Nottinghamshire

Coordinates: 53°N 1°W / 53°N 1°W / 53; -1
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Nottinghamshire
15th of 48
 • Density539/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Ethnicity
  • 93% White
  • 3% Asian
  • 2.1% Mixed
  • 1.2% Black
  • 0.7% Other
[2]
Non-metropolitan county
County councilNottinghamshire County Council
ControlReform UK
Admin HQCounty Hall, West Bridgford
Area
[3]
2,085 km2 (805 sq mi)
 • Rank14th of 21
Population 
(2022)[3]
834,822
 • Rank10th of 21
 • Density400/km2 (1,000/sq mi)
ISO 3166-2GB-NTT
GSS codeE10000024
ITLTLF15/16
Websitenottinghamshire.gov.uk
Districts

Districts of Nottinghamshire
  Unitary   County council area
Districts
  1. Nottingham
  2. Bassetlaw
  3. Mansfield
  4. Newark and Sherwood
  5. Ashfield
  6. Gedling
  7. Broxtowe
  8. Rushcliffe

Nottinghamshire (

ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Nottingham
(323,632), which is also the county town.

The county has an area of 2,160 km2 (830 sq mi) and a population of 1,154,195. The latter is concentrated in the Nottingham built-up area in the south-west, which extends into Derbyshire and has a population of 729,997. The north-east of the county is more rural, and contains the towns of Worksop (44,733) and Newark-on-Trent (27,700). For local government purposes Nottinghamshire comprises a non-metropolitan county, with seven districts, and the Nottingham unitary authority area. The East Midlands Combined County Authority includes Nottinghamshire County Council and Nottingham City Council.

The geography of Nottinghamshire is largely defined by the River Trent, which forms a wide valley which crosses the county from the south-west to the north-east. North of this, in the centre of the county, is Sherwood Forest, the remnant of a large ancient woodland.

History

Main article:
woollen
industries.

The village of Edwinstowe close to Sherwood Forest took the name from Edwin of Northumbria, who died in 633 nearby and was provisionally buried in St Mary's Church, Edwinstowe.[5]

Royal Forest for hunting which was frequently visited by the Mercian and later Kings.[6][7][8]

William's 1086

Sutton in Ashfield, amongst other places including Skegby, Dunham-on-Trent, East Drayton, East Markham, Farnsfield, Warsop, Carburton, Edwinstowe, Carlton-on-Trent, Budby, Perlethorpe and Walesby.[9]

King John's Palace ruin near Kings Clipstone was a royal residence for King John, the area being near to Sherwood Forest. King John's Palace was a place where William I met Richard I to congratulate him on his return from the crusades.[8] King John died at Newark Castle in 1216.[10]

During the

collieries
opened, and mining became an important economic sector. Although there are no remaining working mines in Nottinghamshire now.

Hand-drawn map of Lincolnshire and Notthinghamshire from 1576.

Until 1610, Nottinghamshire was divided into eight

Bingham
, some of these names still being used for the modern districts. Oswaldbeck was absorbed in Bassetlaw, of which it forms the North Clay division, and Lythe in Thurgarton.

Quakers with George Fox living in the town.[11]

Nottinghamshire is famous for its involvement with the legend of Robin Hood. This is also the reason for the numbers of tourists who visit places like Sherwood Forest, City of Nottingham, and the surrounding villages in Sherwood Forest. To reinforce the Robin Hood connection, the University of Nottingham in 2010 has begun the Nottingham Caves Survey, with the goal "to increase the tourist potential of these sites". The project "will use a 3D laser scanner to produce a three dimensional record of more than 450 sandstone caves around Nottingham".[12]

Nottinghamshire was mapped first by

tollbars
, parkland, and mills.

Nottinghamshire saw a slight change to its overall boundary in the extreme northern part of the county in 1974, when the villages of Blaxton, Finningley and Auckley (part) were merged into the Doncaster in South Yorkshire.[14][15]

Physical geography

Map
Interactive map of Nottinghamshire and city/districts

Nottinghamshire, like

spoil heap left by the former Silverhill colliery, a human-made point often cited as the highest, reaches 204 metres (669 feet). The lowest is Peat Carr, east of Blaxton, at sea level; the Trent is tidal below Cromwell Lock.[18]

Nottinghamshire is sheltered by the Pennines to the west, so receives relatively low rainfall at 641 to 740 millimetres (25 to 29 inches) annually.[19] The average temperature of the county is 8.8–10.1 degrees Celsius (48–50 degrees Fahrenheit).[20] The county receives between 1321 and 1470 hours of sunshine per year.[21]

Green belt

Main article: Nottingham and Derby Green Belt

Nottinghamshire contains one green belt area, first drawn up from the 1950s. Completely encircling the Nottingham conurbation, it stretches for several miles into the surrounding districts, and extends into Derbyshire.

