SHAREHOLDERS owning more than 80 per cent of ink industry supplier Wolstenholme Rink have accepted a buyout offer.

Last month bosses at the Darwen firm announced a £48.7million management buy-out but assured workers that no redundancies were expected as a result of the move.

Now Bidco, the firm set up to make the offer for the long-established firm, has said it has received acceptances for its bid in respect of 6.234million shares in the firm. The offer has been extended to August 30. Wolstenholme Rink employs 650 people and specialises in sales to the ink and printing ink industry all over the world.

The buy-out has been put together by investors linked to the Rutland Trust and existing directors of Wolstenholme Rink.

The move will mean that the firm is split into two with the Darwen-based site operating as Wolstenholme International with existing directors including Paul Rink, Andrew Rink, Chris Ravenscroft, and two directors from the Rutland Trust at the helm.

Director Chris Ravenscroft said: "We are hoping to consolidate our position as a result of this move. As a public company we were under enormous pressure to do things we didn't want to do and we feel that as a private company with strong bank backing we can push forward and make the firm more successful."