The independently-owned group runs a stable of two evening titles - the News and Star, Carlisle, and the North West Evening Mail, Barrow - as well as a number of weeklies.

Now it is planning to centralise its newspaper planning operations at the Carlisle centre, putting two Barrow posts at risk of redundancy.

A number of other redundancies are planned in the pre-press advert production operation which will also be centralised at Carlisle.

The proposed changes were set out in a letter to staff by managing director Terry Hall that has been seen by HoldtheFrontPage.

He said the changes were designed to "make better use of our technological capability, which will help us to develop our service to customers and reduce production costs."

"We have identified that the technology deployed within Cumbrian Newspapers Operation at Carlisle would best serve the future needs of the publications published by Furness Newspapers.

Mr Hall said the transfer of the planning function to Carlisle would mean two newspaper planning positions at Furness Newspapers in Barrow are at risk of redundancy.

He added that the plan for a central advertisement production operation based at Carlisle would affect nine people working in Dalston and Workington, with a "small number of redundancies" possible.

Consultation with staff affected began yesterday and is scheduled to be completed by 7 November.

Mr Hall said: "We appreciate that this announcement will create a level of uncertainty. However, the company wishes to be open with its plans and involve as many people as possible with the review."