THE future of banking in Tiptree has been discussed after "enormously long queues" to access services.
In a recent full council meeting between Tiptree Parish Councillors, the future of a banking hub in the village was discussed.
Plans were submitted by council bosses in July of 2023 for a Link banking hub in the centre of the village.
Since the closure of Barclays and Lloyds in Tiptree, residents' only banking option is the post office, which is said to be causing strain on the service.
Link is a UK cash machine network company which provides communities with access to cash through services such as cashback at retailers' tills and banking hubs.
Tiptree parish councillor Stuart Gulleford has been pushing for a new Tiptree banking hub with council chairman Jonathan Greenwood and council clerk Rob Williams.
But Link's findings showed Tiptree does not need any other banking facilities other than the existing post office and ATMS.
A spokesman for Tiptree Parish Council said: “The Link team were clear that the government-approved criteria for this were the root cause.
“Tiptree does not meet two of the four criteria - population levels within a 1km radius of the centre and cash-accepting shops within the radius.
“As the criteria were not set by Link, it was suggested by Link that Tiptree Parish Council contact our MP for support in getting the criteria reviewed.”
Concerns raised about the change in services at the post office since its change in ownership were also discussed.
The council plans to write to the MP and Morrisons to discuss re-examining the service.
A spokesman said: “The new owners have closed the post office counters to the rear and now attempt to perform all transactions - shop and post office - via the front shop counters.
“This is proving cumbersome, creates technical difficulties for staff running two vastly differing till structures, whilst queues to access either service are now enormously long and creating problems for those trying to access the services.”
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