TESCO is to call time on 24-hour shopping in Hexham.

The store is included in a list of 76 outlets which will no longer be opening throughout the night.

Since opening 10 years ago, the store has been operating on a round-the-clock basis. It will now shut its doors between midnight and 6am.

Tesco insists the reduction in opening hours will improve the shopping experience for customers. It says staff will be freed up overnight to restock shelves.

Retail director Tony Hoggett said: “We’re always thinking about how to serve our customers better in each of our stores and, with the growth of online grocery shopping, these stores saw very few customers during the night.

“It makes much more sense for colleagues at those stores to focus on replenishing the shelves instead and making sure they’re fully stocked when they open their doors at 6am.

“We’ll continue to make changes in-store in ways that will make shopping at Tesco a better experience for our customers, at the times they want to shop.”

Tesco says the changes at affected stores will take place between March 14 and April 11.