Fears Mansfield village has ‘absolutely nothing’ after pub demolition and housing plan approved

Former Mansfield councillor Phil Shields (Ind), who represented the Netherfield ward until May this year, spoke out after council planners voted to support the demolition of the Three Lions in Meden Vale.

Speaking following the meeting, he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It takes away virtually the only community asset this village has got left.”

The decision was made on Monday, September 25, by Mansfield Council’s planning committee.

It followed a campaign led by Mr Shields and the village community in 2021, which successfully protected the pub against new development by getting it listed as an ‘asset of community value’.

This gave community groups six months to pull together funds and bid on the open market to use the building for community purposes.

However, no bid was lodged for the pub – which hasn’t traded since January last year – and the community says it has since become ‘run down’.

The agreement to list the building for a community bid then ended in March 2022 and the council said the pub then became ‘no longer viable’.

Applicant Shape Land and Property Ltd then outlined plans to demolish the venue in favour of 41 affordable properties.

Six objections were raised in a planning consultation objecting to the loss of the pub and the impact on the village.

Concerns included highway safety around the site’s close proximity to a school, alongside visibility issues near a pedestrian crossing.

Others said there had been ‘no community hub’ since the pub closed, and its demolition would ‘take away the community facility and any chance of it opening again’.

Now similar concerns have been raised by Mr Shields after councillors voted in favour of the housing plans.

He said: “It’s now got absolutely nothing.

"The reports say there are plenty of other facilities nearby but the people of Meden Vale will now have to walk a minimum of two miles to their local pub because this takes that away.

“It’s certainly not going to enhance the village.”

However, in reports, the applicant said it conducted a viability assessment for the former pub which said the facilities were ‘considerably inferior to those required by a modern customer’.

An investment of about £225,000 is needed to bring the pub up to modern standards, reports added.

Other public objections include fears local services are getting ‘overwhelmed’, including medical services, GP practices and ‘oversubscribed’ village schools.

The plans were also described as ‘not in keeping’ with the surrounding area, including proposed apartments, with other concerns including anti-social behaviour and crime.

The authority said it would ask for financial contributions from the applicant to address some of these concerns.

This includes £22,216 for local healthcare, £18,600 for bus stop improvements, £1,498 per home for a strategic highways plan and £1,100 per home for off-site public open space improvements.

The council’s planning department recommended councillors approve the plans and this recommendation was followed.

The council said: “Whilst the loss of the public house would result in harmful social impacts, the benefits of the additional affordable housing are considered to be substantial and in this case would outweigh the harm identified.”