King's Mill Hospital is an acute general district hospital serving the population of north Nottinghamshire and parts of Derbyshire and Lincolnshire. It is managed by the Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The majority of the hospital buildings are inside Ashfield District Council area with some peripheral buildings falling under Mansfield District Council planning controls.

The private finance initiative (PFI) was a United Kingdom government procurement policy aimed at creating "public–private partnerships" (PPPs) where private firms are contracted to complete and manage public projects. Initially launched in 1992 by Prime Minister John Major, and expanded considerably by the Blair government, PFI is part of the wider programme of privatisation and financialisation, and presented as a means for increasing accountability and efficiency for public spending.