Shropshire has seen a big decline in its access to cash, a new study has shown.

A new study by financial review service, the Grade, has looked at the number of cash points that have closed since 2018 and the study shows that North Shropshire has lost nearly one in seven of its free cash machines in that time.

Over the last four years 14 percent of cash points in the area have closed leaving residents with only just over 5 free cash points per 10,000 people and only 0.06 free cash points per square km.

Neighbouring areas have also seen big declines in its access to cash with Montgomeryshire losing 15 per cent of cash points closing in that time, and Shrewsbury and Atcham losing nearly a quarter of all its cash points - with 24 per cent of them disappearing since 2018.

Authors of the study there is a “brewing crisis” in access to cash. They have found that as the cost-of-living crisis bites, cash use is back on the increase.

The Post Office, for example, reported that it handled £3.45 billion in cash across its counters in August – the highest since its records began.

They also say many older and vulnerable people rely on cash which makes the problem especially severe in North Shropshire which has a pensioner rate 27.12 per cent above the national average.

A recent Bank of England’s report said: “cash remains a valued form of money for the elderly and those on lower incomes, with many using it to budget and manage their household finances” and that “cash continues to be an important form of money for many – one in five people consider it to be their preferred payment method and 1.1 million people rely on it for their everyday spending.

“Even for those who may not use it day-to-day, cash remains an important back-up option”.

A spokesperson from the Grade said: "As cash deserts spring up across Powys and Shropshire we are sleepwalking into an access to cash crisis.

“The elderly and vulnerable are often reliant on cash while the cost-of-living crisis means many are finding it simpler to monitor and control their budgets by dealing in notes and coins. Increasingly, these people are left without easy cash options."