A hospital bookshop is to close after 26 years - after owner Blackwell said it had been unable to agree the terms of a new lease.

The news comes after the Oxford-based chain won the top prize at the 2007 Bookseller Retail Awards, where it was praised for its "astute leadership and company-wide commitment to change".

The medical bookshop's lease at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, expired and has not been renewed.

Blackwell spokesman Phil Jamieson said: "We have been in negotiation on the terms of the lease, but haven't been able to find a suitable location."

One staff member has transferred to Broad Street and another is leaving.

He added: "We wanted to keep the store there, and were looking at another unit at the hospital, but have not been able to agree terms with the hospital."

The JR declined to comment, or to say what would replace it. The shop specialised in medical textbooks but had a full range of fiction and non-fiction, used by visitors and patients.

After suffering financial problems, Blackwell's has restyled its stores with hi-tech search terminals.

That earned the company the top prize at the 2007 Bookseller Retail Awards.

Some 500 industry figures and authors were at the awards dinner.

The formerly loss-making bookselling chain, which runs 60 shops across the UK, has made a significant turnaround in the past 18 months since chief executive, Vince Gunn, took over from Philip Blackwell, great grandson of the founder.

The JR store, which closes on Friday, was one of the chain's specialist campus stores. Mr Jamieson said no other campus stores were closing.

He added: "In fact we have just opened a new campus store in Reading. We are certainly not looking at closing any more campus stores."

* Chipping Norton's Jaffé and Neale Bookshop and Café was named Independent Bookseller of the Year at the awards.