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Full list of major UK shops closing their doors in 2026

Tom Place
05/01/2026 16:55:00

The UK’s high streets have had a rough few years.

With shoppers going online more and more, a number of household name brands such as Claire’s and Bodycare fell into administration in 2025, with hundreds of stores and jobs put at risk.

Over 13,000 high street stores closed in 2024 according to figures by the Centre for Retail Research, and although there aren’t yet official numbers, it is thought there were even more in 2025.

And Britain’s high streets are set for a challenging year, with hundreds of store closures already planned for 2026.

The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion, while the rise in minimum wage will give additional costs to an already struggling sector.

Banks, fashion retailers, and numerous other businesses, will be closing - here are all the shops already confirmed to be closing in 2026.

River Island

River Island has confirmed they will be closing 32 of its stores in January 2026.

The move comes as part of a restructuring plan to address ongoing financial losses, with the clothing retailer reporting a £33.2 million deficit in 2023 following a 19% drop in sales.

Company bosses have cited the costs of maintaining high street stores as well as the rise of online shopping for the move.

River Island currently operates over 200 outlets around the UK with around 5,500 staff, and many of these roles are now at risk.

River Island operates over 200 UK outlets and employs around 5,500 people, and despite plans to relocate staff where possible, many roles are now at risk.

The full list of River Island stores set to close is:

Primark

Primark have announced the closure of their Dartford store in its first UK store closure in a decade.

The closure was due to extensive repair work needed at the store, which bosses deemed “not viable” due to the proximity of other Primark stores in Bexleyheath and Bluewater.

Over half of the staff at the Dartford store have been offered roles at nearby locations, with others receiving redundancy.

Poundland

Poundland has already closed dozens of stores nationwide due to restructuring, and a further 32 stores are due to shut in the first few months of 2026, bringing the total to 100.

The beloved discount store was sold for £1 last year to investment fund Gordon Brothers, the former owner of Laura Ashley.

Affected branches are running clearance sales with discounts of up to 40%.

The full list of Poundland stores set to close is:

Lloyds and Halifax

Lloyds Banking Group has announced they will be shutting 15 Halifax sites and 40 Lloyds branches nationwide this year, citing their customers choosing apps rather than physical banks to manage their money.

The full list of Lloyds Banks set to close is:

  1. Alfreton
  2. Ammanford
  3. Bideford
  4. Birmingham, Harborne
  5. Brigg
  6. Camborne
  7. Caterham
  8. Chepstow
  9. Chester-le-Street
  10. Deal
  11. Fleet
  12. Gillingam, Dorset
  13. Glossop
  14. Gorseinon
  15. Havant
  16. Hedge End
  17. Hedon
  18. Houghton le Spring
  19. Hucknall
  20. Ivybridge
  21. Lewes
  22. Liverpool Breck Road
  23. Manchester Moston
  24. Mitcham
  25. New Addington
  26. Okehampton
  27. Penzance
  28. Peterlee Yoden Way
  29. Petersfield
  30. Ryde
  31. Seaton
  32. Sleaford
  33. Stamford
  34. Stoke-on-Trent
  35. Swadlincote
  36. Thornbury Avon
  37. Totnes
  38. Totton
  39. Tunstall
  40. Wymondham

The full list of Halifax banks set to close is:

  1. Birmingham Bearwood
  2. Buxton – Spring Gardens
  3. Camborne
  4. Deal
  5. Hastings
  6. Havant
  7. Horsforth
  8. Middleton
  9. Nelson
  10. Peterlee
  11. Sleaford
  12. Skipton
  13. Wandsworth, London
  14. Yeovil

Cancer Research

In October, Cancer Research revealed that they will shut 88 of its charity shop branches by May 2026, due to spiralling running costs and changing consumer behaviour.

They also plan to close up to 100 more stores by April next year.

The restructure also involves plans to launch 12 'superstores' by 2028 in larger retail parks venues.

The full list of Cancer Research stores set to close is:

Trespass

The outdoor retailer closed their Watford, Aylesbury, and Ipswich branches last year, and have announced they will shut its Southampton branch in early 2026.

In 2024, Trespass shut 12 of its roughly 300 branches, with the retailer saying this was partly due to a lack of customers.

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by Evening Standard