CLOTHING chain Matalan has shed 300 jobs as part of a restructuring programme announced yesterday.

Fifteen jobs have gone at stores across the North-East and North Yorkshire as the company trimmed the workforce at its 190 stores nationwide and cut 100 jobs at its head office in Lancashire.

Matalan first warned staff in June that it was considering job cuts as it looked to save £15m a year in the face of a UK spending slowdown.

The company said one job had gone at each of its stores, with the positions affected mainly in administrative or office roles, and the programme was in the process of being implemented.

In its last trading update, Matalan said like-for-like sales were 6.5 per cent lower in the nine weeks to July 2, although this represented an improvement on the decline seen earlier in the year.

The job losses are the latest blow to the retail sector, as some of the worst trading conditions in two decades cause companies to shed staff.

A report earlier this year warned up to 150,000 jobs could be lost in the retail sector over the next five years.

Higher interest rates, a stagnating property market and rising debts have been blamed for the spending slowdown, which is thought to have claimed up to 8,000 jobs in the first half of the year.