BARROW'S MP said he is 'very concerned' at plans to close a town centre bank.

The Barclays branch in Dalton Road is due to close in November and is among nine of the company's branches being shut.

Barclays has blamed the closure of its Barrow branch on customers using other ways to do their banking.

Barclays closed its Ulverston branch last year meaning the closest will be 35 miles away in Kendal.

MP Simon Fell:  "I'm very concerned about this news and am working to find a time to sit down with Barclays to discuss their plans.

"Having recently lost the branch in Ulverston with a mitigation being the proximity of the Barrow branch, there will now be even more vulnerable customers who are unable to get the support they need.

"I'm also concerned about the bank staff and want to understand Barclays' plans to support them."

Explaining the decision, Barclays told customers: "Back when we opened this branch, visiting us in person was one of the only ways to do your banking.

"Now, as there are lots of ways to manage your money without even leaving your home, we’re seeing many customers choosing to bank using our app, and Online or Telephone Banking.

"This has had a big impact on the number of customers coming in to see us."

People in Barrow have also raised fears about what the bank closure will mean.

Writing on The Mail's Facebook page, Janet Wharton said: "Good grief what's my mum going to do?  How awful is this - she's 81 and doesn't have internet."

Yvonne Patterson said: "It’s more than just banking. Going into town to shop, bank ... is social and essential for lonely people."

Lisa Wilde said: "Yet again people pushed into online banking and not everyone can do all this modern technology so they get left behind - it's very unfair for people."

Barclays said it would be working with the community to understand the impact of closing the branch.

Once it has gathered feedback it is due to publish the results in a report.