About Chesterfield

Eastwood Park Welcomes New Sports Facility

Eastwood Park’s new sports pavilion is now complete and will be opened officially on Saturday 16th May by Councillor John Burrows.

The facility will provide changing facilities for sports groups using the park as well as a tea room and kitchen facilities and a community meeting room.  It will also have new male, female and disabled toilets which will be open to users of the park to replace the ones currently open on Hasland Road.

The project has been funded partly by a grant of £150,000 from Sport England’s Inspired Facilities fund, with the remaining £201,000 provided by Chesterfield Borough Council.

Councillor Chris Ludlow, Chesterfield Borough Council’s executive member for health and well being, said:-

“We have lots of regular users of the park’s sports facilities, including bowling, football and cricket clubs and we hope that the new pavilion will bring new groups into the park.

“Our thanks go to Sport England for their grant funding, without which the new pavilion would not have been possible.

“I’m particularly proud that our builders and apprentices have delivered the project – offering the most cost-effective solution and providing employment for local people.”

Charles Johnston, Sport England’s property director, added:-

“The Inspired Facilities Fund has made a huge impact on grassroots sports since its inception, and remains one of our most popular funds. Since 2011, we have invested £94 million into 1,800 projects to improve and refurbish existing sports facilities all over the country.”

“It is great to see Eastwood Park join the long list of successful projects to benefit from this fund and we are looking forward to seeing these improvements make a huge difference to the local community, and to help more people to play sport.”

During the ceremony a plaque will also be unveiled to thank the Friends of Eastwood Park for their hard work, support and dedication during the park’s restoration project.

Eastwood Park reopened in June 2013 after a 10 month refurbishment thanks to £1.3 million in funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Big Lottery Fund.

Eastwood Park Chesterfield

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Leisure, Summer, Visiting

Chesterfield Visitor Information Centre Highly Commended

Chesterfield Visitor Information Centre has been highly commended in a prestigious industry awards ceremony.

The centre in Rykneld Square, operated by Chesterfield Borough Council, received the accolade in the visitor information provider category of the VisitEngland awards for excellence 2015.

Councillor Amanda Serjeant, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for town centre and visitor economy, said:-

“The VisitEngland awards for excellence are prestigious national awards and I am proud that our Visitor Information Centre has been nationally recognised.

“Our friendly, hard-working staff are the first contact many visitors have with Chesterfield. Their knowledge about the borough and the wider area, including the Peak District, is second-to-none and this award is well-deserved.”

James Berresford, VisitEngland’s chief executive said:-

“It is a great achievement to win a Highly Commended Award in a field of very high quality applications.

“The award places Chesterfield Visitor Information Centre in the top five businesses for excellence in their category in England. I warmly congratulate them on this achievement.”

Chesterfield Visitor Information Centre highly commended by Visit England Chesterfield VIC VisitEngland award shows (left to right): Lady Cobham (chairman, VisitEngland), Catherine Walker, Kerry Sheldon, Anne McFarlane, Bernadette Wainwright and James Berresford (chief executive, VisitEngland).

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Leisure, Summer, Visiting

Chesterfield plans to become a dementia friendly town

The Chesterfield Dementia Action Alliance is planning to make Chesterfield a nicer place to live for people living with dementia, or those who provide care for such, and develop dementia-friendly communities.

The alliance brings together regional and local members of the community such as large and small retailers, local authorities, hospital trusts, care providers, financial and professional services, charities etc.

The Dementia Action Alliance is pleased to announce the launch of Chesterfield Dementia Action Alliance on Thursday May 21st.   This session is designed to explain how the group operates, how you can be involved and the support available.

The launch takes place at the Assembly Rooms (above the Market Hall) on Thursday 21st May between 2.30 to 4.30pm.

As part of the session attendees will also have the opportunity to become a Dementia Friend.

You can register to attend at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/chesterfield-dementia-action-alliance-launch-tickets-16216115839

Dementia Friends logo

Posted in About Chesterfield

Chamber Reflects on Strengthening Jobs Market

There are now 45,000 more people in work than there were a year ago in the East Midlands and more than 37,000 fewer people are unemployed, according to figures released this morning.

The Office for National Statistics issued its latest monthly regional employment bulletin earlier, which showed there were 2.225m people aged 16-64 in employment in the three months to March 2015, compared to 2.18m in the same period in 2014.

The number of unemployed people was 114,447, compared to 151,574 in 2014, meaning the regional unemployment rate currently stands at 5.1%, compared to the national rate of 5.5%.

