New Nottinghamshire tip will be in 'immediate vicinity' of the two it will replace

Councillor Tom Hollis outside the Kirkby tip wearing a pink shirt
-Credit: (Image: Independent Alliance)


Concerns have been raised about the location of a new tip that is set to replace two of Nottinghamshire's current sites. Ben Bradley, the leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, recently confirmed that changes will be made to just three of Nottinghamshire's 12 tips following months of uncertainty.

A review first carried out in 2022 eventually led the Conservative-led authority to consider three scenarios for the future of Nottinghamshire tips - the most extreme of which would have seen nine closing. Such a scenario now seems to have been avoided after Councillor Bradley said at a recent meeting that the council's ambition was for just three closures.

The sites set to close are West Bridgford, Kirkby and Mansfield. West Bridgford will be replaced by a new site before the existing one closes, whilst the Kirkby and Mansfield site will be replaced by one single tip before either of them close.

Councillor Bradley pledged that the new Kirkby and Mansfield tip would be within the "immediate vicinity" of the existing sites. Yet Councillor Jason Zadrozny, the leader of the Nottinghamshire County Independent Group of councillors, said: "The Tories say they will close our tips in Kirkby and Mansfield but replace them with a brand new one within 20 minutes of the whole of Kirkby, Selston, Sutton and Mansfield.

"They tell us they don't know the location yet but I don't see land that the county council own that will make this possible. So whilst this is good news for residents across the county – questions still need to be asked."

Yet making his pledge about the Kirkby and Mansfield recycling centres at a full council meeting on Thursday (September 26), Councillor Bradley said: "These are two miles apart and neither of them are brilliant. They are not as good as Newark, they don't have the range of service, they don't have the accessibility.

"Our intention is to build a new recylcing centre in the immediate vicinity of those two. It will be closer for some people, it will be a little bit further for others, but in that immediate vicinity.

"Not miles away - right in that area with that full range of all-singing, all-dancing services like residents in Newark expect and get. If it is two minutes further away but you don't have to queue for 15 minutes to get in, that is a good thing."

Independent county councillor Francis Purdue-Horan said: "This decision is a victory for common sense. Earlier this year, we released official council documents that proposed three scenarios the council were actively considering – one of those proposed was the closure of nine of the 12 recycling centres that residents value so much. Whilst this is excellent news, no decision has been made yet so we'll be making sure that the Tories keep their promises."

Although confirming that no sites had yet been selected, Councillor Bradley reiterated that the intention was to build a tip in the immediate vicinity of the current Kirkby and Mansfield tips. The county council leader added: "We will bring forward final decisions when we have the money and the budgets and the sites to do so."