period of 5 years only. This was also unacceptable to the owners.

“Since June last year little communication has been received from the Partnership or their legal representatives.

“The negotiations having been ongoing for nearly four years and now seemingly stalled the owners were left with no option but to try to bring the matter to a head by serving notice to quit.

“The intention of the notice to quit was to bring the Partnership back to the negotiating table and to proceed with the lease. The option of a lease is still available and welcome to the owners but the Partnership has, once again, failed to communicate.”

The Courier published much of the above statement in this report on June 30th, which also includes comments from Cllr Peter Oakford:

http://bit.ly/2aisiix

Doctors at the St. Andrew’s Medical Centre in Southborough have confirmed they will be leaving their building at the end of August to move into “modular” buildings on the Yew Tree Road Car Park.

An earlier scheme to move first to Pinewood Court has been abandoned.

The doctors’ statement says:  “We can now confirm that we will be leaving our premises at Pinewood Gardens after the close of evening surgery on Friday 26th August 2016.”

“Our new site will be in Yew Tree Road car park and we are working hard to achieve an opening date of Tuesday 30th August, this date will be confirmed as soon as possible.”

“With 6 Weeks to go the new building has been commissioned, it is a single storey modular build commonly used within the NHS for clinical services and is built to exceed all NHS premises requirements. The new building offers the same number of consultation and treatment rooms ensuring our level of service continues.”

It seems converting half the Yew Tree Road car park into a doctors’ surgery did not need planning permission, so one disruptive move into Pinewood Court has been avoided.

But mystery still surrounds the issue of why the surgery has to move out of its building in Pinewood Gardens, which was purpose built in the 1980s.

It seems two retired doctors who own the current surgery site had wanted the current doctors (the St Andrew’s Partnership) to sign a new 15-year lease, but the current doctors had failed to negotiate about terms, amid the prospect of moving into a new building in the planned Southborough Hub.

One of the owners responsible for serving a “notice to quit” for August 31st said the order was served merely to bring the matter to a head.  Dr Paul Bowden told the Courier:  “The option of a lease is still available and welcome to the owners but the Partnership has, once again, failed to communicate.”

The Southborough News blog has still not been able to obtain any further clarification about why 8,000 patients and staff at the doctors’ surgery are having to uproot themselves,  presumably at extra expense to the the NHS, when the site’s owners apparently want the surgery to stay in its current building at Pinewood Gardens.

 

As Southborough Town Council pushes on with developing its plans for the multi-million pound Hub development, Southborough News has heard from two local Councillors who remain poles apart on the best way forward.

Cllr Zulhash Uddin from the majority Conservative group told us of the “real enthusiasm” he now saw from residents towards the Hub, but Cllr Nick Blackwell, who heads the Labour group, told us he was not convinced that the current plans represented the right solution for Southborough.

Both interviews are now available here as YouTube videos. Southborough News spoke to the two Councillors after the last presentation to the public of the Hub plans at Southborough Library on Saturday 16^th July.

At a meeting on Monday 18^th July, the Conservative majority on the council passed a motion to send the current Hub plans to Tunbridge Wells District Council for planning approval.  If no objections are allowed, the scheme would see the demolition of Southborough’s existing theatre, library and medical centre.

We asked Cllr Uddin about the loss of the 100 year old Royal Victoria Hall Theatre. He responded: “We are losing a building which had a lot of history and heritage, but also we hope that the decision that the council has taken will bring something bigger and better for the communities to enjoy. It was a very difficult decision, but the council had to make a decision.”

Cllr Uddin told us it would be a “sustainable project” and a “legacy for the community”. He  concluded: “This is bringing life back into Southborough ….and a community spirit back into Southborough.”

But Nick Blackwell of Labour told us he was “very sad” that the Royal Victoria Hall Theatre was not going to be retained and also expressed concern about the increasing numbers of homes planned for the site and the impact of those homes on traffic congestion. The Local plan for the site had suggested 25 homes were appropriate, but the number of dwellings now planned to be built on the Ridgewaye fields is 69.

Cllr Blackwell also remarked on the lack of a published business plan, arguing that if the building revenues don’t match the running costs when the Hub is built, it could mean a “massive hike” in council tax.

