HOLIDAY giant Rank is recruiting almost 200 staff for its new-look complex at Bognor.

The new jobs will be provided at the call centre which is based at the Butlin's family entertainment resort.

The centre will become the national headquarters for holiday reservations for all Rank holiday companies, including Butlin's, Haven, Warner and Oasis.

At the moment the different holiday companies operate separate booking offices all over the country.

The Bognor centre will now deal with more than three million people who take holidays through the Rank group.

The announcement is a welcome boost for Bognor, which is undergoing an important regeneration programme.

Peter Allport, Rank Holidays commercial director, said: "The creation of 180 additional jobs will increase Rank Holidays' contribution to the local economy."

New staff are expected to begin work in the next few months after receiving intensive training on new state-of-the art computer technology.

They will also be given familiarisation visits to various holiday locations to help them sell holidays more effectively.

The Butlin's complex has recently undergone a multi-million pound refurbishment and it opens for the first time on May 19.

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