Santander closing further 44 branches as it gears up for £2.6bn takeover of TSB

Santander is closing another 44 of its UK bank branches, putting nearly 300 jobs at risk as it gears up for its £2.6bn takeover of rival TSB.The Spanish-owned lender said the closures were due to a rise in digital banking after a push to get more customers using mobile and online services across the country.One in eight of Santander’s 349 branches is to close, leaving the bank with 305 sites. However, only 244 of the remaining branches still provide a full-range of services, including mortgage advice and in-person cash and cheque deposits.It will also leave 291 branch-based workers at risk of losing their jobs. Santander said there would be an unspecified number of alternative roles that staff could apply for and that it and would begin consulting with unions as it pushes through its plans.The bank said it would contact potentially vulnerable customers who would be impacted by the closures by phone to help them find other ways to bank.The decision to slash more than 12% of its UK branches comes as the bank prepares for its takeover of TSB. The £2.6bn deal, which was announced in July, has prompted fears of job cuts and branch closures across the combined group.The takeover would make it the third largest UK bank in terms of personal current account deposits, behind Lloyds and NatWest. Santander will have to consider how to strip out duplicate roles and branches, and whether to scrap the 215-year-old TSB brand, which could disappear from UK high streets.TSB serves 5 million customers through its 175 branches and 5,000 staff. Santander UK has about 14 million customers served out of 350 branches across the country, with 18,000 staff before the latest job cuts.A Santander UK spokesperson said the bank was still waiting for regulators to approve its takeover of TSB. Those approvals would be needed before Santander could make any potential changes to its operations in relation to the deal.It is also facing the prospect of a hefty compensation bill linked to motor finance scandal, with Santander UK having already put aside £295m to cover potential payouts to car loan customers last year.In October, its outgoing chief executive, Mike Regnier, urged the government to intervene in the regulator’s plans for an £11bn compensation scheme, claiming current proposals could end up inflicting “significant” harm to consumers, jobs and the broader economy.The CWU union, which represents Santander UK bank staff, was contacted for comment.The 44 Santander branches that are to closeApril 2026 Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland (28 April) Boston, Lincolnshire (28 April) Evesham, Worcestershire (28 April) Mold, Clwyd (28 April) Ramsgate, Kent (28 April) Woking, Surrey (28 April) Bangor, County Down (29 April) Bridgwater, Somerset (29 April) Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire (29 April) Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire (29 April) Newbury, Berkshire (29 April) Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire (29 April) Tonbridge, Kent (29 April) May 2026 Bishop Auckland, County Durham (5 May) Gosport, Hampshire (5 May) Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire (5 May) Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire (5 May) Pontefract, West Yorkshire (5 May) Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (5 May) Glengormley, County Antrim (6 May) Leyland, Lancashire (6 May) Mansfield, Nottinghamshire (6 May) Merthyr Tydfil, Mid Glamorgan (6 May) Northallerton, North Yorkshire (6 May) Ringwood, Hampshire (6 May) Andover, Hampshire 12 May) Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan (12 May) Enniskillen, County Fermanagh (12 May) Macclesfield, Cheshire (12 May) Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire (12 May) Cwmbran, Gwent (13 May) Golders Green, north London (13 May) Heswall, Merseyside (13 May) Redditch, Worcestershire (13 May) Stranraer, Wigtownshire (13 May) Newton Abbot, Devon (19 May) Stafford, Staffordshire (19 May) Banbridge, County Down (19 May) Liskeard, Cornwall (20 May) Shirley, West Midlands (20 May) By end of January 2027 Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire Ormskirk, Lancashire Whitehaven, Cumbria Wilmslow, Cheshire