The closure of the town centre Post Office has created a real gap for people in Calne who rely on access to cash. Its last day of trading was 8 August 2026, and it has now been closed for several weeks. For many residents—particularly older and vulnerable people—this has made it much harder to withdraw cash at weekends.
Not everyone is comfortable using cash machines. That concern is made worse by the fact that the two cashpoints in the town centre are often unreliable, either out of order or out of cash. They also do not dispense £5 notes, which can make a significant difference for people trying to manage tight budgets during the ongoing cost of living crisis.
As the person who submitted the application for the Banking Hub in Calne, I contacted Cash Access UK (the organisation that own the Banking Hubs), to ask whether the hub could open on Saturdays, even temporarily, until the Post Office reopens. It felt like a practical and reasonable request at a time when local access to cash has been reduced.
Unfortunately, the response came back the very next day: a flat NO!!!! Cash Access UK was created to improve access to banking services and cash in communities that have lost their banks—communities exactly like Calne. Yet when asked to provide a short-term increase in service, the answer was simply refusal.
I find that deeply frustrating. Cash Access UK has already refused to install an external cashpoint, and now it has refused to open the Banking Hub on Saturdays. That decision is even harder to understand given that the hub has opened on Saturdays temporarily before, including during the recent Bike Meet.
I have contacted our MP, Sarah Gibson, to ask for her support in encouraging Cash Access UK to reconsider. Calne deserves reliable access to cash, especially while the Post Office remains closed. A temporary Saturday opening would be a sensible, compassionate step for residents who need it most.