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Challenge Chesterfield FC legends in a Fantasy Football league in aid of Ashgate Hospicecare

In a new fundraising campaign set up by Ashgate Hospicecare, local residents can take on Chesterfield FC legends in a Fantasy Football league.

Ashgate Hospicecare is an independent registered charity that provides specialist palliative and end of life care and support to adults and their families across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.

For a suggested £5 minimum donation, the region’s budding Jurgen Klopp’s and Chris Wilder’s can go up against two former Chesterfield FC favourites, Jamie Hewitt and Former manager for Chesterfield, Barnsley, Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United, Danny Wilson.

Former LMA Manager of the Year, Danny Wilson, said: “I have to admit that I’m a bit of a beginner when it comes to Fantasy Football but I’m delighted to be giving it a go for the first time in aid of such a wonderful cause.”

“It will be fantastic to pit my wits against football fans across the region to raise money for hospice care in North Derbyshire. If nothing else, it’s just nice to be given the budget to choose between Harry Kane or Sergio Aguero.”

Chesterfield FC legend Jamie Hewitt, who made more than 500 appearances for Chesterfield, is best remembered for the dramatic 1997 FA Cup Semi Final equaliser at Old Trafford in a 3-3 draw with Middlesbrough. He said: “I am well known among my friends for being absolutely terrible at predictions so picking a fantasy team will certainly be interesting.”

“As a member of Ashgate Hospicecare’s Retail team, I know how important the work we do is to local families and it’s a pleasure to be involved – I just hope I don’t come last!”

Ashgate Hospicecare Fundraising Manager, Carl Jones, added: “It’s fantastic to have both Danny and Jamie – two local footballing legends – getting involved to raise funds in this way. This year has been an incredibly challenging one for Ashgate Hospicecare and we’ve never needed support from the good people of Derbyshire more.”

“If you, or someone you know, enjoys playing Premier League Fantasy Football then make sure you join our league for a chance to be crowned champion while raising vital funds to support families across North Derbyshire when they need us most.”

Prizes for the eventual winner include a trophy, football tickets and signed memorabilia.

To enter your team into the Ashgate Premier League, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ashgatefantasypremierleague.

Ashgate Hospicecare

Posted in About Chesterfield, Featured, Home, Leisure

BHP launches free support service for SMEs

Leading accountancy firm BHP is launching a free and innovative support service to help SMEs drive post lockdown growth, tackle challenges and pioneer new ways of working.

BHP’s experienced consulting team is offering SMEs the opportunity to meet virtually for a free of charge appointment, which will provide invaluable one to one business support.

BHP Consulting provide businesses with access to high quality solutions and expertise. The team are all successful leaders who have all run and grown businesses. Using their knowledge and experience, they work with business owners and senior managers to further develop skills and confidence as well as improve the effectiveness of management teams, create clear business strategies, and ultimately grow their business.

Mark Roberts, Head of Consulting at BHP, said: “We believe that every business challenge is unique and what was happened over the last few months is something that businesses will have never experienced before.”

“From mobilising dispersed teams, maximising productivity and employee engagement, generating leads remotely, to attracting new talent, the to do list for business owners has been, and is, relentless.”

“We are introducing the free ‘virtual coffee’ initiative to give business leaders the opportunity to speak to an experienced member of our consulting team and talk through short and longer term priorities. Our team is made up of business leaders who all have experience running successful businesses and organisations and have proven track records.

Rachel Hannan from the consulting team said “Even the most experienced business leaders benefit from accessing additional ideas, thinking and a sounding board to help them overcome hurdles and capitalise on opportunities. Especially at a time like this.”

“All of our team are passionate about helping others and sharing our knowledge and expertise to support SMEs, the backbone of the northern economy. This a great chance for business owners to take a breath, take stock and plan for the future.”

“Hamish Morrison & Lisa Leighton, Joint Managing Partners at BHP, said “We are delighted to be able to offer this free support, which underlines BHP’s commitment to businesses in the region.”

“When a company signs up for a virtual coffee appointment, the team will assess their requirements and they will be allocated to the member of the team who best suits their needs. It is very much a bespoke service that’s being offered.”

To book your virtual coffee, please either visit www.bhp-consulting.co.uk or contact jemma.houseman@bhp.co.uk.

BHP supports the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 180 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.

