A MOMENTARY sigh of relief will be felt across the town with the news Debenhams is set to reopen its Taunton store.

It has been revealed that the Taunton store is one of 50 stores in England to be opening its doors again on June 15, with the remaining stores following later in the week.

The retailer - which recently entered administration - said it will only reopen 120 stores after a series of closures, having entered the lockdown with 142 stores.

Debenhams said preparations for the reopenings are “well under way”, with strict social distancing and hygiene procedures being implemented across all stores.

Steven Cook, managing director at Debenhams, said: “We are delighted to be welcoming customers back to our stores in the coming weeks.

“From the installation of Perspex screens at till points to the roll-out of social distancing procedures and PPE, we have been working hard to ensure our colleagues and customers can work and shop with confidence.

“Our reopening plans follow the successful conclusion of lease negotiations on 120 stores, meaning that the vast majority of our stores will be reopening.”

Last month, Debenhams said it will cut hundreds of head office jobs as it looks to drive a turnaround in profitability.

Debenhams was already struggling before the lockdown and fell into administration on April 9 in a protective measure against creditors demanding their money.

Since the coronavirus pandemic shut all non-food retailers, the department store has announced the permanent closure of at least 12 stores, with thousands of job losses.

READ MORE: Have your say on 55 retirement flats 'contingency plan' for major Taunton store

In Taunton, a 'contingency' plan is in motion just in case the store is forced to close.

The landlords of the building are preparing a planning application which would see the landmark store converted into retirement flats and retail premises.

Developer Crossmark Estates Limited has been tasked with creating the plans and is now calling on residents to have their say over the future of the site.

A spokesperson for the project said: “The difficulties Debenhams has been facing nationally have been making headline news recently.

“In common with many other retailers, changes in shopping patterns have created serious challenges and the current lockdown is only making things more difficult.

“The Debenhams store in Taunton has been a major landmark for decades. It has once again survived the national round of closures and it is expected to open post-lockdown.

“However, while no-one wants it to close, the scale of the difficulties it is facing have inevitably raised concerns about the possibility of a large empty store at this key location.

“Having a contingency plan in place is seen as a priority for Taunton and the continued health of the high street.

“In the current economic climate, there is little demand for retail premises of this size, and it is essential that any plans on how to recover from a closure take this into account.

“This means redevelopment options need to be considered and a contingency planning application is currently being prepared by Crossmark and their design team on behalf of the landlord.”

Mark Lewis, director of Crossmark, said: “We are very aware of the sensitivities surrounding a contingency plan of this nature.

“Debenhams is a major employer in Taunton, and the best possible outcome for all concerned is for their Taunton store to continue to trade successfully when the lockdown ends.

“Unfortunately, store closures can happen quite quickly, and the planning process can be lengthy. To minimise potential impact, we have begun the process early, to give time to develop a positive vision for this important site should redevelopment be necessary and thereby to bring this large town centre site back into active use as soon as possible.”

For more information about the design development and consultation process, visit 19to26northstreet.co.uk.