THE administrators for Mothercare have confirmed all its 79 shops in the UK will close, putting 2,500 jobs at risk.

The retailer – which has branches at Southampton’s West Quay Retail Park and Solent Retail Park in Havant – also revealed it was holding last-ditch talks with potential partners as it battles to keep its brand in the UK and had raised £3.2 million from shareholders.

Zelf Hussain at administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said: "It's with real regret that we have to implement a phased closure of all UK stores. Our focus will be to help employees and keep the stores trading for as long as possible.

"This is a sad moment for a well-known high street name."

The retailer filed a notice to appoint administrators for the UK division on Monday.

However, it is still holding discussions "to ensure that the group has an ongoing retail presence in the UK", it said.

The group is understood to be looking at options which could include finding a partner to keep the Mothercare brand alive online, or a supermarket that has space to sell Mothercare-branded products.

Mothercare said it had raised £3.2m from a group of existing investors, including its biggest shareholder, sheep farmer and investment banker Richard Griffiths.

In his first remarks since the crisis started on Monday, chairman Clive Whiley said British high streets were facing "a near existential problem" with high rents and customers deciding to shop online.

"Mothercare UK is far from immune to these headwinds," he said, adding it had been burning through cash.