Pizza Hut Delivery plans to create 5,000 jobs by 2020 by more than doubling the number of its outlets.

In its expansion announcement, the company revealed that recruitment was already underway to fill new jobs being created, from chefs and delivery drivers to franchisees.

Pizza Hut Delivery currently operates 318 outlets across the UK and Ireland, and plans to open around 40 new stores a year until 2020, taking the total number of delivery stores to about 700.

“To do this, the company is planning to take on around 15 new franchisees a year,” the firm’s announcement said. Manchester and Birmingham are among the cities identified as specific key growth areas, but the company said it believed that there were “opportunities across the UK” for new outlets.

“We’re bullish about our prospects of continued success as we expand our estate,” said Mark Fox, business director, Pizza Hut Delivery.