Chesterfield’s Amigos Team Parker racing ace Seb Perez showed how it was done when he travelled to Oulton Park in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship over the 9th – 10th June.

The 18 year old took an impressive victory in race one in the Pro Am title at Oulton Park, his third win of the season was complemented by yet another podium spot in race two, taking third place after an intense battle for the lead, meaning he leaves the Cheshire circuit just seven points shy of the championship lead.

Last month Perez made a double win too at the legendry Monza GP Circuit in Italy and headed to Oulton Park with one thing on his mind “to win”

In his free practice sessions Perez struggled to find an ideal set up for the  Amigos Team Parker Porsche 911 GT3 race car and qualified 11th, fourth fastest ProAm driver on the grid for race one on Saturday afternoon.

After a fantastic start he put pressure on the three Pro AM drivers ahead of him dropping into third place in the opening stages of the 18 lap race.

Perez was in a prime position waiting for the two leading contenders to make a mistake on the undulating and notoriously narrow track, it wasn’t long before they got tangled up and Perez took the move into number one slot.

There he would remain to take win number three in his maiden Carrera Cup GB season.

Sunday afternoons race two saw blistering temperatures with a track temperature of around 28 degrees, this was a challenge for Perez and the other Porsche drivers and there 485hp super racers.

Perez remained cool knowing that there was another possibility of a podium starting from sixth on the grid, once the lights went to green he charged down the pack and stayed close behind team mate Nottinghamshire’s George Gamble but couldn’t hold off a charging Jamie Orton who made his move on lap 11.

Worse was to come when Perez out-braked himself at the bottom hairpin, spinning in the process.

The closing laps saw him give a fiery comeback crossing the line in third and safeguarding another podium in the process to ensure another well deserved third position in Pro AM.

After the race Perez said,

“It’s been a tough weekend all round to be honest but I’m really pleased that I made the most of it, no matter what was thrown at me.

“I had a difficult race one and I didn’t have the initial pace that Id hoped for but worked hard to keep that race lead once I’d got hold of it and that can be just as hard as trying to make inroads on your position. It was certainly well earned. As for race two, I was disappointed with my error, so it was important to salvage something from that. It’s such a narrow circuit so overtaking is very hard here and third was as good as I could hope for in the circumstances. Its been a great weekend overall and we are in a really strong position in the championship which is encouraging at this stage of the season”.

Perez leaves Oulton Park in third place ProAm and third place Rookie driver

Amigos Team Parker Racing retains its second place in the Entrant Championship as the series enjoys a six-week break before it returns at the end of July (28-29) to Snetterton for rounds nine and ten where all the action will be live on ITV4.

Editorial and Images by Paul Horton Motorsport Media and Photography

Employers, colleges, training providers and voluntary organisations are being invited to book their place at this year’s Derbyshire Skills Festival.

The event, which is organised by Derbyshire County Council, is aimed at students aged 13 to 19, including those in year 11 who are considering their options after school.

Derbyshire Skills Festival is the largest careers event for young people in Derbyshire and this year it is being held at the Proact Stadium on Wednesday 26 September 2018 – the event will run from 3.30pm to 8pm.There will also be sessions for young people with special educational needs and disabilities and young people who are not in education, employment or training will also be invited.

Councillor Alex Dale, Cabinet Member for Young People at Derbyshire County Council, said:-

“We’re getting ready for what’s promising to be another fantastic Derbyshire Skills Festival this year and now is the time for providers to book their space.

“Each year the festival attracts more than 11,000 visitors making it a great place for employers, education and training providers and voluntary organisations to showcase what they can offer to young people thinking about their future career.”

The festival is an opportunity for young people leaving school or college or looking for a job with training to talk to the experts and get all the information and guidance they need under one roof.

Visitors to the event will also be able to take part in have-a-go sessions to test their skills and give them an idea what different careers might be like. As well as workshops to help them with job applications and employment skills.

On Saturday July 7^th, thousands of Markovitz Sparkle Night walkers, wearing bright pink t-shirts and flashing bunny ears, will take to the streets of Chesterfield to raise money for their local hospice, Ashgate Hospicecare which is based in Old Brampton, Chesterfield, but looks after patients and their families all across North Derbyshire.

