The Korumburra community has been successful in its campaign to save the town’s Bendigo Bank branch, which the Bank had previously announced would close in mid-August 2021.
Congratulations to everyone who helped to make this happen.
Our full Bendigo Bank is staying in its current location, with a five-day-a-week service and ATM. The bank will be consulting with local businesses to determine current banking practices, and the operating hours each day may extend down the track, to factor in the business community’s requirements or if there is evidence of customer need.
Five members of the Korumburra Round Table (KRT) (Kate McDowell Murphy, Noelene
Cosson, Jenni Keerie, Terry Waycott and Pee-Wee Lewis), who between them represent the Korumburra Business Association, Korumburra Community Development & Action, Milpara Community House, Carinya Lodge, and Karmai Community Children’s Centre, worked together from the time the announcement of the pending closure was made to stop this from happening. A community meeting was convened and local community members also went into action via social media and gathered almost 1000 signatures on petitions presented to the Bank. Many residents also sent letters and emails to the Bank expressing their concern about the closure.
The KRT working party had several meetings with representatives of the Bendigo Bank and challenged them to either keep the branch open or find an alternative solution for our community that would ensure the continued delivery of face-to-face banking services within the town.
The working party met again yesterday with the Bendigo Bank State Manager, who was very happy to advise us that the Bank had reconsidered its position, and that the branch would stay open five days a week, Monday to Friday, at this stage from 10 am to 2 pm, but this is subject to change following further negotiation. Face-to-face banking stays, the ATM stays, home loan and personal lending services will be available, as well as investment opportunities, and all other usual banking operations.
Now is the time for our community to really step up and support our local bank with our business. This can be done by moving accounts and loans across to the Korumburra branch of the Bendigo Bank, and it can even be as simple as visiting the branch and asking for any existing accounts with another Bendigo Bank branch to be changed to (or “domiciled” with) the Korumburra branch.
This is a huge win for Korumburra, and it is a genuine example of a community working
together to make a difference.