A SELBY bank will be among 140 branches to close as part of a massive restructuring

Santander announced on Wednesday that the Market Cross branch would be among 140 banks to close in a move the company said was "a response to changes in how customers are choosing to carry out their banking".

Eight other Yorkshire branches will also be closed, including banks in Market Place, Driffield, Boothferry Road, Goole, Street Lane, Leeds, Kirkgate, Otley, Fishergate, Ripon, Skipton High Street, Wetherby High Street and Yeadon High Street.

Santander said upcoming changes would see 614 "larger branches offering improved community facilities to support local businesses and customers, and smaller branches using the latest technology to offer customers more convenient access to banking services".

Trade unions have been consulted on the closures, which will affect 1,270 workers around the country, but Santander said they expected to be able to redeploy "around a third of those affected".

The bank will refurbish 100 branches in the next two years, and said the number of transactions carried out in person at branches had fallen by 23 per cent over the past three years, while digital transactions grew by 99 per cent in the same period.

Susan Allen, head of retail and business banking, said: "The way our customers are choosing to bank with us has changed dramatically in recent years, with more and more customers using online and mobile channels. As a result, we have had to take some very difficult decisions over our less visited branches, and those where we have other branches in close proximity.

"We will support customers of closing branches to find alternative ways to bank with us that best suit their individual needs. We are also working alongside our unions to support colleagues through these changes and to find alternative roles for those impacted wherever possible."