A masterplan providing a blueprint for how Attleborough could develop within the next 20 years has been completed.

Last year Breckland Council was granted �50,000 by the Homes and Communities Agency to appoint a group of independent consultants to undertake the study.

After six months, the masterplan compiled by URS Scott Wilson is now ready and is in the process of being made available to the public.

Attleborough is set to grow by an additional 4,000 homes and gain at least 10 hectares (about 25 acres) of employment land by 2026.

The masterplan gives an idea of where new housing could be built and how infrastructure and open spaces could be developed, but is not to be treated as a concrete plan, said council officers.

The document will sit alongside others, including the Attleborough and Snetterton Heath Area Action Plan (ASHAAP), which is still at the development stage, and a transport study, which is due to begin soon.

The first round of public consultation for the ASHAAP, which will similarly plot out where development should take place and when, closed in January and the council is currently finalising its analysis of the responses.

Further consultation on a more refined draft plan is expected later this year.

Kevin Ward, growth programme manager at Breckland Council, said while the ASHAAP is based on the views of residents, the masterplan provides a third-person's perspective and provides another tool helping to shape the final growth plan for the town.

He said: 'It's a very strategic piece of work, almost theoretical. It looks at how Attleborough could develop.

'For us it's like a measuring stick - it gives us an idea of how we could shape Attleborough as a town and gives us something to measure (planning) applications against.'

Mr Ward added: 'It is a completely independent piece of work with no local bias. It's been done by a group of independent consultants and gives us the independent view.

'Nothing is set in stone. This is not saying this is how the town will be developed but it is a piece of work that has given us another tool.'