Walkers will start to arrive at the Proact Stadium from 7:30pm, where Jake Quickenden will be performing later that evening. They will then begin walking from the Proact Stadium at 10pm, and the 10 kilometre route will take walkers along the A61 bypass, part of which will be closed to make way for the walkers and the entertainment strip, and will wind all the way down to Hasland, before circling back towards the town centre and finishing back at the Proact Stadium.

Linda and Theresa have been walking Ashgate Hospicecare’s night walks for 7 years in memory of Linda’s son, David, who died at the Hospice at the age of 24.

Linda said:-

“It’s one day a year when we can do something in David’s memory and do something for the Hospice. We always get David’s photo printed on our t-shirts. Even though everybody is doing the walk for their loved ones, it’s a fun walk, not a sad walk. We have a laugh. Everybody’s in good spirits and we always speak to people we’ve never met before. It’s lovely.

“David was diagnosed with a condition called neurofibromatosis at birth. This caused him to have a brain tumour at the age of 24. He was having migraines and this went on for a couple of weeks. We went to see a doctor and was referred to Sheffield for an operation, but when they went in to operate, they realised that they couldn’t do anything as the tumour was on his brain stem. He died more or less a week after that operation which was such a shock; we didn’t even know that David’s condition was terminal. Sheffield transferred him to Ashgate after his operation. He woke up, but he had brain damage so his speech was slurred and he needed help with feeding.

“When David arrived at Ashgate, they were still looking at what they could do to get him home. The plan was to get him up on his feet playing snooker as there used to be a snooker table in here. He had his own room at the Hospice, it was a big room and all his family and all his friends could come and be with him as much as they liked. Having the time and space for us all to be with David at the end was so important and it’ll stay with us all forever.

“When he died, it was very peaceful and the nurses made sure of that. The day before he died, he seemed to perk up. He was joking and trying to laugh. We’d got the telly on and he was trying to dance to the telly in his bed which gave his brothers, Michael and Paul, the chance to enjoy those final days with David. That night they gave Paul a pop up bed so that he could stay next to him overnight. David was very close to his whole family and, as the years have gone by, being able to spend that quality time with him at the end has been really comforting for all of us. After he died, the Hospice offered counselling to his whole family, which was really helpful.

“For somebody like me who’s grieving, doing the Sparkle Night Walk really helps me; having the whole community coming together and doing something positive. You feel like everybody who is walking at Sparkle is in the same boat. There’s always somebody you know who has had cancer or another awful disease. Even if you’ve not experienced bereavement yourself, there are always people you know who might need Ashgate.

“It seems a long time, 11 years, since David died, but it’s not for me. I’ll never get over it. It feels sometimes like people think you should get over it, but he’s my son so he’ll always be with me. Remembering David at the Sparkle Night Walk is special for us in so many ways, and so we’ll continue to walk it and continue to support the Hospice as long as it’s going.”

Whether you’re an individual, a group of friends or a local business team, you can help to bring hospice care to local people by joining our 10km Markovitz Sparkle Night Walk on Saturday 7^th July 2018.

Chesterfield Champion Addooco is delighted to announce its latest recruit, Elliot Firth, who will be taking on a business development role in the organisation. The role has been created to supplement the sustained growth and development of the company.

Elliot’s main role will be the promotion of the Addooco Clear Skies Platform to new and existing partners.  Addooco’s cloud is called Clear Skies and it is built on an array of self-owned infrastructure by in-house engineers.  The primary data centre is Telehouse North which is UK based and one of the most heavily connected data centres in the World.  Clear Skies is built with resilience in mind and incorporates multiple layers of redundant equipment with automated failover.  Data security is at its forefront, with many layers of physical data centre security in place and cyber security measures applied. Unless specified otherwise, data is guaranteed to remain on UK shores.

Elliot has a strong track record in similar roles and brings great skills and experience to the team. He will help to create awareness of the Addooco brand and Make IT Happen for its partners.

Elliot said:-

“I am delighted to have been given this great opportunity to join Addooco. Addooco have been extremely successful since opening 10 years ago and I am excited to help the business grow further and continue to be successful for many years to come.”

Big-hearted Chesterfield traders raised their voices in support of a new campaign to raise awareness of cancer symptoms and screening.

