He has now started to work within the District’s three main town centres  - Sutton-in-Ashfield, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, and Hucknall,  looking at four main areas of work to improve their vitality:

• Sustainability, Regeneration and Economic Development
• Traffic, Transport and Accessibility
• Crime and Disorder
• Publicity and Promotions

The main aims of his work, which will predominantly be in partnership with other service providers, local businesses and local people will be to:

• Create and maintain an attractive and clean environment
• Encourage investment to the retail sector
• Make Ashfield’s town centres a place where people wish to shop
• Ease access in and around the town centres
• Improve the safety and security of town centres through partnership working 
• Promote environmental improvement, 
• Facilitate events 
• Publicise information and services

Mark will be working with all town centre users including businesses, shoppers and visitors to make them a more attractive place to shop, work and spend leisure time in both the daytime and evening. 

His work and projects will be guided by all town centre users through consultation to ensure that the best improvement or solution to a problem is facilitated. 

He is now making contact with other service providers like the police, Nottinghamshire County Council, business groups, business support agencies, etc. across each of the three town centres to establish local priorities so that they can together build upon each towns strengths and improve on their weaknesses.

Mark joins Ashfield District Council from Gedling Borough Council where he worked for five and a half years as Town Centres Manager where amongst his achievements he was instrumental in progressing the drafting of the Arnold Town Centre Masterplan redevelopment scheme, establishing the successful Shop and Pub Watch radio scheme which achieved the national Safer Business Award and coordinated a number of events across the town centres including all of the Christmas lights switch-on’s.

Initial projects Mark is working on will be to establish an effective town centre business crime reduction partnership and the implementation of the masterplans for Kirkby-in-Ashfield and Sutton-in-Ashfield.