Pagebet bookies closing nine branches

Nine branches of a bookmakers in the Midlands have closed after the company went into administration, with several job losses.

Pagebet Bookmakers branches across Walsall, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Birmingham have shut.

However, three in Walsall are being kept open after Stan James stepped in to take them on.

In total 23 of the company's 53 offices across the country have been forced to shut – leading to 125 redundancies.

Those to have been axed include Walsall Wood Road, Aldridge, and Buxton Road, in Bloxwich along with Buffrey Road and Park Road, Woodsetton in Dudley.

Immediate closures have also taken place in Station Road, Codsall, Anders Square, Perton, and Alexandra Road in Halesowen.

The Streetly Road branch in Erdington and Warwick Road, Solihull, have been hit by the cull.

The Durham-based company only started trading in 2007 but quickly expanded across the country.

A total of 131 jobs have been secured after 27 betting offices were sold to Stan James Ltd and three others to Platinum Leisure.

Those to have been saved include High Road, Lane Head, Willenhall, High Street in Pelsall, and Lichfield Road in Rushall.

Stan James has agreed to guarantee payment for all unpaid winnings.Craig Livesey, of PricewaterhouseCoopers, said Pagebet has experienced "challenging trading conditions".