PUBLIC notices announcing the removal of one of Hexham town centre’s busiest cash point facilities have appeared in the Northumberland Gazette – and not the Hexham Courant .

NatWest announced last year that the branch on Battle Hill would be one of five to close across the North-East, and has appointed a new community banker who will be based in the town for two days each week.

However, it wasn’t immediately clear in the announcement that the branch’s cash machine, which often has a queue of people waiting to use it, would also be lost.

A legal notice published in the Gazette , based more than 50 miles away from Hexham in Alnwick, revealed that NatWest is seeking permission from Northumberland County Council to remove the ATM, signage, night safe and internal fittings from the listed building.

Planning permission is needed because the branch sits within the boundaries of the Hexham Conservation Area.

But some are concerned the information – which could well be the first time many local people hear of the loss of the cash machine – is reaching the wrong audience.

It’s the latest example of how the community in Tynedale is feeling the impact of a decision by the chief executive of the county council, Steven Mason, to remove all public notices relating to road closures and planning matters from the C ourant and place them in the Gazette , which covers the north of the county.

“I think enough is enough now,” said county councillor for Hexham East, Cath Homer.

“The evidence is so overwhelmingly stacked against this decision and the examples of how it is affecting people are so numerous that we just need it reversed as soon as possible.

“An awful lot of people will not be aware that the closure of the branch includes the loss of the cash point.

“It is significant. It’s another service lost.

“But the full impact will only become clear after it’s gone.”

Scott Mclaren, NatWest’s community banker for Hexham, confirmed: “Unfortunately, because we have to access the cash point from inside the branch for maintenance, it will be decommissioned when the branch closes on July 4.

“There are no plans to relocate the machine, but there are RBS machines available at Tesco and customers can continue to use any cash point without being charged.”