Future development in the Watton area is set to be discussed at a public meeting next month.

Residents from the town and surrounding villages are being encouraged to attend the event which will take place on Friday May 13.

It aims to give local people a chance to voice their concerns about the potential for further development and discuss how they would like to see the area progress.

Mid Norfolk MP George Freeman, who will attend the meeting along with district councillor Claire Bowes, said it would not be an anti-development meeting but a 'conversation about the town'.

The MP will take the chance to explain how the coalition government's Localism Bill aims to give local people more control over development in their area.

And Breckland Council will be able to explain the processes it has to go through to come up with a planning blueprint for the district.

Mr Freeman has previously worked closely with the authority to begin coming up with a town plan in liaison with residents.

The MP said he hoped this meeting would be the start of a similar process in Watton.

He said: 'Where we have really high-quality, long-term planning like this that starts with some questions about how we want our places to evolve, we tend to get higher quality development and much higher levels of public support.'

He said he hoped the discussions would focus on the way well-planned development in the area could lead to job creation, as well as meeting the needs of residents of all ages in the town and surrounding villages.

The meeting, which has been called by Alison Mayhew-Grooms, was sparked by concerns she raised with her MP about potential development on the old RAF Watton airfield.

Mr Freeman said he hoped the event would help to reassure people like Mrs Mayhew-Grooms, whose home neighbours the airfield, about plans for the land while also listening to concerns anybody has about that site and others in the area.

The meeting will take place at 6.30pm on Friday May 13 at Carbrooke Village Hall.