LLOYDS Banking Group is to close 56 branches across the UK.
The giant will shut 31 Lloyds, ten Halifax and 15 Bank of Scotland branches between April and October this year.
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That leaves the group with 1,567 branches.
The closures come in response to a shift towards online banking.
Union Accord said this will see staff numbers cut by “under 80” as many staff are to be re- deployed other branches.
Lloyds Banking Group said the closures were “in response to changing customer behaviours and the reduced number of transactions being made in branches”.
“We are committed to having the largest branch network in the UK and, in addition to our branches, all our customers can also use the Post Office to access their banking locally, alongside our mobile branches which visit many rural communities.”
The union said: “We fully appreciate that the demand for high street branch banking is diminishing as customers increasingly move to app-based banking but we’ll be examining Lloyds Banking Group’s plans to ensure that they’re properly thought through and robustly evidenced.
“So far, all branch closures have been managed without compulsory redundancies and Accord expects the same outcome here.”
