Poundworld stores in Watford and St Albans will shut next weekend.

Eighty more stores were announced to close resulting in 1,024 job losses.

Twelve jobs will be lost in Watford and 16 will go in St Albans.

It follows an announcement earlier this month that 25 stores will close by this weekend, resulting in the loss of 242 jobs.

Administrators Deloitte, which is overseeing the process, has struggled to sell the business as a whole but said the latest raft of closures will not affect a potential deal for the remaining business.

The administrator said discussions with interested parties are ongoing and "will continue to progress" over the coming days.

It will leave Poundworld with just 230 open branches.

Watford’s Poundworld branch is in The Parade next door to Nandos. The St Albans branch is in St Peter’s Street.

Poundworld, which was formerly owned by private equity firm TPG Capital, had been operating with 335 stores and around 5,100 staff before it went bust last month.

Joint administrator Clare Boardman said: "Whilst we remain hopeful that a sale for part, or parts, of the business can still happen, it has not been possible to sell the business as a whole.

"We would like to thank all the employees for their continued support and commitment during this difficult time.

"We are keeping staff appraised of developments as they happen."

Deloitte's discussions with interested parties have also involved the future of Poundworld's distribution centre and head office in Normanton, West Yorkshire, where 100 people have already been made redundant.

Deloitte has turned down a bid for Poundworld from its founder, Chris Edwards, who was looking to save a raft of stores and safeguard around 3,000 jobs.

The Press Association has since revealed that the founder of rival Poundland, Steven Smith, is in early-stage talks about a bid to salvage part of Poundworld out of administration.