A BRANCH of HSBC which has been open for more than 100 years will shut in the new year.

The High Street branch in Amesbury only celebrated its centenary in April and underwent major improvement works in the summer.

But numbers using the bank has fallen in recent times, with the company blaming the rise in online and telephone banking for its demise.

Mayor of Amesbury John Swindlehurst described the closure as a "real shock for the town".

He said: "I have been with that bank for 52 years and it is the only one in the area.

"Lots of people will be inconvenienced as they will need to go to Salisbury or switch."

The bank opened in 1915 to cope with the influx of military into the area during the First World War. Cllr Swindlehurst added it was "quite strange" that the bank had taken the decision to shut the branch when 8,000 extra military personnel are due to be based in garrisons around Amesbury in the coming years.

HSBC say no staff will be made redundant and they are working with employees to relocate them to other branches. The branch will shut on February 26.

A spokesman said: "We never take the decision to close a branch lightly, and we understand it's unsettling for the local community.

"Unfortunately, with an increase in the use of online and telephone banking over the past few years use of the Amesbury branch has fallen significantly, and we've taken the difficult decision to close it.

"We are working with customers who use the branch to help them understand their options, which include being able to use the local post office to check their balance and withdraw and pay in cash and cheques to their personal HSBC account.

"There are also a number of fee-free cash machines in the local area."