BOSSES at an East Lancashire travel firm who are looking to shed 115 jobs have held a summit with concerned councillors.

The Lancashire Telegraph reported on Tuesday that Awaze, the parent company at Hoseasons and cottages.com, has announced plans to move its UK headquarters to Manchester.

The company is set to consult with around staff, many of whom are at its base at Spring Mill, Earby, which is set to close as it cuts its 350-strong workforce.

It was claimed that some roles will move to home-working while some new roles will be recruited at the company’s Lowestoft office in Suffolk.

Officials from Pendle Council held a virtual meeting on Wednesday with Henrik Kjellberg, the CEO of Amaze.

Cllr David Whipp, who represents the Craven ward, said: “We asked the reasons for the decision and whether it was past the point of no return.

“He said the intention was to complete the consolidation by September 1 and that he anticipated there would be a reduction of 115 staff from the current workforce of 350 at Earby.

“It is a personal blow for me because I was involved with the derelict land grant which transformed the mill in the first place when they came to Earby.

“It was clear that nothing we (the council) could do would get the company to change its mind.

“I am devastated as there have been people working there for decades and I hope some jobs can be saved.

“It is not just the loss of jobs that we are worried about as there are businesses in Earby such as the sandwich shops that provide food for the employees.

“It will leave a huge hole in the area.

“I have been contacted by some employees and relatives of employees who have thanked us for our efforts to try to save the jobs and saying how devastated they are. In some families both partners work there and they are very worried.”

The decision comes after bosses had been ‘reviewing the operational needs of the business with the objective of simplifying the way the company supports both its customers and owners’ over the past few months and Earby was a site ‘at risk’.