Building materials group Hanson has bought five companies in a deal totalling £47.7m.

Hanson, which employs several hundred people at Sutton Courtenay, near Abingdon, now has four Spanish quarries and UK plants producing concrete products, clay bricks and bagged aggregates.

Hanson Concrete Products, which has its headquarters in Sutton Courtenay, will absorb Marshalls Flooring, based at Hoveringham, Nottinghamshire, which markets the Jetfloor brand.

In a separate deal, Hanson Concrete Products has become the UK's largest supplier of bagged building materials with the acquisition of the privately-owned Small Lots (Mix-It) Ltd.

In May the group bought two Czech quarries.

Chief executive Alan Murray said: "These transactions illustrate our objective of growth via bolt-on acquisition in our core markets and products.

"A key part of our strategy is to use our strong cash flow and balance sheet capacity to support further similar investments."