Following a community request, LINK, the UK’s main cash machine network, helped to switch an existing pay-to-use machine to a free-to-use ATM at All in One Convenience Store on Tarbock Road.
Since the beginning of the Coronavirus lockdown, ATM withdrawals fell by an average of 60% in the UK. However, across Knowsley, the Parliamentary constituency where Huyton is located, people kept using cash more. ATMs in the area saw cash withdrawals fall by 48% - one of the smallest falls in withdrawals across the UK.
The financial support to enable the conversion of the ATM to free to use has been provided via LINK’s community request scheme.
Launched in October 2019, communities can apply for support for free access to cash. LINK will investigate each case raised and where it is possible, fund the new ATM directly. The new website can be found at https://www.link.co.uk/consumers/request-access-to-cash/.
LINK is determined to protect free access to cash for every high street in the UK. If a high street is threatened with the loss of its last free-to-use ATM, LINK will step in to ensure that an ATM is made available and paid for with funding from all the UK’s main banks and building societies if there is no nearby Post Office counter to serve that community.
LINK’s Head of Commercial Initiatives, Ian Vernon: “Free cash access remains vital for communities and high streets across the country. Cash use and ATM withdrawals unsurprisingly fell in recent months, but there are still millions of people in the UK who rely on using cash. Huyton is one example where ATM use was more resilient than in other parts of the country, so we’re glad to be helping the community.
“This is the first machine to go live under the Community Request Scheme, since the beginning of the Coronavirus crisis, so we’re looking forward to carrying on this important work across the UK. We want to hear from more communities that have cash access issues. While the network provides convenient access for most people, we know that communities are best placed to identify any issues. Any enquiries can be made via our request website.”
The ATM is located at All in One Convenience Store, 175-177 Tarbock Road, Liverpool, L36 5TG.