Cllr Blackwell then criticised the design being sent to the planners: “It beggars belief that they have designed a hall …that doesn’t contain any windows….This is supposed to be a sustainable building except it will be lit by artificial illumination….If they had consulted properly, this could have been a really good hall.”

He concluded: “We are getting a very cheap building. We’ve been told we’re getting Prada – we’re getting Poundland.”

Opinion remains deeply divided in Southborough about the building of 69 new homes on the Ridgewaye playing fields to fund the Hub development project.

After three further sessions in Southborough library over the past week, many residents came away from viewing the plans hoping for a “fresh start”, while others expressed deep concern that the development would worsen the town’s already chronic traffic congestion.

Southborough News spoke to people as they emerged from the library on Saturday morning when elected councillors and officers from Kent County Council were available to answer questions.

A film of the extended public comments can be viewed here:

Among those who spoke to us on emerging from the presentation, resident Ian Skilling said: “We have looked at the plans and we are really impressed with them.  Wipe the slate clean and start again!”

Pamela Wiley said:  “I am really quite pleased with the plans for the theatre because I think that’s going to be a really good adaptable space. But my concern is there is so much dense housing with its access onto Yew Tree Road which is already heavy with traffic.”

Glenys Dickenson said: “I live in the Ridgewaye and my biggest concern is the volume of traffic.”

Clare Martin said: “I was concerned before – and now I am concerned even more. I don’t see why we need a four story monstrosity that doesn’t fit in the landscape plonked in the middle of Southborough.”

Stephen Lucas said: “Two of the major football pitches will be taken up with house building so that means about 200 children that play there every weekend won’t have somewhere to play football. The new policy of building houses on football pitches to secure money, I believe is wrong.”

But Janice told us: “The plans look really really good. I am particularly pleased that the Ridgeway fields are not being too encroached upon…I can’t wait for it to start…we need it all to be brand spanking new.”

And Shane said: “It sounds quite exciting.  These things are good for the community.  It’s only building the community up more, especially for the younger generations as well, which is really important.”

Don Buckland commented: “The Victoria Hall has been a wonderful space for amateur theatre and musical theatre. If it was possible to retain it in the plans, I would say do so. But if they are determined to knock it down, they must replace it with something similar.”

As expected, on Monday 18th July, the scheme was approved by the Conservative majority on Southborough Town Council, despite opposition from Labour and Liberal Democrat members.  It will now be sent to the joint project board which has one member each from the county, district and town councils.  All three councils back the plans.

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council planners will then consider the scheme over the summer and could approve it by the autumn.

An interview with councillors and an official from the libraries department should be available on this site in the next week.

 

You will have to act fast if you want to influence the future look of Southborough, as local councillors push ahead with plans to demolish the 100-year old council offices and Royal Victoria Hall Theatre.

The Town Council has announced that there is just one week left for public consultation on their scheme for a new theatre, doctors’ surgery, council offices and library.  The council is then set to send off their final blueprint to the planners after a vote at the full council on Monday 18th July.

The planning application will be considered over the summer by Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, when the public will only be able to register valid objections if they fall under specific planning criteria.  For example, people will be able to object under policy EN1 if they believe the design of the proposal in terms of “buildings, external appearance, roofscape, materials and landscaping” doesn’t “respect the context of the site”. Further details at:

http://bit.ly/29FGzrG

The final Southborough Hub plans will be on show in Southborough Library at these times:

• Monday 11 July 9am-1pm
• Wednesday 13 July  3pm-6pm
• Saturday 16 July 10am-1pm

The council says “while the external footprint and framework of the scheme is not up for comment, we welcome your input on how we can further improve the internal layout, finishes and services for the community hub.”

Comments need to be sent by email to southboroughhub@kent.gov.uk by midnight on Sunday 17th.  The planning application is to be submitted by July 27th with the planning outcome expected sometime in October.

Since the original public consultation last Christmas, the theatre and medical centre have been swapped round and retail space added along the London Road.

I have provided screen grabs of the main elements of the latest drawings of the Hub in this blog – here is the link to a page that holds the pdf of the full plans (where it says Community Hub Draft Plans 05.07.16):http://bit.ly/29vDBts

Following concerns expressed by members of the Southborough Society that the library and theatre in the new hub won’t be as good as the existing facilities, the man at Kent County Council (KCC) responsible for delivering the scheme has just written to the Society to offer reassurance.

