A major UK supermarket will shut over 350 shops for a day in April. The retailer has confirmed that the stores will be shut for a 24 hour period and has urged shoppers to check the opening times of their local branch in the surrounding days.

Waitrose, which has 421 stores across the UK, will shut most of its branches on Easter Sunday (April 5) to give staff some much-needed time off. A spokesperson for the supermarket told the Daily Express that a “select number” of Little Waitrose stores will remain open. There are up to 65 of these smaller shops throughout the nation, meaning that at least 356 Waitrose stores will be shut on Easter Sunday.

However, all Waitrose, which is part of the John Lewis Partnership, stores will remain open on Good Friday and Easter Monday. They may be open with reduced hours so shoppers are advised to check times on the supermarket’s website.

A John Lewis Partnership spokesperson said: “All Waitrose branches will be open on Good Friday and Easter Monday but some may open on reduced hours.

“On Easter Sunday, the majority of our branches will be closed with a select number of Little Waitrose stores open. We advise that customers check times of individual shops by using the branch finder page on our website.”

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Shops over 280 square metres in size are legally obliged to close on Easter Sunday under the Sunday Trading Act 1994. However, smaller stores, as well as airport and railway station outlets, service stations and registered pharmacies can remain open.

It was previously reported that 560 Home Bargains branches will also shut this Easter Sunday. The retailer, which employs around 28,000 staff, will be open on Good Friday with reduced hours from 9am until 7pm.

A Home Bargains spokesperson confirmed that all 70 stores in Scotland will remain open as usual on Easter Sunday while the rest of the shops across the UK will shut. As there are 630 shops nationwide, this means 560 branches will be closed on the day.