A petition has been launched to try to save the Dorchester branch of Marks & Spencer.

As reported, the branch of Marks & Spencer located on South Street is set to close its doors – and the company is in discussion with 53 members of staff concerning the proposals.

In a statement, the food and fashion chain said it was ‘reshaping’ its store estate “to meet the needs of today’s customer”. A closure date for the Dorchester branch is not yet known.

However, many residents have expressed their disappointment at the decision, saying the proposed closure will be a great loss for the county town.

Sandra Jordan, owner of Jordan’s Jewellers in Dorchester started a petition on Change.org to save the store, arguing that the branch has such strong support from the community.

On the petition page, she said: “There is a proposed plan to close our Marks and Spencer store in Dorchester, Dorset, however, this decision is not yet final. As you know the Marks and Spencer store in Dorchester is extremely popular and is supported by the whole of the county town and surrounding areas. Please sign this petition to help show how much support this store has. Can I then ask that you kindly share this message with your friendly, family and colleagues. Thank you for your time.”

The petition attracted more than 480 signatures in its first day online, and Sandra is hopeful that it can attract more and more support.

At the time of writing, more than 2,500 people have signed the petition, and Sandra is hoping that more people will continue to sign it.

She said: “We want to just try and smash the targets. We want to show that the store is well supported.

“If we were to lose Marks and Spencer, not only would we lost a store, we would have unemployment and we would have a massive hole in the town.”

Sandra is imploring people to pass on the message and encourage more people to express their support for the store.

The Dorchester store would be one of more than 100 branches which would close by 2022.

The petition to save Marks & Spencer Dorchester can be found at change.org