Further branches in South Shields, Norton, Pickering, Filey and Ripon will also go

A number of North-East bases, including banks in Middlesbrough, Gateshead and Guisborough, east Cleveland, will shut.

About 200 Yorkshire Bank staff and 200 Clydesdale Bank staff will be at risk of redundancy, with the Unite union calling the decision "deeply devastating".

Bank bosses have blamed a fall in customers using branches as they switch to digital banking.

Banks identified for closure include a Berwick Hills branch, in Middlesbrough, which will shut on April 24.

Guisborough will close on April 21, meaning customers will have to travel to an existing Redcar base.

A Gateshead branch will shut on April 18, with a bank in South Shields, South Tyneside, due to close the day after.

The company's operation in Norton, near Stockton, will shut on April 25.

In North Yorkshire, Richmond will close on April 20, with Pickering shutting on May 4.

Ripon will close on June 6.

Gavin Opperman, customer banking director at Yorkshire Bank, said: “While the decision to close any branch is never an easy one, it is important that we continue to respond to changes in the way customers want to bank with us.

“The changes continue our journey towards a model that combines an enhanced digital platform with a right-sized branch network; allowing customers to interact with us through a wide range of channels – mobile, online, telephone, in-branch – whenever and however they want.”

Clydesdale Bank closures will affect branches across Scotland. 

Unite national officer, Rob MacGregor, said: "Staff across the Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank will be devastated to learn that 79 branches will close and consequently over 400 colleagues will lose their jobs.

"Unite is clear that the closure of a third of the bank's branches will not only be concerning for staff but the local communities which will see their bank branch close.

"This cost-cutting plan leaves customers with less choice for local banking.

"The union has called on the bank to give a commitment to mitigate compulsory redundancies where possible and that they will reconsider closing any bank branches that are the last bank in a town.

"Unite workplace representatives will be able to assist members over the coming day and weeks to support staff impacted by this announcement."

Clydesdale said, since 2011, the number of customers using their bank for day-to-day transactions across the banking industry in the UK has fallen by a third.

Scottish Conservative shadow economy secretary Dean Lockhart said: "Coming on the back of today's rise in unemployment in Scotland, this represents further troubling news for our labour market.

"We trust that Clydesdale will do all it can to limit redundancies and ensure staff are given the clarity they deserve about the future."