The Community Access to Cash Pilot (CACP) initiative has today announced the plans for the nine Cash Pilot locations across the UK, where trials are being tested to help address challenges of improving cash access and acceptance.
In June, eight locations were chosen based on the location, the issues the communities faced, and the local people willing to lead the pilots. A further pilot has now been confirmed in Millisle, County Down, Northern Ireland.
Each community will be trialling a number of different solutions, based on meeting the needs of local communities. These will include:
- Three new local ‘banking hubs’ in dedicated retail spaces on the high street, which combine the cash-transaction facilities of a Post Office with access to community banking services offered by the key retail banks, allowing the privacy and security people expect in a bank branch
- Speedy and automated local cash deposit facilities for small businesses, so that retailers don’t have to close to travel to a nearby town bank branch to deposit their takings
- Existing Post Office branches restructured and refurbished with cash services streamlined to make it easier for local residents and businesses to withdraw and deposit cash quickly and safely.
- Pop-up Post Office services, allowing small communities to access basic banking services over a Post Office counter within an existing small shop
- Widespread ‘cashback’ from local stores, restaurants and pubs – as well as from PayPoint counters, and new app-based digital services – to widen the options for people to get cash locally, and to help business reduce their own costs of depositing cash
- New, free to use ATMs
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
Each pilot community will start implementing their solutions over the remainder of 2020, with the aim that they are all fully operational by the end of 2020. The pilots will operate for the first six months of the 2021 and will report back their findings in the summer of 2021.
These pilots operate in a wider context of a UK-wide cash infrastructure under threat, millions dependent on cash, and a government commitment to legislate to protect cash access. The aim of these pilots is to trial solutions which could have wider applicability across the UK.
CACP is chaired by Natalie Ceeney CBE, the author of the Access to Cash Review and brings together the resources and expertise of the financial services industry (including all of the major retail banks) with those of the Access to Review panel. The team is also working closely with a wide range of local and national consumer groups and charities to bring in depth expertise to help support the work.
Natalie Ceeney, Chair, Community Access to Cash Pilot: “Cash remains critically important to both individuals and communities across the UK. The rapid switch to digital is threatening the viability of today’s cash infrastructure. This can lead to consumers left without cash access or forced to leave their own village or town to get cash elsewhere, often at significant inconvenience and cost. In turn, local retailers lose custom, as consumers spend their cash elsewhere, and then struggle to bank their cash takings without shutting up shop to drive to a bank branch some miles away, losing revenue and frustrating customers. It’s critical that we find ways to protect the viability of cash, for consumers and communities alike.
“These pilots are designed to find sustainable ways to keep cash viable locally, which, if successful, can then be rolled out more widely. The government has already committed to legislate to protect cash, and the financial services regulators are working closely with banks to identify practical next steps. Our aim is to use the pilots to critically inform this work.
“The work we’ve done with local communities has shown us in some detail what is needed. It’s clear that to keep communities viable, people need to be able to get cash easily, in a variety of ways. ATMs are important, but don’t meet everyone’s needs, particularly the most vulnerable, so being able to get cash over a counter, in a safe space, is still important to many. Small businesses equally need to be able to deposit cash, and locally, so that they don’t need to close their shop to bank their cash.
“These pilots will use innovative technology to help people access and deposit cash. The pilots will also work with key existing service providers to explore how they can support the cash infrastructure, by creating local drop in spaces for community banking, retailers offering cashback widely and Post Offices enhancing their services to create a new model of ‘Post Office Banking Hubs’. The commitment of the major banks, the Post Office, LINK and key consumer groups to all work together on this initiative gives us confidence that we can create solutions which keep cash viable in a sustainable way.”
Nick Read, Chief Executive, Post Office: “Our branches provide critical cash deposit and withdrawals services for millions of personal and business customers every week. We will use these pilots to trial new designs in selected branches; and introduce automated cash deposit facilities for business and personal customers who may have previously used this service at a bank branch. Everyone should have the right to use cash and be able to easily and securely access it wherever is most convenient to them. We are pleased to be playing a key role in these pilots and our Postmasters who are taking part will be in a position to share important insights that will make a real difference as to how we continue to best meet peoples’ cash needs in future.”
Alison Rose, CEO, NatWest: “We know that cash is an important part of the way that many communities across the UK bank with us, which is why we have worked with the industry to help create this pilot programme. The lessons we learn from working with communities to develop innovative solutions are really important as we continue to invest in sustaining access to cash and financial capability.”
John Glen MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister: “Cash remains important to the daily lives of millions of people across the UK, and protecting access to it is a key Government priority. I welcome the Community Access to Cash Pilot Initiative, which will test innovative new approaches to support access to cash in local communities that can be extended across the UK. Thank you to Natalie Ceeney and all industry participants for their important work to ensure we support consumers and businesses who continue to need to use cash.”
