Leisure

Chesterfield Half Marathon in coronavirus crisis charity rallying call

Organisers, partners and sponsors of the Redbrik Chesterfield Half Marathon have come together to urge the residents of Chesterfield & North Derbyshire to the support the event’s two key local charities ‘in any way possible’.

With people across the UK taking part in ‘run five, donate five, nominate five’ challenges to support charities under increased strain due to the coronavirus outbreak, organisers of the Redbrik Half are encouraging local communities to keep active and support Ashgate Hospicecare and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice wherever possible.

The challenge encourages people to run, jog or walk 5km – or complete other forms of physical exercise – before donating a minimum of £5 to a charity of their choice and in turn nominating five friends to do the same, usually via social media.

Event organisers MLS Contracts have been joined by headline sponsor Redbrik Estate Agents and event partners Peak FM, Blachford UK Ltd, Pronto Paints, Chesterfield Borough Council, Destination Chesterfield, HRM, North Derbyshire Running Club and Franklin & Sons Ltd in issuing a rallying call to raise funds and awareness for Ashgate Hospicecare and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice.

Ashgate Hospicecare is among the charities across the country helping to relieve pressure on the NHS after opening its doors to coronavirus patients, and launched an #AshgateUrgentAppeal as an urgent plea for public support earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice’s #LetsPledge campaign encourages people across the region to pledge support for the charity in any way they can. Public support will enable the charity to continue providing vital care for vulnerable children and young people.

Since its inception in 2017, the Redbrik Chesterfield Half Marathon has seen more than £140,000 pledged to good causes – including Ashgate Hospicecare and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice.

John Timms, Redbrik Chesterfield Half Marathon Event Director, said: “The Redbrik Half Marathon’s primary focus is supporting the local community, including fantastic charities such as Ashgate Hospicecare and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice.”

“We’re incredibly proud of the response from event partners and local people in pledging their support for Ashgate and Bluebell Wood at this particularly crucial time.”

“Support for charities at this time is vital, especially those which support frontline workers and provide essential services to the most vulnerable people.”

“As an event which aims to promote and improve the health and wellbeing of the people of Chesterfield, we felt the ‘run five, donate five, nominate five’ idea would be a great way of encouraging people to support fantastic causes while staying healthy, within the Government’s current social distancing guidelines.”

Mark Ross, Managing Director of event headline sponsor Redbrik, said: “At Redbrik, we want to do as much as we can to give back to the local community and this desire is the essence of the Redbrik Chesterfield Half Marathon.”

“Given the Covid-19 pandemic, and the attention understandably focused on healthcare frontlines, we need to ensure that Ashgate and Bluebell Wood receive more support than ever, in terms of both awareness and funding, so their vital work can continue.”

To support Ashgate Hospicecare, click here. For more information on how to support Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, click here.

Click here more information on the Redbrik Chesterfield Half Marathon.

Please note these pictures are from our image library and were not taken recently

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Destination Chesterfield, Featured, Home, Leisure, Visiting

New website highlights how Chesterfield’s businesses and service providers are adapting during lockdown

A new website is helping Chesterfield’s independent businesses and service providers continue to operate and supply their services and products during lockdown.

People are being urged to #LoveChesterfield and use the new website to access the products and services of local businesses and organisations during lockdown.

Developed and launched by Destination Chesterfield www.chesterfield.co.uk/supportinglocal has details of nearly 100 shops, food and drink businesses, training, support and service providers in and around Chesterfield that are continuing to operate by adapting their services to meet the needs of the community.

And Destination Chesterfield wants to add even more businesses, organisations and supports services to the free online directory!

A listing on the website is FREE and Destination Chesterfield is keen to hear from any business or service provider that is offering or adapting products and services in support of the COVID-19 effort.

There are eight categories on the website – Shopping, Food and Drink, Dine at Home, Keeping Busy, Pets, Education & Training, Business Services and Community Support – all combined in an easy to use directory. Details of the businesses and how you can purchase or access the products or services are listed on the site. Business owners and service providers can supply their details free of charge for inclusion on the new website.

Dom Stevens, Destination Chesterfield Manager commented: “The mission for Destination Chesterfield has always been to encourage as many people as possible to support the town and celebrate its achievements. The resilience that local businesses and service providers have shown during lockdown has been remarkable and we hope the new website will become a valuable tool in supporting them further in their efforts to remain operational.

“We’re encouraging everyone to #LoveChesterfield and continue supporting small independent businesses and service providers throughout lockdown. Every trader and service producer plays an important part in the local economy and we all need to work together to can ensure their survival beyond these extremely challenging times.”

National retailers are currently deluged with consumer demand, causing long queues into both their websites and stores, as well as prolonged delivery times. Shopping local at independent retailers not only supports a small business but also puts money back into the local economy.

