The House of Fraser department store in the town centre will be closing its doors for good next month. 

Signs went up outside the Canal Walk building telling shoppers of the move.


Big banners in the window are advertising a closing down sale, with people looking for a bargain able to get an ‘extra 20 per cent off’.

 Frasers Group, the company that owns House of Fraser as well as other retail brands like Game, Evans Cycles, Sports Direct and Jack Wills, has confirmed the closure of the Swindon store is a permanent one. 

A spokeswoman for House of Fraser said: “It is with regret that we announce the closure of House of Fraser, Swindon.

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank our staff for their hard work and dedication.

“Where possible, we are committed to finding new roles within the group for all staff.”

It is understood that roughly 58 jobs will be at risk following the decision.

The House of Fraser store is one of the largest shops in Wharf Green, stretching across two floors of the Brunel Centre. 

Shoppers who visit the town centre will be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu over the announcement as the store was set to close in September 2020. 

A closing down sale and redundancy talks with staff members began. 

But just a day before the store was set to close an 11th hour rent deal with the Brunel shopping centre bosses was achieved. 

The sale was ended and all redundancy talks were concluded, with the manager at the time describing it as ‘business as usual’ going forward. 

It stayed open for another 12 months but will now close for good.

A number of prominent businesses abandoned the town centre during the pandemic, leaving empty units behind. 

The Debenhams store closed in March 2020 for the first lockdown along with non-essential retailers around the country and a month later the company announced it would not be reopening. 

Sainsbury’s in the Brunel Centre closed in November last year after almost half a century at the site as part of a national strategy.


Both of those units remain empty. 

River Island has moved to a new location at the Orbital Retail Park, while Topshop and Top Man closed in January 2020. 

The River Island building is now being used as the home of the new Swindon Hub. 

Swindon shoppers commenting on the Adver’s Facebook page reacted to the news with an air of resigned inevitability.

Jenn Wolfie said: “Another one bites the dust... going to be nothing left in Swindon soon.”

Anne Marie-Salmon said: “Just been in town for the first time in weeks. 
“It is so sad to see what’s happening to the centre, there soon won’t be anywhere left to go.

Karen Benton said: “Not a surprise. Every thing is closing down.”