Maltby's future has plenty of questions to answer

Whether that change will be a positive or negative one though, is open to debate. Certainly, townsfolk are in two minds about what the Maltby of tomorrow will look like.

When the Colliery closed in April, 2013, after more than a century of mining, there was concern about what the town's identity would be. That confusion remains to this day, with several big issues currently on the table.

They include:

MALTBY PIT TOP

It's an irony that isn't lost on the older generation.

An area of land where the digging of coal came to an end more than a decade ago is now being sized up as a spot where millions of tons of magnesian limestone can be excavated as part of a 'reclamation' project.

An application by owners Maltby Management Ltd to extract the rock from a 400-acre site sits before Rotherham Council.

It could bring a modest 35 jobs, but the work will mean hundreds of lorries thundering in and out of Maltby and Stainton, along with the arrival of large quantities of filler material to reshape the landscape over a nine-year period.

Locals say there is already land contamination on the site. They fear more is on the way.

HIGHFIELD PARK AND OTHER ESTATE HOME DEVELOPMENTS

Last year, outline planning consent was given to build 185 homes on allotments and a former sports field close to the Pit Top off Tickhill Road.

Around a quarter will be 'affordable' properties.

But there was the concern raised that there could be slippage from a nearby coal slag – the spectre of the Aberfan disaster in South Wales in 1966 was even raised at Maltby Town Council.

Potential traffic issues, effects on the wildlife habitat, and pressure on primary care services were cited by opponents, who fear a single exit and entrance road to the estate would lead to congestion.

Many new houses have been built in Maltby in recent times – but the infrastructure seems to be struggling to keep pace.

ANCIENT WOODLAND SALE

The recent auction of countryside near the quarry has brought more questions than answers.

Fourteen acres of land off Thicket Drive, Maltby was sold to an unknown buyer for a relatively modest £49,500, recently.

As information about both its new owner and possible future is scarce, there has been widespread speculation about what will become of the site.

WHAT DO THE POLITICIANS SAY? Local MP Jake Richards shares residents' anxiety about the Pit Top quarrying.

"Legitimate concerns have been raised with me about what this might mean for the local environment," he said.

"I had a meeting with the Environment Agency about this but I am not reassured because I am not convinced they have looked into this enough.

"I want assurances from the council that any development is going to be safe.

"I am going to need a lot of convincing that this application, as it stands today, is a good thing for Maltby."

He said there had to be a long-term vision for Maltby, as well as places like Dinnington, Kiveton Park, Swallownest and Thurcroft.

"This isn't a party political thing – successive governments whether Labour or Tory have not really grappled with that properly.

"In 20, 30 or 40 years time, what is the social and economic future here and across the whole former coalfield areas?

"I am not pretending I have all the answers to this, it is a really complex question.

"For instance, there is always a tension between the need for more housing which means more pressure on local GPs and schools but also if we want Maltby to thrive we need more people to go and use the shops!"

The Labour MP agreed that town appeared to be at a crossroads.

"We have all got to think bigger – what do we want Maltby to be?

"One of the answers is better transport. Ultimately we are not going to attract the world's leading tech companies to Maltby, but we know there is economic growth in Sheffield, the Doncaster airport is re-opening, which will lead to huge investment and good jobs that people can go to.

"Being able to get to those jobs from Maltby is a key part of this – better bus services better roads and organise the traffic system better, so we have better connectivity."

COMMUNITY FEARS

The Facebook group 'Action for Maltby' has one clear message: "Don't let Maltby be destroyed."

The Pit Top scheme is a vexing topic for them.

"It is time to do everything we can together to get a better outcome for Maltby" they posted.

"Maltby is sick of the HGVs, the smell, the endless promise for the pit top regeneration to be over.

"Now, the landowners want a quarry – more noise, more mess, more lorries. Rotherham Labour council have let this drag on for way too long."

Maltby East councillor Adam Tinsley, who lives locally, shares the fears: "The effects on the village will be a lot more lorries going through, the dumping of waste is already a current concern, we have found plastics and glass, and we have worries about what the future infill will include."

While Cllr Tinsley would welcome investment and jobs in the area, he said there was a balance needed.

"There has to be pit reclamation," he said. "But it has got to balance with the effects on Maltby and beyond.

"I don't think the plans we have seen are acceptable to the majority of people here" he said.

Cllr Tinsley had also opposed the Highfield development because of its proximity to the pit heap and the ancient nature of the woodland.

"Building houses 20 meters away from that heap has to be at the back of your mind.

"There is nothing visible to suggest it is going to move but with changing weather and more rainfall we don't know what is going to happen."

He said there was uncertainty over the future of the Thicket Drive woodland given the lack of information over who bought it.

"We need to know who bought it. People would prefer for the woodland to have been handed back for locals to enjoy," he said.

The councillor summed up: "We are an ex-mining town of 17,000 people and it really does deserve investment."

But momentum is hard to find, he says.

"It feels like we are not moving, we have not had major work on the area in 15 years or so, yes more estates popping up but everything else seems stagnant.

"We might be on the cusp of change but nobody knows if it is a good thing or not."