KCC’s Jonathan White said: “I would definitely hope that the final product will be as good if not better than what is currently there, but obviously that is quite subjective in terms of what styles/colours etc the individual likes.”

Mr White continued: “I can confirm that the library will also be larger than its current facility and is almost certainly likely to have more books on that basis. I am not the service delivery side so cannot definitely confirm this, but from the drawings and the furniture they are ordering, that would appear to be the case. There will also be a space for the children’s library within this as well”.

On the concerns about demolishing the Royal Victoria Hall Theatre, which opened in 1900, Jonathan White continues: “Seating capacity has been retained, the stage will be bigger and there will be more balconies. I have never been given the exact square metres of the current facility with all the roof voids and basements so I cannot confirm for certain the sizes but given that we have four floors I would say there is a strong likelihood that the current facility will be larger”.

Mr White continues: “We have worked with Charcoal Blue who are theatre consultants, the theatre trust and we have met with Trinity, FRVH etc… to ensure we get feedback on all elements of the theatre aspect. We have tried to meet all their aspirations but there have been several instances when requirements have diverged and we have tried to tread a fine line between them”.

Meanwhile mystery surrounds the shocking news that the Southborough’s main doctors’ surgery is to move out of its building in Pinewood Gardens on August 31st.  Patients will have to go to the Pinewood Court building for three months. After that, they will have to visit portacabins in the Yew Tree Road car park until the new medical centre in the hub is built.

It seems two retired doctors who own the current surgery site had wanted the current doctors (the St Andrew’s Partnership) to sign a new 15-year lease, but the current doctors had failed to negotiate about terms, amid the prospect of moving into a new building in the hub.

One of the owners responsible for serving a “notice to quit” for August 31st said the order was served merely to bring the matter to a head.  Dr Paul Bowden told the Courier:  “The option of a lease is still available and welcome to the owners but the Partnership has, once again, failed to communicate.”

The Southborough News blog has not been able to obtain any further clarification from Southborough Town Councillors about why 8,000 patients and staff at the doctors’ surgery are having to uproot themselves three times when the site’s owners want the surgery to stay in its current building at Pinewood Gardens.

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The town’s heritage and amenities group, the Southborough Society, says a museum to display the area’s rich and varied history should be incorporated into plans for the new Hub.

The Society set out its ideas at its Annual General Meeting on Thursday night which saw the best attendance for a decade, with around 50 members and non-members attending.

The evening began with a talk about conservation work on Southborough Common given by Ian Johnstone of the Kent High Weald project and concluded with many members expressing their concern about the planned replacement for Southborough’s currently well-used library.

The Society’s retiring President, Lt Col Maxwell Macfarlane, told the Society’s members his view was that the replacement library should be a “self-contained quiet room, not a corridor with books in it”. He continued: “I’m worried that the library in the Hub is not going to be what it ought to be.”

The current brief for the new library has been published under a Freedom of Information request to Kent County Council.  The Council says its aim is  “to create a “buzzy”, busy space” in the Hub.  For full details click this link:

http://bit.ly/1RfwSeZ

In his address on Thursday, the Southborough Society Chairman, Michael Howes, told members: “This year is a turning point in the history of Southborough as we eagerly await the planning application for the Hub project. This has proved to be a controversial and divisive development – to say the least – and the Society has actively encouraged members to monitor the scheme at its various stages including the public consultation which was held in January.”

Michael Howes continued: “A pitiful number of people responded to this consultation and this suggests a huge apathy amongst members of the community who are presumably fed up with this political hot potato, not to mention the current eyesore of the site on London Road”.

The Southborough Society has had several meetings with Jonathan White, the project coordinator at the KCC, to advise him of the facilities the Society would like to be included.

Michael Howes’ address continued: “In particular, we have pushed for a museum area within the new library complex so that Southborough can at long last have somewhere to show off its rich and varied history. The draft plans which were released last week definitely have room for improvement and the local theatre people in particular have been vocal about the inadequacies of the proposed facilities. We look forward to the project progressing rapidly and intend to keep a very close eye on the developments”.

