The firm will now focus on its “higher returning regional businesses” and its Heritage collection of traditional homes.

The cost of reducing the London division will be confirmed in full results due in September.

Redrow revealed some of the “profound” impact of the pandemic on its results in a trading statement this morning.

It completed 4,032 homes in the year to the end of June compared to 6,443 in the previous year. Turnover is expected to be £1.34bn against £2.11bn last year.

Redrow ended the 2019 financial year with £126 of debt compared to £124m cash in the bank previously.

John Tutte, Executive Chairman said “This has been a challenging period for the industry and prevented the Group from delivering another set of record results.

“The business has however demonstrated its resilience throughout the crisis and I am immensely grateful for the dedication of my colleagues, the commitment of our wider-workforce and the continuing patience of our customers as we adjust to a new way of working.

“Whilst these extraordinary times have been testing for the business, they have provided us with an opportunity to focus on our core strengths putting product, customer satisfaction and the environment at the heart of a recovery strategy to maximise shareholder returns.”