A £10m appeal for a state-of-the-art children's hospice is on the brink of hitting nearly £8m.

Foundations have been put down for East Anglia's Children's Hospices (EACH) nook hospice off Pigot Lane in Framingham Earl, which will replace its Quidenham base.

Fundraising for the nook hospice started in November 2014 and so far the total raised for the ambitious appeal stands at £7,279,473.

That could be boosted by £500,000 next month.

The half a million pound donation from Norfolk County Council is included in County Hall's capital strategy and programme for 2018/19.

It will need to be rubber stamped by the full council next month.

Hannah Bloom, EACH's capital appeal project lead for the nook, said: 'Please continue to support it as our new hospice emerges. All the concrete foundations have been laid and now the steelwork is being craned into position.

'It will take a couple of weeks to erect the structure and in February, work laying down the entrance area will begin. The nook sign will also be elevated as things really start to take shape.'

She added that progress on the site was 'going well' and building teams led by RG Carter were 'battling against the weather'.

The nook appeal was launched on the Norfolk Showground by the charity's royal patron the Duchess of Cambridge.

EACH bosses hope the new purpose-built hospice on the five-acre site will be finished by March 2019 in preparation for children and families that summer.

It will offer more space compared with the 26-year-old Quidenham hospice for palliative care to hundreds of youngsters with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions.

But it will also offer the space for family support groups as well as music, art and play therapy sessions.

EACH staff will continue to offer care in people's homes across Norfolk.

One way people can support the nook appeal is by buying a brick for a virtual wall.

Supporters can buy a brick in memory of a loved one, as a gift or to show their backing for the appeal.

Bricks cost £20, £100, £500 or £1,000.

For details visit www.each.org.uk/buyabrick or www.each.org.uk/the-nook