Costa Blanca
Elche’s H&M shop closing

The Swedish retail chain H&M announced in 2024 that it would be reducing the number of stores and employment it has in Spain due to “organisational, productive, and economic” reasons. Around 50 layoffs were the result of the closure of stores in the L’Aljub retail centres in Elche, Ociopía in Orihuela, and Habaneras in Torrevieja, which had consequences for the province of Alicante.
Additionally, these were the sole instances in the Valencian Community that were impacted. The Torrevieja store was the first to shut its doors in May 2024 since that time. The Orihuela store was subsequently closed on September 14th of the same year. Currently, the Elche store has shuttered its doors. The facility was closed to the public on March 14th, following its final day of operation on March 11th. It will be entirely shut down on March 22nd. Approximately 20 employees are being laid off at this Elche store. It is the final establishment in the province of Alicante that will not reopen, and the circumstances of the dismissal were negotiated in October. The employees have departed the company with an agreement as a result of these negotiations, according to Yolanda de la Casa, the general secretary of the CCOO Services Federation in Alicante.
The dismissal terms that were established following the October negotiations were 45 days until 2012 and 33 days until the present. A gratuity of 3,500 euros was granted for the first five years, 4,000 euros for the next ten years, and a maximum of 4,500 euros for the subsequent years.
Furthermore, three relocations have occurred among the 50 individuals who were laid off in the province, spanning Elche, Orihuela, and Torrevieja. Lely Fernández of UGT l’Alacantí-La Marina informed this newspaper that these were part-time employees from the Habaneras shopping centre in Torrevieja who were transferred to the La Zenia shopping centre, which continues to operate and is accessible.
H&M initiated 2024 by announcing the closure of 28 stores and approximately 588 collective redundancies. The figure was reduced to 521 reductions in a subsequent revision.
The Torrevieja store closed its doors to the public on May 17th, 2024, and the lease expired on May 24th, never to be reopened. Nevertheless, numerous employees at this establishment were granted the opportunity to relocate to other nearby stores that were still operational. In September 2024, Ociopía followed suit, and Elche followed suit in March 2025.
The H&M group operates over 100 stores and employs nearly 4,000 individuals in the country. This decision was made by the Scandinavian company in order to “adapt and perfect” its stores in a “changing” shopping environment for its consumers. Additionally, Spain would be responsible for 17% of the brand’s global closures, as indicated by the data that the company disclosed months ago when it presented its 2023 financial year.
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Costa Blanca
Elche is completing the new pavilion in the vicinity of L’Aljub

The new sports pavilion in the L’Aljub neighbourhood is now being built by the municipality of Elche. Along with Francisco Soler, the Deputy Mayor, José Antonio Román, the councillor for sports; and municipal experts, Elche Mayor Pablo Ruz visited the construction site of the new inclusive sports pavilion in the L’Aljub neighbourhood yesterday, Thursday 27th March.
Ruz stated that the project will be finished over the summer, in July or August, assuming all goes as planned, and that it represents an investment of €12.6 million. “Work on this area, which will be able to accommodate important athletic events, training sessions, and cultural gatherings, is moving along nicely. The mayor underlined that the area’s architectural significance required this kind of infrastructure.
“Delays in the works during previous legislative periods have led to the loss of the subsidy for this project, which has now been financed with municipal funds,” the governing team said of the project, which was first included in the Edusi European Funds.
The pavilion can accommodate 3,000 people and has a built-up area of more than 6,600 square meters. There will be 1,500 permanent seats in total, with the remaining seats being moveable and detachable. In addition to a centre court for all sports, the sports complex will feature a service ring with locker rooms, a gym, and weight rooms that are open to everyone.
“We are in the process of putting out to tender the draughting of the reorganisation and traffic access project for this entire area, which is essential for regulating vehicle flow,” Pablo Ruz said in reference to parking and access. Additionally, he suggested making a portion of the municipal parking lot of the L’Aljub Shopping Centre accessible to patrons of this pavilion.
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The Ukrainian House will open “soon” in Torrevieja

Soon, the Ukrainian House in Spain will open in a government-donated property in Torrevieja, Alicante. It will help and counsel individuals who want to return when safety conditions allow, as well as preserve connections between those who have been displaced by the war and their homeland.
After touring the facilities provided by the government in the Care, Reception and Referral Centre building, one of four in Spain along with Madrid, Barcelona and Malaga, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Unity Oleksiy Chernyshov made this statement yesterday, Thursday 27th March, in Torrevieja. Elma Saiz, the Minister of Migration, Social Security and Inclusion, and Eduardo Dolón, the mayor of the city, also shared this viewpoint.
In Torrevieja, a city with over 10,000 registered residents and one of the major hubs of the diaspora in Spain, the Deputy Prime Minister’s presence—bolstered by a robust Guardia Civil presence—was followed by a meeting with leaders of compatriot associations.
Chernyshov clarified that the Ukrainian House will open “very soon” and is anticipated to coincide with the inauguration of the Ukrainian Houses in Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, and, most likely, Italy, despite the fact that no opening dates have been set.
Within the Ukrainian ‘Unity Hub Space’ in the EU is the Ukrainian House
The ambitious ‘Unity Hub Space’ initiative, which includes all of these Ukrainian Houses throughout European nations, aims to offer a wide range of services to the Old Continent, including banking, employment, education, healthcare, business assistance, and consular services.
In order to help citizens who had to flee the war feel “connected” to their homeland, the Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister underlined the significance of this centre. It also facilitated, under safe conditions, return procedures, such as work permits, the location of schools for minors, and various documents.
Chernyshov said his nation is grateful to Spain for sheltering the people who have been displaced by Russian aggression over the last three years and for making it possible for this Ukrainian House to open.
“A place of encounter and hope,” Minister Saiz said
The Ukrainian House was established as “a space of hope and meeting” to serve Ukrainians, of whom there are thought to be over 230,000 in Spain under temporary protection, according to Elma Saiz, Minister of Migration, Social Security, and Immigration.
According to the data he presented, there are approximately 30,000 youngsters enrolled in the national education system, and he said that over 40,000 Ukrainians have gone through the foster care institutions that the central government has put in place.
About half of the 30,000 diaspora members with temporary protection who are registered with Spanish Social Security are women, demonstrating the “example of integration and inclusion” that has occurred.
Saiz added that the Ukrainian House’s first floor is entirely open-plan, and that the transfer to Ukraine entails that Ukraine will be in charge of assigning particular personnel and overseeing the activities offered.
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Santa Pola Local Police catch youth on e-scooter that reached speeds of up to 99 kph

A 14-year-old youth was fined nearly 2,000 euros by the Santa Pola Local Police for up to five infractions.
The child attempted to escape into the streets when the police patrol stopped him to try to identify him while he was riding an electric scooter along a Gran Alacant street at around 4:00 a.m. on Wednesday, 26th March.
Officers from the Santa Pola Local Police unit were able to confirm that the electric scooter could travel up to 99 kilometres per hour when it was later tested.
The minor’s legal guardian has been given the fines.
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