The number of people in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire claiming Jobseekers’ Allowance (JSA) fell by 999 in April, meaning there were 16,595 fewer claimants across the area than there were a year ago.

The number of people in Chesterfield claiming the benefit stood at 1312, which is 616 lower than the figure announced in April 2014.

East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire) has welcomed the figures.

George Cowcher, Chief Executive, said: “Today’s employment and claimant figures once again highlight how strong the East Midlands economy is at the moment, with businesses continuing to create jobs and drive the growth that is needed to fully rebalance the national economy.

“It’s also pleasing that earnings continue to increase and boost living standards – a focus on improving productivity from businesses will ensure this is sustainable.

“Businesses need a continued period of stability in order to deliver the growth and prosperity the country needs and the new Government has the opportunity to use its strengthened mandate to bring forward initiatives which will maintain and build upon the momentum the economy has built-up over the past two years.”

 

East Midlands Chamber logo

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business

Chatsworth Scoops Silver in Visit England Awards

Chatsworth has been awarded Silver in the ‘Large Visitor Attraction of the Year’ category at the Visit England Awards for Excellence 2015.

The award was presented to the Chatsworth team by the national tourism body at a glittering ceremony on Monday 11 May at the Sage Gateshead, which drew together the country’s top visitor attractions. The Visit England Awards for Excellence are firmly established as representing the highest accolade in English tourism.

The Duke of Devonshire comments:-

“We are absolutely delighted that Chatsworth has been awarded Silver in the Large Visitor Attraction of the Year category at this year’s Visit England Awards. Chatsworth is a very special place with a dedicated and passionate team, who continually strive to exceed visitor expectations and deliver excellent customer service. I am thrilled that the hard work and commitment to our visitors has been recognised at such a high level.”

The award recognises businesses that incorporate best practice, demonstrate excellence in customer service and are committed to delivering the very best in quality and innovation.

This year’s busy programme at the Peak District (Derbyshire) country estate includes launching the Chatsworth Festival – Art Out Loud, a major new literary festival; the 10th anniversary of the Beyond Limits monumental sculpture exhibition; plus, fun for families throughout the summer culminating in the ever popular Country Fair ahead of the glittering Christmas displays.

Chatsworth has undergone significant change in recent years with improvements to its events, exhibition programme and visitor services. For example, last year it added a new contemporary art and sculpture exhibition in the house and garden by Michael Craig-Martin; ‘Chatsworth in Wartime’, recreated the State Apartments as the girls school dormitory they used during WW2; a week of evening events called ‘Luminaire’ was held in the autumn with house tours by candle light and spectacular night-time projections in the garden.

Customer service training has built on the theme of ‘Excellent to Extraordinary’ while the increasing number of visitors from overseas has driven greater foreign language interpretation in the house, including Chinese. Food and toilet facilities have been upgraded in the garden and farmyard while access to Chatsworth has been improved with more frequent public transport as well as better onsite parking and driveways.

Chatsworth

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Leisure, Summer, Visiting

Shorts’ Cycle Challenge Raises over £7,500 in Memory of Colleague

Last weekend a team of 15 partners and staff from Shorts completed a 170 mile coast to coast cycle route to raise over £7,500 for The Lymphoma Association in memory of a long-serving Chesterfield colleague.

The Way of the Roses challenge, which followed months of training and preparation, began at Morecambe on Friday morning, and ended in Bridlington on Sunday afternoon with all 15 team members completing the full distance and crossing the finishing line together.

Event organiser, Adrian Dunkley comments:-

“What a wonderful experience, and such an incredible feeling completing this challenging event. We had everything from driving rain and high winds on day one to punctures, broken chains, one fall and a bike stuck in 2nd gear that very nearly didn’t make it to the finish line. Despite this, the route took us through stunning scenery and it was a thoroughly enjoyable event; the months of training really paid off. This has, without doubt, been the most enjoyable and rewarding challenge that I have ever been involved in and to complete the event with 14 like-minded work colleagues has provided us all with an unforgettable experience.

“Most importantly, we would like to thank everyone who made a donation to the Lymphoma Association via our JustGiving page. Money is still coming in from individual sponsorship, but at the moment we believe that including Gift Aid, we will have raised in excess of £7,500 which is absolutely unbelievable. We would also not have been able to do this, without the help of Andrew’s of Tideswell, who very kindly provided the transportation for the team, our bikes and all the equipment to the starting point and back home again at the end.”

