A MAJOR charity retailer has abruptly shut three branches with 47 more set to close as part of a major overhaul.
Scope, which runs branches across and , has shuttered the three stores this month.
A shop in Newport, , shut on April 5, while a store and Atherstone branch closed on April 11 and April 12, respectively.
A further 43 Scope stores are set to close between now and March 31, 2026, while a further four will shut in the 2026/27 financial year.
This is in addition to 24 sites which have ceased trading since the start of the year.
It comes proposing to close 77 of its 138 shops in England and Wales.
The ‘s bosses said the decision had been made due to lower footfall at high street branches and spiralling costs.
Chief executive Mark Hodgkinson said the charity's retail arm had made a “real contribution to raising vital income”;, but that external factors had “made trading harder”;.
As part of the consultation, it was decided 74 branches would close, not 77, with six shutting during the consultation period which ended in early March.
A further 18 more were closed by March 31.
These are the 18 shops that ceased trading before March 31:
- Amersham
- Barking
- Bangor
- Birkenhead
- Bishop Auckland
- Castleford
- Devizes
- Dewsbury
- Eastbourne
- Haywards Heath
- Lewisham
- New Milton
- Orpington
- Parkstone
- Scunthorpe
- Shirley (Southampton)
- Skipton
- Workington
These are the six shops that closed during the consultation period:
- Bexhill
- Hertford
- Mitcham
- Petersfield
- Scarborough
- Worthing
Of the remaining 47 branches to close, Scope has said five will shut in May, but has not revealed the locations.
The locations for the remaining 42 stores earmarked for closure are also yet to be revealed.
Debbie Boylen, head of at Scope, said: “Our shops have helped us raise vital income to support our work with disabled people and their families.
“We know our teams put in their very best efforts, but our shops are collectively now losing when taking account of all of their costs.
“A number make strong profits but there are loss making shops too. We never take the decision to close our stores lightly.”
She added: “We know they (staff) feel passionately about playing their part in our work, creating an equal future with disabled people.
“We will be doing everything we can to support them and our decision does not reflect their hard work and dedication to Scope.”
HIGH STREET STRUGGLES
UK high streets have been in decline for years due to the onset of online shopping.
High in recent years has chipped away at shoppers' wallets and purses too.
A recent report from PwC noted a “continued move away from the high street” by retailers in 2024 with shops outside of town and city centres seeing less closures and more openings.
It said this was being driven by both leisure outlets and larger retailers shifting from high streets to retail parks which offer shoppers “greater convenience”.
The Centre for Retail Research said more than 13,000 high street stores shut in 2024, with more to come in 2025.
The centre's analysis found that 13,479 stores, the equivalent of 37 each day, shut their doors for good over the calendar year.
Of these, around 11,340 independent shops were shut during the year – a 45.5% jump against 2023.
The centre estimates around 17,350 stores will shut in 2025 too, linking the rise to hike in and national minimum wage.
Since the start of the month, employers have had to pay NICs at a rate of 15%, up from 13.8%, starting from £5,000 instead of £9,100.
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