Cancer Research UK closes over 100 shops: full list of cities.

According to The Sun: The well-known retailer announced the closure of several of its shops.

The Cancer Research Foundation confirmed that it will close shops in locations such as Birmingham, Edinburgh, and High Wycombe by May 2026.

The foundation explained its decision due to rising national insurance, inflationary pressures, and changing consumer habits.

As a result of the changes, around 100 shops are also expected to close by April 2027.

These measures will affect approximately 600 staff and up to 3,000 volunteers.

The foundation noted that some staff will be redirected to other positions or helped to find new jobs and volunteering opportunities.

Additionally, in 2026, the foundation's online platform is also expected to close.

About 320 charity shops will remain in the UK.

However, the foundation plans to open another 12 new 'supermarkets' by 2028, already having 46 larger shops outside of cities.

The foundation emphasized its aim to meet the 'growing demand for spacious and profitable shopping.'

This move is expected to generate £12.4 million over the next five years.

List of closed Cancer Research shops

The closure window until May 2026 concerns shops such as:

• Aberdeen, 19 Rosemount Viaduct, AB25 1NE
• Airdrie, 5 Bank Street, ML6 6AF
• Balham, 168 Balham High Road, SW12 9BW
• Ballymena, 49 Ballymoney Street, BT43 6AN
• Banbury, 9 Parsons Street, OX16 5LW
• Barnstaple, Gammon Walk, EX31 1DJ
• Belfast, Bloomfield 17 Bloomfield Avenue, BT4 1RX
• Biggleswade, 24 High Street, SG18 0JL
• Birkenhead, Borough Pavement, CH41 2XX
• Birmingham, 245 High Street, Erdington, B23 6SS
• Bognor, 1-2 Clock Walk, P021 1SG
• Bolton, 6 Newport Street, BL1 1NB
• Bradford, 34-36 Ivegate, BD1 1SW
• Burton, On Trent 25 Station St, DE14 1AU
• Chesham, 34 High Street, HP5 1EP
• Clevedon, 1 Station Road, BS21 6NH
• Clydebank, 23 Sylvania Way South, G81 2UA
• Cotteridge, 20 Watford Road, Birmingham, B30 1JA
• Crew, 10 Market Street, CW1 2EG
• Derby, 826 Osmaston Road, Allenton, DE24 9AA
• Dewsbury, 22 Longcauseway, WF12 8EN
• Dudley, 258 Castle Street, DY1 1LQ
• East Barnet, 276 East Barnet Road, EN4 8TD
• Edinburgh, 9-10 Ormiston Terrace, Corstorphine, EH12 7SJ
• Epping, 197 High Street, CM16 4BL
• Fakenham, 26 Market Place, NR21 9BS
• Falkirk, 18 Vicar Street, FK1 1JL
• Galashiels, 55 High Street, TD1 1RZ
• Gillingham, 90 High Street, ME7 1AX
• Glasgow, 420-424 Victoria Road, G42 8YZ
• Gosport, 98 High Street, PO12 1DS
• Gravesend, 34 New Road, DA11 0AB
• Halesowen, 79 High Street, B63 3BQ
• Harrogate, 24A Oxford Street, HG1 1PU
• Hazel Grove, 129B-C London Road, Stockport, SK74HH
• Hemel Hempstead, 101 Marlowes, HP1 1LF
• High Wycombe, 8 Church Street, HP11 2DE
• Hornchurch, 8 Station Lane, RM12 6NJ
• Keswick, 24 Main Street, CA12 5JD
• King's Lynn, 61 High Street, PE30 1AY
• Lancaster, 54-54A Market Street, LA1 1HS
• Leeds, 28 L&S Lane, LS1 6LB
• Lincoln, 254 High Street, E20 1QJ
• Lisburn, 4 Smithfield Square, BT28 1AD
• Louth, 20 Market Place, LN11 9PD
• Ludlow, 3 Castle Street, SY8 1AS
• Maidenhead, 101 High Street, SL6 1JX
• Maidstone, 19 Gabriels Hill, ME15 6HR
• Market Drayton, 27 High Street, TF9 1QF
• Melton Mowbray, 6 South Parade, LE13 0PU
• Mertyr Tydfil, 14 Graham Way, CF47 8BT
• Mill Hill, 37 The Broadway, NW7 3DA
• Moreton, 242 Hoylake Road, CH46 6AD
• Newark, 26 Stodman Street, NG24 1AW
• Newcastle Under Lyme, 19 Ironmarket, ST5 1RF
• Northwood, 38 Green Lane, HA6 2QB
• Paddock Wood, 5 Commercial Road, TN12 6EN
• Pentrith, 10 Angel Lane, CA11 7BP
• Perth, 27 Scott Street, PH1 5TQ
• Redditch, 4 Market Place, B98 8AA
• Redruth, 71 Fore Street, TR15 2AF
• Retford, 25 Carolgate, DN22 6BZ
• Ross On Wye, 11 Market Place, HR9 5NU
• Rotherham, 74 Effingham Street, S65 1AL
• Rushden, 22 High Street, NN10 0PW
• Selby, 40A Gowthorpe, YO8 4ET
• Sevenoaks, 137 High Street, TN13 1UX
• Shrewsbury, 9 High Street, SY1 1SP
• Sidmouth, 19 Fore Street, EX10 8AL
• Skipton, 91 Caroline Square, BD23 1DA
• Slough, 8 Park Street, SL1 1PD
• Southend On Sea, 5 Warrior House, Southchurch Road, SS1 2LZ
• St Ives, 6 High Street, TR26 1RR
• Stalybridge, 44A Grosvenor Road, SK15 1RR
• Stockport, 26 Princes Street, SK1 1SE
• Stock, 44 Devonport Road, Plymouth, PL3 4DH
• Swansea, 19 Union Street, SA1 3EH
• Swindon, 28 Havelock Street, SN1 1SD
• Tiverton, 15 Bampton Street, EX16 6AA
• Urmonston, 16 Station Road, M41 9JN
• Welling, 26C Bellegrove Road, DA16 3PU
• Welwyn Garden City, 20 Howardsgate, AL8 6BQ
• West Bromwich, 203 High Street, B70 7QZ
• Whitby, 70 Baxtergate, YO21 1BL
• Wick, 36 Bridge Street, KW1 4NG
• Wigston, 6 Bell Street, LE18 1AD
• Workington, 26-32 Murray Road, CA14 2AG

