Midlands branches of Santander among 44 set to close with 291 jobs at risk

The move puts 291 workers across the country at risk of redundancy.

The Spain-based banking giant said the closures are part of an overhaul of its store network linked to a shift from its customers towards its digital services.

Branches in Stafford, in Staffordshire, and Shirley in the West Midlands are among the branches earmarked for closure in May. Worcestershire branches in Redditch and Evesham will also close, as will the branch in Mold, Clwyd, North East Wales.

Santander said 96 per cent of all transactions are now being completed in digital channels after a rapid rise in online banking customers.

The news comes less than a year after the business announced last March that 95 branches were to close in a round of cuts affecting 750 workers.

The high street lender's UK boss Mike Regnier said last July that the bank had cut around 2,000 roles over the previous year through a continued overhaul but he indicated there “might well be” more job cuts on the way.

Santander said closing branches would be replaced with “community bankers”, who will operate from Santander Local stores or banking hubs to keep a presence in local communities.

The latest cuts will leave the lender with 244 full branches. It will also operate 19 counter-free branches, 36 reduced-hour branches, six work cafes and 111 Santander Locals.

The Stafford branch will close on May 19 and the Shirley branch will shut its doors on May 20.

Santander stressed it is continuing to invest tens of millions of pounds into its branches, refurbishing more than 220 sites over the last six years.

More than 30 branches are also set for refurbishments over the coming year.

A spokesperson for Santander said: “In response to a continuing and sizeable shift towards customers using digital banking, we are making changes to our branches to better support our customers.

“We will continue to invest in both our branch network – comprising of full-service branches, counter-free branches, reduced-hour branches, Santander Locals, and our increasingly popular work cafes – as well as our digital banking services, so we can be there to support our customers however they choose to bank with us.”

Full list of branches set to close and their closing dates:

April 2026

– Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland – April 28

– Boston, Lincolnshire – April 28

– Evesham, Worcestershire – April 28

– Mold, Clwyd – April 28

– Ramsgate, Kent – April 28

– Woking, Surrey – April 28

– Bangor, County Down – April 29

– Bridgwater, Somerset – April 29

– Kirkintilloch, Lanarkshire – April 29

– Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire – April 29

– Newbury, Berkshire – April 29

– Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire – April 29

– Tonbridge, Kent – April 29

May 2026

– Bishop Auckland, County Durham – May 5

– Gosport, Hampshire – May 5

– Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire – May 5

– Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire – May 5

– Pontefract, West Yorkshire – May 5

– Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire – May 5

– Glengormley, County Antrim – May 6

– Leyland, Lancashire – May 6

– Mansfield, Nottinghamshire – May 6

– Merthyr Tydfil, Mid Glamorgan – May 6

– Northallerton, North Yorkshire – May 6

– Ringwood, Hampshire – May 6

– Andover, Hampshire – May 12

– Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan – May 12

– Enniskillen, County Fermanagh – May 12

– Macclesfield, Cheshire – May 12

– Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire – May 12

– Cwmbran, Gwent – May 13

– Golders Green, London – May 13

– Heswall, Merseyside – May 13

– Redditch, Worcestershire – May 13

– Stranraer, Wigtownshire – May 13

– Newton Abbot, Devon – May 19

– Stafford, Staffordshire – May 19

– Banbridge, County Down – May 19

– Liskeard, Cornwall – May 20

– Shirley, West Midlands – May 20

By the end of January 2027

– Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire

– Ormskirk, Lancashire

– Whitehaven, Cumbria

– Wilmslow, Cheshire