County Councillor for Tenby’s south ward and the town’s Mayor, Cllr Sam Skyrme-Blackhall has begun examining options for ensuring access to cash and banking services in the seaside town when HSBC closes.

Since the announcement of the closure, Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall has been working with Vince Malone at Tenby Post Office to research the various options open to the town when HSBC closes.

They have been looking at Community Banking Hub models from around the Country and learning from other people who have been in this situation.

On Monday, Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall convened a small group of people with an interest or with expertise to look at the options and to plan the next steps.

“In order to even be considered for a community banking hub, we need to ask LINK to conduct ‘an access to cash’ survey,” she said.

“Following that survey and dependent on their recommendations, we can seek to establish a Community Banking Hub. The application for LINK to do their work has been submitted today.”

The small working group will now be raising this issue with other interested parties in the town, seeing what their views are and asking what they can contribute to plans going forward.

Speaking after the meeting Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall said: “This is an Action Group, with people examining options and taking action. It is not a talking shop.

“There are people in Tenby that will need services and we need to see how we can provide them. If anyone feels that they can help in any way, I would like to hear from them.

“I was hugely encouraged that there are options open to us. I am also delighted that Tenby’s award winning post office is already making plans to make adjustments to their operation to make sure that they can respond to the additional demand.

“We are so fortunate to have an excellent Post Office and I am grateful that they are going to be helping us.”

In addition to starting the ball rolling on the Access to Cash Survey, the group are also either having discussions or corresponding with the Government and Banking Industry established Cash Action Group, Welsh Government, AMs and MP Simon Hart.

Cllr Skyrme-Blackhall is also writing to HSBC highlighting the disappointment at the closure and seeking their assistance in developing alternative services.

The group will also be looking at possibilities for adding new ATMs to replace the ones that have been lost.

The group learned some of the steps required to have a new ATM.

Further meetings will be taking place and other options developed as more information becomes available.

In the short term, there will be work started to see if training and advice could be given to people who want to learn how to use Online Banking.