A Guardian analysis of Post Office records says 70 branches inside TG Jones stores in the U.K. have closed or are expected to shut by early 2027.
The newspaper counted 36 branches closed through Oct. 24 and identified 34 more expected to shut by early 2027. It said TG Jones had 180 post office branches before restructuring; the combined 70 is about 39% of that total, based on its figures.
The Post Office’s September evidence to a parliamentary inquiry said nearly three in 10 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) use a local branch at least once a week. More than half use the network at least once a month. The evidence listed sending parcels, handling returns and depositing cash takings among the services used.
The Guardian reported that the Post Office was seeking replacement operators for affected locations. The newspaper also said the Stirling branch had reopened. A permanent replacement in Ipswich was expected in November 2026, while temporary branches were planned for Maidenhead and Uxbridge.
TG Jones is the renamed U.K. high street business that WH Smith PLC agreed to sell to Modella Capital in March 2025 for an enterprise value of £76 million. WH Smith said its brand was excluded from the deal and would remain in use across its travel business.
On July 1, 2026, the High Court approved restructuring plans for TG Jones High Street Limited and TG Jones Retail Holdings Limited. A later judgment said the business plan projected reducing the store estate from 451 to 302 after some landlords exercised lease termination rights. Those figures refer to stores, separate from the post office branch count.
The judgment cited high inflation, online shopping, lower consumer spending, higher labor costs and increased taxes as pressures on the business. It also recorded a 12% like-for-like sales decline after the 2025 rebranding, alongside earlier underinvestment in stores.
