A second bank is to close in Helston in the space of a year.

Santander has confirmed it will be closing its Meneage Street branch in December.

The company said it the decision had "not been taken lightly" and blamed lack of use as a reason behind it.

Customers will be forced to travel to Camborne, Falmouth and Penzance for the next nearest branches.

The "majority" of staff effected by the closure would hopefully be transferred into other branches in the area, or a different role in the company, the bank added.

A Santander spokesperson said: “Santander is committed to ensuring we provide a good level of service that meets the changing needs of our customers. In order to do this we continually review our branch network, and sometimes need to make difficult decisions over our less utilised branches, ensuring colleagues and customers are informed well in advance of any changes.

“As a result of our recent review, Santander has announced it will be closing its Helston branch in December 2017. This decision has not been taken lightly and follows a strategic review looking across our UK branch network, changing customer behaviour, branch and digital channel usage, alternative ways for our customers to bank with us, whilst supporting local communities."

She said that closing "lesser used branches" meant the money could be reinvested to improve facilities at other branches and improve the service digitally.

In addition to travelling to another town, existing customers could access their account online or via telephone baking, and use the Post Office for cash and cheque deposits, withdrawals and to check their account balance.

"We will look to transfer the majority of colleagues impacted into branches within the same locality or into other roles in our retail division. Opportunities for impacted colleagues will also be considered in other business areas, as well as options to work flexibly such as increasing job shares and part-time working," added the spokesperson.

It follows the closure of Helston's branch of HSBC in February this year.