LLOYDS Banking group is to axe up to 460 full and part-time jobs after it agreed to sell its Halifax Estate Agencies division for £1.

The sale of the loss-making business to Your Move owner LSL Property Services will see the closure of 121 banking counters within the agency’s offices early next year.

Lloyds said the agency, which includes a branch at Market Street in Huddersfield and 218 branches UK-wide, was no longer part of its plans.

It said compulsory redundancies among counter staff would be a “last resort”.

The group, which is 43% owned by the taxpayer, said the vast majority of the counters which are closing were within one mile of a Lloyds TSB or HBOS branch.

In Huddersfield town centre, the group has a Lloyds TSB branch at Westgate and branches of Lloyds TSB and the Halifax at Cloth Hall Street.

About 1,050 estate agency staff will transfer to LSL, which will rebrand the offices as Your Move, Reeds Rain or Intercounty.

The move came as the HBOS signs were removed from the Halifax headquarters at Trinity Road, Halifax – 13 months after the takeover by Lloyds Banking Group.

The HBOS logo was replaced by Lloyds’ black horse logo. HBOS put its signs on the landmark building in September, 2001, after the Halifax and the Bank of Scotland merged. The Halifax logo remains as it is still a high street brand.

The sale of the Halifax estate agency business makes LSL the second largest estate agency network in the UK. Although the group is cautious bout prospects next year due to a continuing lack of mortgages, the firm said the deal sets it up to benefit from any property market recovery.

Chairman Roger Matthews said: “This is a significant opportunity for LSL to acquire a high quality branch network, an established asset management business and pipeline of sales on favourable commercial terms at a low point in the economic cycle.”

The disposal comes as Lloyds looks to reduce its presence on the high street to appease European competition officials following its rescue of ailing HBOS at the height of the financial crisis a year ago.

Competition commissioner Neelie Kroes has been in talks with both Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland over the details of state support amid concerns that bailed-out banks could be seen as distorting the market.

Lloyds agreed in March to put £260bn in toxic debts into a taxpayer-backed insurance scheme, but is said to be looking to raise about £26bn to avoid the scheme and prevent the Government’s stake rising to 62%.

Union leaders said there was no reason for compulsory redundancies. Ged Nichols, general secretary of union Accord, said: “We will be having early meetings with LSL to discuss their plans for the business and employees’ terms and conditions so that we can provide maximum support for Accord members who will be transferring to LSL’s employment.

“We have also made our view clear to Lloyds that the staff who currently work in the 121 branches with banking counters should have the opportunity to transfer to nearby bank branches. We believe that there is no need for compulsory redundancies.”