A BANK in the centre of Trowbridge is neglecting the town’s heritage, according to angry residents and councillors.

People are furious with Lloyds because it is not willing to carry out repairs on the windows of its impressive Grade I listed branch in Fore Street, they claim.

It was built just after 1700 by Thomas Cooper who lived in it until around 1750 before it was inhabited by Samuel Bythesea and later Thomas Stillman, before being bought by Lloyds.

June Hawker, 70, said: “I’ve lived in Trowbridge all my life and take an interest in the town’s heritage.

“The Lloyds bank is the town’s number one building in my opinion and the history behind is quite significant.

“But the windows are in a really bad state. I went in recently to ask if they had plans to repair them but they said no.

“Lloyds clearly don’t care about the heritage of the town. They have all that money but aren’t willing to spend any of it on essential work.”

Mrs Hawker’s views are shared by town councillor Glyn Bridges, who said: “The building is a disgrace, you can clearly see where the wood has rotted away over the years.

“It’s a very important building and an impressive one too; Nikolaus Pevsner once said it is “so grand as to recall Genoa” and it’s almost identical to the centre section of Dyrham Park.

“It’s about time Lloyds paid some much-needed attention to it.”

Another town councillor, John Knight, used the HSBC bank further down the road as an example of how a professional paint job can improve the aesthetic of a historic building.

He added: “I completely agree that the building could do with a bit of attention.

“It’s all very well and good making the interior look nice but it’s their duty to spend a bit of money on exterior maintenance too."

A Lloyds Bank spokesman said: "We recently invested in some improvements at our Trowbridge branch, including repainting some of the window frames and restoring the quality of the exterior doors.”