Residents who were left with no free-to-use cash machines in the town centre are celebrating a victory.

The Post Office in Hay-on-Wye has switched from being a pay-to-use machine to a free-to-use ATM after concerns were raised by locals and politicians.

The machine now provides 24/7 access to residents and visitors in the town that's renowned for books and bookshops.

In December 2019, the only remaining ATM in the town centre started charging for withdrawals. The nearest free-to-use cash machine was an eight-minute walk to the Co-op supermarket.

Brecon and Radnorshire MP Fay Jones said she is "extremely pleased" with the changes.

"As we move towards a cash-less future, rural areas like my constituency of Brecon and Radnorshire will take longer to catch up and so access to cash is essential," she said.

It is one of the first ATMs to be installed through LINK’s community request scheme. The scheme is part of a commitment by the UK’s main cash machine network to ensure every high street in the UK has free access to cash.

If a high street is threatened with the loss of its last free-to-use ATM, LINK says it will step in to ensure that an ATM is made available and paid for with funding from all the UK’s main banks and building societies if there is no nearby Post Office counter to serve that community.

Ian Vernon, from LINK, said: “Free cash access remains vital for communities and high streets across the country. Hay’s a great example of a good community request. There is a nearby free to use ATM, but it doesn’t serve the local shops on the high street. We’re grateful for the community and Fay Jones for helping to bring this over the line."

Communities that have cash access issues can make enquiries about funding for a new ATM by going to the website: www.link.co.uk/consumers/request-access-to-cash/.