165 jobs secured as Nottinghamshire County Council grants Newark quarry planning permission for extension

A total of 165 jobs have been secured after planning permission was granted for a quarry extension near Newark, writes Ella Mather.

British Gypsum, part of the Saint-Gobain Group, has been granted planning permission for a southern extension of its Bantycock Quarry off Bowbridge Lane, securing employment for the 165 people who work there.

The quarry is operated by plaster and gypsum manufacturer Saint-Gobain Formula — one of Saint-Gobain’s many companies and sister brand to British Gypsum, which operates several mines and manufacturing sites in the East Midlands.

The gypsum quarried at Bantycock is not just used in construction but the production of other essential products such as food, dentistry and medical items — as well as in water treatment, ceramics, brewing and decorative work.

The company is currently extracting gypsum in the northern part of the site, however, this news will see the quarry extended to the south — taking operations through to 2044, protecting UK manufacturing and local jobs.

Quarry manager Kevin Glasper said: “We are delighted to receive this planning permission from Nottinghamshire County Council.

“As with all plans like this, we carried out a comprehensive public consultation exercise ahead of submission of our application. Due to covid pandemic restrictions, we were not able to hold our usual face-to-face information event. Instead, and ran an online consultation which presented all our proposals in detail via a special website and encouraged people to contact us with questions.

“Over 400 people viewed our plans online, with a few coming back with queries which were taken into account before we finalised our application.”

The permission not only covers operations in the southern extension area, but also future restoration of the land including 3.5 miles of better-connected footpaths for residents. The plan will also deliver a 40% increase in local biodiversity.