Bellamy Road housing-led regeneration: Mansfield District Council

What went in:

Priority areas addressed

• Corporate priorities: The scheme meets all four of the council’s strategic priorities.
• Place: Positive image of the district.
• Wellbeing: Accessible open spaces and high-quality energy efficient homes.
• Growth: Better and wider mix of housing
• Aspiration: Maximising use of local labour and supply chains.
• The project met the council’s Climate Change Strategy objectives.

Project objectives

• Create a space for children to learn to cycle in a safe, traffic-free environment and increase physical mobility.
• Redevelopment of the 1970s central area of the Bellamy Road Estate.
• Tackle issues of ill-defined spaces and anti-social behaviour associated with the estate’s layout.

Budget

• £360,000 from Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
• £9,547 grant from British Cycling and £9,543 from EEM Ltd
• £5.7 million from Mansfield District Council’s Capital Budget
• £35,000 from Nottinghamshire County Council’s Improvement Scheme.

Other resource needed

Third party involvement including: Friends of Bellamy, Bellamy Tenants and Resident’s Association, Nottinghamshire County Council, British Cycling.

Timeframe to completion

2013 to 2025

What came out:

• delivery of a new play park
• 22 new build green family homes
• three shops, café and community space
• cycle track and open green space
• upgraded council homes with increased energy efficiency
• improved transport connections and creation of link road through the centre of the estate.

Bellamy Road Estate is one of the most deprived areas in Mansfield. The area has changed considerably over 60 years with parts becoming semi-derelict, a lack amenities and in need of regeneration. This scheme utilised partner working with partners and local residents to deliver housing-led regeneration. 

The Bellamy Estate

The main estate was built between 1966 and 1969 and consisted of approximately 807 households and 1,606 residents, with a significant proportion falling within the council’s ownership (around 660). It had a mostly vacant shopping arcade in the centre, a council tenant meeting room, and a nearby council-owned community centre. Primary care was limited in terms of GP presence, as was the availability of grocery provision, and there were few public transport routes passing through the centre of the estate.                               

The layout of the estate was typical of the 1960s ‘Radburn’ design, with the backyards of homes facing the street and the fronts of homes facing one another over common yards/areas, aiming to separate homes from cars. This design was commonly associated with crime and anti-social behaviour due to the numerous common entries and exits to homes, as well as the closed, dark footpaths and walkways.

2013: The council approves its Masterplan to regenerate the estate to create a more inclusive, safer and sustainable community offering a better quality of life and more opportunity for children’s recreational and physical activity

2017: detailed and extensive insight, in partnership with Active Notts, was undertaken with residents, landlords and key organisations, which took over four years to complete

2020: the decision to increase rent by up to 1 per cent above CPI allowed the council the funds to bring forward the development

2021: planning approvals sought, and demolition works given the green light

2022: play park opens

2023: cycle track opens

2025: the first homes are set to be delivered in June 2025

Details of the development proposal

The overarching aim of the development was to regenerate the neglected estate centre.

The project provided 22 new council-owned family houses and created a 'village green' with an equipped play area, children’s cycle path, seating, a new shop and premises, new CCTV provision, fruit trees for a community orchard, and raised beds. A key aspect of the development was a new traffic-calmed road joining Thorpe Road and Egmanton Road, allowing for a revised bus route to pass through the centre of the estate. This reduced the need for residents living in the centre to walk to the outer road for bus services.

The council's in-house architects designed the 22 new homes on the site in line with the Future Homes Standard. This requires new homes to have low-carbon heating and high energy efficiency, resulting in lower carbon dioxide emissions than properties built to current building regulations.

The homes, which will be available for council tenants on the housing waiting list, will include three four-bedroom semi-detached houses, eight three-bedroom semi-detached houses, nine two-bedroom semi-detached houses, and two two-bedroom detached houses. The first tenants are expected to move into the first phase of homes completed from April 2025.

The redevelopment scheme will see 22 high-quality affordable homes built, new shops and a new through road and green space.

Under the council’s procurement policies Mercer Building Solutions have had to include social value actions as part of its contract to deliver the project. So far, these have shown that 97.4 per cent of the people employed on the project come from within 40 miles of the site and 88 per cent are from within 20 miles of Mansfield against a target of 60 per cent.

They also show that the financial spend distribution throughout the main contractor’s supply chain is currently beating a target of 25 per cent within the district by 2 per cent and is exceeding a target of 75 per cent within 30 miles by 6 per cent. 100 per cent of the spend has been with small to medium sized suppliers against a target of 60 per cent.

As well as 22 homes and a new parade of shops, the cost of the scheme includes demolishing redundant units on the site, a new connecting road between Thorpe Road and Egmanton Road and removing, diverting or installing utility connections such as gas, electricity, water, phone and broadband.

What have you learnt because of the programme? What will you change, or what has changed as a result of its success? 

• The original contractor went into administration so the project needed to be re-tendered so communications to tenants and residents was vital during the inevitable delays to ensure they were informed.
• Resident involvement via the initial insight work as well as throughout the design and planning process was vital to the process and very successful. Residents were very clear in that they wanted more green space, a play area and new homes. They also explained that not having a through-road via the estate meant that local bus services were not willing to go through the estate which made it challenging for residents to make the simplest of journeys.
• Residents were also very clear that they wanted an improved retail offering and this came to the fore during the pandemic when the single shop on the estate became a lifeline for residents. The shop raised their prices and offered minimal variety so the council decided to introduce a food club network in the meantime until the development took shape.
• The project was taken forward by a cross-service group of officers as well as third sector partners and other system partners (health etc). 

Things you may have done differently in retrospect?

• Made more use of the council’s housing assets in the area during the initial stages of the development plans as a means of liaising with residents and keeping them updated on the scheme such as at food clubs and coffee mornings operating within housing community centres on the estate.
• Further consultation with tenants on the specification of the homes -especially around green credentials.

How effective has the project been? Are there going to be similar programmes going forward? 

• This project has been successful in that it was based on insight work with communities and provided them with a voice. As a result, the council didn’t simply make assumptions about what was best for the community without understanding the issues they faced and their desires for the area. The local community groups and resident groups were vital in ensuring community voice was heard and our plans were spread through local community champions.

Jill Finnesey

[email protected]