Fashion retailer New Look plans to close 60 stores as part of a rescue deal to help it avoid going into administration.

About 980 staff face redundancy - from a 15,300-strong UK workforce - and rents at about 400 stores will be cut, as reported by the BBC.

New Look has 593 stores and hopes to redeploy employees within the business where possible. The rescue plan for the company, which has stores in Stroud, Cirencester, Gloucester and Cheltenham, still needs approval from creditors.

The retailer said it had been struggling with its rental costs and had asked landlords for leeway so it could get back to profitability.

The company is going ahead with a Company Voluntary Agreement to avoid going into administration.

Like many retailers, it has faced a challenging retail market, driven by weaker consumer confidence, the implications of Brexit and competition from online channels. New Look is just the latest in a string of UK retailers to have bone bust or closed stores in recent months, and the news follows hot on the heels of the collapse of both Toys R Us and Maplin last week.

New Look has released a list of possible stores for closure, which doesn't include any of its Gloucestershire stores. The nearest possible store closures are in Monmouth and Stratford-upon-Avon.