The Grantham branch of Hays Travel is to close following a review of operations since the travel firm took over Thomas Cook.

Some 89 of its 535 shops will be close overall, also including its branches in Spalding and Boston, but the Stamford Hays Travel will survive.

The Sunderland-based firm bought the collapsed company in October 2019 and deferred a review into the performance of its shops until 2021.

A Hays Travel spokeswoman blamed the third national lockdown and travel ban for the closures.

"We can't wait any longer," she told Nub News.

The former Thomas Cook branches were assessed on sales, their viability, along with rents.

When they comes up for renewal, the leases of the stores to be closed will not be renewed.

The 388 staff affected by the closures would be offered "alternative work options" to minimise redundancies.

They included working from home, relocation to branches, and working at a contact centre.

As such matters were still to be sorted, no timeframe could be given for the actual store closures.

At present, the Grantham branch in the Isaac Newton Shopping Centre is closed due to lockdown, but the company is still selling online.