Labour’s Dianne Hill has won a convincing victory in Thursday’s Borough Council election for the ward of Southborough (South) and High Brooms.

She said said she was delighted by an “amazing” result, having achieved 52 % of the vote in a ward where the leading candidates in recent years have usually taken the seat with only 30-40% of the votes cast.

The turnout of 32 % was similar to the last time a local election was held without a simultaneous General Election.

 

During the campaign Labour’s Dianne Hill, told voters of her “regret” that the Royal Victoria Hall is to be demolished, while the Conservative candidate, Chris Camp,  had said he was “a big supporter” of the new facilities.

After the result on Friday, Dianne Hill told Southborough News: “I am delighted to have been elected again to the Borough Council today with a decisive majority. My victory is a victory for all of the people of Southborough and High Brooms who have said that they have had enough of the secrecy surrounding the development of our town centre.”

She continued: “People living in the town have said they want the chance to see and comment on the plans for the Hub before they are sent for final planning consent. Together with my Labour colleagues on the council I will continue to press for more openness in decision making and better communication with, and involvement of, all of the people and groups who will be using it long after the councillors and planners have gone.”

Election Candidate	Party	Votes	%
Dianne Hill	Labour	910	52%
Christopher Roger Camp	Conservative	444	26%
Keith Murray-Jenkins	UK Independence Party	197	11%
Matt Lyons	Green Party	97	6%
Jo Wright	Liberal Democrat	91	5%

Total votes 1,739

The ward is traditionally Labour, but the Conservatives won the ward in May last year.

Compared with last year in the same ward, Conservative votes dropped by 845 while Labour votes dropped by 325.

Compared with May 2014, Labour votes were up by 308 and Conservatives down by 147.

Meanwhile the team behind the Southborough Hub development have issued a new picture of what the new buildings will look like.  See below.  The four story building on the left is understood to be the replacement for the Royal Victoria Hall.  The library has the circular roof and the planned medical centre is somewhere behind in the picture.

The Southborough (South) and High Brooms ward has 3 councillors, who each face re-election every 4 years.  After Friday’s vote, the ward’s councillors are now Dianne Hill (Labour), Zulhash Uddin (Conservative) and Graham Munn (Labour).

Southborough North ward has two councillors.  They are David Elliott and Joe Simmons who are both Conservatives.  There was no voting in Southborough North this year.

Dianne Hill’s victory was the only win for Labour on the Borough Council in this round of voting. The Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, which runs most services and is the planning authority, saw voters electing 13 Conservatives, 2 Liberal Democrats and 1 Labour councillor.

For comparison, here are the past four year’s results:

May 2015 election result for Southborough (South) and High Brooms:

Zulhash Uddin	Conservative	1289	38%
Dianne Hill	Labour	1235	36%
Naz Mian	UKIP	546	16%
Marguerita Gladys Morton	Liberal Democrat	325	10%

Total 3395 voted out of 5331 electorate

May 2014 election result for Southborough (South) and High Brooms:

Graham John Munn	Labour	602	32%
Peter John Oakford	Conservative	591	32%
Richard Harrington	UK Independence Party	486	26%
Marguerita Gladys Morton	Liberal Democrat	190	10%

Total 1869 votes

May 2012 election result for Southborough (South) and High Brooms:

Alain Matthew Bryan Lewis	Labour	630	41%
Nasir Jamil	Conservative	604	40%
Christine Jennifer Marshall	UK Independence Party	193	13%
Marguerita Morton	Liberal Democrat	96	6%

Total 1523  votes out of 5303 electorate

 

If you haven’t been out today, you may have missed the best of the Bank Holiday weather.  On the Tunbridge Wells Circular Walk from Pennnington Road out to the Viaduct and beyond, the bluebells are at their best.

The Woodland Trust is inviting people to tell everyone about the best sitings:

http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/bluebell-watch/

The tiny lambs are another reason to venture out.

Plus we met one family group which has found a new way of getting children enthused about a long walk.  It’s a free app to get children to hunt for hidden treasures:

https://www.geocaching.com/play

 

Voters in High Brooms and the southern half of Southborough are about to say what they think about the dramatic changes planned for the area.

