LESS than two months after the Westover Group car dealership was sold to the Hendy Group, it has been announced that it will be outsourcing its valeting operation which will affect ten workers.

A spokesperson for Hendy Group said: “Following a review of all sales operations we’ve reached the decision to subcontract out the valeting function to ensure we have the right resources in the right place and at the right time. This ultimately ensures customers receive the very best experience.

“All members of staff affected have been offered the option to apply for roles with the company awarded the contract. We’re also fully supporting them with the option to apply for other vacancies within the group.”

One distraught employee told the Echo: "This is so cruel. They literally had a meeting with Hendy a couple of weeks ago and all the employees were told 'we care about our employees'."

It was at the end of March that

Westover announced it had been acquired by Hendy Group

for an undisclosed sum.

March's acquisition saw Hendy become a £1bn turnover company with 2,000 employees and operations from Exeter to Eastbourne.

It meant the Hendy Group now operates 26 franchises from 83 outlets. A new branch is due to open in Ferndown later this year.

Westover chairman Peter Wood said at the time: “After more than 50 years in the motor industry I have decided that it is time to bow out. Westover has been my passion now for more than 40 years and to find a suitable company to hand it over to which has the same ethos of looking after its staff and customers has not been easy.

“We believe that in Hendy we have found that."