Politics

See also:
Nottinghamshire local elections

Nottinghamshire, including the city of Nottingham, is represented by eleven members of parliament; nine for the Labour Party, one Conservative and one Reform UK MP.

Following the

Mansfield Independent Forum since the 2017 election. The council was formerly Labour-controlled after the 2013 election. The County Council is currently made up of 34 Conservative councillors, 15 Labour, 10 Ashfield Independents and 7 independents.[22]

Local government is devolved to seven local borough and district councils. Ashfield is controlled by the Ashfield Independents. Bassetlaw, Broxtowe, Gedling, and Mansfield are Labour-controlled. Newark and Sherwood is controlled by a coalition of Labour, Liberal Democrat and independent councillors. Rushcliffe is Conservative-controlled. Nottingham City Council, which governs the Nottingham unitary authority and is independent of Nottinghamshire County Council, is majority Labour-controlled.

Westminster Parliamentary

General Election 2024: Nottinghamshire
Labour Conservative Reform Green Lib Dem Others Turnout
201,998 (41.5%)
Decrease2,013 		119,325 (24.5%)
Decrease139,469 		94,331 (19.4%)
Increase78,409 		30,517 (6.3%)
Increase20,142 		22,827 (4.7%)
Decrease10,758 		17,559 (3.6%)
Decrease5,682 		486,557
Decrease59,287
Overall number of seats in 2024
Labour Conservative Reform Green Lib Dem Others
9
Increase6 		1
Decrease7 		1
Increase1 		0
Steady 		0
Steady 		0
Steady

Political control

Nottinghamshire is a

non-metropolitan county, governed by Nottinghamshire County Council and seven non-metropolitan district councils. Elections to the county council take place every four years, with the first election taking place in 1973. Following each election, the county council has been controlled by the following parties:[23]

Year Party Details
1973 Labour details
1977 Conservative details
1981 Labour details
1985 Labour details
1989 Labour details
1993 Labour details
1997 Labour details
2001 Labour details
2005 Labour details
2009 Conservative details
2013 Labour details
2017 no overall control details
2021 Conservative details

Economy and industry

The regional economy was traditionally based on industries such as coal mining in the

knitting frame by local William Lee, the county, in particular Nottingham, became synonymous with the lace industry.[24]

In 1998, Nottinghamshire had a

£12,000, and a total GDP of £12,023 million. This is compared to a per-capita GDP of £11,848 for the East Midlands, £12,845 for England, and £12,548 for the United Kingdom. Nottingham had a GDP per-capita of £17,373, North Nottinghamshire £10,176, and South Nottinghamshire £8,448.[25] In October 2005, the United Kingdom had 4.7% unemployment, the East Midlands 4.4%, and the Nottingham commuter belt area 2.4%.[26]

Education

See also: List of schools in Nottinghamshire

Secondary education

The county has

local education authority (LEA) has 18 state schools and six independent schools, not including sixth form colleges
.

A total of 9,700 pupils took

Trinity Catholic School and the Fernwood School in Wollaton.[27]

At

Nottingham High School for Girls
, both of which are privately run.

Worksop College is another private school near to Worksop.

Higher education

The

universities in the UK. Nottingham is home to a campus of the University of Law. All three of these institutions combine to make Nottingham one of England's largest student cities. Nottingham Trent University also has an agricultural college near Southwell, while the University of Nottingham has one at Sutton Bonington
.

Culture

National and County cricket player Harold Larwood

Nottinghamshire is home to the Sherwood Forest, known for its association with the legend of Robin Hood.[28][29]

Nottinghamshire contains the ancestral home of the poet

William Brewster, for example, came from the village of Scrooby, and was influenced by Richard Clyfton, who preached at Babworth
.

