Loss of Bank of Ireland branch a “devastating blow” to Clara

Two Offaly county councillors have expressed their opinions on the closure of the Bank of Ireland branch in Clara, which is effective from Friday, October 8.

Fianna Fáil councillor Frank Moran said that the closure of the branch and the on-street ATM will be a “devastating blow to the town.”

“Historically, Bank of Ireland has been there for nearly 100 years,” he said. “The loss of the ATM will be big for people trying to access that service after 10pm.

“There are other ATMs in some supermarkets in the town but unfortunately they are not 24/7 services.”

He also expressed concerns about the future of the building itself, located on Church Street.

“A number of months ago I asked the Director of Services of Offaly County Council to contact Bank of Ireland to discuss procuring the building through the Town and Village Renewal Scheme,” Cllr Moran said.

“Bank of Ireland stated that they would come back to the council about that once the closure has taken place. We have our municipal district meeting in a couple of weeks and I will be asking the director for services for an update on that.”

He hopes that the building can be transformed into a remote working hub.

“To have another building run derelict in the town of Clara is not something that we would like to see happen, so we will pursue every avenue possible to bring the Bank of Ireland building back into the community.”

Moran also praised the local Credit Union branch which recently launched a debit card service.

“We do have a very good facility in the credit union. The post office has also taken on some aspects of a bank for both business and personal dealings."

Commenting on the future of rural areas and how they are treated, he said that the closure “is typical of the national government policies that are coming down to rural Ireland.”

“We are being decimated in every aspect of the word. If another review of the post office network were to be mooted, I would strongly advocate for the Clara branch to remain open. Any powers that I have in conjunction with local TDs would be used to ensure that the Clara post office does not close.

“Once you’re outside the M50, nobody cares what’s going on, but once inside the M50 it’s all about keeping everything thriving and going.”

He also thanked that staff at the Clara Bank of Ireland, where “there have been many local people employed over the years.”

Cllr Ken Smollen also raised concerns about the lack of ATMs in the town, and said that rural Ireland is being “affected enormously” by closures such as this one.

“The government must provide an incentive for people to move to or to remain in rural Ireland.

“People in Clara or Banagher will now have to travel to Athlone or Tullamore to access some bank services, because the Moate branch is also closing.

He is also not in favour of turning the building into a remote working hub, as he believes if people are going to work outside of the office, they will simply choose to work from home.

Instead, he is in favour of moving the post office to the Bank of Ireland building, as its current location is in a “bottleneck” area.

“I have been promised a full list of abandoned and vacant buildings in Clara and Tullamore at the next municipal meeting, and we don’t want the Bank of Ireland building to be added to that list.

“A domestic violence refuge would be welcomed in the area, and while I don’t think the Bank of Ireland building would be suitable, it is something that needs to be looked at," he finished.