A VILLAGE’S only bank will shut its doors by the end of October.

Plummeting footfall figures are part of the reason for the closure of Gullane’s Bank of Scotland, with residents facing a trip to North Berwick for their nearest branch.

The bank, which has been on the village’s Main Street for more than 30 years, noted counters at the Gullane branch were 19 per cent quieter than they were a year ago.

The news of the closure comes just months after the village's Post Office shut.

Jeremy Findlay, chairman of Gullane Area Community Council, said: “The announcement comes as somewhat of a surprise.

“I think it is like the Post Office and it seems extremely odd to be closing the bank when the village is about to expand even more.

“It will be a huge loss to the community and I am sure the community council will be getting in touch with the Bank of Scotland to discuss this.

“Obviously, we no longer have a Post Office and if we don’t have a bank then there are no facilities for people to do any form of transactions or things like that.

“I’m quite sure the community council will come together to make some representation to the bank to try to get this stopped.”

Bank of Scotland carried out a branch review, which highlights 85 per cent of people using the Gullane branch are personal customers, with the remaining 15 per cent business customers.

The largest group of customers visiting the bank are over 75 years old, with 40 per cent of customers over the age of 65.

According to the document: “The way people do their banking is changing, with over 12 million of our customers choosing to access services through internet banking and over eight million using our mobile banking app.

“So, while our branches still play a vital role in meeting our customers’ needs, particularly those with more complex requirements or who prefer to meet face-to-face, we must continually review our network to make sure we have branches in locations where customers want and use them the most.

“Following a careful review of branches in the local area, Gullane branch will close on October 18, 2017.

“We have made the difficult decision to close this branch because of the changing way customers choose to bank with us, which has resulted in customers using it less often.”

The county’s MSP, Iain Gray, also aired his disappointment at the decision to close the branch.

He said: “I have been left frustrated and angry by the Bank of Scotland decision to close their branch in Gullane.

“This comes on top of the recent closure in Prestonpans of RBS, and the TSB branch in Tranent.

“As in Prestonpans, this is the last bank in town, and BoS customers in Gullane are being blithely told they can bank in North Berwick, almost five miles away.

“So, we now have the full set of banks, every one of them bailed out at enormous cost to the taxpayer, and every one letting a county community down.

“Given how much support these institutions received when their own greed got them into trouble, this really is not good enough.

“I have already agreed a meeting with BoS to try and convince them to change their minds and keep the branch open.”