ENDS
Notes to editors: An overview of the selected pilot schemes, and what they will be piloting locally:
Ampthill (Bedfordshire): The population of Ampthill and the surrounding villages is over 15,000 and is situated in an area of mid Bedfordshire targeted by the Government for extensive new home building. Ampthill is a thriving market town. In the centre of the town there is a Waitrose supermarket with a free car park and a significant number of thriving independent businesses. Consequently, it is a draw for the many surrounding villages which don’t have these resources. The numerous small local businesses along with the significant number of older residents need options for depositing and accessing cash.
The Amphtill community will be piloting:
- A new, dedicated shared ‘financial hub’ space, comprising a Post Office Bank Hub able to process transactions with privacy, and with community banking support from the major banks
- An automated cash deposit facility in the Post Office Bank Hub for small businesses to be able to deposit cash quickly and locally
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores
- A new free to use ATM, either in the shared space or elsewhere in Ampthill
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
- A digital solution to coin recycling supported by Shrap – an innovative new service which allows consumers to store change on a card or app, saving retailers from managing small change
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Botton Village (North Yorkshire): Botton village is a very rural, unique campus location with a high number of vulnerable customers. It is part of the Camphill Village Trust, a national charity which provides supported living and day opportunities for adults with learning and other disabilities at its various communities across England. The community population in Botton Village is around 700, with a wider local community of around 2,000. This community is very dependent upon cash, and the Trust are keen to support their residents to learn budgeting skills and become more financially independent, which they find easier to do with cash than digital payments. At the same time, local cash facilities are very limited.
Botton Village will be piloting:
- An ATM in the village which is disability friendly
- A ‘Post Office in a box’ solution, enabling the local shop to offer Post Office services, including cash access, cash deposits and cheque deposits
- Cashback (with purchase) from the local shop
- Financial, Digital and Budgeting Education specific for this community
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Burslem (Staffordshire): Burslem, the mother town of the six towns that amalgamated to create Stoke, in 2018 became the first town in the UK with a population of over 20,000 to have neither a bank branch nor bank ATM on its high street. The Burslem community are keen to explore solutions for the local retailer population to deposit and withdraw cash, to have access to cash for the thriving night time economy and to support consumers with budgeting and digital options.
The Burslem community will be piloting:
- A ‘financial hub’ space in the local Methodist Church, with community banking support from the major banks, debt advice, and support for financial issues
- A refurbished Post Office which can better meet community needs, including SMEs, offering deposit automation to provide faster transactions and improved customer journeys.
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores
- Cashback without purchase offered by PayPoint convenience stores
- “Cash in Shop” without purchase offered digitally by Sonect, an innovative new service allowing the public to use the App on their Smartphone to absolutely guarantee they can get the cash they need from a local retailer. This is a unique “Click&Collect ” cash service”
- Widespread advertisement of what the banks can offer vulnerable customers
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Cambuslang: Cambuslang is a town of c.28,600 people, the third largest town in South Lanarkshire, but since 2018 has been unbanked following the closures of branches by three banks in quick succession. According to the latest version of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD), some 40% of areas (data zones) in Cambuslang East and 25% in Cambuslang West are in the bottom 20% of the SIMD. The Cambuslang community are keen to address two key issues, first, supporting financially vulnerable customers in accessing cash, and second, supporting small businesses to be able to access and bank cash. The local leaders of this pilot, Cambuslang Community Council, are passionate about the opportunity to support their community though better access to cash, education and, ultimately, influencing the coming legislation change.
The Cambuslang community will be piloting:
- A Post Office Banking Hub in an empty retail outlet, with the Post Office offering transactional services in a private environment, with community banking support from the major banks, debt advice, and support for financial issues
- A ‘Drop and Go’ cash deposit facility for small businesses in the Banking Hub to make it easier for local businesses to bank cash, whichever bank they are with
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores
- Cashback without purchase offered by PayPoint convenience stores
- Widespread advertisement of what the banks can offer vulnerable customers
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services, designed for the Cambuslang community
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Denny (Falkirk): Denny is a small town located between Edinburgh and Glasgow, with a population of circa 8,000, and with 16% of the population over 65 years old. They are a semi-urban location that has seen a reduction in their access to cash facilities. They are looking to improve the cash deposit and withdrawal facilities for both small local retailers and consumers, and also want to support their community to be able to budget and access cash digitally.
The Denny community will be piloting:
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores
- A refreshed Post Office with improved cash facilities which can better meet community needs
- Cashback without purchase offered by PayPoint convenience stores
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – offering support to those who need it
- A digital solution to coin recycling supported by Shrap – an innovative new service which allows consumers to store change on a card or app, saving retailers from managing small change
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Hay-on-Wye (Breconshire): Hay’s population is less than 2,000, a number which includes a wide cross section of people from a variety of social backgrounds. Hay has a large proportion of independent retailers, and a lot of visitors, making businesses’ ability to access and deposit cash key to the viability of the community. The annual book festival raises additional challenges, in terms of large numbers of people needing to access a very limited cash infrastructure for a short period of time. The local leaders of the Hay pilot are keen to explore a wide range of solutions to support their needs, including both a traditional cash access/ deposit infrastructure, and also supporting greater digital inclusion.