‘Be Cancer Safe’ is a community approach to improving cancer survival in South Yorkshire, Bassetlaw and North Derbyshire.

Hannah Sharpe, Chesterfield’s ‘Be Cancer Safe’ Project Worker, explains:-

“The aim of the ‘Be Cancer Safe’ campaign is to get as many people as possible talking about signs, symptoms and screening.  Experts say that one in two of us will have cancer during our lifetime, but the good news is that the earlier a cancer is diagnosed the higher the likelihood of successful treatment and survival.

“Our job is to spread this message to as many people as possible, particularly in areas and amongst population groups where take-up of screening is low.”

Mick Watson of The Crown and Cushion and Kurt Russell from Crawshaws Butchers, on a recent busy market day, swapped their usual sales banter for messages of support for the campaign.  Shouts of “Be safe, don’t be sorry,” and “Don’t be a chancer when it comes to cancer,” rang out across the market place, encouraging shoppers to visit Hannah’s stall where she gave away information cards describing symptoms of the five most common cancers.

Mick said:-

“Me and Kurt usually compete for attention when we’re trading, being loud comes naturally to us. We were pleased to help; these messages affect so many people. I’ve taken leaflets for the pub to help my customers too.”

Launched in April, the campaign has already provided information about early cancer symptoms to hundreds of people across North Derbyshire, with over 400 pledging to pass those messages on to friends and family.

North Derbyshire’s ‘Be Cancer Safe’ team is based at Derbyshire Voluntary Action’s offices in Chesterfield.  They are looking for opportunities to visit businesses, community groups and organisations across the area to offer information sessions.

A gifted student from Chesterfield has put her talents on display and been rewarded for all her hard work at the opening night of the annual degree show at Cleveland College of Art and Design (CCAD).

21-year-old Hannah Postlethwaite from Chesterfield is a final year student on the BA (Hons) Production Design for Stage and Screen degree at the leading northern art school, based in Hartlepool on the north east coast.

For her final major project, which is now being featured at the degree show, Hannah was given an exclusive ‘live’ assignment by Opera North – England’s national opera company in the North and one of Europe’s leading arts organisations – to design a theatre set for La Boheme.

Earlier in her studies, Hannah’s talent secured a week of work experience at Opera North with the prop making department during the second year of her degree in 2016. At the end of the week the arts organisation said they liked working with her and the following January they asked Hannah to come in for a week’s paid work, which turned into a week and a half, and then again in September 2017 for almost three weeks.

Hannah said:-

“I learned a great deal while there; including just how fast you have to work. At college you might have the luxury of spending a couple of days or even a week making a prop, but in the real world you’ve got a couple of hours. What I enjoy the most, aside from working with a great team, is the feeling I get knowing a piece of work I have made is being used on stage. I get a great buzz from that.

“So I approached Opera North about my final major project, as I knew I wanted to do a theatre design. I had gained a good relationship with the people there so they were more than happy to get involved. They gave me an option of three operas to choose from and I chose La Boheme.”

Hannah conducted two presentations at Opera North’s home theatre in Leeds, the first with a white card model of her interpretation of the classic opera set design. This was followed by a second formal presentation with the complete project and a description of each act, scenery, props, characters and costumes. In a surprise twist, Hannah took the setting of the original romantic opera from 18^th Century Paris to Havana in 1962 during the Cuban missile crisis, and as part of the brief, she qualified the reasons behind her choice.

For the updated interpretation of the set design, Hannah chose this location as it was a visually romantic city with dramatic architecture, music and art, which matches the passion of the original play set in France. A radio on stage would also reflect the passage of time with news bulletins to reduce the need for set changes, alongside an image of JFK as a visual metaphor for the political climate.

She continued:-

“However, there were challenges, as Cuba is a warm country and La Boheme is set in the winter in Paris with the first song highlighting the bitterly cold weather. So I created a set with props which emphasised the ‘cold’ revolutionary period of the time during the missile crisis and hostile civil unrest. I also featured images of Fidel Castro ‘burning’ instead of a fire for the actors to sit around, which Opera North really liked as it represented the idea of the location being ‘politically warm’.

