Plans have been revealed to extend a landmark hotel built as a new resort was founded on the Norfolk coast.

They show a new glass and timber conservatory added to the Golden Lion, which presides over The Green at Hunstanton.

A planning statement says: "The conservatory will make better use of the remaining west facing garden, a space that has been underutilised and is largely unknown or appreciated by passers by.

"The conservatory will also provide a new space, part of the garden that can be used all year round – an important detail when considering the economic prosperity of the town and the viability and sustainability of the future of the hotel itself."

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The 29-bed Golden Lion,  originally called the New Inn, was built in 1846 from the distinctive local carrstone.

It was the first building in what would grow over the decades to become the town of Hunstanton.

Its founder, Henry Le Strange wanted to capitalise on the growing popularity of sea bathing.

When the railway came to Hunstanton in 1862, it connected a formerly remote corner of north west Norfolk to towns and cities inland, offering cheap travel and ensuring Hunstanton's future prosperity.

Roads and houses were planned and built. But just as his vision looked to become a reality, Le Strange died suddenly at the age of 47.

After a spell as the New Inn, the site became the Royal Hotel, which changed its name to the Golden Lion in the 1870s.

It has changed a number of times in recent years.

The planning statement adds: "The hotel has once again changed ownership and the new owners are a locally well-established family business who own the Lodge Hotel at Old Hunstanton and Briarfields Hotel at Titchwell as well as other accommodation offers including the Lighthouse and local tourism-related retail businesses."