A BRANCH of Hays Travel in Durham City will not reopen after bosses took the decision to close its doors for good.

The branch in the Market Place has been cleared of its fixtures and fittings, leaving just a few desks following its closure earlier this month.

But Hays Travel has said its North Road branch in the city will remain open with signs advising customers to contact them, or visit that branch with any queries.

It comes as earlier this year the firm, which bought 555 stores following the collapse of Thomas Cook, said it would cut up to 878 roles due to the Covid pandemic.

At the time owners John and Irene Hays said travel restrictions imposed on Spain had forced hundreds of thousands of holidays to be cancelled.

In a statement, the owners of the Sunderland-based firm said they were "devastated" over the potential loss of jobs.

They said: "We are devastated that after all of our efforts and the huge investment we've made, we now face losing some of our valued employees, through no fault of their own.

"Following the decision to ban travel to Spain and the changes in furlough conditions coming at the same time, we have had no choice."