Aspatria's Sealy factory closure leads to 267 job losses

The plant opened in 1967

A bed factory in Cumbria is set close with the loss of more than 250 jobs.

Sealy said the profitability of its facility in Aspatria had declined for a number of years, and the impact of the coronavirus outbreak had made the situation worse.

A consultation into shutting down the plant will be launched with its 267 strong workforce, who have been on furlough since 24 March.

The GMB trade union said staff were "shocked and saddened" by the news.

Sealy, which is part of the Silentnight Group, started operating on the site in 1974.

'Support all employees'

The group's chairman, Adrian Fawcett, said: "The UK bed market has been challenging for a number of years and the profitability of the Aspatria site has progressively declined.

"The impact of the current Coronavirus pandemic, coupled with uncertainties regarding some of the site's major customers, has substantially exacerbated this situation.

Mr Fawcett said the company's priority was to "support all employees affected".

Chris Preston from the GMB said: "We are now in the process of arranging the first consultation meeting with the employer in the very near future at which we will hopefully be provided with the employers business case regarding the proposal.

"The GMB and the workforce are of course shocked and saddened with this development and appreciate the uncertainty and concern this announcement by the employer will cause the workforce at what is already a difficult time for staff."

Union bosses are set to hold talks with local management on Monday in an attempt to avoid further job losses.