Champions show support for Chesterfield community with latest initiatives
Businesses across Chesterfield continue to get involved in supporting the local community with a range of initiatives to support people across the area.
Ann Fomukong-Boden, Destination Chesterfield Board Member commented: “Chesterfield Champions are proud to support our vibrant community, and it is great to see businesses playing their part to help others through a wide range of initiatives.
“Our town is a great place to work and live, and one of the main things that makes Chesterfield unique is the closeness of its community.
“It is great to see Champions continuing this trend by supporting local people and charities, alongside raising the profile of our area.”
Find out more about how our organisations are working to improve the lives of our residents and strengthen ties with our charities, voluntary organisations and wider community in our latest roundup below.
Spire Radio relaunches ‘Chesterfield Chat’ show to celebrate the town
Spire Radio has announced the relaunch of its community centred local show, Chesterfield Chat. The program returns now hosted by Jordan Hartshorne and produced by Eva Charkiewicz who are both passionate about celebrating the heart and soul of Chesterfield.
Chesterfield Chat provides a platform for local businesses, community groups, charities, and artists to connect with listeners and share their stories.
The relaunched show promises to build on this tradition while offering a fresh perspective and engaging format. Listeners can also expect lively discussions on local news and upcoming events that matter most to the people of Chesterfield.
Each week, Chesterfield Chat will feature a dynamic mix of guests, including:
- Local business owners discussing their latest ventures and experiences of trading in Chesterfield.
- Representatives from community groups and charities sharing their important work and fundraising efforts.
- Local artists, musicians, and performers showcasing their talents, with some liver performances.
- A roundup of the mustn’t-miss events around Chesterfield in the week ahead.
Spire Radio welcomes all members of the community to tune in to Chesterfield Chat every Tuesday evening at 6pm. Listen live on spire-radio.com, on the TuneIn Apps for iPhone, Android and Smart TV or Ask Alexa to Play Spire Radio from TuneIn.
Whether you’re a local business owner, a charity worker, or simply a resident who loves your town, Chesterfield Chat is a platform for your voice to be heard. For more information about Chesterfield Chat or if you’d like to feature on the show, email eva@spire-radio.com or message the station on Instagram.
DBCP to sponsor popular Chesterfield Children’s Festival
DBCP is sponsoring this year’s Chesterfield Children’s Festival –a free family event organised by local charity Junction Arts.
The Junction Arts event is funded by Arts Council England and was launched in 2023, attracting over 8,000 visitors. The two-day festival celebrates the joy of childhood, imagination and play and features free cultural activities and entertainment for children of all ages to enjoy.
This year, the event will be held on Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th of July in Queen’s Park, Chesterfield. New acts for 2024 include an immersive live movie set experience, an interactive family catwalk show, virtual reality swings, an aerial workshop for babies and family life drawing! There’ll also be art workshops, circus skills, storytelling, live music, face painting, theatre, and dance.
Chesterfield-based DBCP, which is the recommended provider of building control services in Derbyshire, Is the headline sponsor at the event, donating £4,000 to the charity. The extra funds will go towards an arts commission that will see musicians and storytellers work with local young people to create a new piece of music that will be performed at the festival.
Junction Arts Coordinator Jemma Burton said: “We’d like to say a massive thank you to DBCP and welcome them as sponsors of this year’s Children’s Festival. Junction Arts is a charity, we rely on corporate donations and sponsorship to ensure that our events and festivals are free and accessible to as many people as possible, this generous support from DBCP helps us to widen our reach and allows the festival to have much more impact in the community.”
Looking forward to the event David Pratt, DBCP’s Building Control Manager, said: “We are delighted to sponsor Chesterfield Children’s Festival this year. Many of the DBCP team and their families live in and around the area, so for us to be involved with this fantastic event in our community gives us all a real feeling of pride.”
For more information about the Chesterfield Children’s Festival visit: junctionarts.org.
Popular TV and comedy star launches new series of Ashgate Hospice grief podcast
Image by Roslyn Gaunt
Television and comedy star Ed Byrne recently appeared in the newest series of Ashgate Hospice’s podcast, which explores frank and honest conversations about life, death and grief.
Ed, known for appearing on panel shows like 8 Out of 10 Cats and his stand-up comedy, was interviewed for the first episode of The Life and Death Podcast.