Lisa Leighton & Hamish Morrison, Joint Managing Partners at BHP (image taken prior to the coronavirus pandemic)

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Featured, Home

Chesters to open second restaurant at Markham Vale

The owners of Chester’s Fish & Chips Restaurant, located on Sheffield Road in Chesterfield, have now revealed their plans for a second location.

The new premises will be located on the Markham Vale services site at Junction 29A of the M1, opposite McDonalds and adjacent to Starbucks.

The new investment will cost over £1 million and will create over 30 local jobs.

Set to open in spring 2021, the new venue will offer a seaside-themed restaurant and a takeaway counter as well as a separate drive-through lane.

The announcement comes after a very busy period for the team thanks to the Government’s recent Eat Out to Help Out scheme. On their busiest day, the restaurant had to turn away over 196 bookings and in just one day served 756 people.

Thousands of customers visited throughout August, and the owners have decided to extend the scheme, offering 20% of bills, including alcohol, every Monday to Thursday throughout September.

Image courtesy of Chesters

Chris Ioannides, Owner of Chesters, said: “We are excited to announce the opening of a second restaurant for Chesters, which will serve all our best known dishes. We will continue to support the local community and charities like we always strive to and give back something to Chesterfield and the suurounding areas.”

He added “We’d like to thank all our loyal customers for their support and we look forward to meeting new customers at our new Markham Vale location!”

Competition

To celebrate the announcement, Destination Chesterfield has teamed up with Chesters to offer a £20 voucher to one lucky winner! Click here to enter the draw.

Markham Vale services

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards, Development, Featured, Home, Leisure, Visiting

Take up for industrial and logistics premises increases across East Midlands

Take up for industrial and logistics space across the East Midlands increased markedly in the first half of 2020, with 7% more activity recorded than the same period in 2019, according to the latest market statistics.

The region was ranked third nationally for the period, behind Yorkshire and the South East, with over 4.25 million sq. ft transacted in the East Midlands in just six months, according to data compiled by EGI Radius Data Exchange, which canvasses deal information from the regions key agents.

Commercial Property Partners (CPP) Director Stuart Waite commented: “The sector has proven to be resilient during the pandemic with growth in e-commerce the driving force behind strong levels of take up in the sector.”

“The outlook remains positive moving forward and on the back of this, we are continuing to see strong developer interest in well positioned sites across the region, which is ultimately still starved of good quality warehouse and industrial units across all size ranges.”

The strong performance of the East Midlands region was underpinned with numerous notable deals including Amazon, Games Workshops, Bleckmann and Aldi.

CPP Director Sean Bremner commented: “There continues to be great demand for high quality, modern space, and therefore the take-up has been strong.”

“Increasingly, occupier demand is driven by the growth in online retail. The majority of current leasing and demand activity is created by businesses who are either directly involved in online retail or linked to it such as parcel delivery operators or manufacturers who now sell their product online.”

Click here to find out more about available commercial space in Chesterfield, click here.

Please click here to search the latest list of current available properties from Chesterfield Borough Council.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Development, Featured, Home

Leader of the Council meets with new Chief Constable and Police and Crime Commissioner

Derbyshire’s new Chief Constable paid a first visit to Chesterfield in her new role – taking the opportunity to walk around the Town Centre to see first-hand the issues facing the police and partner agencies.

Rachel Swann was joined by Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Hardyal Dhindsa, and welcomed by the Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, Councillor Tricia Gilby during the visit to the town on Friday 4 September.

Together with the Safer Neighbourhood Team, a team of officers who are dedicated to policing Chesterfield, they toured the town centre and spoke with several shoppers and local business owners about how Chesterfield can be improved and what they thought the priorities for the town should be.

Councillor Tricia Gilby said: “It was great to meet Rachel and congratulate her on her new role. Hardyal is a regular visitor to the town as he Chairs the Town Centre Summit. Hardyal and I were pleased to be able to brief Rachel on the challenges the Summit faced and the actions that have been put in place to address them.”

“I look forward to working with them in continuing to tackle the issues that matter most to local residents, such as anti-social behaviour. The council has a great relationship with Derbyshire Constabulary through the Community Safety Partnership. I wish Rachel every success in her new role and I hope that her visit to Chesterfield will help her understand the important issues for people here.”

Rachel Swann, who took over as Chief Constable in August, is visiting different parts of the county, in order to further support partnership working through the Safer Neighbourhood Teams.

The Council is committed to working with partner agencies to deliver a safer environment, through the Community Safety Partnership.

