The Post Office will start operating shared banking hubs in empty high street shops as part of a new trial which will offer counter services such as checking balances and paying in cash and cheques.

The system will give the largest banks the option of sending branch managers for meetings on different days of the week. For example, Lloyds could visit the hub on a Monday, HSBC on a Tuesday, Santander on a Wednesday and Barclays on a Thursday, and on Friday a charity could run a debt advice service.

Tablet devices will be used in some hubs to allow people who do not have internet access to use online banking, The Times reports. 

The initial trials will take place in Cambuslang in South Lanarkshire, Rochford in Essex and Ampthill in Bedfordshire as part of the Community Access to Cash Pilots initiative which has been collectively funded by the banking industry.

A total of 11,500 Post Office branches across the UK already offer basic banking services such as cash withdrawal, however, those who make use of the service have complained about long queues and a lack of privacy in stores. 

About 1% of all bank branches and cash machines closed due to staff shortages and social-distancing rules between April and June this year and many have remained shut or are operating permanently reduced hours.

The number of cash machines also dropped from 60,291 at the end of last year to 55,651 last week, according to network operator Link, with closures disproportionately concentrated in rural or deprived areas that are also more likely to still rely on cash.

Gareth Shaw, head of money at Which?, labelled the pilot schemes as a very positive step. He said: “Innovative solutions are badly needed to help millions of people who are struggling from being cut off from cash and banking services.

“While industry-run schemes are important in the short term, they are not enough to solve the cash crisis. The government must press ahead with much-needed legislation to protect cash before it becomes obsolete.”