The death of the high street is having a disproportionate impact on women, according to a new report.

The report by the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) found that, between 2011 and 2018, there was a seven per cent decrease in the number of in sales and customer service workers: a net decline of 108,000 workers, most of whom were women (75,000).

More than 23,000 shops are predicted to close in 2019, following a challenging 2018, which saw Toys R Us and Maplin go bust, while M&S, Debenhams and New Look closed a significant number of stores.

The South West is one of the regions which has been hit particularly hard with job losses, along with the North East and East Midlands, while London has seen jobs continue to grow.

Retail sales continue to increase year-on-year, but more people are shopping online: data from ONS shows that online sales now account for 19 per cent of sales, up from eight per cent in 2011. To service the growth in online shopping, there ha been a 53 per cent increase in the number of process, plant and machine operators: a net increase of 40,000 jobs, most of whom were men (31,000).