Forest Town, Nottinghamshire

Forest Town
2005 view from Violet Hill with the old colliery site to right of camera position, showing Forest Town including The Avenues (at right middle distance) with the Toray textiles factory nestling hidden in a valley off Crown Farm Way (leading through to Clipstone) to right of the road traffic island. The hedged area in middle distance, previously garden allotments, has been residentally developed.[1]
Forest Town is located in Nottinghamshire
Forest Town
Forest Town
Location within Nottinghamshire
Population11,812 (4 Wards. 2011))
OS grid referenceSK564621
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townMANSFIELD
Postcode districtNG19
Dialling code01623
PoliceNottinghamshire
FireNottinghamshire
AmbulanceEast Midlands
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Nottinghamshire
53°09′09″N 1°09′25″W / 53.1526°N 1.1569°W / 53.1526; -1.1569
St Alban's Church, Forest Town on the crossroads

Forest Town is a former mining village on the outskirts of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. After continuous development it is no longer a separate entity, nowadays being simply an area within Mansfield.

An old part of Forest Town known as The Avenues is the high-density housing built as homes for the workers from the nearby Crown Farm Colliery (also known as 'Mansfield Colliery'), once a major employer. After closure of the coal mine in early 1988,[2] the site has gradually been transformed to accommodate manufacturing in a variety of units on an industrial estate.

A nearby development was the fabric manufacturing factory built on heathland, a greenfield development site,[3] by the Japanese organisation Toray.[4][5] This occurred amidst much publicity – with Toray stating during local recruitment in three phases, 1992–93[6] that their mission was to become Mansfield's finest Corporate Citizen.[7] By the 2000s the size of the workforce had been considerably reduced.

The manufacturing processes abstract large-volumes of underground fresh water from nearby bore-holes and discharge foul water into the local sewer system operated by Severn Trent Water, whilst the boilers are fuelled by methane gas from the old coal mine workings 400m below the factory.[3]

The B6030 main road through Forest Town has small shops, a post office, a small supermarket, with the Miners' Welfare, sports ground and cycle track just behind, opposite to St Alban's Church.

The Samworth Church Academy (formerly known as Sherwood Hall) is the nearest secondary school and The Garibaldi School further out in Clipstone are within the normal catchment area.

The area was split into two wards, Forest Town East and West but following the re-organisation implemented by Mayor Tony Egginton[8] in time for the 2011 elections,[9] Forest Town now falls within four ward areas; the main sections are within Holly, Kingsway and Newlands, whilst a smaller area encroaches into Maun Valley.[10]

In 1998, William and Patricia Wycherley were murdered by their daughter and son-in-law, Susan and Christopher Edwards. They were buried in the back garden of their home in Forest Town and laid undiscovered until October 2013.[11]

At the 2001 census, the population of these wards was 11,194, rising to 11,812 at the 2011 census, although it was only 8,288 using older boundary data.[12]

Local football club A.F.C. Mansfield play at the Forest Town Stadium.

  1. ^ Up to 64 no. dwellings Mansfield District Council planning application 2016/0038/NT, Land At Pump Hollow Road Allotments Forest Town, 26 January 2016. Granted 16 February 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2024
  2. ^ [1] 'Our Mansfield and Area' website administered by Mansfield District Council Museum ANNALS OF MANSFIELD – 'Timeline' "1988, March. Mansfield Colliery was closed" Retrieved 31 December 2013
  3. ^ a b Weaving the future themanufacturer.com, 5 June 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2024
  4. ^ [2] 'Our Mansfield and Area' website administered by Mansfield District Council Museum ANNALS OF MANSFIELD – 'Timeline' "1991, February. The Japanese textile firm, Toray, agreed terms to build a factory in Mansfield." Retrieved 26 January 2014
  5. ^ [3] Toray Textiles Europe Ltd. About Toray Mansfield. Retrieved 22 December 2013
  6. ^ [4] 'Our Mansfield and Area' website administered by Mansfield District Council Museum ANNALS OF MANSFIELD – 'Timeline' "1993, 8 July – The Toray textile factory was officially opened by the President of Toray Industries, Mr. K. Maeda." Retrieved 31 December 2013
  7. ^ Social Contribution Activities as a Good Corporate Citizen www.toray.com. Retrieved 6 January 2024
  8. ^ [5] Archived 24 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine Chad, local newspaper, Have your say on council ward restructure Retrieved 22 December 2013
  9. ^ [6] Archived 24 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine Mansfield electoral review. Retrieved 22 December 2013
  10. ^ [7] Archived 24 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine Mansfield District Council Large detail Ward map Retrieved 22 December 2013
  11. ^ "The murderers next door". The Guardian. 25 October 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  12. ^ "Neighbourhood Statistics Home Page". Archived from the original on 11 February 2003. Retrieved 15 November 2007.