A Birmingham park tea room at the centre of an eviction wrangle has finally closed - but there are hopes the family who were ordered out will be able to continue running the business.

Michelle and Mark Kelly, who ran the Victorian Tea Rooms in Kings Heath Park for 17 years, had previously been threatened with legal action by the city council unless they left the site.

The row flared when the couple, who run MK Catering, lost out to a rival firm when the contract to run the cafe was put out to tender last year.

They refused to budge and even continued trading when the authority changed the locks.

But a note on the venue’s front door confirmed it had shut its doors.

It read: “The Victorian Tea Rooms will be temporarily closed.

“The current proprietors will meet Birmingham City Council to discuss future plans for this establishment.

“We would like to thank all of our loyal patrons, for your support.

“We hope we can mediate a resolution, resulting in the establishment remaining open with the current proprietors remaining at this site.

“We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. Kind regards and best wishes. Michelle and family.”

Coun Ernie Hendricks (Moseley and Kings Heath, Lib Dem), who wants the Kellys to continue running the premises, has asked the council to look into the details of the tendering process.

The authority awarded the right to run the tea room to Gray Court Catering but the firm later withdrew.

Of MK Catering, Coun Hendricks said: “It’s a shame because I know that they gave the community a lot of support.

“There is a question mark over the future of the tea room and I’m trying to seek answers.”