The district also includes the towns of Southwell and Ollerton along with a large rural area containing many villages.

Much of the district lies within the ancient Sherwood Forest and there are also extensive forestry plantations in the area.

The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.

[16] The district is covered by two parliamentary constituencies: Newark, created in 1885, which has been represented by Robert Jenrick, a Conservative, since 2014;[17] and has been held by the Conservative Party since 2001;[18] and Sherwood Forest, created in 1983, represented by Michelle Welsh, a Labour MP, elected in 2024.

Newark-on-Trent has many important historic features including Newark Castle, St Mary's Magdalene Church, Georgian architecture and a defensive earthwork from the British Civil Wars.

Other settlements in the district include: The area is served by BBC East Midlands and ITV Central with television signals are received from the Waltham TV transmitter, [24] BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire and ITV Yorkshire can also be received from the Belmont TV transmitter.