Plans to rebuild pit headstocks set for approval

Plans to rebuild a Nottinghamshire mining landmark are set to be approved by councillors.

Brinsley headstocks were removed in December 2023 after an inspection found the structure had "deteriorated and posed a risk to public safety".

Campaigners called for the headstocks to be returned or replaced as they were part of the area's industrial heritage.

Broxtowe Borough Council will discuss a £220,000 "like-for-like" replacement at a meeting on Wednesday, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said.

Brinsley Colliery, off Mansfield Road, opened in 1842 and closed as a working pit in 1934.

They were moved to another pit when the site closed and in 1970 they went to a mining museum, before returning to Brinsley - though not in the exact original position.

The pit employed the father of author D.H. Lawrence and features in one of his books.

The proposed replacement for the headstocks will retain some of the original structure's parts, the LDRS said.

Planning documents add: "The towers and supporting infrastructure will be constructed of hardwood timber beams with metal fencing to the platforms."

The towers will measure 11m (36ft) in height and be 7.4m (24ft) in width and cover an area of around 35m (82ft) in length, with new boundary fencing measuring 1.2m in height.

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