A Wells children's centre may be forced to close due to issues surrounding the building's lease, its management company has said.

But Alpha Nurseries, which runs Polka Day Care, revealed efforts were ongoing to find new owners.

Cathryn Dickens, operations director at the company, said "discrepancies" surrounding the building's lease means it will likely have to close on November 11.

This would leave Wells without a dedicated children's centre.

Duncan Baker, MP for North Norfolk, is actively involved in efforts to keep the doors open.

Ms Dickens, operations director at Alpha Nurseries, said: “There were discrepancies around the lease which is why the difficult decision was made to close the setting.

“Yesterday (October 19), we had a meeting with Duncan Baker, and we have another meeting this evening (October 20) with him and Norfolk County Council (NCC) to discuss how we can move forward with this.

“There are other parties interested in taking over Polka, and we want to facilitate that support.

“We understand it is a difficult time and we want to support the families and staff through this period.”

Alpha Nurseries, based in Ipswich, own 30 nurseries or out-of-school clubs providing childcare across Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex, Staffordshire, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Kent.

After being made aware of the imminent closure of Polka on Tuesday, Mr Baker hosted an online meeting with concerned parents.

He said: "As soon as my office was alerted to the closure of this vital daycare centre in Wells, we immediately organised a local meeting to listen to worried families.

"We are working with the authorities and owner of the daycare centre to help in any way we can.”

Daniel Elmer, deputy cabinet member for children's services at NCC, said: "We were sorry to hear that Polka will be closing in November.

“While Norfolk County Council does not run nurseries or pre-schools, our role and our priority is to ensure there are sufficient early-years places in the county. Therefore, we are currently exploring options for future provision of nursery places in Wells."

Concerned parents are being urged to call the Family Information Service on 0344 800 8020.