Santander has issued a message about the future of its high street branches, telling customers it will not make any further branch closures before 2028. The update comes after the banking giant recently said it would be refurbishing some of its branches.
Work Café expansion
The group is making several changes to its in-person offering, including opening new Work Café outlets. These are locations where you can set up your laptop and grab a coffee, as well as access some basic banking services. One of the latest Work Cafés to open is at Canary Wharf, which launched in May 2026.
On a screen outside the branch are a series of rolling messages from the bank. One of these reads: "Here for you. We won't make any further branch closures before 2028."
Branch pledge
Santander announced this branch pledge previously, saying it will keep all its branches up and running. In a message to customers about this promise, the bank said: "There may be situations we can't control that mean we have to close or relocate a branch. We'll only do so if there's no other option."
Nationwide Building Society has made a similar pledge to maintain its high street presence. The mutual has said it will keep open all its branches until at least 2030. This bucks the trend as the big-name banks have closed hundreds of branches in recent years. Bank bosses often say they are reducing their in-person offering as customers move to doing their banking online.
Refurbishment plans
Santander also previously said it would be sprucing up 31 of its bank branches in 2026. This comes after 52 branches had a makeover in 2025.
Franz McCoy, head of branch interactions at Santander UK, said: "Investing in our branches reflects our commitment to helping customers bank with us in a way that suits them, whether that’s face-to-face in branch, via one of our state-of-the-art Work Cafes, or using our digital or over the phone service. We're proud to be there to support our customers however they wish to bank."
Full list of Santander branches being refurbished in 2026
Croydon, George Street - completed in April; Truro, Boscawen Street - completed in July; Weston-Super-Mare, High Street - completed in July; Liverpool, Prescot Road - completed in July; Lewisham, High Street - completed in August; Eastbourne, Terminus Road - completed in August; Rhyl, High Street - completed in August; St Helens, Bridge Street - completed in August; Newry, Hill Street - completed in August; Dudley, High Street - September; Dartford, High Street - September; Beaumont Leys, Fletcher Mall - September; Tooting, Upper Tooting Road - September; Lisburn, Bow Street - September; Altrincham, Stamford New Road - September; Walthamstow, High Street - October; Rugby, Market Place - October; Salisbury, Silver Street - October; Muswell Hill, Muswell Hill Broadway - October; Stockton, High Street - October; Bury, Union Street - October; Salisbury, Silver Street - October; Ashford, High Street - November; Ealing, Bond Street - November; Llandudno, Mostyn Street - November; Halifax, Southgate - November; Leamington Spa, The Parade - December; Ashton-U-Lyne, Old Street - December; Widnes, Albert Road - December; Barkingside, High Street - December; Islington, High Street - December.