Find out more about the Community Safety Partnership here: www.chesterfield.gov.uk/living-here/safer-communities

Posted in About Chesterfield, Featured, Home

Local company completes free repairs at Chesterfield community hub

After water was discovered leaking into the building of Chesterfield’s Monkey Park Community Hub, a local company have completed the repair works for free.

The volunteer team at Monkey Park approached local business DMG Asbestos Management for a quotation to remove the cause of the leak, an asbestos cement flue pipe, and were delighted when they offered to do the job free of charge.

The not-for-profit organisation is located in Brampton and includes a café, co-work space, bike workshop, space hire and hosts community events.

Three workers from DMG Asbestos Management came on one of the hottest days of the year and erected a scaffolding tower in order to lower the problem chimney safely off the roof.

Local resident and director of Monkey Park, Helen Symons, said: “We were worried about the chimney but thank goodness DMG removed all that stress. I could see them working from my garden. They were efficient, hard-working and highly professional. They made me remember that there are good people out there willing to go the extra mile for their local community.”

Aaron Goodwin of DMG said: “We like to try and give something back to our town and Monkey Park is a great cause in the local community.”

The community hub and the café are currently closed and will be re-opening again in late September. The bike workshops & office co-working space are still open however.

Ahead of the re-opening, the Monkey Park Hub is having building work done, including the fitting of an accessible toilet in the café.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Development, Featured, Home, Visiting

Action Grants awarded to over 900 Derbyshire projects and more grants on the way

Derbyshire County Council have awarded almost £1 million through their Action Grants scheme over the past 2 years.

The cash has been a boost to the activities of community groups, sports clubs, charities and parish councils across the county.At the final tally, Derbyshire County Council have awarded Action Grants totalling nearly £905,000 to 906 projects across Derbyshire in 8 rounds. In the final round 77 groups have been awarded grants totalling £220,000 across the 4 categories of youth activity, community activity, physical activity and sport and community safety.

The grants are supporting activities like tackling anti-social behaviour and scams, sports training and facilities, theatre groups, choirs, music events, allotments, developing apps, art workshops, adventure activities for youth groups, counselling support, building refurbishment, equipment for community buildings, toddler groups, green schemes, clubs for older people and activities to support disabled people.

If grants were given for events planned to take place in 2020 but postponed because of the Covid-19 crisis, the money can be used next year instead.

Derbyshire County Council Leader Councillor Barry Lewis said: “There’s excellent work going on in our local communities and our Action Grants have helped to give some financial support to many of the activities.”

“Even modest amounts of cash have made an appreciable difference to some of the groups and I have witnessed for myself how the money has helped.”

“People of all ages are benefiting from the work of these groups and I’d like to thank the staff and volunteers who put in so much time and effort to run these schemes.”

“We are continuing to give grant support with our recently launched Youth Activity Grants which I’d encourage residents and businesses to apply for.”

There is £220,000 available in Youth Activity Grants between now and the end of the year or until all the money has been allocated.

Find details of the recipients from all Action Grant rounds here.

Picture taken prior to the coronavirus pandemic

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Featured, Home, Leisure

Chesterfield estate benefits from major facelift

A £4.4m regeneration project to improve the look and feel of a housing estate in Grangewood, Chesterfield, is now complete.

Properties on the Grangewood estate have benefitted from a major facelift as part of Chesterfield Borough Council’s commitment to providing quality affordable housing across the borough and create modern, attractive places for people to live.

As part of the project Birchwood Court, Grangewood Court, Longcroft Court, Thorntree Court and Stockwell Court have all undergone extensive internal and external improvements. This included fully redecorating the communal areas including the upgrade of lighting and electrical installations to make the areas lighter and brighter for residents, fitting new secure entrance doors to all blocks, and the installation of new fire rated doors to each individual flat.

The external render and roof coverings on each block of flats have also been replaced and concrete repairs have been carried out on communal stairwells to ensure the safety of all residents and visitors.

In response to the climate emergency that was declared last July, the council is committed to ensuring that its existing housing stock is as energy efficient as possible. As part of this commitment, the windows and insulation in each property and all communal areas have also been upgraded to improve the thermal efficiency of the homes.

Landscaping works have been completed across the whole estate with existing footpaths being renewed to help improve access around the estate and to each property. Improvements have also been made to street lighting to help create a brighter space for residents and visitors.

Fencing has been installed to enclose each of the outside communal areas to ensure that local families have an outdoor space that they can enjoy safely.

