A Nottinghamshire walking trail dedicated to one world-renowned writer is set to be extended to bridge together the borough’s literary, cultural and industrial heritage.
Broxtowe is home to Brinsley Colliery and Moorgreen Colliery and is the birthplace of world-renowned writer D.H. Lawrence, who was from Eastwood in the north of the borough.
But Broxtowe’s mining and literary heritage easily go hand in hand. Lawrence’s largely autobiographical novel, Sons and Lovers, refers to a coal mine called Beggarlee, which the area’s historic Brinsley Headstocks stood in for as part of the on-screen retelling of the book in 1960.
His father, Arthur, and grandfather, Bert, also worked at the Brinsley pit, which closed in 1934.
This legacy is already celebrated in the existing 1.5-mile D.H. Lawrence Trail, which offers a circular walk incorporating the Birthplace Museum and key literary and historic locations centred around Eastwood. It also nods to other spots, such as Colliers Wood, once the site of Moorgreen Colliery, and Beauvale School, where Lawrence attended.
Broxtowe Borough Council is extending the trail to 6.2 miles, providing clear links between Eastwood, Colliers Wood, which includes the former Moorgreen Colliery, and Brinsley Headstocks.
Both former pit sites feature memorial plaques with the names of the miners who lost their lives at the sites.
The trail includes the Green Belt land the council is trying to get designated between Eastwood and Brinsley to create a new country park, meaning it would be protected from future development.
Council Leader Milan Radulovic (Brox Alliance) said the designation of the land and the extended walking trail was “to try and bring in as many people to visit the area”, particularly for them to study the D.H. Lawrence and mining heritage.
He said: “It’s to protect the countryside, ‘the country of my heart’, and it will be recognised in the area, throughout the country and across the world because of the connection to D.H. Lawrence.”
Speaking at Tuesday’s meeting, Councillor Teresa Cullen (Brox Alliance) said: “Our cultural heritage is across the whole borough, but the D.H. Lawrence heritage in the north of the borough is hugely important to us.
“By extending this walk to take in other aspects, very linked together, Brinsley Headstocks – Lawrence’s family were coal miners – it’s all linked together. It actually makes the tourist offer.
“We do have coachloads of people come to our lovely museum up there, and being able to offer them not only the viewing of the graveyard but also the chance to go on a 6.2-mile walk is absolutely fantastic.”
She suggested a future councillor-sponsored walk along the 6.2-mile route to raise money to “invest” in young people to learn about Broxtowe’s cultural history.
Works to reinstall the historic Brinsley Headstocks, around one mile north of Eastwood, began in April 2026 after a series of delays.
The headstocks were built in 1872 and would have been used to lift miners, equipment and materials in and out of the mine, but the landmark was taken down in December 2023 over safety concerns.
The council approved a £220,000 full oak replacement in January 2025, and it was originally aimed for the installation and wider site project – including a new wildflower meadow and remembrance orchard for miners who lost their lives at the pit – to be completed by October 2025.
This was pushed back due to the discovery of two old mining shafts in October 2024 following a ground investigation, partly using old maps. One inaccessible tunnel was found to be underneath the remembrance orchard area.
Council Leader Milan Radulovic (Brox Alliance) told the Local Democracy Reporting Service in May 2026 that he hoped the structure would be opened by September 2026, in line with the D.H. Lawrence Music Festival.
Documents from the authority’s Cabinet meeting on Tuesday (30 June) state: “Subject to contractor availability, the reinstatement of this structure is anticipated by the end of the year.”
Cllr Tyler Marsh (Brox Alliance), Portfolio Holder for Environment and Climate Change, told Tuesday’s meeting it is planned to launch the extended trail route to coincide with the D.H. Lawrence Music Festival in August or September.
By Lauren Monaghan, Local Democracy Reporter