Shorts’ senior partner Paul Beeson who also completed the challenge added:-

“We completed the Way of the Roses in memory of a former colleague Brian Sewell who sadly passed away last year. It was wonderful that so many people wanted to be a part of this, and it meant a lot to the team to see so many people at the finishing line cheering us home.”

Those who completed the challenge include Paul Beeson, Chris Chambers, Howard Freeman, Simon Hollin, Andy Ryder, Linzi Riley, Tom Winter, Adrian Dunkley, Martin Dean, Matt Milnes, Greg Taylor, Paul Snaith, Kate Smith, Eleanor Huddleston and Claire Seedhouse.

Shorts Chartered Accountants cycle challenge raises over £7,500 for Lymphoma charity

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Leisure

Chamber Comments on Appointment of New Business Secretary

The Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP has been appointed as Secretary of State for Business in Prime Minister David Cameron’s new Cabinet.

Mr Javid, the Member for Bromsgrove, was Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport in the previous Cabinet. He takes over the business brief from former Lib Dem MP Dr Vince Cable, who lost his seat at last Thursday’s election.

Chris Hobson, Head of Information and Representation at East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire), said: “We look forward to working with Sajid as he looks to move the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) forward to maintain and build on the momentum in the economy, which has been largely driven by business.

“In order to do this, he needs to ensure the team at BIS is talking to businesses here in the East Midlands, which as a region, has been a national leader in terms of creating jobs and driving economic growth in the UK over the past five years.

“The region has a broad-based and balanced economy, with real strengths in manufacturing and engineering and these are key sectors which need to be supported in order to secure the long-term success of the UK’s economy.”

East Midlands Chamber logo

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business

Free adult cycle training in Chesterfield

Adults in Chesterfield can upgrade their cycling skills for free thanks to Derbyshire County Council’s new County Rider scheme.

County Rider offers free one to one cycle training to people aged 18 or over who live, work or study in Chesterfield

Councillor John Owen, deputy cabinet member for highways, transport and infrastructure at Derbyshire County Council, said:

“The great thing about County Rider is that the programme can be tailored to suit your needs.

“Your instructor will design a programme to suit you whether you’re a complete beginner or an experienced cyclist who wants to become an even better rider. The training is not strenuous and can be done at your own pace.

“Cycling is great for you and for the environment − and we will teach you how to do it safely. You can get fit and save money on travel while reducing the pollution caused by traffic congestion.”

County Rider offers learners up to four training sessions and each one can last up to two hours. The amount of coaching required will depend on what the learner wants to achieve and their instructor’s assessment of their skill level.

County Rider training meets national standards recognised by the Department for Transport.

Apply for County Rider training or contact the Derbyshire County Council road safety team for more information, tel: 01629 538060.

chesterfield cycling

Posted in About Chesterfield, Leisure

Results Announced for General and Local Elections in Chesterfield

The General and local elections in Chesterfield were held on Thursday 7 May.  The full results are below.

 

Chesterfield Parliamentary Election

Toby Perkins (Labour) has been re-elected as the MP for Chesterfield.

Natascha Engel, (Labour) has also been re-elected as the MP for North East Derbyshire.

 

Chesterfield Borough Council elections

All 48 seats on the council across 19 wards were up for election.  Listed below are the candidates elected in each ward:-

Barrow Hill and New Whittington
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Barry Bingham    Liberal Democrats
Lisa-Marie Derbyshire    Labour Party
Richard Bexton    UK Independence Party

Brimington North
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
John Burrows    Labour Party
Terry Frank Gilby    Labour Party

Brimington South
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Ian William Callan    Labour Party
Tricia Gilby    Labour Party
Andy Bellamy    Labour Party

Brockwell
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Maureen Davenport    Liberal Democrats
Steve Brunt    Labour Party
John Anthony Dickinson    Labour Party

Dunston
Seats:3
Elected Candidates
Gordon Simmons    Labour Party
Sarah Hollingworth    Labour Party
Mark David Rayner    Labour Party

Hasland
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Mick Brady    Labour Party
Amanda Jayne Serjeant    Labour Party
Andy Slack    Labour Party

Hollingwood and Inkersall
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Helen Ann Elliott    Labour Party
Barry Dyke    Labour Party
Anthony Hill    Labour Party

Holmebrook
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Stephen Paul Hitchin    Labour Party
Suzie Perkins    Labour Party

Linacre
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Jeannie Barr    Liberal Democrats
Peter Ian Barr    Liberal Democrats

Loundsley Green
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Avis Joan Murphy    Labour Party
Mick Wall    Labour Party

Lowgates and Woodthorpe
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Dean Collins    Labour Party
Lisa Kelly Collins    Labour Party

