Earlier this month, Resonance and United Response came together with supporters, local partners, and new tenants to mark the official opening of The Old Eight Bells, a restored historic building in Mansfield which now serves as a shared home for people with learning disabilities and autism, a regional centre for United Response and as a community hub at the heart of the town.

From nightclub to community asset

The building, centrally located on Church Street, has a long and varied history -previously a pub, and more recently a nightclub that closed in 2018.

Through a £1.6 million investment from the Resonance Supported Homes Fund, the fund’s largest refurbishment project to date, the property has been transformed into eight supported-living apartments alongside flexible, dedicated community spaces. United Response, one of the fund’s two housing partners, provides the tenancies and 24-hour support to tenants, while also running a regional hub of community activity in the same building.

This development also aligns with Mansfield District Council’s Town Centre Rejuvenation Plan and represents an opportunity to bring new life into the town centre through inclusive housing and community infrastructure.

The opening event

The opening event was attended by a mix of people involved in this project: tenants, their families, support staff, project partners including Resonance, United Response and fund investors – including Better Society Capital and Barrow Cadbury Trust, commissioners, and community representatives.

Highlights included:

• A performance by the United Response Tenant Choir, bringing energy, celebration, and a sense of shared achievement
• Guided tours of the new apartments, led by some of the first tenants themselves - an opportunity to see the spaces they now call home
• Speeches by key partners highlighting how this project bring together independent living, support, and community activity

The Old Eight Bells tenants

One of the property’s first tenants, Tom, gave some guests a tour of his apartment and shared with them how he decorated and furnished his first-floor flat. He also said:

“I love that I have my own space and that there’s so much going on in the building. I can come to my flat and watch a film when I want, or be with my friends downstairs. It’s a great place.”

Gemma and Louise are twins and living in two of the eight flats. Gemma said:

“It’s really nice to have my own apartment, to have my own space. We can go out and do things on our own or do things together or with staff. They (staff) help us build our life skills and do different activities here at The Old Eight Bells.”

Aynsely, whose twin sister, Emma, is in the process of moving into The Old Eight Bells, said:

“Everybody should be able to live their lives as independently as they want to but still be able to get the help and support that they need. I think you don’t feel that you can grow up when you’ve lived your whole life at home and only stayed with your parents all the time. It’s important to get your own freedom and space.”

Supporting the local community

The Old Eight Bells is not just a property housing tenants: it’s about creating long-term opportunity, accessibility, and inclusion. A £17,000 grant from the Morrisons Foundation will help fund activities for both the tenants and the broader Mansfield community, ensuring the community spaces are active and accessible.

In addition, the naming and transformation of a formerly underused building sends a message about the role places like this can play in regenerating town centres - not only through regeneration, but by embedding social value.

From a social investment perspective, the Resonance Supported Homes Fund has now purchased multiple properties across the UK to provide supported housing for people with learning disabilities and autism, all of which are leased to its housing partners United Response and Golden Lane Housing. So far, there are 33 properties in the fund’s portfolio with 19 of these now housing 45 people.

Looking ahead

As tenants settle into their new homes and the centre becomes established within the wider community, the ambition for The Old 8 Bells is that it will:

• Bring more communities into the hub: choirs, podcasts, drama, disco nights, skill-building sessions - there’s ambition for the building to serve both residents and local people
• Track outcomes for tenants: increased autonomy, social connection, health and wellbeing benefits from living in a vibrant, enabling environment
• Ensure the community spaces are well used and welcoming for the wider community to access

Thank you to everyone that joined us in celebrating this event. The Old Eight Bells is a powerful example of what can be achieved through partnership, social investment, and a vision for inclusive community life.

ABOUT THE RESONANCE SUPPORTED HOMES FUND