September 2021 - October 2021
Mansfield is Green for Go
Mansfield’s town centre masterplan has been unveiled and it has now gone out to the public for consultation. The masterplan sets out our vision for the town centre over the next 15 years and I hope it will fulfil my pledge to regenerate the town centre creating a green and family-friendly environment, making the most of our historic Market Place and preserving the town’s industrial heritage.
Construction work has already started on the old Bus Station site, with a hotel and three food businesses being built. Along with the green landscaping, this will significantly enhance the appearance of this major gateway into the town and along Stockwell Gate.
The town centre masterplan looks at potential options for each quarter of the town as well as specific buildings including the Town Mill, Beales and the Four Seasons Shopping Centre with a view to redeveloping brownfield sites and bringing more homes to the town centre. Our aim is to build a residential development to the 2025 Future Homes Standard with homes that would be energy efficient, reducing residents’ fuel bills to a minimum and providing more environmentally-friendly greenery and open spaces.
Mansfield has already taken its first steps to becoming a University town, Vision West Nottinghamshire College, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, are offering degree courses to our young people. Working with partners, private developers and investors we hope to create a mixed use town centre with more food and drink, work space, employment, cultural, leisure and educational uses that will increase the number of visitors.
With online shopping being the final nail in the coffin for the big department stores, we are also looking at options to move council, health and employment services back into the town centre. We also aspire to make this a place for business innovation hubs, town centre working accommodation and entertainment.
Of course this will not be achieved overnight but with the masterplan endorsed by the Place Board, made up of representatives of Mansfield’s public and private influencers, we will be submitting our proposals for £20 million of funding once the Government announces the date for the second round of the Levelling Up funding.
Mansfield is bouncing back after the pandemic with help from business start-up grants, new entrepreneurs are sprouting up all over the district and as confidence returns I am convinced these public/private initiatives will increase the life opportunities and prosperity of our residents.
Date: 18 October 2021
We don’t want to be top of Covid charts
For weeks Mansfield has been listed as one of the most infectious places in England for COVID-19, with further coronavirus-related admissions to King’s Mill Hospital along with, sadly, more deaths.
Despite having all-day ‘no appointment needed’ vaccination centres at the hospital and the old Wickes site on Chesterfield Road, and bringing the vaccination bus to hard-to-reach communities, more than one third of adults under 30 in Mansfield have yet to have their first coronavirus jab.
With infection rates expected to rise as children head back to school, I fear for this area’s residents unless we all play our part. The advice is simple: get vaccinated. We should also all continue to wash our hands regularly and wear a mask when inside public places.
Many have endured terrible times during this pandemic, but there have been positives. We’re particularly proud of how we’ve cut the number of people living on the streets. Through various initiatives, including securing government funding for our First Steps project, we reduced the number of street homeless from 22 in 2019, to just two earlier this year.
This fantastic humanitarian work is far from over. Together with our wonderful volunteer organisations, who operate collectively under our new Homeless Charter, we’ll continue to support remaining rough sleepers, many of whom have multiple complex physical and emotional needs, to help break any cycles of criminality.
Helping our residents feel safe is a priority for us and we’re pleased to have secured £432,000 from the Government’s Safer Streets initiative. This concentrates on four crimes: robbery, vehicle crime, burglary and theft from the person. Among its objectives are to increase patrols by front-line staff in hotspot areas and encourage more Neighbourhood Watch schemes.
We are particularly pleased that this funding will enable the recruitment of an additional youth worker for our district to help tackle anti-social behaviour problems among young people. There has been a 50% cut in youth services over the past five years so this investment in Switch Up - a mentoring service for young people and their families – is very welcome.
Did you know the Local Government Boundary Commission for England is asking for views on changes to district council wards in Mansfield? It wants to know if the proposed changes reflect local communities. The consultation closes on 8 November. Find out more on the LGBCE's website (opens in new window).
Also, don’t forget our fabulous Palace Theatre has reopened and can’t wait to welcome you back. See what’s on the theatre's website (opens in new window).
Finally, Recycling Week starts on 20 September so remember to reduce, reuse and recycle to help make Mansfield greener and cleaner.
Date: 15 September 2021