Councillor Chris Ludlow, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for housing, said: “We’re really pleased that the works on the Grangewood estate are complete. A key part of our housing strategy is to ensure that our homes are of excellent quality and that we create attractive, modern places that people to choose to live and we feel that this has been achieved through this project as it has improved the whole look and feel of the estate.

“Before works started, we consulted with our tenants and their feedback has been taken in to account to ensure that homes in the area meet their expectations and housing needs.”

Despite the challenges following the outbreak of Covid-19, the council’s main contractor, Fortem Solutions Ltd. has continued to work safely on site to ensure that the project could be delivered on time.

James Taylor, Contracts Manager at Fortem, said: “We are tremendously proud of this project, it has truly been a collaborative effort by all parties to make a significant improvement to the area.

“As part of our commitment to inspiring a legacy in the areas we work, we have been overwhelmed with community projects local to Grangewood and have been delighted to support these whilst delivering works.

“Despite the disruption of Covid-19, the scheme has been delivered on time due to the huge efforts of our site team and supply chain partners, whilst ensuring safety remained an absolute priority. We are confident that the long-term benefits of these improvements will continue to be felt by the residents for years to come.”

Posted in About Chesterfield, Development, Featured, Home

Chesterfield FC appoint new Marketing Manager

Bridget Ball has been appointed as Chesterfield FC’s new Marketing Manager.

This follows recent changes to the Spireites senior management team after the sale of Chesterfield FC to Chesterfield FC Community Trust.

In August, John Croot was appointed Chief Executive of Chesterfield FC Community Trust, while Andy Fantom was appointed as Chief Finance Officer.

Bridget, who recently left her role as Peak FM’s Sales Director, said: “I’m excited to be taking on a new challenge and I can’t wait to get started.”

“It is a great opportunity for me to join the club following the recent takeover and I’m looking forward to working with clients I already know as well as establishing new ones.”

Spireites Chief Executive John Croot said: “I am delighted that we have been able to recruit Bridget as she has valuable experience and a wealth of local contacts. Working alongside Jim Brown, she will be a great addition to the senior management team at the club.”

To contact Bridget, please email bridgetball@chesterfield-fc.co.uk.

Chesterfield FC supports the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 180 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.

Image credit: Tina Jenner

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Featured, Home

East Midlands Chamber Business Awards 2020 finalists announced

The finalists of this year’s East Midlands Chamber Derbyshire Business Awards have been revealed.

The awards are split into three competitions for Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire, and feature 13 categories, ranging from Outstanding Growth and Innovation in Manufacturing within an organisation to individual honours for Entrepreneur of the Year and Apprentice of the Year.

New categories have been added this year with the Environmental Impact Award and the Generation Next – Young Professional of the Year Award.

Winners will be chosen during a virtual judging day by a panel including sponsors, a Chamber board member and a member of the Chamber’s senior leadership team. They will then be announced across three award ceremonies to be held in November and December.

The Chamber plans to host physical events but will assess the situation as the Covid-19 situation unfolds and take note of any changing Government advice.

There will also be a Business of the Year award for each county selected from all the finalists by headline sponsor Mazars. Last year, Bloc Digital was named Derbyshire Business of the Year (pictured).

Scott Knowles, Chief Executive of East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire), said: “Our Business Awards are always a great opportunity to showcase enterprise success in the region, but perhaps this year will be even more special during what has been a hugely difficult time for many businesses.

“It was great to see that Covid-19 hasn’t stifled innovation, resilience, and a determination to grow and succeed among the region’s business community, with a very high number of applicants.”

“What’s also apparent is the range of companies – spanning a cross-section of sectors – that entered this year’s awards. It highlights both the diversity of industrial strengths and the mix of large and small companies the East Midlands has to offer – something that will be key to the region’s economic recovery.”

“I’d also like to thank our sponsors. Without their support, these awards would not be possible. Like the finalists, they represent success stories in the East Midlands and it speaks volumes of this event’s reputation that they should want to be aligned with it.”

