Chart act The Wanted have announced they are to go their separate ways after their next tour.

The group say they will "pursue personal endeavours" at the end of their Word Of Mouth shows.

A statement issued by the quintet said they "collectively" came to the decision to call a halt to the group, whose hits include Glad You Came and I Found You.

But they gave fans some comfort by saying they would "continue on as The Wanted", suggesting they intended to regroup after their solo forays.

The Wanted - made up of Tom Parker, Nathan Sykes, Siva Kaneswaran, Max George and Jay McGuiness - have also had success in the United States but have gone on to be overshadowed by rivals One Direction.

The group said today: "This tour will be their last for a while as Tom, Max, Jay, Siva and Nathan have collectively decided to take time to pursue personal endeavours following the tour's conclusion.

"The band wants to stress to their fans that they will continue on as The Wanted and look forward to many successful projects together in the future. They thank their fans for their continued love and support and look forward to seeing them on tour."

The band are to release a new single Glow In The Dark from their third album Word Of Mouth which was released in November.

Singer George famously dated Coronation Street actress Michelle Keegan, while Kaneswaran recently announced he is to marry his girlfriend of six years Nareesha McCaffrey.

Sykes had a spell out of the group last year as a result of a throat operation which had threatened to wreck his singing voice, but he rejoined the line-up within two months.