Author: Tara Underhill

Chesterfield set to sparkle

16th November 2015

Visitors and residents are getting excited ahead of the annual Christmas lights switch on, which takes place this Sunday, 22 November.

The festive event gets underway at noon with a magical market featuring entertainment, stalls and rides in the market place and in New Square. The indoor market hall will also be open from noon to 6pm.

A live stage show will begin at 3.30pm with Peak FM presenters providing plenty of fun and competitions, including the chance to win a family ticket to see Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at the Pomegranate Theatre.

Stars from the pantomime, including Eurovision queen, Nicki French and impressionist, Philip Green, best known from his appearance on Britain’s Got Talent, will switch on the lights at 4.45pm.

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

“The Christmas lights event is a highlight in the calendar allowing families to come together and get into the festive spirit.

“I’d encourage people to come along and visit the indoor and outdoor markets to pick up some of their Christmas presents, before joining in the fun of the stage show and seeing the Christmas lights switched on.”

Chesterfield borough residents are reminded that they can use their parking permits to park for free in the following council-run car parks on the day:

Albion Road
Ashgate Road
Derbyshire Times
Devonshire Street
Durrant Road
Hollis Lane (excluding on-street bays)
Holywell Cross (the Donut)
Spa Lane
Station Road
St Mary’s Gate
Theatre Lane
West Street.

For more top Christmas events, Christmas shopping and places to meet Santa visit www.chesterfield.co.uk/Christmas

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

Walking and cycling superstars at Westfield Infants

6th November 2015

Westfield Infants School in Chesterfield has received a national award for encouraging pupils to enjoy a more active, safer and greener commute.

The Modeshift STARS bronze accreditation recognises the school’s efforts in getting more children to travel on foot, by bike or via other sustainable means of transport, such as scooters, public transport or car sharing.

Supported by parents, staff, Derbyshire County Council and Sustrans – a national charity working towards sustainable travel – the school has taken part in a number of practical initiatives over the past academic year. These included ‘Scooter Smart’ training run by the County Council, and ‘Skills to Ride’ delivered by local cycling safety experts, Wheely Fun Wheels.

Westfield Infants has delivered great results, having more than doubled the amount of children walking, cycling or scooting to school on a daily basis.

The bronze award was presented to pupils at a school celebration held on Wednesday 4th November by Philip J. Smith, Senior Transport Officer from Derbyshire County Council, and Lisa Hopkinson, a Sustrans volunteer.

Mr Whitham, of Westfield Infant School, said: “Undertaking the Modeshift STARS award scheme has helped to raise the importance and profile of travelling in a sustainable way. Children loved the engaging assembly to kick-start the program. More and more of our children are coming to school on scooters and bikes, we are even looking into purchasing a new bike shelter to hold all the bikes!”

Following the successful bronze initiatives, the school is continuing the scheme and hopes to achieve the silver award in 2016.

Every school in England can participate in the Modeshift STARS scheme for free, and achieve bronze, silver or gold level awards. It is supported by 52 local authorities and more than 11,000 schools nationally.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield

Local sporting stars up for county awards

6th November 2015

A host of Chesterfield and North East Derbyshire athletes, teams and officials are in the running to win a Derby Telegraph Sports Award.

Representatives from the two areas have been invited to attend the county’s premier sports awards night – to be held next Thursday, November 12, at Derby’s Roundhouse – which this year celebrates its 10^th anniversary.

Among those contenders are Staveley taekwondo player Aaron Cobley, who has won gold medals at the UTIF British Championships, MWTA British Championships and UITF English Championships and, as a result, has been shortlisted as Young Sportsman of the Year.

He is attending the WKU World Championships in Spain, where he will represent England in four events and is targeting the senior World Championships in Argentina in 2017.

The 16-year-old will go up against two other talented performers from the county in the shape of High Peak judoka Eric Ham and Derby golfer Bradley Moore.

In the Young Sportswoman of the Year category, Chesterfield’s Alicia Barrett will go head to head with Shirland’s Niamh Emerson and High Peak swimmer Abbie Wood.

Alicia, from Newbold and a student at St Mary’s RC High School, is a member of Chesterfield and District AC and on the Derbyshire Institute of Sport programme.

The 17-year-old made the final of the 100m hurdles Commonwealth Youth Games final and finished sixth at the IAAF World Youth Championships, having set an UK Under-18 record in a qualifying round.

Among those vying for the title of Junior Team of the Year is Tupton Hall School Girls Under-12s Football Team, who have been shortlisted alongside Mickleover Sports Dynamos Under-13s Football Team and the Noel-Baker School Basketball Team.

