2026
6 March 2026
Your opportunity to shape Mansfield’s Future and help your communities
For those who read my column regularly, you’ll notice I share details of projects that demonstrate how I am delivering on my two election pledges to ‘Regenerate our Town and District’ and ‘Protect and Care for our Communities’. As part of this process, we’ll regularly ask the public’s opinion to help us shape our ideas. What you think about these issues is really important to me, and I’m really keen for you not to miss your opportunity to help shape Mansfield’s future.
The biggest and most significant consultation is the first re-organisation of Local Government for 50 years. The public is fed up with the two tier system that exists now, with Nottinghamshire County Council handling some services (e.g. highway maintenance, education and adult and children’s social care) and your District Council delivering other services such as planning, housing, waste collection, regeneration and parks.
When residents have an issue, they want to speak to one authority and not be passed from ‘pillar to post’. I have been promoting, option 1e, what we are referring to as the ‘Northern or Sherwood’ option. This brings the districts of Mansfield, Ashfield, Bassetlaw, Newark and Sherwood and Gedling together as a single unitary authority responsible for delivering all services. My reasons for promoting this option are it: reflects sensible geographies and economic areas; is the right size to be efficient, build capacity, and withstand financial shocks; will deliver high quality, sustainable public services; is informed by local views and will meet local needs; will enable stronger community engagement and neighbourhood empowerment. You may have a completely different view and that’s fine, but if you want your voice to be heard, please complete the consultation using www.lgr.notts.org. You can also pick up a paper copy in local libraries across the district. The consultation is open until 26 March.
The second consultation on the pre-planning for the ‘Mansfield Connect’ project has just closed, but information on the scheme can be viewed on www.mansfield.gov.uk/mansfieldconnect . I would encourage you to see the video that shows our ambitions for this £33m development in the heart of our town to transform the landscape and attract even more private investment into the town. A very symbolic moment occurred last week, when the connecting bridges from the old co-op building were removed, opening up Stockwell gate to light, space and a taste of how the future could look.
We had a fantastic response to the ‘Mansfield NOW’ presentation at the old town hall last month with over 150 attendees. The video of the 18 public and private investments in the town centre that we showed, can be watched on Facebook, Tik Tok or Instagram ‘Mansfield Forward BID’. Buildings like the Old Eight Bells, the Brunts Chambers, the White Lion Yard, the Old BHS building the Rosemary Street Centre and the ‘Former Dial’ have all been renovated by a mixture of local entrepreneurs and external private investors. It indicates a newfound confidence in Mansfield that we can all celebrate.
To share some more great news, we have just invited organisations from across mansfield to apply for funding up to £200k for capital projects that will make a significant impact as part of the £1.5m Pride in Place investment from the government. Community organisations across Mansfield district can also apply for up to £50,000 each to deliver visible, lasting improvements to local spaces as part of a major new funding programme through the Community Sparks Capital Grant, funded through the Government’s Pride in Place Impact Fund.
We continue to clamp down on those residents that cause nuisance and show no consideration for the neighbours. Two council homes have been closed using closure powers after reports of persistent nuisance and disorder linked to criminality, including illegal drug use and supply. This action is part of the council's stance on tackling anti-social behaviour and protecting communities. Another Mansfield resident was prosecuted and ordered to pay over £1500 in finesfor fly tipping, having left two mattresses in the street near their home. This case has been used to reinforce messaging around responsible waste disposal and the council's willingness to take legal action against environmental offences. We will continue to do everything to deliver our election pledges, looking after our communities and regenerating our district.
Thanks for reading,
Andy Abrahams, Mayor of Mansfield
Delivering on our promises and making steady progress
Change takes a long time, so it’s important that you celebrate your achievements and keep checking your progress along the way.
Our promise was to deliver affordable council homes to the highest quality, so I was delighted that nine families were able to move into their brand-new council homes in time for Christmas. The new energy efficient family houses on the Bellamy estate are the first to be occupied in a £7.7 million development of 20 two, three and four-bedroom semi-detached houses. There are also a couple of two bedroomed detached houses, one of which has already welcomed a new family.
As well as affordable rents, the new homes come with super high insulation, solar panels and air source heat pumps, making them some of the most efficient new builds in the UK. These really are forever homes with the designs allowing for adaptations such as downstairs wet room showers for those that need them in later life.
The development, in partnership with Mercer, has also delivered social value to the area with 88% of the people employed on the project living within 20 miles of Mansfield against a target of 60%. This achievement aligns with our policy to support local people, businesses and suppliers with work in the local area to stimulate the economy.
Regeneration
The start of 2026 has seen a flurry of activity on our journey to upgrade existing facilities and start the long job of regenerating the town.
Two bridges on Stockwell Gate are scheduled for demolition as part of the Mansfield Connect project, and work has already started on this. I’m looking forward to giving people an indication of the visual change that’s coming when this first step is completed.
Work on The Four Seasons shopping centre car park has also started to repair and refresh this facility for shoppers and visitors to our town. The work includes concrete frame repairs, re-tarmacking surfaces, a brighter environment and work to make the car park easier to navigate and use, with improved walkways for pedestrians and wider parking bays where it’s been possible to do so. There will also be new signs and colour-coded flooring to make the car park easier for users to navigate and find electric vehicle charging points. Shoppers will still safely be able to use the car park, which will be subject to only partial floor closures during the repairs.
Work has also commenced on the demolition of the old Rosemary Centre. The new development replaces the ageing structure with a modern retail hub, including a supermarket and a fast-food takeaway. The transformation is expected to increase footfall in the town centre, inject more money into the local economy and create new jobs for local people.
Our communities
One of our election pledges was to protect and care for our communities, and this can take many different forms. For example, a Panel of the Council’s Licensing Committee has taken enforcement action to suspend the licence of a Mansfield convenience store after it was found to be selling illegal vapes and tobacco, helping to protect our community from harmful products that can be a significant health.
Another example is that we have extended our trailblazing supported housing improvement project for a fifth year. This project helps tenants to access vital support to improve their health and wellbeing, boost employability as well as working with landlords to make improvements to their properties such as heating system upgrades. There have been some great stories to come out of this project, where the team has been able to step in to help with small things like providing bed bases for people sleeping on mattresses on the floor, to helping people break the cycle of homelessness. I believe that the project has literally saved lives.
There are currently 25 providers of supported housing accommodation in Mansfield with around 225 homes combined. Not only does this project turn lives around, but it also makes economic sense. At the last count we had saved over £97,000 in housing benefit payments, a figure which does not account for supported housing schemes we have prevented setting up in our district, which has saved a lot more.
Mansfield’s growing appetite for culture
We are so proud of our Museum and Palace Theatre, which continue to excel and are supported fantastically by the public.
The museum has secured another two awards: one for overall excellence and another for creative collections, linked to its new Natural History collection. I am sure another is not too far away with the recent opening of a new AI driven exhibition, co-created with neurodivergent young people from across the district. The exhibition focussed on creativity, inclusion and the museum's role as a space where young people can shape how technology and art can come together.
Mansfield Palace Theatre is celebrating a major milestone as the pantomime ticket sales continue to grow beyond pre-COVID levels, reaching a record 32,242 ticket buyers in the recent run of Snow White.
Now that’s progress!