Newcastle Building Society has thrown open the doors to our new branch in North Shields.
On Thursday 18th July, we were delighted to welcome the first customers at our new branch within the YMCA North Tyneside community building on Church Way.
Despite a national trend of bank branch closures, we’ve remained committed to easily accessible, face-to-face financial services, opening branches in several new locations by sharing space with community organisations and helping to restore access to financial services in places where banks have left town.
Our new North Shields branch is just the latest phase in our multi-year, multimillion-pound investment. It sees us building on the success of our community partnership branch model in Yarm, Wooler, Hawes and Knaresbrough, as well as an existing long-term partnership with the YMCA as we move in with the charity to provide our friendly and knowledgeable services alongside their popular café and gym.
Lara Waters, 38, a customer at Newcastle Building Society’s North Shields branch, said: “It’s great to see Newcastle Building Society keeping financial services alive in North Shields with a modern new branch. It’s going to be so easy to pop into the YMCA, grab a coffee at their cafe and then manage my finances face-to-face with the friendly and supportive team now the new North Shields branch is open.
“Older and younger generations can all benefit from having access to a branch. I prefer to deal with my finances face-to-face rather than online because I find it reassuring being able to manage my money with a familiar face. It’s great to know that I can continue to pop in anytime to top-up my savings and update my passbook or get support and advice."
“With so many branches disappearing from my local area, being within easy reach of a branch gives me the peace of mind and choice that I wouldn’t otherwise have without Newcastle Building Society.”
Since 2015, more than 6,000 bank branches have closed across the UK, including several in North Tyneside, forcing customers to travel miles to get to their nearest branch and making it harder for some people to manage their money.
Our future investment into our branches includes work on a new flagship community branch in Newcastle city centre, and a collaboration with North Tyneside Council to open a new branch in Tynemouth, following the planned redevelopment of the library.