If you’re a business owner or service provider and would like to be considered to be included on the new website, please complete the form at https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/supportinglocal/get-involved/ .

To find out more about the new ‘Supporting Local’ site, please visit: www.chesterfield.co.uk/supportinglocal.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Apprentice Town, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards, Chesterfield Retail Awards, Destination Chesterfield, Development, Featured, Home, Leisure, Summer, Visiting

Quarantine Cuisine cooks up Live Demo Kitchen

Foodies from Chesterfield and across the UK have been promised a series of live cooking demos to be streamed by new Facebook group, Quarantine Cuisine.

Run by Chesterfield Champion, Edge Events Management Ltd (the company behind the Chesterfield Food and Drink Festival), Quarantine Cuisine has been created as a platform for people to share recipes to cook at home and to connect with like-minded food lovers.

The demo kitchen idea is set to take the group to the next level after reaching over 1,000 members in only a week.  Filmed ‘alfresco style’ from a Chesterfield garden, chefs will conduct the demos in slow-time so that everyone can cook along.  And chefs will be available online during the streaming to answer any questions.

So far the group has focused on interesting cuisines from around the world that can be cooked at home easily.  As well as stage-by-stage photo recipes from Richard Alsop, one of the owners of Edge Events Management Ltd, members have also been encouraged to share their ideas and feedback.

Edge Events’ Richard Alsop comments: “It’s fantastic to have hit the 1,000 milestone with the group and we are excited for the launch of our cooking demos.

“Whether it’s just for you or for the whole family, all the dishes are designed to be practical, affordable, healthy and freezable; so there will be no waste whatsoever!

“The demos will be filmed in our own front garden, in line with social spacing.  We have already spoken with production and chefs and we can broadcast these events without anybody coming within 10 metres of each other.  There will be multi-camera angles and audio production so you will get a really high quality experience to enjoy in your very own home.

“The first demo will be by myself and I am really looking forward to showing you how easy these dishes really are to make.  It will be my first time taking to the knives live on camera for the first time ever; so please do go easy on me!

“Prior to the demo, we will announce the ingredients you will need and we will give a full week to allow time to include them in your essential shopping list. We do not want people rushing out just for the ingredients; we still want you to be safe and only add them to your full shopping list.

“Once the cook-along has finished, we then encourage you to post photos of your attempts along with any feedback!

“The more, the merrier, so please do join the group if you haven’t done so already.”

The first cooking demo will take place with Richard Alsop from Edge Events on Saturday 9th May at 6pm, streamed live from Quarantine Cuisine Presented by Edge Events Management Ltd.  Once registered, members are invited to suggest the recipe they would like to see Richard cook by commenting on this post.

Edge Events Management Ltd supports the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 180 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.  The company’s past events have included the Chesterfield Food and Drink Festival and the Chesterfield Street Food and Grooves Festival, both of which are set to return in 2021.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards, Home, Leisure, Summer, Visiting

Vicar Lane offers free parking for the NHS

To thank all of the NHS workers doing their bit during the coronavirus pandemic, Vicar Lane Shopping Centre is offering entry to its car park at no cost.

NHS workers wishing to sign up for this offer should send an email from their NHS email address with their name and vehicle license plate to uksupport@reefparking.com. Terms and conditions apply, read more here (opens in new tab).

Shaun Brown, Centre Manager, Vicar Lane said: “To say thank you to all of the NHS staff who are working so hard right now, we want to offer entry to our car park at no cost to the NHS for the duration of this pandemic. We hope this will make life a bit easier for those of you who need to get into town during this uncertain time.”

Vicar Lane wanted to help children and resident say ‘thank you’ to some of the amazing community heroes who are working hard at this time to help others and provide households with vital services and have created some free colouring templates for children to enjoy and display at home. You can download your colouring pages here.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Featured, Home, Leisure

Extra cash for councillors to donate to local community groups

Derbyshire County Council councillors have been given extra funding so they can help local groups in their area.

Each year every councillor has £3,860 which they can donate to groups in their area which aim to improve the lives of local people. At a meeting on Thursday (23 April) our Cabinet agreed a proposal to double this amount of money, giving each councillor £7,720 for this financial year.

Derbyshire County Council Leader, Councillor Barry Lewis, said: “Local councillors know their areas the best and are well placed to spend this money where it is going to make the most difference.”

“For some local groups a small donation may make the difference to that organisation making it through this pandemic.”

“These funds cannot usually be used to help groups with general running costs, but given the circumstances we are lifting this requirement.”

Anyone who runs a local group in their community and wants to find out more should contact their local councillor here.

The total cost of £247,000 is to come from Derbyshire County Council reserve funds.

Please note these are photos from our image library and were not taken recently. 

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

Scarecrow competition supports Royal’s urgent appeal

A celebratory keyworker scarecrow competition has raised smiles and almost £2,000 for Chesterfield Royal Hospital.