The Hay-on-Wye community will be piloting:
- Longer opening hours at the existing Post Office, with the installation of an automated deposit taking machine for local businesses, and services reconfigured to meet local needs
- A small space in a vacant retail outlet with community banking support from the major banks, debt advice, and support for financial issues
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores
- Cashback without purchase offered by PayPoint convenience stores
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Lulworth Camp (Dorset): Lulworth Camp is in a remote part of Dorset. It is a Ministry of Defence army barracks with around 2,600 troops through the camp, often with no cars, therefore relying on public transport. There are also circa 80 different families plus service personnel who are permanently on camp. The closest village is West Lulworth which has a population of around 700 people, and which is also a famous tourist spot as it is situated on the Jurassic coast. Access for cash is a real issue for the families that live on the camp and recruits who train there, with no onsite banking or ATM facilities.
The Lulworth Camp community will be piloting:
– A Post Office offering in Lulworth camp, to support a wider number of basic banking services including cash deposit and cash withdrawal transactions
– A free to use ATM at the Lulworth camp
– Digital options for the retail outlets on site at the camp.
Rochford (Essex): Rochford has a population of around 20,000, and bid to become a pilot community primarily to support its ageing population who are heavily reliant on cash, as well as to support small businesses in the local community to can struggle to easily deposit cash locally. There are also surrounding areas, including Hockley, which also have limited access to cash facilities. There is an established working party looking at wider regeneration of the local towns which this pilot will work with.
The Rochford community will be piloting:
- A Post Office Banking Hub in a currently empty retail venue, , comprising a bank-style counter service able to process transactions with privacy, as well as community banking support from the major banks, debt advice, and wider support for financial issues
- An automated SME deposit facility in the Post Office Baning Hub
- A new free-to-use ATM in the Rochford
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
- A digital solution to coin recycling supported by Shrap – an innovative new service which allows consumers to store change on a card or app, saving retailers from managing small change
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
Milisle (Northern Ireland): Millisle is a community of 3,500 people. it is in the top twenty paces of deprivation in Northern Ireland as a result of a high percentage of people on benefits. The community has both an aging and young population and sees its population almost double in the summer months due to tourism seasonality. The town has a strong working group looking at both access for cash and wider community issues.
The Millisle community will be piloting:
- Changes at the Post Office, with services reconfigured to meet local needs
- A small space in the local community hub to offer community banking support from the major banks, debt advice, and support for financial issues.
- Dedicated space in the local community hub for people to access their online facilities with support from volunteers.
- Cashback with purchase offered by a large number of local stores and the community hub
- Digital education services to help those who want to access digital banking services
- A digital solution to coin recycling supported by Shrap – an innovative new service which allows consumers to store change on a card or app, saving retailers from managing small change
- A Vulnerable Customer Directory – ensuring that everyone is aware of the services that the retail banks can offer to vulnerable customers
About the Community Access to Cash Pilots: The Community Access to Cash Pilots (CACP) initiative is working with a number of communities across the UK to trial and test scalable solutions to help keep cash sustainable. The initiative is supported by the banking and finance industry which will provide resources in the form of financing and local staff who understand what is possible, linked to a central team who have the influence to make things happen. The pilot programme is also supported by a wide range of consumer groups and charities, who will also bring their expertise to support the work. The pilots will start in the summer of 2020, and run until the end of June 2021.
Pilot communities have been selected by an independent board, chaired by Natalie Ceeney CBE, who led the Access to Cash Review, and supported by a mix of industry, small business and customer representatives. The full board includes:
- Natalie Ceeney CBE, Chair
- Lady Margaret Bloom CBE, Kings College London
- Martin McTague, Federation of Small Businesses
- James Daley, Fairer Finance
- Tim Allen, Barclays
- Helen Grimshaw, RBS
- Iain Gibson, Sainsbury’s Bank
- Kirsty Lacey, Santander
- John Howells, LINK (observer status)
About Natalie Ceeney CBE: Natalie Ceeney CBE has a career spanning the public and private sectors in the United Kingdom. Her career includes a strategy consultancy background at McKinsey & Company, membership of the Executive Team of HSBC UK leading on customer standards, and three CEO roles including of The National Archives; the Financial Ombudsman Service; of Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service. Natalie is currently Chair of Innovate Finance, a non-executive director of Countrywide Plc, of Sport England, of Ford Credit Europe and of Anglian Water Services Ltd. She led the independent Access to Cash review, which published in March 2019.
About PostOffice
With over 11,500 branches, the Post Office network is the biggest retail network in the UK, with more branches than all the banks and building societies combined. Post Office provides services central to peoples’ everyday lives; 99.7% of the population lives within 3 miles of a Post Office. We offer the UK’s largest fee free cash withdrawal network through our 11,500 branches and over 2000 ATMs and 99% of UK bank customers can access their accounts at the Post Office.
We publish a monthly Cash Tracker showing the billions of pounds deposited and withdrawn at our branches. Our data shows that last month personal deposits were up 16% year on year and businesses are increasingly relying on us too, with cash deposits up 165% compared to April.