Debenhams is set to ask its lenders for a further £50m cash injection to carry the struggling retailer through Christmas trading.

The department store retailer is understood to have informed its lending syndicate that it expects to require the additional funding as soon as this autumn, according to Sky News.

The £50m increase would be made in addition to the £200m borrowing facility secured in March.

Sources told Sky News that Debenhams’ consortium of lenders Celine, which took control of the business after a failed sale process in May, remained “supportive” of the company and its transformation plan.

The department store retailer launched a CVA to close 50 stores in the coming years, 22 of which will be shuttered next year, impacting 1,200 roles.

The retailer’s CVA is facing a legal challenge from Sports Direct, with boss and former Debenhams shareholder Mike Ashley dubbing the retailer’s restructuring plan “a national scandal”.