Why Mansfield?

Tough times since the coalfields closed

Mansfield was one of the areas worst hit by the decline of the mining industry, and the district lingers at the bottom of national tables of social and economic well-being.

Mansfield's average weekly wage is in the country's bottom 10 per cent. Only 16 per cent of the working population is qualified to degree level or above. And in a survey of 64 UK towns and cities Mansfield only fared better than Sunderland, Stoke and Hull. We want to change this.

Ten years ago, the Government made a commitment to improve life in former

coalfield areas like Mansfield. It saw that private investors were not interested in the area because it lacked the infrastructure their businesses depend on.

To attract new businesses and the jobs that go with them, we need to offer up-to-date buildings, enough space, and the roads and services to go with them.

We're running out of housing

The UK has to build 240,000 new homes every year to house the nation. Nottinghamshire has to provide 3,950 homes of those until 2026 - that's 79,000 in just 20 years.

And Nottinghamshire's already behind this target, by hundreds of homes. Piecemeal development, in-fill and small-scale house-building just is not enough. A study of Mansfield shows that even if every single available brownfield site is developed fully, it still wouldn't have the homes it needs.

Local authorities have been consulting on how the county can provide enough new homes, in a way that makes the area a better place to live. They're agreed that large-scale developments on the edge of towns will have a role to play.