ONE of Craven's main employers is making redundancies and moving its staff over the border to Lancashire, the Herald can reveal.

The axe is set to fall on Welcome Holidays, in Embsay, which was taken over by the Cendant group, a New York-based corporation, in July last year.

It was rumoured to have paid £25 million for it.

But it seems the Embsay holiday business is now planning to move some of its staff to its sister company, Country Holidays at Earby, while other employees face redundancy.

The latest news is that several departments have already been transferred over the past few months and that those remaining in customer care and reservations - possibly as many as 160 people - have been told they will be moved some time in August.

Around 30 other staff - thought to be those working in reception and responsible for sending out brochures - will be made redundant.

The offices at Embsay are leased from Ebor Fabrics which occupies part of the site, and it is not known what plans there are for the site once Welcome Holidays vacates it.

A former employee of Welcome Holidays told the Herald: "When the takeover from Cendant occurred, staff were assured that their contracts would be continued, but it seems contracts can be changed.

"There are people there facing redundancy who are approaching retirement age and will struggle to find another job.

"Skipton has a low unemployment rate and it is going to be very distressing for those concerned.

"There will also be a knock-on effect for local businesses such as pubs in Embsay and even the railway which leased car parking spaces for some of the staff."

Welcome Holidays was started more than nine years ago by Nick Magoolagan and Michael Bailey.

Before it was taken over by Cendant, it was the United Kingdom's biggest and fastest growing independent holiday letting agency, specialising in the provision of private holiday accommodation in the UK, Ireland and France.

In less than a decade, it grew from being a modest employer of just six staff to having more than 250 people on its payroll. It was one of the largest employers in Craven.

In 2001 it was awarded best e-entrepreneur in the Bradford district.

Following last year's takeover, Welcome Holidays was merged with Earby-based Country Holidays - which was founded by Gargrave man Philip Green and bought by Cendant just over two years ago.

Together the two companies had a portfolio of around 15,000 holiday premises.

Cendant bosses were given the opportunity to comment on the possible transfers and redundancies, but had not done so by the time the Herald went to press.