Mansfield Memorial Garden, a new green space behind the Old Town Hall, has been opened.

It is part of a plan to make the town centre greener, an attractive place to spend time, as well as more resilient to flooding from storms through sustainable drainage.

The centrepiece of the new open space on the site of a former car park is a 2.4m high obelisk, weighing 1,400kg and carved from Derbyshire gritstone.

At its base is a circle of Cumbrian green slate with inspirational words, including community and kindness, engraved to support the concept of remembrance. Seating, trees, plants, terraced grass areas, and feature lighting surround the sculpture.

It was created by piece Nick Roberson, who took inspiration from the tradition of standing stones that have been used as focal points in many cultures for meeting places, where people can gather for spiritual reflection.

CCTV cameras have been installed on Queen Street to ensure the garden is used appropriately and to reduce the risk of anti-social behaviour.

The Memorial Garden was opened by Mayor Andy Abrahams, who was joined by representatives from partners in the scheme, including EDGE PS Ltd, Via East Midlands Ltd, WSP Safety, Nick Roberson, Roberson Stone Carvings Ltd, Galliford Try, and Severn Trent Water.

He said: “This is a wonderful new asset for our town centre, where people can take a while to reflect and enjoy the peace and tranquillity of this new green space.

“This, and a pocket park that has already opened near the Walkden Street car park, are part of our wider vision to make Mansfield greener and more appealing.

“In the town centre, we hope these new attractions will encourage people to linger and enjoy spending time, boosting our local economy.”

The Memorial Garden incorporates new rain gardens — Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SuDS) — part of Severn Trent’s ambitious scheme to create sustainable ways to alleviate storm pressures on existing sewers. Its £76m Green Recovery programme in Mansfield is the biggest scheme of its kind in the UK.

The idea behind the rain gardens is that they naturally soak up surface water and prevent it from entering and possibly overloading the sewer network.

The SuDS located in the Memorial Garden will collect all the rainwater that lands on Mansfield Bus Station roof, the surrounding highways, and the garden itself. During a downpour, that SuDS can hold more than 100,000 litres of rainwater.

At the recent Water Industry Awards in Birmingham, Mansfield District Council won the Natural Capital Initiative of the Year accolade.

The contractor for the Memorial Garden was Galliford Try, based in Annesley. It employed 14 people on the project, most local to Mansfield.

Matthew Sutton, regional director for Galliford Try’s environment business, said: “We were proud to play our part in improving the public realm in Mansfield town centre with what is a fantastic, sustainable solution.

“Forward-thinking, collaborative projects such as this are vital for improving public infrastructure and the environment. We are delighted with what has been achieved.”

Adam Boucher, of Severn Trent Water, added: “The Memorial Garden will be a wonderful area to visit in the town centre.

“Our project will not only see communities more resilient against the increased threat of flooding, but, by using nature-based solutions, we’re also improving how the town looks and boosting the biodiversity in the area — making Mansfield a nicer place for people to spend time.”