More than 100 ex-employees of Unipart Automotive, which went into administration last month, have been offered the prospect of new jobs following the acquisition of 27 of the company's former branches.

The locations, including sites in Bury St Edmunds, Norwich and Cambridge, have been acquired by car and light commercial vehicle parts distrubitor Euro Car Parts (ECP) following talks with the administrators, from accountancy firm KPMG.

The deal takes the ECP network to 194 branches, and the company has not ruled out the possibility of acquiring more of the former Unipart Automotive sites.

'We are delighted to have acquired these 27 branches and may yet acquire more,' said Martin Gray, ECP chief executive,

'Most importantly, we are optimistic that many ex-Unipart employees from these locations will now join Euro Car Parts. We look forward to helping them to continue their aftermarket careers and bring an end to the uncertainty and stress these past weeks have brought them and their families.'

Mr Gray added that offers had been made to more than 100 former Unipart employees, with ECP planning to create 1,500 new positions over the next 12 to 18 months.

Nearly 1,250 people, including more than 100 in the East of England, were made redundant following last month's appointment of administrators at Unipart Automotive, one of the UK's largest independent suppliers of car parts.

The company, based at Solihull in the West Midlands, operated 180 branches and distribution hubs trading under the Unipart Automotive, Partco Autoparts and Express Factors identities.

A total of 21 branches, including those in Ipswich, Felixstowe and Colchester, were sold by the administrators to Andrew Page, another of the UK's largest distributors of car parts and workshop equipment, and a further 12 to The Parts Alliance, saving around 360 jobs.

However, 1,244 employees, out of a group total of 1,813, were made redundant, with around 200 members of staff being retained to assist the administrators.

Unipart Automotive is a separate company from the Unipart Group, which manufacturers spare parts, having been sold in 2011 to H2 Equity Partners.