Residents of Matlock Road in Walton paid to enter their handmade designs to raise vital funds for NHS equipment. Scarecrows recognised doctors and nurses, police officers, supermarket staff, refuse collectors and many more essential workers.

The latest £500, which was donated by Cheese Factor based at Chesterfield Market Hall, has brought the total amount raised to £1,850. Although no formal prize for the competition, Cheese Factor has also gifted a cheese board to the winning family, whose design was a celebration of Chesterfield’s carers.

Simon Davidson, Owner of Cheese Factor said: “I wanted to say well done to everyone who has supported this competition. You have all shown amazing creativity and generosity.  It has been fantastic to see the local community coming together during these challenging times and it has made me feel proud to live and work in Chesterfield.”

Catherine Allen, a member of the Neighbourhood Watch, who set up the Just Giving Page, said: “As our Neighbourhood Watch group was unable to meet for our usual monthly catch up, we decided to come together in a different way.

“One of the ladies in the group suggested a scarecrow competition, as a thank you to the key workers to whom we are so thankful.  Another lady suggested making it a fundraiser.

“We thought it would be fun to do and would allow participation by all ages in our community.

“All entries to the competition were asked to make a minimum donation of £10 per household and then the additional funds raised have been through advertising the Just Giving page.

“The Protect Our NHS campaign led by Chesterfield Royal Hospital seemed like the perfect recipient.”

The keyworker scarecrow competition was judged by Toby Perkins MP on 18th April, who awarded first prize to a tribute to local carers.

The first prize scarecrow was to a tribute to local carers

Posted in About Chesterfield, Featured, Home, Leisure

Work to begin on Chesterfield’s Northern Gateway Enterprise Centre

Work is set to begin on the new Northern Gateway Enterprise Centre next week (27 April), to ensure the site is available for local businesses to move in to at the earliest possible opportunity and benefit the local economy.

Chesterfield Borough Council’s contractor, Robert Woodhead Ltd, will take control of the site and begin groundworks on part of the Holywell Cross (Donut) Car Park in Chesterfield town centre as preparation for the construction of the new Enterprise Centre.

Developing a thriving borough continues to be a priority for the Council and that includes supporting the business community during the COVID 19 outbreak and into recovery. Robert Woodhead Ltd have completed assessments ahead of the work beginning and have confirmed they will follow strict COVID 19 social distancing guidelines to ensure the safety of employees and the public.

Councillor Terry Gilby, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for economic growth, said: “We appreciate there may be concerns around any construction activity starting in the town centre right now, given we remain at a key stage of the national response to the COVID 19 outbreak.

“The contractor will be working to the latest Construction Site Operating Procedures published by the Construction Leadership Council in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

“With these essential works progressing safely we hope to minimise any delay to the start of the main build and ultimately its completion. This major construction project will also help contribute to Chesterfield’s post COVID 19 recovery with the council’s requirement for Robert Woodhead Ltd to source local labour, supplies and equipment.

“The project will result in high quality, flexible, office space being made available on easy-in and easy-out letting terms to businesses just starting out or looking to grow their company here in Chesterfield.”

Tom Woodhead, Business Services Director at Robert Woodhead Ltd, said: “Over the last few weeks, we have been working with our industry peers, government and industry bodies to understand how the government guidelines and CLC Site Operating Procedures can be implemented on construction sites.

“We have developed stringent operating procedures, risk and method statements to enable us to start on site to deliver this exciting project in collaboration with Chesterfield Borough Council.”

Groundworks are likely to take around eight weeks to complete, running from the end of April onwards. Whilst these works are taking place the building design will be finalised, supplies of materials ordered and sub-contractors hired. These activities will put the project in a good position to proceed to full construction later on in the year.

The new Northern Gateway Enterprise Centre will accommodate a range of businesses within 32 office suites. It will also offer access to outstanding shared facilities and local business support services.

The new centre is an important addition to Chesterfield Borough Council’s commercial property portfolio and will hopefully be a key component in Chesterfield’s post COVID 19 recovery.

The Northern Gateway Enterprise Centre project has benefited from grant funding support from the Sheffield City Region Investment Fund.

To find out more about your business being based in the Enterprise Centre email either claire.cunningham@chesterfield.gov.uk or hannah.ramsdale@chesterfield.gov.uk.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Destination Chesterfield, Development, Featured, Home, Leisure, Made in Chesterfield

Chesterfield Borough Council leisure activities go digital

Following the ongoing temporary closures of both Queen’s Park Sports Centre and the Healthy Living Centre, the Chesterfield Borough Council leisure team have been putting together a selection of digital sessions that include dance classes, gymnastics, high-intensity interval training and Pilates.

You can get involved in these classes by visiting either of the center’s Facebook pages below:

The team have also put together a selection of downloadable resources that can be used to support your child’s education around health and fitness. These cover a range of topics from swimming to gymnastics and can be downloaded from the council’s website.

