MOTHERCARE in Worcester's Crowngate Shopping Centre is closing down – but staff say they have not been told when the store will shut.

Signs have appeared in the windows announcing a closing down sale.

Staff at the shop told the Worcester News there had been no communication from Mothercare on when the store would close, and that they had only found out about the company going bust through reports in the media.

Mothercare announced at the weekend that it is to close all 79 of its UK stores.

Nearly 3,000 jobs are at risk of being lost after the firm called in administrators from PricewaterhouseCoopers at its UK trading arm and Mothercare Business Services.

The move does not include Mothercare's overseas operations, which includes more than 1,000 stores in more than 40 countries and generates more than £500m in revenue.

The global Mothercare group said it has undertaken a review of the UK business and found that it is "not capable of returning to a level of structural profitability".

Richard Lim, chief executive officer at Retail Economics, said: "Years of under-investment in the online business and its inability to differentiate itself as a specialist for young families and expectant parents has been the root of its seemingly inevitable downfall.

"As competition has become fiercer they have been beaten on price, convenience and the overall customer experience.

"Put simply, they have been left behind in today's rapidly evolving market and the board has been unable to restructure the business fast enough to cope with a new retail paradigm that has emerged."