Impact on Staff

Staff were informed of the decision last week during a video conference led by retail manager Julie Bayard.

One insider shared:

“This is heart-wrenching. We have given years of our lives to this charity, and now we are just being thrown out before Christmas.”

A source also noted that

“transitional trends” – such as reselling clothes on platforms like Vinted and Depop instead of donating them – are hurting sales.

Employees received an internal memo from Julie Bayard detailing the job cuts.

The memo stated:

“We know that if we do not take action now, a significant number of our shops and our online platform may become financially unsustainable within the next five years.”

“To ensure greater investment in saving lives and enhancing the experience for our staff, volunteers, and clients in the future, we are rethinking our retail operations.”

Street Challenges

Charity retailers are feeling the effects of decreased consumer spending.

The charity Scope closed dozens of its shops this year.

It warned in January that it may be forced to close some of its 138 shops.

By the end of March, 39 shops had closed, with another 31 expected to close by March 2026.

In May, other charities including Barnardo’s and Save the Children indicated that they do not rule out closures this year.

Pain in Retail in 2025

The British Retail Consortium predicted that the rise in national insurance contributions for employers will cost the retail sector £2.3 billion.

Research from the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than half of companies plan to raise prices by early April.

Surveying over 4,800 firms indicates that 55% expect price increases within the next three months, higher than the 39% recorded in a similar survey conducted during the second half of 2024.

Three-quarters of companies look to cut employee service costs as these are their main financial burden.

The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) also warned that around 17,350 retail outlets are expected to close this year.

This follows a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors permanently, marking a 28% increase compared to the previous year.

Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of CRR, noted:

“The results for 2024 show that while the shop closure statistics were not as dire as in 2020 or 2022, they are still concerning, and 2025 could be even worse.”

Professor Bamfield also warned of a bleak future for 2025, predicting that up to 202,000 jobs may be lost in the sector.

“By increasing the costs of running stores and raising expenditure for each consumer, we are likely to see more job losses in retail than during the pandemic in 2020.”

The closure of many shops of the Cancer Research Foundation signals serious economic problems facing charities in the UK. It also indicates changes in consumer purchasing habits, with more people opting for online sales over traditional charity shops. In response to these challenges, charities are attempting to adapt their strategies by announcing expansions in other formats, such as supermarkets.

This situation reflects the broader trend in the retail market, where charities are also feeling the pressure from decreasing consumer spending. Further changes in the structure of the charity retail business are expected as competition from online platforms continues to rise.