Nottinghamshire has international

twinning arrangements with the province of Wielkopolska (Greater Poland) in western Poland, and with the province's capital city, Poznań.[30]

In 2002, Crocus nudiflorus (Autumn crocus) was voted by the public as the county flower of Nottinghamshire.[31][32]

Sport

Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club (NCCC) are a first class county cricket club who play at Trent Bridge in West Bridgford. They won the County Championship in 2010.

The most successful

Juventus
their black and white striped kit and opening their new stadium in 2011.

Other notable sporting teams are the Nottingham Rugby Football Club, and the Nottingham Panthers Ice Hockey Club.

Flag

The unofficial flag of Nottinghamshire
Main article: Flag of Nottinghamshire

An unofficial flag for Nottinghamshire was created through a design competition organised by BBC Radio Nottingham, and registered with the vexillological charity the Flag Institute in 2011. It consists of a green field, on which is a red cross fimbriated (bordered) with white, on which a white shield containing the green figure of an archer is superimposed.[33]

Media

Television

Emley Moor TV transmission so the area is covered by BBC Yorkshire and ITV Yorkshire (West).[34] Ashfield and parts of Newark get better signals from the Belmont TV tranmsitter that broadcast BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire and ITV Yorkshire (East).[35]

Radio

Radio stations for the county are:[36]

BBC Local Radio

Independent Local Radio

Community Radio

Newspapers

The Nottingham Post is the county's local newspaper.

Districts and boroughs

See also: List of places in Nottinghamshire and List of settlements in Nottinghamshire by population

Areas

Administrative area

(post 1974)

Administrative centre

(post 1974)

Main settlements
Ashfield
 Kirkby-in-Ashfield Sutton-in-Ashfield, Annesley, Hucknall
Bassetlaw
 Worksop (also a non-constituent member of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority)
Elmton-with-Cresswell
Broxtowe Beeston Kimberley, Stapleford, Attenborough, Bramcote, Chilwell
City of Nottingham
 Nottingham (County town of Nottinghamshire)
Clifton, Aspley, Radford, Basford, Hyson Green, Wollaton
Gedling Arnold Carlton, Burton Joyce, Colwick, Ravenshead, Gedling, Netherfield
Mansfield Mansfield
Forest Town, Mansfield Woodhouse, Warsop
Newark and Sherwood Newark-on-Trent Southwell, Ollerton, Edwinstowe, Rainworth (part), Farnsfield, Sutton-on-Trent
Rushcliffe West Bridgford East Leake, Ruddington, Bingham, Cotgrave, Tollerton, Keyworth, Radcliffe-on-Trent

Settlements and features

The traditional county town, and the largest settlement in the historic and ceremonial county boundaries, is the City of Nottingham. The city is now administratively independent, but towns including Arnold, Carlton, West Bridgford, Beeston, and Stapleford are still within the administrative county, and West Bridgford is where the county council are based.

There are several market towns in the county. Newark-on-Trent is a bridging point of the Fosse Way and River Trent, but is actually an Anglo-Saxon market town with a now ruined castle. Mansfield, the second-largest settlement in the county after Nottingham, sits on the site of a Roman settlement, but grew after the Norman Conquest. Worksop, in the north of the county, is also an Anglo-Saxon market town which grew rapidly in the Industrial Revolution, with the arrival of canals and railways and the discovery of coal. Other market towns include Arnold, Bingham, Hucknall, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Tuxford, Retford and Sutton-in-Ashfield.

The main railway in the county is the Midland Main Line, which links London to Sheffield via Nottingham. The Robin Hood Line between Nottingham and Worksop serves several villages in the county. The East Coast Main Line from London to Doncaster, Leeds, York, Newcastle upon Tyne, and Scotland serves the eastern Nottinghamshire towns of Newark and Retford.

The M1 motorway runs through the county, connecting Nottingham to London, Leeds, and Leicester by road. The A1 road follows for the most part the path of the Great North Road, although in places it diverges from the historic route where towns have been bypassed. Retford was by-passed in 1961, and Newark-on-Trent was by-passed in 1964, and the A1 now runs between Retford and Worksop past the village of Ranby. Many historic coaching inns can still be seen along the traditional route.

East Midlands Airport is just outside the county in Leicestershire, while Doncaster Sheffield Airport lies within the historic boundaries of Nottinghamshire. These airports serve the county and several of its neighbours. Together, the airports have services to most major European destinations, and East Midlands Airport now also has services to North America and the Caribbean. As well as local bus services throughout the county, Nottingham and its suburbs have a tram system, Nottingham Express Transit.

