Hays Travel Newbury is one of the 89 branches to close

Travel company apologises for giving 'wrong information'

EARLIER this week Hays Travel announced it is to close 89 of its 535 shops following a review into its takeover of Thomas Cook.

A spokeswoman for Hays Travel wrongly told Newburytoday that Newbury was not on the list of branches earmarked for closure.

It has now been confirmed that the branch will be closing.

The spokeswoman said: "I am so sorry I gave you the wrong information – dealing with dozens of enquiries from local papers all over the country I misread the branch name.

"The Newbury branch is one where we won’t be renewing the lease and we are discussing with our three colleagues a number of different options for alternative work, including homeworking, joining our virtual contact centre or transferring to vacancies in other branches where possible.

"Meanwhile, the Newbury team continues to look after customers during lockdown, working from home and using zoom, Facetime, phone and email to keep in touch with everyone planning holidays for later this year and 2022."

When the branch manager saw the original story on Newburytoday's Facebook page she wrote "Hays travel Newbury is on the list of one of the 89 stores to close...We are all extremely devastated but would like to thank all our lovely customers form the Thomas Cook days and up until today. Take care everyone and stay safe."

The Hays Travel spokeswoman added that she had made sure the branch manager is aware that the error came from Hays Travel.