It comes amidst the world tour of his show Tragedy Plus Time, inspired by the bereavement he faced following the death of his younger brother.
Ed sat down with podcast host Stephen Rumford ahead of his show in Buxton to discuss his career, his brother’s life and the success of the critically acclaimed show.
The first episode of the fifth series, featuring Ed, launched on 6th May as part of Dying Matters Awareness Week.
Episodes featuring other death and grief experts and commentators will go live every fortnight.
Stephen Rumford, host of The Life and Death Podcast and Senior Physiotherapist at Ashgate Hospice, said: “I don’t think we could have imagined that when we started back in 2020, we’d go on to launch five series of the podcast.
“This time, we’ve expanded our range topics and guests, and our six latest guests are a wonderful addition to the growing resource that the podcast represents.
“From a candid conversation with Ed Byrne to an insightful discussion with TikTok’s ‘Hospice Nurse Julie’, we have a wide range of guests offering differing expertise. You’re sure to learn something new with each episode.
“We hope the podcast provides a useful resource to anyone who is bereaved and people who might be curious about the subject.
“I hope all of our listeners enjoy the considered opinions of our guests as they share their unique experiences with us.”
In the podcast seasons so far, Stephen speaks with writers, doctors and people who have experienced end of life care to discuss their unique relationships, hospice life, and how death affects the living.
In the latest series, Dr. Katie Lawlor, an animal bereavement expert and pet loss psychologist based in San Francisco, California, joins as one of the guests.
She was training to be a clinical psychologist before she realised there was very little, if any, support networks for people suffering following the death of a pet.
Others include Dr Julie McFadden, known to millions on social media as ‘Hospice Nurse Julie’; she cares for palliative and end of life patients and uses TikTok to address some of death’s biggest misconceptions.
The Natural Death Centre’s Josefine Speyer, author of Modern Loss, Rebeca Soffer, and renowned philosopher Simon Critchley will also feature in the new season.
Episodes will be released on Mondays every fortnight from 6th May! You can listen to episodes from all five series of The Life and Death Podcast online or by searching for ‘Ashgate Hospice’ on all streaming platforms.
Veezu supports Cash for Kids charity
Veezu, a private hire operator covering Chesterfield and South Yorkshire, has donated £500 to the local arm of Cash for Kids in support of Cash for Kids Day on 2 May.
The donation was made through Funded by Veezu, an initiative in which local charities and sports teams can apply for funding and grants, set up to improve the communities in which Veezu operates.
Cash for Kids supports children and young people affected by poverty, abuse, neglect, life-limiting illness, and those with additional needs. Based across 22 areas in the UK, Cash for Kids is a grant giving charity that helps community groups, charitable organisations, schools and individual cases. The latest figures from the End Child Poverty Coalition show that 1 in 3 local children are living in poverty and, in some areas, it is as high as 36%.
2 May marked Cash for Kids Day, where organisations came together to raise as much as possible for the cause, with a particular focus on combating holiday hunger to make sure all children have access to a hot meal during the holidays.
Veezu has donated £500 from its regional areas of Birmingham, Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield and Portsmouth, bringing the total donation to £3000. According to statistics given by Cash for Kids, it’s predicted that £3000 will help 60 children in need.
Lisa Sullivan, Charity Manager at Cash for Kids North, West and South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, said: “We are so grateful to Veezu for supporting us across the UK in six regions for Cash for Kids Day. For the passengers of Veezu, they can feel confident in their choice, as they will be helping disadvantaged children access activities and food during the school holidays. For many children it will be their only daily meal. The generosity of companies like Veezu, as well as donations from the general public, help us help children that need it the most.”
Sacha Skinner, Regional Marketing Manager at Veezu, said: “We are delighted to be able to support Cash for Kids once again. All children deserve access to a hot meal, whether it’s the holidays or not, and we are glad to donate what we can and make a difference to children living in poverty.”
BusinessWise Accountancy & Tax welcomes Brookfield School pupil for work experience
A Chesterfield business has continued its commitment towards supporting our young people with careers, by hosting a pupil for a week of work experience.
BusinessWise Accountancy and Tax welcomed Oliver to their organisation for a week of hands-on learning about what a career in Chesterfield’s financial sector would look like.
Looking for skills support in Chesterfield for your business? Go to our Skills and Training page to find out more.
The businesses featured in this article support the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 200 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.
