Date announced for final closure of Lancaster Wilko

The doors will close at the Penny Street outlet, which is one of the chain's last remaining stores, on Tuesday October 3 as the collapse of the historic retailer comes to a end.

The hardware and furnishings retailer fell into administration last month after it came under pressure from weak consumer spending and debts to suppliers.

The retailer will shut its final 111 stores in early October as part of the final phase of closures, administrators said.

The Wilko brand will not disappear entirely from the UK high street after The Range agreed to buy the firm’s brand, website and intellectual property, with plans to sell the acquired brand in its stores.

Wilko was originally founded by James Kemsey Wilkinson in Leicester in 1930 and employed 12,500 workers before its collapse.

Earlier this month, Stagecoach Cumbria and North Lancashire announced it would offer interviews to Wilko staff left without a job.