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Ashfield District

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Ashfield District
Non-metropolitan district
Hucknall High Street
Market Place, Kirkby in Ashfield
Felley Priory
St Mary Magdalene, Sutton in Ashfield
Map
Interactive map of Ashfield District
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionEast Midlands
Administrative countyNottinghamshire
Admin. HQKirkby-in-Ashfield
Government
 • TypeAshfield District Council
 • MPs:Lee Anderson (Reform UK)
Michelle Welsh (Labour)
Area
 • Total
42 sq mi (110 km2)
 • Rank190th
Population
 (2025)
 • Total
130,581
 • RankRanked 189th
 • Density3,100/sq mi (1,200/km2)
Ethnicity (2021)
[1]
 • Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
[1]
 • Religion
List
Time zoneUTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (British Summer Time)
ONS code37UB (ONS)
E07000170 (GSS)

Ashfield (/ˈæʃˌfiːld/) is a local government district in Nottinghamshire, England. The council is based in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, but the largest town is neighbouring Sutton-in-Ashfield. The district also contains the town of Hucknall and a few villages. The district is mostly urban, with some of its settlements forming parts of both the Nottingham and Mansfield Urban Areas.

The neighbouring districts are Mansfield, Newark and Sherwood, Gedling, Nottingham, Broxtowe, Amber Valley and Bolsover.

History

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The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the whole of two former districts, most of Hucknall Urban District and of parts of a fourth, which were all abolished at the same time:[2]

The new district was named Ashfield, being the shared suffix of two of the towns' names.[3]

Under current local government reorganisation plans, all district councils in Nottinghamshire, as well as the county council, will be abolished in 2028, with the district becoming part of a new Nottinghamshire unitary authority.[4][5]

Governance

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Ashfield District Council
Logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Dale Grounds,
Ashfield Independents
since 18 May 2026[6]
Samantha Deakin
since 28 September 2026[7]
Theresa Hodgkinson
since 2021[8]
Structure
Seats35 councillors
Graph of the party split among 35 seats.
Political groups
Administration (21)
    Ashfield Ind. (18)
    Independent (3)
Other parties (14)
    Reform (3)
    Conservative (1)
    Independent (10)
Elections
Last election
4 May 2023
Meeting place
Council Offices, Urban Road, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottingham, NG17 8DA
Website
www.ashfield.gov.uk

Ashfield District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Nottinghamshire County Council. Parts of the district are also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[9][10]

Political control

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A local party, the Ashfield Independents, has held a majority of the seats on the council since 2019.

The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[11][12]

Party in controlYears
Labour1974–2003
No overall control2003–2011
Labour2011–2018
No overall control2018–2019
Ashfield Ind.2019–present

Leadership

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The leaders of the council since 1974 have been:

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Clarence Booler[13]Labour1974Aug 1986
Jack Barker[14][15]Labour19861987
Ken Creed[16][17][18]Labour1987Aug 1995
David Ayres[17][19]Labour199530 Mar 1999
Chris Bonam[20][21]Labour19992001
Ken Creed[18][22]Labour20012007
Jason Zadrozny[23][24]Liberal DemocratsMay 2007Mar 2009
John Knight[24][25]LabourMar 200923 May 2013
Chris Baron[25][26]Labour23 May 2013May 2015
Cheryl Butler[27][28]LabourMay 201526 Apr 2018
Jason Zadrozny[29][30]Ashfield Ind.26 Apr 201822 Sep 2026
Samantha Deakin[7]Ashfield Ind.28 Sep 2026

Composition

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Following the 2023 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to October 2026, the composition of the council was:[31][32][33]

Party Seats
Ashfield Independents23
Reform3
Conservative1
Independent8
Total 35

Elections

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Since the last boundary changes in 2015 the council has comprised 35 councillors representing 23 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[34]

Premises

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Ada Lovelace House, built 1933 as offices of Kirkby-in-Ashfield Urban District Council and used as one of Ashfield's offices until new offices were built immediately behind it in 1986.

The council is based at the Council Offices on Urban Road in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, completed in 1986 on a site behind the old headquarters (built 1933) of one of the council's predecessors, the Kirkby-in-Ashfield Urban District Council, with the old building now being known as Ada Lovelace House.[35][36] The new building was officially opened in October 1986 by Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester.[37]

Settlements and parishes

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Kirkby-in-Ashfield, the third-largest settlement in the district and its administrative headquarters
Map of the district of Ashfield

There are just three civil parishes in the district, being Annesley, Felley and Selston. Annesley and Felley share a grouped parish council.[38] The rest of the district, corresponding to the pre-1974 urban districts of Hucknall, Kirkby-in-Ashfield and Sutton-in-Ashfield, is an unparished area.[10]

The largest settlement is Sutton-in-Ashfield. Towns and villages in the district include the following:

Media

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Television

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The Ashfield District is served by BBC East Midlands and ITV Central with television signals receives from the Waltham TV transmitter.[39] Northern parts of the district around Sutton-in-Ashfield and Kirkby-in-Ashfield receives better signals from the Emley Moor TV transmitter that broadcast BBC Yorkshire and ITV Yorkshire (West) programmes [40] and the Belmont transmitter broadcasting BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire and ITV Yorkshire (East) programmes.[41]

Radio

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Radio stations that broadcast the area are:

Newspapers

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The Ashfield District is served by the local newspaper, Mansfield and Ashfield Chad.[44]

References

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  1. 1 2 UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Ashfield Local Authority (E07000170)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  2. ↑ "The English Non-metropolitan District (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 17 November 2023
  3. ↑ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/551, retrieved 31 May 2023
  4. ↑ Casswell, Hugh (16 July 2026). "Nottingham boundary to expand under council shake-up". BBC News.
  5. ↑ "Local government reorganisation: decision letter to Leaders in Nottinghamshire, and Nottingham" (PDF). gov.uk. Retrieved 16 July 2026.
  6. ↑ "Council minutes, 18 May 2026". Ashfield District Council. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
  7. 1 2 New council leader named after predecessor convicted BBC News, 28 September 2026. Retrieved 28 September 2026
  8. ↑ "Ashfield District Council welcomes new Chief Officer". Ashfield District Council. 30 July 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  9. ↑ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
  10. 1 2 "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  11. ↑ "Compositions Calculator". The Elections Centre. University of Exeter. Retrieved 21 May 2025. (Put "Ashfield" in search box to see specific results.)
  12. ↑ "England council elections". BBC News Online. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
  13. ↑ "Tributes pour in for council's Labour leader". Dispatch. Hucknall. 15 August 1986. p. 15. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  14. ↑ "Local man new council leader - now it's official". Dispatch. Hucknall. 24 October 1986. p. 4. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  15. ↑ "Government to blame for grants cash starvation". Mansfield and Sutton Recorder. 2 April 1987. p. 20. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  16. ↑ "Industry gloom for Hucknall". Nottingham Recorder. 3 December 1987. p. 3. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  17. 1 2 "New post for Creed". Dispatch. Hucknall. 29 September 1995. p. 5. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  18. 1 2 Hutton, Martin (4 June 2004). "Silver Jubilee for council stalwart". Dispatch. Hucknall. p. 7. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  19. ↑ "Death of council leader". Dispatch. Hucknall. 2 April 1999. p. 5. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  20. ↑ "Baron lined up as leader of the future". Dispatch. Hucknall. 4 June 1999. p. 2. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  21. ↑ "Follow our leader!". Dispatch. Hucknall. 18 May 2001. p. 3. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  22. ↑ "Two year development plan". Ashfield News. Spring 2007. p. 1. Archived from the original on 9 July 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  23. ↑ "Leader of the Council". Ashfield News. Summer 2007. pp. 2, 7. Archived from the original on 23 October 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  24. 1 2 "Ashfield Show bust budget by £166,000!". Dispatch. 11 November 2009. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  25. 1 2 "All change at Ashfield District Council". Ashfield Chad. 30 May 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  26. ↑ Silverwood, Richard (8 May 2015). "Labour retain control of Ashfield District Council - but Zadrozny wins". Chad. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  27. ↑ "New line-up for Labour in Ashfield". Ashfield Chad. 13 May 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  28. ↑ "Labour loses control of Ashfield Council after no confidence vote". BBC News. 27 April 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  29. ↑ "Council minutes, 26 April 2018". Ashfield District Council. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  30. ↑ "Ashfield District Council leader Jason Zadrozny resigns after fraud conviction". BBC News. 22 September 2026. Retrieved 22 September 2026.
  31. ↑ Cox, Phoebe (31 January 2025). "Ashfield independent councillor defects to Reform UK". Mansfield and Ashfield Chad. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
  32. ↑ Pridmore, Oliver (12 February 2025). "Notts councillor becomes first to quit Labour and join Reform". Nottinghamshire Live. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
  33. ↑ "Ashfield". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
  34. ↑ "The Ashfield (Electoral Changes) Order 2015", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2015/112, retrieved 19 December 2023
  35. ↑ "Town centre landmark renovated to boost Kirkby's economy". Ashfield Chad. 11 May 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  36. ↑ "Ashfield District Council". 26 May 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  37. ↑ "Royal visitor for Ashfield". Mansfield and Sutton Recorder. 30 October 1986. p. 15. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  38. ↑ "Parish council contact details". Ashfield District Council. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  39. ↑ "Full Freeview on the Waltham (Leicestershire, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  40. ↑ "Emley Moor (Kirklees, England) Full Freeview transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  41. ↑ "Belmont (Lincolnshire, England) Full Freeview transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  42. ↑ "Mansfield 103.2 FM". Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  43. ↑ "Millside Radio".
  44. ↑ "Mansfield and Ashfield Chad". British Papers. 24 August 2013. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
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