TWO bank branches in East Lancashire will close next year.

The Santander branches in St James Square, Bacup and Burnley Road in Padiham, will close their doors for the last time on Thursday, June 28.

Within a branch closure imapct statement, Santander spokesman said: "Santander UK is a signatory to the Access to Banking Standard, a voluntary agreement introduced in May 2017.

"The Standard aims to ensure that where banks decide to close branches, their customers are communicated with openly and treated fairly.

"We continue to invest in our branch network and, over the last five years, all of our largest and busiest branches across the UK have been refurbished.

"Increasingly however, customers are changing the way they choose to bank.

"In addition to using our branches, more and more people are banking with us by phone, online, on tablets and smartphones as well as at cash machines and post offices.

"As a result, some of our branches are being used less often.

"We don’t take the decision to close any branch lightly and we assess each branch individually to understand the potential impact for customers, and the alternative options available to bank locally."