A printing company founded in 1925 by Lord Nuffield has gone into administration, with the loss of 53 jobs.

Administrators from accountancy firm BDO arrived at the offices of Nuffield Press, right, in Abingdon, on Monday and told early shift workers to go home.

Others, due to arrive later, received telephone calls at home and learned that they had been made redundant.

Only a skeleton staff of 14 has been kept on while administrators continue negotiations with a possible buyer.

Martha Thompson, BDO’s business restructuring partner, said: “The economic climate and difficult trading conditions have significantly affected the business.

“However, we are investigating the possibility of a sale as a going concern.”

One worker, who declined to be named, said staff had been expecting the news as business had been quiet.

He added that staff from the JobCentre were helping workers come to terms with their redundancies and look for new employment.