The number of people claiming Jobseekers’ Allowance (JSA) in October fell by more than 1,900 according to figures released today.

They show that there were 298 fewer claimants in Derbyshire than there were in September, equating to an annual fall of 3,622 in the county.

In Chesterfield the number of people claiming out of work benefit stood at 1488 in October, which has dropped by 627 in comparison to the figure announced in October 2013.

The number of people in employment across the East Midlands fell by 3,000, to 2,212,000 in the three months to September, with the number of unemployed across the region rising by 5,000 to 132,000.

There were, however, 53,000 more people in work than in the same period in 2013 and 33,000 fewer unemployed, the figures from the Office for National Statistics showed.

Chris Hobson, Head of Information and Representation for the East Midlands Chamber, said: “Once again, the JSA count statistics released today are positive and continue the month-on-month falls we have seen locally since the start of the year. We’d expect this trend to continue into the final few months of the year as the effect of seasonal employment contracts comes into play.

“There is some concern about the fall in employment and increase in unemployment which we need to be mindful of, but it’s important to stress that at this stage, it is a short-term variation rather than part of the long-term year-on-year trend.

“The employment market is constantly evolving and as some industries contract, others grow. This often results in the need for retraining or possibly relocating, but there are jobs available for most people who want them.

“The engineers facing redundancy from Rolls-Royce will be a highly-prized asset to other engineering concerns. This is confirmed by the results of the Chamber’s Quarterly Economic Survey in which members and non-members in the sector have told us they are having difficulty recruiting.

“There may be salary and travel considerations, but the jobs are out there and we would expect to see the majority of those engineers quickly finding new positions.

“Many of our members have said they have capacity in their production capability and the focus now needs to be on driving production through domestic and international sales.

“But there are still other issues to be resolved such as holiday pay legislation and zero-hours contracts. The business community is also waiting with bated breath to find out when interest rates will start to rise and by how much.

“Investment in staff, machinery and premises will be deferred as long as possible while uncertainty about those matters remains. Business hates uncertainty.

“All the above considered, the Chamber would expect unemployment to continue to fall or, at worst, hold steady during the early part of 2015 but would not like to predict what might happen beyond the General Election in May.”

Source:East Midlands Chamber

Bigwicks in Chesterfield Market Hall has been given a facelift to celebrate its win at the town’s first Retail Awards.

Named Chesterfield’s Home and Gift Retailer 2014, the boutique, which specialises in home fragrance products, now boasts stylish new signage and window graphics ready for the busy festive shopping period.

Created and installed by local agency Jumble Design, the improvements also include new printed marketing material as well as a loyalty card scheme, which customers will be able to benefit from when purchasing gifts this Christmas.

Andrew from Jumble Design said, ‘We are very proud to work with Destination Chesterfield on the branding and design of the Chesterfield Retail Awards, and also the recent Food and Drink Awards, so are delighted as a result of this involvement to be working with an award winner and local Market Hall business’.

Carl from Bigwicks added ‘After the success of winning the Home & Gift retailer of the Year Award we were looking for a new designer to change our shop signage following the Market Hall revamp, and after seeing Andrew’s work with Destination Chesterfield we gave Jumble Design the opportunity to do the work. I am really impressed with the results’.

Source:Jumble Design

Work is underway on a £3 million housing scheme that will provide 22 new homes for pensioners in Chesterfield.

The scheme at Parkside, Stand Road, is one of Chesterfield Borough Council’s top priorities for the coming year.

The old complex at Parkside was demolished at the beginning of the year to allow the new, purpose-built flats to be built.

Councillor Jim McManus, Chesterfield Borough Council’s Executive Member for Housing said: “We were aware that the facilities at the old Parkside complex were in need of improvement and that is why we made the decision to replace it with bigger and more flexible accommodation.

“This is part of our commitment to improve the quality of housing in the borough and make sure our tenants have homes which are warm, in good repair and have reasonable modern facilities.”

The project is being carried out by A&S Enterprises Ltd.

The new complex will have 22 two-bedroom flats, each will have a kitchen and lounge area, wet room type bathroom with a hall and storage area.

