A major carpet retailer which has three stores in Lancashire is set to enter administration putting more than 1,800 staff at risk.

Carpetright has filed a notice of intent appoint administrators and it is understood that experts from PwC are set to be appointed as part of the process, who will seek to find emergency funding or a rescue buyer for the business.

The retailer has one branch in East Lancashire, at the Nova Scotia Retail Park in Bolton Road, Blackburn.

Other branches in the county are in Preston and Morecambe.

Once a notice of intent to appoint administrators is filed, it gives companies around 10 days in which it can attempt to avoid insolvency.

Carpetright, which employs 1,852 people, operates 272 stores across the UK, which are continuing to trade as normal.

The company, owned by Nestware Holdings, has suffered from weaker demand for carpets as homeowners shifted towards hard flooring as well as a major cyberattack in April which halted trading.

It said the software attack’s impact of sales affected efforts by the company to restructure its operations in recent months.

Kevin Barrett, chief executive officer of Nestware Holdings, said: “We remain focussed on securing external investment to ensure as few customers and colleagues are impacted as possible.

“They are our main priority and we are taking all appropriate action to make sure they are informed and supported through this process.

“We have begun promising conversations with interested parties that are moving in the right direction, encouraging us that Carpetright has a viable future.”