British Legion to close seaside hotels to reduce costs

The Royal British Legion is proposing to cut some services in a bid to save millions of pounds.

Four convalescent seaside hotels are under threat including one in Southport.

The armed forces charity, the largest in the UK, said it was consulting with staff, including 153 who may face redundancy, as it looked to "refocus resource" as its welfare costs rise.

It believes nearly £6 million per year could be saved by ending four seaside "break centres" and an in-house home maintenance service.

The charity's director general Charles Byrne said, "We are seeing desperate people at their lowest ebb, people that can't afford to pay their rent or feed their families, and we must prioritise our funds based on the most urgent calls for help."

"We are putting forward proposals to ensure the charity can address the challenges ahead of us."