Part of former Staveley bank to be transformed into flats

During a meeting on Monday, Chesterfield Borough Council's planning committee gave a developer conditional permission to convert the back ground-floor area of the old NatWest bank premises on High Street into two flats.

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The building has been empty since September 2017 when the bank closed.

Planning documents state: "Overall the proposed flats are considered to be acceptable in design and apearance.

"The two flats which will occupy a former back office of the bank will offer good living accommodation that is within a sustainable location as well as being set back from the high street shopping area.

"The existing large car parking facility would be reduced in size to facilitate the provision of a bin store area and secure bike storage area."

When the NatWest closed, a spokesperson for the bank said more customers were using mobile and online banking while shunning traditional branches.

The spokesperson added: "The way people choose to bank with us has changed radically over the last few years.

"Between 2010 and 2015, mobile and online transactions have increased by over 400 per cent and mobile transactions alone have increased by 1,350 per cent.

"These customers are actively choosing to bank in different ways, with 59.1 per cent of customers choosing to use our digital banking options."