Post Office to cut 1,000 jobs and close branches to reduce costs

The Post Office is expected to announce the closure of dozens of branches and cut up to 1,000 head office jobs today, as the embattled organisation seeks to cut costs to secure its financial future.

- Mark Sweney

There are around 11,500 post office branches across the UK, of which 115 are wholly owned. The rest are independent franchises operated under contract and by partners such as WH Smith and Tesco.

The organisation is seeking to shut or refranchise most of its wholly-owned network - known as crown post offices - affecting as many as 1,000 jobs.

The Post Office has been reducing the number of crown branches for a number of years - there were almost 400 in 2012. In addition, the company is seeking to cut as many as 1,000 jobs from its head office to reduce costs.