Each flat will also have a balcony, Juliette balcony or bay window.

The complex will also have a common room, communal kitchen and assisted bathrooms.

Room will be provided for residents to store mobility scooters.

There will also be a courtyard and garden area.

The new Parkside complex is due to open in summer 2015.

Source:Chesterfield Borough Council

Celebrity chef, Ainsley Harriott will be in town next week (29 October) to host Chesterfield’s annual Food and Drink Awards. Organised by Destination Chesterfield and sponsored by Chesterfield College, the awards this year are a sell-out.

230 guests – nearly double the amount that attended last year’s awards, will come together to celebrate the success of the town’s food and drink industry at the glittering ceremony.

38 businesses and individuals are up for 13 awards which will be announced on the night by celebrity chef, Ainsley Harriot. He said: “I am delighted to be involved with the Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards once again. Everybody tells me the awards have created a new standard in food in the town, which is very exciting.”

The awards are being held at Chesterfield College’s Heart Space building in which 30 catering and hospitality students from the college are catering and silver serving the evening’s menu.

This is the second year the College has sponsored the Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards and it has committed to sponsoring them until 2015. Trevor Clay, Principal of Chesterfield College said: “Having seen the success of the first awards evening in 2013 there was no way that we didn’t want to be involved again. As part of our commitment to serving the local community we feel it’s important to celebrate all that is good about the town and certainly the quality of our food and drinks businesses are well worth celebrating.

“The 2013 event, which was catered for by our students and held in the College’s Heart Space building, was a fantastic night which brought together a wide variety of amazing people and businesses. As such, we naturally want to be involved again and we’re sure this year’s awards will be even bigger and better.”

To find out this year’s winners of the Chesterfield Food and Drink awards live on the night, follow @DesChes on Twitter using hashtag #cfda14 or visitwww.chesterfield.co.uk/foodanddrinkawards 

Source:Destination Chesterfield

Tourism continues to make a key contribution to the Peak District and Derbyshire economy – generating more than £1.8 billion in 2013.

New research reveals that the area’s tourist economy has been on the up since 2009, despite the general economic recession.

The industry’s value to the local economy increased from £1.47 billion in 2009 to £1.8 billion last year, while the number of full-time equivalent jobs it supported rose from almost 25,285 in 2009 to 27,500 in 2013.

Visitor numbers held fast at around 38 million in both 2012 and 2013 – both up on the 2009 figure of 36.25 million.

There has also been a significant increase in the percentage and economic impact of staying visitors. The number of staying visitors rose from 3.6 million in 2009 to just over 4 million in 2013, an increase of 11.6 per cent. The economic impact of staying visitors rose from £526.8 in 2009 million to £676.7 million in 2013, an increase of 28.3 per cent.

“Given the challenging economic climate over the past few years, it’s good to see that tourism in the Peak District and Derbyshire is enjoying sustained growth and continuing on an upward curve,” said David James, Chief Executive of Visit Peak District & Derbyshire, the area’s official tourist board.

“We’re particularly encouraged that the economic impact of staying visitors has increased, as all our marketing campaigns and activity have a clear focus to drive more people into the area to enjoy both short breaks and longer holidays, bringing more money into the local economy.

“These new figures indicate that, despite challenging conditions, we’re making steady progress and are in good shape to build on these solid foundations in the future.”

Source:Visit Peak District and Derbyshire

With 10% of all retail sales being online, having an internet presence has been identified as the key to keeping Chesterfield high street thriving. To help the town’s independent retailers get internet savvy, Destination Chesterfield is running a free Digital High Street course.

The free course is open to any retail, leisure, hospitality, and tourism businesses based in the borough of Chesterfield.

The National Skills Academy, with the Association of Town and City Managers have developed the course to assist small businesses to develop a multi-channel marketing approach and to meet customer’s expectations in the digital age.

It comprises three four hour modules covering key areas of online marketing including, understanding customer and digital marketing, developing business online and using social media to grow business.

