The county council has given the green light to postpone the restoration of a quarry near Romsey until 2028.

Roke Manor Quarry, 1.3 kilometres west of Romsey, east of Shootash and north of the A27 Salisbury Road, will be restored by January 2028 after Hampshire County Council granted permission to delay the restoration.

Previous planning permission said that Raymond Brown’s quarry, which provides sand and gravel for concrete, general building and decorative materials, should have been restored by January 2024.

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Map of the quarryMap of the quarry (Image: HCC)

However, due to Covid-19, the restrictions on extracting at the site, market challenges, and seasonal “constraints”, the restoration was not completed by the deadline, the council was told.

Since the company was “unable” to meet the restoration on time, it asked to extend it to 15 years rather than 11, which was previously agreed.

With the regulatory committee’s approval, the wording of condition 2, which determined the timeline, has been changed so Roke Manor Quarry must now be restored by January 31, 2028.

Tree and shrub planting is forecasted to be undertaken during the winter of 2026/27, with the final restoration completed by spring 2027.

Groundworks will be undertaken in the summer of 2027, and final planting and landscaping will be completed in the planting season over winter 2027/28.

All development elements will enter the “aftercare” period by January 2028.