Organisers of a world record ‘keep uppy’ attempt at the Proact Stadium are hoping to attract at least 1,866 people to the event, which would smash the current record.

The Spireites were formed in 1866 and the Chesterfield FC Community Trust would like to celebrate the club’s 150th anniversary by beating the record, which currently stands at 1,377. The attempt will take place on the pitch at the Proact on Saturday, May 21, from 3pm.

One of the organisers, Simon Edmonds, said: “We want to see as many people as possible keeping footballs up in the air at the same time! There has been a very good response to our call for clubs and organisations to get involved, but we need more.

“All local clubs and organisations are invited to take part to help raise funds for the Community Trust as well as their own club or organisation.”

Jobs and investment in Chesterfield announced at Celebrate 2016 event

More than 300 jobs are set to be brought to Chesterfield as part of the first phase of the town’s £320 million regeneration scheme, Chesterfield Waterside. The jobs boost news came at the recent Celebrate Chesterfield event attended by 250 of the town’s business owners and leaders.

£2.7 million of grant funding from SCRIF (Sheffield City Region Investment Fund) was also announced at the event. The grant will enabled the site preparation and infrastructure phase of Basin Square, comprising the former Trebor site at the Chesterfield Waterside scheme, to be brought forward. A planning application for the site enabling works and infrastructure, together with building heights and massing, was submitted on 14 March.

If planning consent is granted, the infrastructure and site enabling works will start later this year. The enabling works will facilitate future delivery of residential accommodation, office space, a hotel, car park and retail units on the Basin Square site at Chesterfield Waterside. Work on this element is expected to start in 2017 and will create more than 300 jobs.

Councillor John Burrows, Chesterfield Borough Council’s leader and cabinet member for regeneration said: “If the planning application submitted this week is approved, the funding from Sheffield City Region will allow work on the Canal Basin to start this year. This will not only lead to work for local businesses during the construction process but also jobs for Chesterfield residents when the development is complete.”

Peter Swallow, Chair of Destination Chesterfield and Managing Director of Bolsterstone PLC which is leading the joint venture company delivering Chesterfield Waterside, added: “I am delighted to announce significant progress with Chesterfield Waterside. Following the delivery and completion of the enabling works, I am confident that the construction of the office, retail and hotel accommodation on the Basin Square site will begin in 2017.

“The development of Basin Square will be of a scale and quality not previously seen in Chesterfield and will elevate the profile of the town, creating a sense of arrival and a new landmark. It will certainly help put Chesterfield and all that it has to offer on to the national investment map.”

The free Celebrate Chesterfield’ event was organised by Destination Chesterfield, in association with The University of Derby, which is opening a new campus in the town later this year.

Speakers at the sell-out event, which was sponsored by Central Technology and Markham Vale, included Huw Bowen, Chief Executive of the Borough Council, and representatives from University of Derby, Meter Provida and Central Technology.

The breakfast event also looked back on the success of Destination Chesterfield, the town’s inward investment campaign, during the last 12 months.

Chesterfield have named Mark Smith as their caretaker manager following the departure of Dean Saunders at the weekend.

Smith, who is the club’s academy manager, will take charge of the team on a temporary basis while the search for a permanent manager is conducted. He will be assisted by goalkeeper coach Mark Crossley and Paul Mitchell, who is the director of player recruitment.
Smith previously had a spell as Sam Allardyce’s assistant at Notts County and held senior academy roles at Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United and Barnsley. He joined Chesterfield as youth team coach in May 2013.

As a player, Smith made over 500 appearances in a career which took in spells at Sheffield Wednesday, Barnsley and Plymouth Argyle. He was also capped by England at under-21 level.

Community groups who are planning to commemorate the 2018 centenary of the First World War armistice are being urged by Derbyshire County Council to get their bids in soon.

The Heritage Lottery Fund has £4 million available in the East Midlands region for First World War community projects and the county council is holding an information day in Chesterfield on Friday 16 October to help Derbyshire groups apply for some of this money.

The free day is organised as part of the council’s Derbyshire Lives through the First World War project which helps groups to develop WW1 related projects and find the money to run them.

Derbyshire County Council Deputy Cabinet Member for Health and Communities Councillor Ellie Wilcox said: “Our information day will be a great source of advice and support for groups who are organising events to remember their wartime heritage.

“It is not too early to get thinking about commemorations to mark 100 years since the First World War armistice of 1918. Our experience of helping groups to get funding suggests that the sooner they do this the better as the whole process of getting the idea sorted out and the application submitted can take some months.

“The 2018 anniversary will be the biggest of the centenary commemorations and I hope that many Derbyshire communities will be marking the day.

“We want to do all that we can to support these ideas and initiatives. They honour the Derbyshire people who were involved in the conflict – either in battle or by supporting the effort at home.”

The day is called ‘First World War: Different Perspectives’. Members of the Heritage Lottery Fund will be coming along. There will be talks from groups who have run successful projects and from First World War historians about different perspectives of the war.  For the full programme and booking details click here.

Senior Government officials were told that Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire are ready, willing and able to deliver on devolution during a high-profile visit to the area.

Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Lord Heseltine were in the area to meet with the 19 leaders of city, county, district and borough councils from Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire about ground-breaking proposals to devolve powers from central Government to local people.

And there was a positive response to the councils’ devolution prospectus, which outlines how a move to more efficient and effective local decision-making could help deliver the creation of 55,000 new private sector jobs by 2023 and 77,000 affordable new homes by 2020 across the two counties and cities.

Councils in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire have well advanced proposals for a ‘devo-deal’ in place, which would see the creation of a Derbyshire (including Derby City) and a Nottinghamshire (including Nottingham City) Combined Authority.

The new bodies would take-on further powers and resources for key economic levers like jobs, skills, housing and transport, in addition to their current responsibilities.

A devolution deal would give local people and local businesses greater influence over economic growth in their areas and improve the quality of life and prospects for local people.

Included in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire’s devolution prospectus are exciting plans for new ‘London-style’ powers to deliver better integrated public transport, have a direct influence over upgraded motorways and major trunk roads and increase international trade and passenger transport at East Midlands Airport.

Councillor Anne Western, who chairs the D2 Joint Committee − the potential forerunner to the Derbyshire Combined Authority’s decision making body − said:

“We have ambitious plans for growth, jobs and greater economic prosperity in Derby and Derbyshire but are being held back by decisions being taken by people in Westminster who have no connection with local people or understanding of local need.

“The Secretary of State was clearly impressed by our vision for devolution and how we were able to demonstrate the numerous benefits it would create for the people of Derby and Derbyshire. It was hugely beneficial for all the council leaders present to get clarity on the Government’s aspirations for devolution and reassurance that the Secretary of State believes in our bid and our passion and ability to deliver on it.”

Councillor Graham Chapman chairs the Economic Prosperity Committee − a new group made up of leading councillors from city, county, district and borough councils in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire as the potential forerunner to the decision-making forum for the new Nottinghamshire Combined Authority. He said:

“We feel very encouraged by what we have heard from the Secretary of State today and feel we have made significant progress towards a final devolution agreement which suits Government, local authorities and most importantly of all, will have significant benefits for the people of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.

“Our bid is unique in that it brings together a number of different types of local authority and people of all political backgrounds − all with the same, shared belief that local people and businesses can be better served by local decision-making. The message to the Secretary of State was clear, that Nottingham and Nottinghamshire stands together in that belief and has a shared determination to deliver devolution to the communities we represent.”

Further negotiations over the final shape of the devolution deal for Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire will now continue over the summer.

Today (22^nd June) leaders from the public and private sector, represented by Sheffield City Region Combined Authority (SCRA) and Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), formalised their existing culture of collaboration to deliver economic growth through a new fit-for-purpose structure.   This vital step in the road to devolution sees the establishment of five new Executive Boards.  The Boards will cover: skills, business growth, infrastructure, transport and housing.  They are tasked with making key decisions on strategy and budget allocation.  The Executive Boards are made up of key players in the public and private sector and have delegated authority from the SCRA and LEP.

Sir Stephen Houghton, Chair of the SCRA and Leader of Barnsley MBC said:

“The new governance arrangements are vital to efficiently progress the devolution agenda and successfully deliver our promises to Government that form the Growth Deal.

“Political leaders have worked together across local boundaries for several years as it is mutually beneficial, this was formalised with the SCRA in 2014.

“The new arrangements mean we will take collaboration between Local Authorities, and public and private sector to a higher level.

“We have worked closely with our private sector colleagues in the LEP and value their contribution to economic success, and their leadership on key strategic programmes.

James Newman, Chairman of the LEP added:

“Since the formation of the LEP in 2010, I have been astounded at the enthusiasm and time the private sector has given for the greater good and economic growth of SCR.

“Their leadership and intellectual contribution to economic strategy means political leaders are willing to share the decision making burden.

“This is a dynamic time for Sheffield City Region, we have achieved much in a short timescale, and we should be proud of what these new arrangements will mean.”

This landmark decision on the road to devolution is the culmination of a successful partnership between the public and private sectors which began when the LEP began in 2010, and further developed when the SCRA was created in 2014.

The results of partnership working and increasing devolution from Central Government are yielding huge benefits to Sheffield City Region.  Key achievements include the trailblazing City Deal in 2011, gaining £28 million Government funding. This enables the highly successful “Skills Made Easy” programme, and the SCR Investment Fund to accelerate essential infrastructure projects.   The next achievement included the award of Enterprise Zone (EZ) status for strategic development sites in the City Region.  The SCR EZ has attracted 18 new companies, helping create over 800 new jobs and is rated one of the most successful in the UK.

In 2014, SCR was granted an historic £320 million Growth Deal from Government, the fifth largest in the UK.  The deal enables transformational projects to progress including the FARRRs link road to Doncaster Sheffield Airport, the Glass Academy, a business support service, and a “Skills Bank”.  With oversight from the new Executive Boards, these programmes will deliver the growth required to boost the economy in both the City Region and the wider Northern Powerhouse.