The presentation to Opera North highlighted the different set design changes and Hannah’s understanding of the challenges faced for the production team, which she had learned during her two years’ experience with the company. Following the final model presentation, Opera North is now considering costing the whole show to see if it is within budget.

Of the build up to degree show, Hannah said:-

“After focusing on my final presentation at the Opera North, which did require many 12 hour days at college and a lot of late nights, I then prepared for the degree show. It has been great to show my family and friends what I’ve been up to and celebrate with my course mates, and very exciting!”

After graduation, Hannah is planning to move back home to Chesterfield and begin her career as a freelance prop maker, as she has developed industry connections with companies and other prop makers in the Midlands. She also would to carry on designing theatre, and plans to use her design for Opera North to apply for the Linbury Prize – the UK’s most prestigious award for Stage Design.

Pat Chapman, Vice Principal, Employability and External Relations, said:-

“This is always an exciting time of the year as students end their three years of study and look to the future. The degree show is a celebration of the creative talent our students have developed and marks the transition to employment or post graduate study.

“This year’s graduates have bright futures, establishing themselves in industry and establishing their own businesses. They will continue our incredible record for employability which has seen 96 percent or more of graduates in employment or further study for each of the past four years, a record that places the College amongst the very highest performing universities nationally. This year also marks the final time CCAD will put on a graduate show as from next year we will have adopted our new identity as The Northern School of Art.”

Students exhibited works from ten degree courses as part of the ‘Northern View’ exhibition at the northern art school’s university-level campus in Hartlepool, including fashion, fine art, illustration and creative film.

Unemployment in Chesterfield continues to be lower than the national average according to figures released this week.

Monthly data published by the Office for National Statistics showed unemployment in the region of 4.0% for the three months February to April 2018 compared with 4.19% for the UK.

The regional figure was down 0.1% on the three months of November to January.

According to the ONS, the number of people claiming Job Seekers Allowance in Chesterfield for the period from May was 1655, down 10 from the figure reported in April of 1665.

The number of people shown as in work across the East Midlands for the three months February to April was 2,303,383, up 27,074 from the 2,276,309 of the previous quarter and 53,191 higher than a year ago.

Scott Knowles, Chief Executive at East Midlands Chamber, said:-

“Today’s figures confirm once again that the East Midlands is a serious contributor to the national economy; the region continuing to create jobs, opportunities and wealth despite the uncertainty of Brexit and the Government’s ongoing under-investment in the region.

“If we can achieve these figures despite receiving only 60% of the national average for infrastructure investment – which includes road and rail improvements and internet and mobile connectivity – just think what we could achieve if Government were to recognise the importance of this area.”

Ringwood Hall Hotel and Spa celebrated the official opening of their Garden Secret Spa,  formally opened by the Deputy Mayor and Mayoress of Chesterfield, on Friday 8^th June.

The Luxury Spa has been under construction since early December and is now officially open. The separate spa building features a Vitality Pool, Herbal Sauna, Foot Spas, Himalayan Salt Sauna, Blossom Steam Room, Ice Fountain, Experience Showers, Relaxation Lounges, 7 treatment rooms and its own Brassiere. The Garden Secret Spa is Derbyshire’s newest luxury spa and offers not only a great service to their guests but Derbyshire and Yorkshire residents also.

The Garden Secret Spa is a true sanctuary for the senses. The spa has been created to offer its guests an opportunity to ease their mind and body, providing a pathway to heal and balance, nurture and comfort for better health and well-being. The spa is the first spa in the UK to be using the stunning Lola’s Apothecary collection within their treatments, along with Salt of the Earth for the manicure and pedicure, Little Butterfly for the three specialist pre and post-natal massages, and the vegan friendly Ytsara range for their facial collection.

Jemma Whitney, Spa Manager of the Garden Secret Spa, said:-

“We are delighted to now be able to welcome guests to our beautiful new spa, we have some really unique facilities, including our traditional Hamman Suite, our private couple’s suite and the hydrotherapy vitality pool. We have created a package and experience that caters for everyone, whether you are a regular spa goer or completely new to the world of rest and rejuvenation”

The Garden Secret Spa is all about bringing the award winning gardens of Ringwood Hall in and this can clearly be seen throughout the whole building.