Santander: 291 jobs at risk as banking giant reveals plans to close 44 bank branches
Santander is to shut 44 of its bank branches in a move putting 291 jobs at risk.
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.
It said 96% of all transactions are now being completed in digital channels after a rapid increase in online banking customers.
It comes less than a year after the business announced the closure of 95 branches last March, in a round of cuts which hit 750 workers.
Santander said closing branches will be replaced with “community bankers”, who will operate from Santander Local stores or banking hubs to keep a presence in local communities.
The high street lender said the latest cuts will leave it with 244 full branches.
It will also operate 19 counter-free branches, 36 reduced-hour branches, six work cafes and 111 Santander Locals.
Santander stressed it is continuing to invest tens of millions of pounds into its branches, refurbishing more than 220 sites over the past six years.
It added that more than 30 branches are also set for refurbishments over the coming year.
A spokeswoman 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.”
The following branches are set to close:
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