Travel giant Thomas Cook is to close 50 high street shops, putting 400 jobs at risk.

The closures will affect Thomas Cook and Co-operative Travel branded stores and will take place between now and March 2018.

Thomas Cook is not yet releasing the full list of stores to be closed, but said those affected are either in close proximity to other outlets or are located where a decline in footfall has hit profitability.

A rise in online travel bookings was also flagged as a reason for the closures, with the group saying that just 47% of holidays were booked in store this year while online sales in the UK grew by 27%.

There are Co-operative Travel stores in Norwich, Thetford and King's Lynn and three Thomas Cook Travel branches in Norwich. The Central England Co-op has confirmed the King's Lynn shop will not be among the closures.

Kathryn Darbandi, Thomas Cook retail and customer experience director, said: 'We continually review our network of stores across the UK to make sure we're offering customers the best of Thomas Cook.'