One seat in the powerful Tunbridge Wells Borough Council is up for grabs on Thursday and the result may be close.  The ward has traditionally been won by Labour, but in last May’s vote – which coincided with the General Election that saw David Cameron re-elected – the Conservatives were victorious.

There are three councillors who represent the “Southborough and High Brooms” ward, as it has such a large population.  Labour’s Dianne Hill lost out last year by 54 votes.  This time Dianne Hill is standing again as the candidate to replace the sitting Labour councillor Alain Lewis, who isn’t standing again.

It may sound complicated but essentially you have to choose one candidate to vote for out of the 5 standing on Thursday.  I have asked each candidate to summarise why you should vote for them and the Conservative, Labour and Green Parties have all responded.  I will add the Liberal Democrat and UKIP statements if or when they get back to me.

If – like me – you live in the Southborough North ward, there isn’t a vote for the Borough council, as this area only has two councillors. But we do have a vote for a Kent Police job.

=========

Conservative candidate: Chris Camp

Chris Camp was born and bred in Kent, has lived in Tunbridge Wells for 40 years and has retired from a major multi-national company. He was recently widowed and he has two children and one grandchild. Both of his children were educated in Southborough. Since his retirement he has worked with several small local enterprises in the Borough. He is also on the board of two charities, one in London and the other in Gillingham.

Chris is a big supporter of the new Community Hub for Southborough. It will provide an up to date theatre facility, a new library, doctor’s surgery and new council offices all on the same site. Ridgewaye Football Club will also get a much needed purpose built pavilion.

If he is elected on May 5^th he will be a tireless campaigner for Southborough and High Brooms. Having recently retired, he has the time and energy to give something back to the local community.

Southborough and High Brooms is Labour’s only seat being contested in this election. Chris wants to send a message to Jeremy Corbyn that his brand of Socialism is not welcome here!

Tunbridge Wells has the second lowest council tax in Kent and is the only Council in the UK to have produced a balanced budget for the last four years. Only the Conservatives will safeguard this record.

= = = = = = = = =

Labour candidate: Dianne Hill

 

 

I have been on Southborough Town Council for 13 years and, until last year, 4 years on the borough council. I welcome the opportunity to stand again to represent the community I live in. I know the issues: parking, traffic, air quality, affordable housing, and loss of green spaces.

I am now retired but worked locally in the telecoms industry for over 26 years. I have 3 children and 4 grandchildren, 3 of whom attended St Matthew’s Primary School where I served as a school governor for many years.

I have fought many local campaigns and also led on the fight for kerbside glass collections.

I fought a successful campaign to get a bus service back in Kibbles Lane when Arriva cut the service in 2011 and will continue to press for better buses throughout our town on roads that are fit for purpose, not full of pot holes.

I regret that the Royal Victoria Hall will be demolished and will continue to press for a replacement theatre we can be proud of. I will continue to ask questions about the Southborough community hub, especially relating to parking and traffic generated from extra housing built on the playing fields.

I am proud to live in the ward. We have a strong community that has come together to form football and cricket clubs, scout and guide organisations, and other voluntary groups.

I am standing because I care. I care about this community that I live in and will continue to fight on the issues that affect us all.

= = = = = = = = =

Green candidate: Matt Lyons

Property prices are now climbing out of the reach of those on not just locally set wages but also teachers and even shop managers. If we do not prioritise affordable housing, many key workers will be forced out of the area in a very similar way to London.

The main  A26 is on course to be gridlocked all the time from 7am to 8pm, as more housing is built along this road. This is causing more pollution. I will campaign for a better long term strategy on road use.

We are opposed to ANY  land sale of the Ridgewaye fields. There is no promise to restore full or new modern facilities for the Royal Victoria Hall (for music and theatre) in what should have been its refurbishment.

Plans are in hand to safeguard the long term future of the Assembly Hall and historically, grants have been given to other theatres and local arts organisations in the centre of Tunbridge Wells. Southborough’s facilities have by contrast been neglected for decades, with the only prospect being offered by selling valuable and irreplaceable land assets.

It would be better to just save the Royal Victoria Hall and council offices, rather than have a hub that can only be generated by losing land in the process.