Councillor Jill Mannion-Brunt, Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing (right), said: “I want to thank all of our customers for their understanding and support at this difficult time. Our leisure team are working hard to put together digital classes and activities for the whole family that will encourage people to lead a healthy lifestyle and exercise at home.”

With regards to the reopening of the leisure centres, the council will continue to evaluate the situation and update the public in line with the latest Government guidance. If you are currently a member of the leisure centres, your direct debit has been stopped and the council will not resume taking payments until after the centres have reopened.

The midwifery team based at Queen’s Park Sports Centre are still taking appointments, please contact the midwifery team directly to discuss arrangements for visiting the Centre.

Chesterfield Borough Council will continue to provide updates about its services on its dedicated coronavirus information hub: www.chesterfield.gov.uk/your-council/coronavirus-information-hub/leisure-services-updates

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

Dronfield Arts Festival create online hub for residents to celebrate VE Day 75 at home

The organisers of Dronfield Arts Festival have created an online hub with ways residents can take part in stay at home celebrations for VE Day 75 on Friday 8th May.

Even though the highly-anticipated celebrations planned at Dronfield Hall Barn will no longer be taking place, local digital design agency FWD Motion, who manage the Dronfield Arts Festival, have created a new hub with ways residents can show their wartime spirit.

Ideas for celebrating at home include holding a patriotic party from your house or garden, cooking wartime recipes or downloading their specially-themed craft activities.

In the lead up to the 8th May, there will be lots of free online activities to enjoy as part of their virtual entertainment programme featuring classic 40s artists including swing and vintage singer Jayne Darling, female harmony group La-Di-Dah and jazz vocalist Sarah Eastwood. Dronfield’s History Van will have online activities for children throughout the day itself.

Donations are still being welcomed online to support SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity and The Dronfield Heritage Trust charity who supports and maintains Dronfield Hall Barn.

The festival team are encouraging residents to share their celebrations and stories on social media to help boost morale. To see a full list of activities taking place and ways you can get involved, click here.

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

Chesterfield tea-blender collaborates with local traders to launch gift hamper deliveries

Gail Hannan, owner of Chesterfield-based Cup & Saucer, is collaborating with local businesses to produce tailored gift hampers that can be delivered to those who are isolating.

Cup & Saucer, who blend and sell quality loose tea with a Peak District twist, won the title of Food Producer of the Year at the Chesterfield Food & Drink Awards 2018. The company has traded at various markets & events and expanded in early 2020 by opening their own shop.

The shop is temporarily closed but now offer online sales and local contact-free delivery. Gail realised this was not an option for many of her fellow market traders so contacted a number of local companies in order to offer support and promotion.

Gail said: “It has all happened really quickly, but the gift hampers are proving to be really popular with our customers! I am working closely with many food & drink producers who I have met primarily through local markets, to create bespoke hampers for people to either order for themselves as a treat in isolation, or to send as a gift to a loved one.”

“Our most recent hamper aimed at chocoholics sold out within a day of advertising! This includes products from ourselves; Rate Good Brownies; Cacoa Elora; Jades Delights; Urban Flamingo and Homemade at Haslemere.”

She added: “It’s actually a really great opportunity for us to showcase our products to a wider audience. It obviously won’t change the fact that this will in no doubt be a devastating year for our businesses, but I am determined to not let this destroy what has taken me so much time and energy to build.”

Hampers include a Totally Tea Hamper, a Chocoholics Dream Hamper and two Derbyshire Producers Gift Hampers and can be ordered directly through the Cup & Saucer website. For a full list of products, or for more information, visit www.cupandsauceronline.co.uk/shop

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

Chesterfield’s MTM Products supplies the NHS with lifesaving equipment

Chesterfield manufacturer, MTM Products, is supplying nurse call handset overlays to a leading NHS equipment supplier to support them during the Coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak.

The label and signage company is making large quantities of front fascia overlays for the nurse call handsets used in the temporary hospitals..

In total, the firm is manufacturing more than 14,000 overlays for one of its longstanding medical sector customers. The first 5,000 have already been delivered following a quick turnaround thanks for the company’s efforts.

MTM has a variety of customers which are also supplying products to the NHS and emergency services. These customers have asked MTM to continue trading so they can fulfil their responsibilities and supply essential equipment to health services in both the UK and mainland Europe. MTM plans to continue manufacturing at both of its Chesterfield sites for as long as possible, while observing Government advice around social distancing and hygiene.

Ian Greenaway, Managing Director at MTM Products said: “We are proud to be able to play our part in ensuring that the NHS and emergency services receive supplies necessary to fight the COVID-19 virus. We are part of a supply chain for many essential medical and life safety products and will do everything we can to maintain continuity of supply.”

Images: MTM Products

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