A HISTORIC Darlington toy shop has closed its doors for the final time after racking up more than £150,000 worth of debt.

The owners of family business, Lamb’s Toys, which has stood as a cornerstone in Cockerton since 1965, were forced to ask business turnaround specialists for help after company accounts were put on hold last year.

But Lamb’s Toys directors, John Lamb, and his sister, Jacqueline Hayman, were told their well-loved business could not be saved from liquidation.

The iconic West Auckland Road store, which branded itself as the north of England’s “number one toy shop”, sold a range of popular children’s toys and specialised in construction kits.

However, after its founder, Barrie Lamb, built up a sound reputation over the decades, Lamb’s Toys slipped into arrears with its suppliers during December 2015.

No new stock could be bought by the business during what should have been its busiest weeks of the year.

The slump in sales forced Mr Lamb and Ms Hayman to officially cease trading on New Year’s Eve last year before a series of meetings with creditors recommended that liquidation was the only option.

In a statement Chris Horner, an insolvency practitioner at Robson Scott Associates, said: “A meeting of the company's shareholders was held on January 21, 2016 at which they resolved that the company should be placed into liquidation with a deficiency of nearly £150,000 owed to its creditors.”

Less than a week after the meeting, it was agreed that the company would be wound-up voluntarily.

Darlington families have already described the toy shop’s closure as losing another piece of the town’s history.

One 56-year-old grandmother said: “It’s so sad that another part of Darlington’s history has gone.

“My nana shopped there and I shopped there. I’ve now got grandchildren and it will be sadly missed.”

The Cockerton site originally opened for business in 1938 before Lamb’s Toys moved into the trade it is famed for in 1965.

Many Darlington residents will remember the family business for its primary-coloured shop front and its extensive range of toys stacked from floor to ceiling.

After becoming a limited company in August 2002, the independent Lamb’s Toys had moved into delivering purchases to customers in a bid to keep up with larger national brands.

Mr Horner added: “Any creditors who have been affected by the liquidation can contact the offices of Robson Scott Associates on 01325-365950.”