1,200 jobs in store at new Amazon warehouse in Warrington

The company is to start recruiting for operations managers, engineers, human resources and IT specialists for the site in Warrington, Cheshire.

Warrington is one of four new so-called fulfilment centres Amazon will open this year.

A site in Daventry opened in February, while Warrington will begin operations in the autumn along with Doncaster and Tilbury.

Amazon said permanent staff start on at least £7.65 an hour, increasing to £8.15 or more over their first two years of employment.

Permanent employees in the warehouses also receive grants, which have been worth £1,000 or more a year over the last five years.

Amazon said it was increasing the size of its UK network to meet increasing customer demands.

Stefano Perego of Amazon said: "The Amazon teams are dedicated to innovating in our fulfilment centres to increase efficiency of delivery while enabling greater selection at lower costs for our customers."

David Mowat, Conservative MP for Warrington South, said: "Warrington was recently ranked as the No 2 town in the country in which to do business, so it's no surprise that a major international organisation is keen to do business here and employ local people."