JOBS are at risk at a high street supermarket that has recently been bought out by another chain.

Somerfield in Parsonage Street, Dursley, was last year taken over by the Co-op group as part of a large national takeover of the company.

However this week it was revealed that the Co-op has sold the supermarket on to Iceland, a move that looks set to put jobs under threat.

The Co-op confirmed that they have agreed to sell the store as a going concern including transfer of all staff.

But Iceland told the Gazette this week that the supermarket is likely to close for a significant amount of time before a refurbishment is done. leaving a question mark over what will happen to people's jobs.

A spokesman for Iceland said: "We confirm that we have purchased the former Somerfield site in Dursley from the Co-op, which will be handed over to us sometime in March.

"As this store will have to be planned into our refit programme, the store will be closed for a significant period of time.

"At the appropriate time we will commence consultation with all the existing Somerfield employees and their representatives."

No one at the Somerfield store, where around 20 people are employed, wanted to comment this week.

Iceland saw its profits soar last year, in the middle of a recession, recording profits of £113.7million at the year ending March 2009, a 16 per cent increase on the previous year.

The supermarket group also bought 51 former Woolworth shops last year that they currently in the process of reopening.