Councillors today condemned the planned closure of a bank on a "thriving" high street.

The Yorkshire Bank in Main Street, Cross Hills, near Keighley, is to close on Tuesday, September 6.

It is one of 100 branches being closed nationally by the National Australian Bank (NAB) - which owns the Yorkshire and Clydesdale Banks - within the next 18 months.

Cross Hills is one of the 40 Yorkshire Bank branches to be axed and one of the 22 in the first wave of closures across the group.

NAB said it was making the cuts because customers were no longer using branches. It is expected the next wave of closures will be announced within a matter of months and the firm has pledged bank customers will be given at least 12 weeks' notice. It said it was only closing those where less than one per cent of the branch's customers paid a visit each month.

But Craven Councillor Steven Place, who runs a shop in nearby Sutton village, said: "I am amazed. This is a well-used branch in a thriving shopping street. There are often queues to get served. I can understand closures in big towns where there is keen competition but this has not taken into account the need to serve a rural community."

He believed it would have adverse effect on business and trade in the community. September seemed a long way off but people would have to take steps soon to make other arrangements, he warned.

And Craven Councillor Roger Nicholson, who represents Glusburn ward, said it was just another "nail in the coffin" for small communities which had also seen the closure of post offices. "It also doesn't take account of people over 60 in the community who are not familiar with automated banking. They are disenfranchised."

The national closure programme will see the loss of 1,700 jobs in the UK in a bid to save £117 million. But the Federation of Small Businesses Yorkshire and Humber policy chairman, Chris Glen, said the decision would have a devastating effect on small firms.

Mr Glen said: "These terrible closures will not only hit bank customers but also many small businesses located in towns where branches are closing. The nightmare scenario is that there will be a domino effect as customers lose an important reason for coming to a town, forcing other shops and businesses to close down too."

He added: "Hotels, pubs, restaurants, shops, wholesalers and garages all deal with cash and need somewhere nearby to bank their takings."

As well as Cross Hills the bank's network across the district includes sites in: Bradford city centre, Great Horton, Idle, Laisterdyke, Toller Lane, West Bowling, Cleckheaton, Guiseley, Ilkley, Keighley, Otley, Queensbury, Shipley, Skipton, Pudsey, Horsforth, Yeadon, Heckmondwike and Brighouse.