A TOWN centre business boss has welcomed the return of a popular name to the high street after its closure late last year.

Paul Hodgson, chairman of Barrow Business Improvement District, has called the return of Hays Travel to the Barrow high street 'extremely good' news after the agent closed in 2021.

He said: "It is extremely good news. Any business willing to invest in the town and fill an empty unit will be welcomed by us.

"There are not currently a vast amount of travel agents in the area and town so it is good to give people more options and a different reason to visit the town centre.

"The ability to go into a shop and speak to someone can be very important. A lot of people have to book their holidays online so that face-to-face opportunity is really good for the town."

Hays Travel took over the Thomas Cook store in Dalton Road in 2019 before it closed in 2021.

Hays Travel's Barrow branch contacted customers to inform them that they were closing the Dalton Road store due to 'unforeseen circumstances'.

A spokesperson for the firm said: "I would like to take this opportunity to inform you that due to unforeseen circumstances we are looking for a new home within the town, however, for the time being our team will be operating from our premises at 16 Market Street, Ulverston."

They transferred customers' ongoing bookings to their Ulverston branch and reassured customers that bookings would not be affected.

Hays, the largest independent travel agent in the UK, operate more than 400 branches across the country after taking over Thomas Cook's physical locations in 2019 when the firm went into administration.