Lloyds to cut 535 jobs at Chester call centre

The government owns 41% of Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group is to cut 535 jobs in Chester with the closure of its retail call centre in the city.

The company said some staff at the centre, at Premier House on Hoole Lane, would be offered redeployment to sites in Warrington and Speke in Liverpool.

The part-nationalised group said job losses were being made as it was re-organising its retail, insurance and group operations divisions.

Unions have called on the bank to avoid compulsory redundancies.

Lloyds also plans to close an insurance office in Nottingham and close a network of 265 independent Halifax counters based within firms such as solicitors and estate agencies.

Lloyds Banking Group is 41% owned by the government after being bailed out amid the financial crisis and following the ill-fated HBOS deal.