Amazon is to close its long-standing Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, fulfilment centre as the digital retail giant plans to transfer the region’s operations to Northampton. 

The move will affect 590 employees who will be offered a transfer to its new site, 20 miles north, or to other centres, as the company announced a consultation on a proposal to close the site.

A media spokesperson for Amazon confirmed the decision, saying: “We’re always evaluating our network to make sure it fits our business needs and to improve the experience for our employees and customers.

“Today we’ve announced a consultation on a proposal to close our fulfilment centre in Milton Keynes and to offer employees an opportunity to transfer to our brand-new site in Northampton – a larger, state-of-the-art building which will employ up to 2,000 people – or to other Amazon sites.

“Our top priority is to support our people during this process, they added.”

A large product sorting facility also located in Milton Keynes forming part of Amazon’s logistics business will be unaffected by the proposed closure.

The new high-tech £500 million Northampton site is due to open in May and will initially employ 1,400 staff.