Nottingham and its surrounding areas form part of the Nottingham Urban Area while Bassetlaw is a non-constituent part of the Sheffield City Region.

Places of interest

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Mid-2022 population estimates by Lieutenancy areas (as at 1997) for England and Wales". Office for National Statistics. 24 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  2. ^ "Nottinghamshire Demographics | Age, Ethnicity, Religion, Wellbeing". Varbes. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  4. ^ "Definition of 'Nottinghamshire' – British English pronunciation". www.CollinsDictionary.com. Collins English Dictionary. Archived from the original on 24 December 2017. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  5. ^ H Gill, Summer excursion 1914: Edwinstowe church, Transactions of the Thoroton Society, 18 (1914) retrieved on 26 April 2025
  6. ^ "The History of Sherwood". Visit Nottinghamshire. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  7. ^ White, Robert (1875). The Dukery, and Sherwood Forest.
  8. ^ a b Groves, William Horner (1894). The History of Mansfield.
  9. ^ Lady Antonia Fraser, Domesday Book (1992) retrieved on 7 April 2023
  10. ^ Brown, Cornelius (1896). A History of Nottinghamshire.
  11. ^ The Mansfield Quakers Heritage Trail" (PDF). Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 26 April
  12. ^ "Laser to scan Robin Hood's prison under Nottingham city". news.BBC.co.uk. BBC News. 20 April 2010. Archived from the original on 1 November 2010. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  13. ISBN 0-902751-46-8
    .
  14. ^ GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Auckley, in Doncaster and Nottinghamshire | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time|3 April 2025
  15. ^ "More about our Village". Finningley Village Community Group. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  16. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Nottinghamshire § Geology" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 827.
  17. ^ Barnard, John (8 February 2011). "Survey of highest point Nottinghamshire (final)". www.Hill-Bagging.co.uk. Database of British and Irish Hills. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2012.
  18. ^ Haran, Brady (25 June 2004). "Experiencing the Highs and Lows". news.BBC.co.uk. BBC News. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  19. ^ "Annual average rainfall for the United Kingdom". www.MetOffice.com. Met Office. 2000. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010.
  20. ^ "Annual average temperature for the United Kingdom". www.MetOffice.com. Met Office. 2000. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010.
  21. ^ "Annual average sunshine for the United Kingdom". www.MetOffice.com. Met Office. 2000. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010.
  22. ^ "Contact a councillor". Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  23. ^ "Nottinghamshire local elections". news.BBC.co.uk. BBC News Online. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 25 September 2009.
  24. ^ Sheila A. Mason, BA (Hons), FRSA (2004). "Legacies – Nottingham – Black lead and bleaching – the Nottingham lace industry". www.BBC.co.uk. BBC. Archived from the original on 12 February 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. ^ "Regional Trends 26, chapter 14.7" (PDF). www.Statistics.gov.uk. Office for National Statistics. 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2003. Retrieved 24 December 2005.
  26. ^ "Labour market statistics for October 2005". www.EastMidlandsObservatory.org.uk. East Midlands Observatory. 2005. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2005.
  27. ^ "These are the best 10 secondary schools in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire". Nottingham Post. 9 July 2020. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
  28. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Sherwood Forest" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 853.
  29. ^ Council, Nottinghamshire County. "Sherwood Forest Country Park". Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
  30. ^ "Transnational partnerships". www.Nottinghamshire.gov.uk. Nottinghamshire County Council. Archived from the original on 24 December 2017.
  31. ^ Dr. Peter Jarvis The Pelagic Dictionary of Natural History of the British Isles (2020), p. 686, at Google Books
  32. ^ "Autumn Crocus". Plantlife. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  33. ^ "Nottinghamshire". Flag Institute. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  34. ^ "Full Freeview on the Emley Moor (Kirklees, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. May 2004. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
  35. ^ "Full Freeview on the Belmont (Lincolnshire, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. May 2004. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  36. ^ "Local news and radio". Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  37. ^ "Radio Newark". Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  38. ^ "Bowe Radio". Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  39. ^ "Park/Garden record MNT26834 - Part of Park at Hardwick Hall". Nottinghamshire Historic Environment Record. Nottinghamshire County Council. 3 February 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
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