A quarry has been given the green light to extend, so almost a million further tonnes of sand and gravel can be extracted over the next 15 years.

Norfolk County Council's planning committee has granted permission for a 43-acre expansion of the East Bilney Quarry, north of Dereham.

The quarry has been in operation since the 1990s and applicant Middleton Aggregates sought permission to extend the site to the south of Field Lane.

That will enable 992,000 tonnes of mineral to be extracted, at a rate of 90,000 tonnes each year.

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Representatives for Middleton Aggregates told county councillors that the extension would safeguard 10 full-time jobs and provide more materials for the construction of homes.

The applicant said it will plant new hedgerow in Fakenham Road, Field Lane and Chapel Lane.

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The planning committee also agreed to prolong existing planning permission at other parts of the quarry, so minerals extracted can be transported back to the current plant site by conveyor and processed before it is sold.

Once all the material is extracted, the site will be restored to arable land and grassland.