The excavation area followed on from the identification of Romano-British features in four trenches. It revealed a sub-rectangular enclosure, with only a small number of ditches extending beyond the excavation area, which appear to form part of a wider system of field divisions. The enclosure itself lies almost entirely on well-drained, gravelly ground in a relatively high area of the field.

It is clear from the investigations that the enclosure represents several phases of activity, although unfortunately not all stratigraphic relationships could be reliably determined. One ditch appears to form the earliest ditch alignment to which two ditches were appended. Pottery dating did not assist greatly in the phasing of individual features, as many contained sherds with broad Roman dates or mixed assemblages dating from the 1st to possibly 4th century AD. The earlier pottery may suggest a degree of residuality, either pottery from earlier activity beyond the site boundary or from earlier re-cutting of the ditches. Internally, four gullies appeared to form an early set of sub-divisions with pottery dating to the late 1st or 2nd-century AD. This contrasts with a later 3rd or 4th-century date for one of the ditches. Four additional gullies contained pottery of broadly Roman date. No firm evidence was found to suggest any Iron Age activity in the excavation area and a Roman date for the origin of the enclosure is most likely.

The enclosure appears to have been established perhaps as early as the mid-1st century, and probably continued in use into the late 3rd or 4th century AD. The enclosure might have been associated with a settlement in the vicinity, place have been part of a much larger villa within a rural agrarian landscape, as evidenced by a small number of imbrex and flue tiles within the fills of some of the features.

The CBM assemblage, though limited in quantity, was especially interesting as it contains imbrex and flue tile, suggesting the presence of a substantial Roman building in the
surrounding area. Though it is clear that this building does not lie within the excavated area, and any associated settlement is most likely located on higher ground beyond the southern edge of the site, within an area of existing residential development.

A group of pits and post-holes form a cluster of features no clear form to the group was apparent aside from a possible linear alignment of post-holes along its eastern edge.

Unfortunately, little evidence was found to indicate the range of activities taking place within the enclosure though the large amounts of pottery and concentration of features suggest settlement in the vicinity. Despite the poor preservation of bone on site, horse and cattle bone fragments may reflect some degree of pastoralism. In addition, cereal grain was found in small amounts (a trace presence of spelt wheat in one ditch and hulled barley in one pit) providing tentative evidence for cereal cultivation in the wider landscape. Charcoal identification indicated the presence of oak, birch, hazel and alder, most probably used for fuel.

One evaluation trench provided the only conclusive evidence of large ditch features and of Romano-British activity elsewhere on the site. Pottery finds here suggested a 3rd-century date and the likelihood is that these were contemporary with those features investigated in the trenches to the south.

Matt Wells, 2017, Land at Shireoaks near Worksop, Nottinghamshire: Archaeological Evaluation and Excavation (Unpublished document). SNT5943.