Derbyshire Business Awards 2020 finalists

Business Improvement through Technology – Sponsored by Purpose Media

  • Bloc Digital
  • Derby Swap Shop
  • Healthy Stuff
  • Insight Finance Solutions
  • Strengths Director Coaching

Community Impact Award – Sponsored by University of Derby

  • Geeks Headquarters
  • Investors In Community
  • Wathall’s

Outstanding Growth Award

  • Bloc Digital
  • Cosy
  • Scenariio
  • think3
  • West Road Haulage

Generation Next – Young Professional of the Year Award

  • Daniel Nikolla – Hardy Signs
  • Christopher Monk – Monkey vs Owl
  • Tom Ward – Wytech

Environmental Impact Award – Sponsored by Futures Housing Group

  • 3rd Rock
  • Longcliffe Group
  • MVIS
  • Shed Grounds Maintenance
  • Tec 4 Lubricants

Commitment to People Development

  • DBC Training
  • HSG
  • MVIS
  • Rhodes Wealth Management
  • UK Asbestos Training Association

Apprentice of the Year – Sponsored by GBS

  • Cerys – DHU Health Care
  • Ranica Brown – Bloc Digital

Entrepreneur of the Year

  • Jillian Thomas – Future Life Wealth Management
  • Nik Hardy – Hardy Signs
  • Anne Ashman -MVIS
  • Joe Burns – Reformed IT
  • Peter Botham – Shed Grounds Maintenance

Education and Business Partnership Award – Sponsored by RDS Global

  • Access Training
  • Derby High School
  • Embark Federation

Excellence in Customer Service – sponsored by Aston Lark

  • Anoki Derby
  • DHU (111) East Midlands CIC
  • Futures Housing Group
  • Home Instead Senior Care Chesterfield
  • Rhodes Wealth Management

Excellence in International Trade

  • Adshead Ratcliffe & Co
  • KJB Consulting (Global)
  • P R Marriott Drilling

Small Business of the Year

  • Healthy Stuff
  • Sheds Ground Maintenance
  • The Accountancy Recruitment Group
  • think3
  • West Road Haulage

Innovation in Manufacturing – Sponsored by Rolls-Royce

  • Bartco UK
  • Composite Braiding

The East Midlands Chamber supports the marketing and economic growth of Chesterfield through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 180 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.

East Midlands Chamber Derbyshire Business Awards 2019

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Featured, Home

Derbyshire County Cricket Club win Sports Industry Award

Derbyshire County Cricket Club has been presented with the Data and Business Impact Award at this year’s Sports Industry Awards.

The club was nominated for its data-driven approach to marketing the Vitality Blast local derby against Notts Outlaws, which achieved a club-record attendance in 2019 and a first sell-out in the fixture since 2013.

Derbyshire partnered with data agency Performalytics in 2017 and has since developed its strategy make an efficient and targeted use of its data to maximise marketing spend and drive engagement with its Vitality Blast audiences.

Coupled with positive results on the field, the club has seen record crowds attend Twenty20 matches at The IncoraTM County Ground, most notably the 2019 sold-out clash with Notts Outlaws in July.

The club focused its attention on the rivalry and formulated the Local Rivals Collide campaign, teaming-up with the Outlaws for a series of player challenges from which to build compelling communication in the build-up to the fixture.

Using this to underpin both direct and digital campaigns, as well as an approach to engage away supporters, the club recorded an over 40% increase in the number of advanced tickets sold for the fixture, ultimately creating the first sold-out occasion between the sides at Derby in six seasons.

In a strong field of nominees, Derbyshire were chosen as winners ahead of The European Tour, Formula 1, NFL Game Pass Europe, StatsBomb and The R&A.

The award, which was announced by Paralympic great Tanni Grey-Thompson on Thursday 3 September on the Sports Industry Awards website, is further recognition for the club’s success after winning the ECB Business of Cricket Award for the Blast It Communication Campaign in February.

Media & Marketing Manager, Tom Skinner, said: “Since partnering with Performalytics, we have put far greater emphasis on our data approach and have seen positive engagement with supporters and an increase in crowds.

“To be recognised with such a prestigious award, up against high-profile nominees, is a great reward for the hard work which goes on behind the scenes at the club and for our loyal supporter-base. We are continually grateful to Performalytics for their commitment and new ideas which help us to keep developing.

“Next year will prove a new challenge and we will need to continue learning and adapting how we use our data, but all involved with the club hope to be in a position to welcome crowds back to The Incora County Ground for more sold-out nights of Vitality Blast cricket.”

James Dickens, Managing Director of Performalytics, said: “Being shortlisted was a great achievement in itself, but winning such a prestigious industry award is truly fantastic.

“It’s a true testament to the work that goes on behind the scenes. Credit must go to the Derbyshire team who have such an appetite to test new strategies with complete confidence in the impact they can, and have, made to the business within this campaign.”

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Featured, Home

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