With 60% of shoppers admitting to ‘showrooming’, browsing in store then buying online later on, (SmartFocus), consumers’ virtual and physical purchasing habits are merging. And retailers having an online and high street presence is seen as critical to Chesterfield retaining its position as a top shopping destination.

Destination Chesterfield Manager, Dominic Stevens said: “The internet is something retailers cannot ignore. Research has shown that two thirds of shoppers are more likely to purchase something if they were sent an email or text with a discount code.  This course will give Chesterfield’s retailers the skills, know-how and tools to help them compete in the online and physical marketplace and I’m delighted that we can offer it free of charge.”

The Digital High Street course is being delivered by the Source in partnership with Destination Chesterfield and Chesterfield Borough Council

It will take place at the Proact Stadium in Chesterfield, and will run across three half day sessions which will include light refreshments and a light lunch. To receive the course for free, businesses must attend all modules. Dates for the Digital High Street course are as follows:

Module one: Understanding your customer and digital marketing – Thursday 23rd October

Module two: Developing your business online – Thursday 30th October

Module three: Grow your business through social media – Thursday 6th November

For further information or to make a course booking, please contact Tom Lindop at The Source Academy by emailing:Tom.Lindop@thesourceacademy.co.uk or calling: 07711595339

Source:Destination Chesterfield

An eight-week project has begun to improve a key gateway into Chesterfield – from Malkin Street at Chesterfield Railway Station through to Corporation Street in the town centre.

The work is being carried out by landscape architects TEP in partnership with Chesterfield Borough Council and incorporates a ‘rain garden’ which operates by diverting drainage from the road into a planted filter bed instead of going direct into the sewers.

The system will slow down the release of water into the formal drainage system but also improve its quality. This will help control the flow of water at source rather than it causing flooding in other parts of Chesterfield.

The works are next to North Midland House, the town’s first railway station and, to pay homage to its heritage, the pavement will feature replica railway tickets displaying the locations people could have travelled to in the early days of Chesterfield’s railways.

Temporary traffic lights will be in place on Malkin Street for four weeks and Chesterfield Borough Council is working with the highways authority to keep disruption to a minimum.

Councillor John Burrows, Chesterfield Borough Council’s leader and executive member for regeneration, said: “The approach from Chesterfield Railway Station is a key route into the town centre and is, indeed, the first view many people have when they visit Chesterfield.

“This location was chosen by residents at a public consultation last year and will be both practical and attractive.”

The project has been funded by the European Regional Development fund. The funding could only be used to make improvements to town centre gateways and could not be used on any other council service.

Residents identified the location as an area needing investment during public consultation events held online and in person at the Pavements Shopping Centre during January 2013.

Photograph: An artist’s impression comparing the plans for the site with the view when the North Midland Station was open in the mid 19th century.

Source:Chesterfield Borough Council

Derbyshire-based Buxton Water, which was also the official water supplier of the 2014 London Marathon, will supply more than 14,000 bottles of natural mineral water for the Chesterfield Marathon on September 14.

The water will be distributed across 9 service stations which will be spread across the course, with stations also at the half and full marathon finish lines.

Mike Hyman, founder of Kids ‘n’ Cancer and the Chesterfield Marathon, said: “We’re delighted that Buxton Water have come on board and become the Chesterfield and Derbyshire Marathon’s water supplier.

“The Marathon is set to be one of the biggest participant events in the town for more than 30 years, so it’s wonderful to see a company with local heritage showing their support.

“It is massively important for the safety of the runners that they keep well hydrated. It not only helps maintain physical fitness and endurance performance, but also helps maintain concentration and alertness – all of which are critical when running a marathon.”

More than 1,500 people have already signed-up to take part in the Chesterfield and Derbyshire Marathon, which starts and finishes at Queen’s Park in the town centre.

Registration is still open for the Chesterfield Marathon Fun Run.  To sign-up visit www.chesterfieldmarathon.co.uk.

Photo caption: Kids ‘n’ Cancer founder Mike Hyman with the water bottles which will be supplied on the day of the Chesterfield Marathon.

Source:Chesterfield Marathon