Also:

• I would like better a bus service with a circular Tonbridge to Knights Park and Hospital route and more late evening buses
• Free parking should be restored immediately to Southborough
• Potholes need to be repaired
• Journeys to bottle banks should be replaced by doorstep recycling
• The Tunbridge Wells to Lewes/Brighton rail line should be reopened www.bml2.co.uk

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UK Independence Party candidate: Keith Murray-Jenkins

= = = = = = = = =

Liberal Democrat candidate: Jo Wright

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May 2015 election result:

Zulhash Uddin	Conservative	1289	38%
Dianne Hill	Labour	1235	36%
Naz Mian	UKIP	546	16%
Marguerita Gladys Morton	Liberal Democrat	325	10%

Total 3395 voted out of 5331 electorate

 

May 2014 election result:

Graham John Munn	Labour	602	32%
Peter John Oakford	Conservative	591	32%
Richard Harrington	UK Independence Party	486	26%
Marguerita Gladys Morton	Liberal Democrat	190	10%

Total 1869 votes

 

May 2012 election result:

Alain Matthew Bryan Lewis	Labour	630	41%
Nasir Jamil	Conservative	604	40%
Christine Jennifer Marshall	UK Independence Party	193	13%
Marguerita Morton	Liberal Democrat	96	6%

Total 1523  votes out of 5303 electorate

 

 

Lloyds Bank will go ahead with the closure of its Southborough branch at the end of July, despite a week of public concern about the decision.

Many customers have already sent letters of protest about the loss of the town’s last bank branch, but a spokesman for Lloyds Bank told this blog on Friday that the decision still stands. And staff at the branch have been telling customers that such closure announcements are final after they have been made by the regional head office.

A spokesperson for Lloyds Bank told “Southborough News” on Friday:

“The Southborough branch will close on 28th July. We have made the difficult decision to close this branch because of the changing way customers choose to bank with us, which has resulted in customers using it less often. Customers can continue to use any other branch in our network and the local Post Office is a short distance away, where customers can manage their day-to-day banking needs. We apologise for any inconvenience that these changes may cause, and have informed customers of the closest alternative branch which is in Tunbridge Wells.”

Lloyds Bank is under pressure to improve profitability, so the government can sell its remaining 10 per cent stake to the maximum benefit of the taxpayer. The bank reported underlying quarterly profits of £ 2.05 billion this week, with the share price 13 per cent down on the year.

During the financial crisis, the UK government encouraged Lloyds to take over the collapsing Halifax-Bank of Scotland group (HBOS), but then taxpayers had to take a 43 per cent stake in Lloyds to keep Lloyds afloat.

The Bank provided “Southborough News” with the following “Background Information”:

* The number of personal customers using the Southborough branch is going down each year by 24%.

* The branch has only 41 regular weekly personal and business customers.

* 72% of our personal customers in Southborough use other branches and other ways to bank such as online and telephone banking.

* 88% of our personal customers already use other branches, such as Tunbridge Wells branch.

* The Post Office is just 0.1 miles away and we will be proactively talking to customers about the service they offer. There are also good public transport links to the alternative branch.

* The nearest free to use ATM is just 0.03 miles away.

* Customers will have their accounts realigned to Tunbridge Wells which is under 2 miles away, and there will be no other impact to the way they manage their accounts.

The Lloyds Bank statement on Friday 29th April continued:

“In October 2014 we announced the Group’s three year strategy, which outlined a programme of planned branch closures to reflect the changing behaviour of our customers. The way customers interact with their bank has changed over recent years, with more customers choosing to do their banking online. This has seen a reduction in customers using branches.

“While the decision to close the branch is a difficult one, it is based on falling customer numbers. Between now and the closure date, we will engage with all of our customers, local businesses and the wider local community to make sure they are aware of the alternative ways of accessing their banking with us in the local area, and to answer any questions they might have”.

It is thought the Southborough bank staff will be offered alternative jobs in nearby branches.

Here are two earlier articles on the Southborough branch closure in other media:

http://www.courier.co.uk/Lloyds-Bank-Southborough-close/story-29193721-detail/story.html

http://www.cityam.com/239366/lloyds-poised-to-axe-hundreds-of-uk-jobs