Middlecroft and Poolsbrook
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Chris Ludlow    Labour Party
Donald Parsons    Labour Party

Moor
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Kate Caulfield    Labour Party
Keith Brown    Labour Party

Old Whittington
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Jean Mary Innes    Labour Party
Peter Innes    Labour Party

Rother
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Jenny Flood    Labour Party
Stuart Brittain    Labour Party
Keith Miles    Labour Party

St Helen’s
Seats: 2
Elected Candidates
Helen Claire Bagley    Labour Party
Tom Murphy    Labour Party

St Leonard’s
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Sharon Lesley Blank    Labour Party
Ken Huckle    Labour Party
Kate Sarvent    Labour Party

Walton
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Alexis Saliou Diouf    Liberal Democrats
Vickey Diouf    Liberal Democrats
Nick Redihough    Liberal Democrats

West
Seats: 3
Elected Candidates
Howard Borrell    Liberal Democrats
Ray Catt    Labour Party
Shirley Anne Niblock    Liberal Democrats

Chesterfield Borough Council Election Results Overview

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield

Majority Government Welcomed by East Midlands Chamber

Businesses will welcome the stability and certainty that a majority Government can provide, according to the East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire).

The Chamber met with a number of its member businesses at a round table event earlier today to watch the final seats come in and get some initial business reaction to the results of yesterday’s ballot.

There was general agreement that a majority Government will be better for business than another coalition because of the additional certainty and stability it can provide.

There was also a common view that MPs from all parties should present a united view of the East Midlands to ensure the region does not miss out on vital resources and funding needed to support infrastructure investment and drive job creation and economic growth.

Chamber President Liz Fothergill CBE will write to the new cohort of MPs across Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire to congratulate them on their election and share the Chamber’s business manifesto*, which outlines the top priorities for Chamber members. These include measures to:

• Place business at the centre of local growth
• Deliver on the UK’s long-term infrastructure needs
• Fix the link between education and the world of work
• Reduce the cost of doing business
• Support firms to succeed overseas

Chamber Chief Executive George Cowcher said: “The General Election ended with a clear result, perhaps unexpected, which will help to provide the stability and clarity that businesses need to move forward.

“The Conservative Government must now build on the economic progress that businesses here in the East Midlands have driven over the past five years. It needs to set the conditions to encourage a culture of entrepreneurism, where businesses can look to the rest of the world as a potential marketplace and where our young people leave school with the skills and qualities they need to set out on dynamic, rewarding careers.

“The Chamber is apolitical and has a proud track record of working constructively with its MPs locally and in Westminster to promote the needs of business and support growth for the East Midlands’ economy.

“Over the past five years, businesses in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire have demonstrated a robustness and tenacity that has marked the region out as a leader for UK growth. Over the course of the next Parliament, a number of key national and local issues will need to be addressed to ensure this growth can be balanced and secured for the long term.”

Ballot Box

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business

Chesterfield’s Darikwa Lands Four Awards

Chesterfield full-back Tendayi Darikwa was the star of the show at the club’s Player of the Year awards night, picking up four awards at the sold-out event.

Darikwa was named Player of the Year – as voted for by the fans – and also Players’ Player of the Year.

Jay O’Shea picked up the Goal of the Season gong for his stunner in the Good Friday match at Yeovil Town – a strike that came at the end of a 17-pass team move as the Spireites came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Huish Park.

The Fan of the Year award went to Lesley Brentnall, who has not missed a game, home or away, for 18 years and acts as a matchday steward for True Blue Travel.

Ian Browes and Jean Roper received an Outstanding Contribution award as recognition for running Young Spireites, which is now in its tenth year.

Around 500 people attended the event, which was held in a large marquee erected in the Proact Stadium car park. Sky Sports broadcaster Nick Johnson and BBC Radio Sheffield commentator Phil Tooley were the comperes.

Those who attended were also treated to an exclusive unveiling of the new home and away shirts for next season, which were modelled by Academy Player of the Year Jake Beesley and fellow new professional Laurence Maguire.

After the awards ceremony, guests were entertained by multi-hit band The Christians, whose set included ‘Harvest for the World’, ‘Hooverville’ and ‘Words’.

Spireites chairman Dave Allen said: “It was a superbly organised event and I’d like to praise Paul Watts, Kevin Fitzgerald and Nick Johnson for putting it all together. It was the biggest Player of the Year event ever staged by the club and I think it was Premier League standard.”

DARIKWA LANDS FOUR AWARDS

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Leisure, Summer, Visiting