Monmouthshire Building Society is asking Forest of Dean residents for their help in shaping the Building Society’s potential presence in the area. The Building Society is holding pop up events in and around Coleford and is inviting residents, whether they are Monmouthshire Building Society customers or not, to come along and give their views on whether a Building Society service would be required.

The Newport-based Building Society has a track record in opening community hubs (a small ‘pop up’ facility providing full counter service), as it opened its ‘Community Connect’ hub in Abergavenny last year. The Community Connect hub has been very popular with locals, who have seen many major banks leave its high street in recent years.

Community drop-in sessions will be held in Coleford on October 21 at The Main Place, Old Station Way and on October 29 at Sixteen Community Café, 16 Bank Street between 10am-3pm.

Kristy Maloney, Head of Savings, at Monmouthshire Building Society, said: “We are totally committed, as a regional building society, to providing services to customers face to face and having a presence on the high street. Like many regions around the UK, we know that towns in the Forest of Dean have seen many branches close over the past few years, leaving customers to travel further to visit branches, or having to manage their finances online.

“Our Community Connect hubs are a new initiative that brings our MBS services to your local area. Like our branches and agencies, we will be offering our friendly counter service, providing you with the chance to catch up with one of our colleagues face to face.” “We’re keen to hear from the local community on how they’d like this service to operate, so we can use that information to create a community branch perfect for the area and its residents.”