It is named after the town of Bolsover, which is near the geographic centre of the district, but the council is based in the large village of Clowne to the north.

The neighbouring districts are Amber Valley, North East Derbyshire, Chesterfield, Rotherham, Bassetlaw, Mansfield, and Ashfield.

[6] Since 2014 the district has been a non-constituent member of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (formerly known as the Sheffield City Region); the council sends representatives to meetings of the combined authority, but the electorate of Bolsover District do not vote in elections for the Mayor of South Yorkshire.

In 1994 it moved to Sherwood Lodge on Oxcroft Lane in Bolsover, comprising a large Victorian house and modern office extensions.

[16] However, southern parts of the district can still receive TV signals from the Waltham transmitter which broadcast BBC East Midlands and ITV Central.