Their outstanding achievements as a tight-knit group include winning the FA Youth Futsal National Championship, finishing as Football League Kinder+ Sport Northern runners-up and reaching the semi-finals of the ESFA National Cup.

Shortlisted in the Club of the Year category is Unit 1/BKKA, a martial arts club based in Chesterfield, who have made the top three alongside the UDSU Buxton Sportability Club and Glossop North End AFC Juniors, both of the High Peak.

The inclusive club has more than 500 members, ranging from four to 75 in age, teaching the core values of respect, humility, discipline, teamwork and dedication.

Inter-club tournaments are held, while members compete at regional, national and international events, with 41 world title winners among the ranks.

They have raised around £40,000 for local and national charities over the last few years with ‘Kickapolooza’ events, while free self-awareness/self-defence sessions are held for women and a coaching programme runs for 14 to 24-year-olds.

Those successful winners around Derbyshire’s nine districts and boroughs were automatically forwarded as nominees at county level and a shortlist of individuals, teams and clubs were then selected by a panel of sports officials, together with Derby Telegraph sports staff.

Awards will be handed out in 15 categories in all, recognising the cream of sporting talent both in performance-level and participation sport.

Photographs show Young Sportswoman of the Year finalist Chesterfield’s Alicia Barrett

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Leisure

Handelsbanken claims top spot for customer service

4th November 2015

Handelsbanken in Chesterfield is celebrating after being rated top for both customer satisfaction and loyalty for the seventh year running.

An independent survey – by European research institution EPSI Rating – confirms the locally-focused relationship bank has managed to maintain its top ranking during another year of strong UK expansion.

Since the financial crisis began seven years ago, the bank has announced over 140 new British branches. As well as the Chesterfield branch, Handelsbanken now serves individual and corporate customers in another 200 communities throughout Great Britain.

The bank puts customer satisfaction first, and believes local branches are best-placed to make all decisions relating to their customers. Chesterfield branch staff have full power to advise customers and agree individual product terms and pricing, free from targets or bonus incentives.

Phil Walker, manager of Handelsbanken’s Chesterfield branch commented:

Our decentralised approach provides customers with a local relationship banking service. The majority of decisions are made in the branch by our experienced staff who are empowered to do so. Our ever-growing reputation and close attention to customer care is supported by the latest survey results.”

Handelsbanken has also published its latest (Q3) financial results this week, revealing that net lending to UK households rose by 18% (to £4.9 bn) in the last 12 months. The bank also extended net lending to UK businesses by a further 11%, to £10.1 billion in total.

Handelsbanken’s group results also reaffirm its exceptionally strong capital and liquidity positions, and low credit loss ratios, which have earned it amongst the highest credit ratings of any international bank. Over successive years, the bank has been judged one of the strongest in the world, by financial information provider Bloomberg.

The Swedish-headquartered bank operates over 840 branches in 25 countries worldwide, with the UK representing its fastest-growing market.

A team of 5 bankers serves customers from Handelsbanken in Chesterfield, drawing on over 100 years of banking experience between them.

Posted in Business

Brave team at BHP kick off Macmillan fundraising mission

4th November 2015

Two partners and four employees at Barber Harrison and Platt (BHP) have had their legs waxed for charity, raising £800 for The Chesterfield Royal Macmillan Cancer Centre Appeal.

This is the first event of several BHP is planning to help fundraise for what they see as a vital project for the area. The firm says it is a cause which has struck a chord with many businesses in Chesterfield.

Partner Dominic Staniforth said “The local community is very important to us – and we encourage staff to do all they can to support the causes that they are passionate about. Sadly, cancer affects a huge amount of people and has touched on many people’s lives.

“The new cancer centre will be extremely welcome in the area, helping to make what will always be a difficult time that little bit more bearable. We think that both Macmillan and the hospital are doing a great job and are pleased to be able to do our bit to support them.

“We would very much like to thank the staff and students from the Beauty Department of Chesterfield College for their generous support in our first event.”

On 26 November BHP is running a Race Night which is already gathering support – with sponsors MTM Products, NatWest and Padley and Venables already signed up to really help make it a success. For tickets or sponsorship information email tanya.addy@bhp.co.uk.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business

Chesterfield woman recognised as one of top engineering and construction apprentices

27th October 2015

A young woman from Chesterfield has beaten more than 13,000 hopefuls to be named one of the top engineering and construction apprentices in the country.

Casey Allen (17), an engineering apprentice at Foxwood Diesel in Old Whittington, narrowly missed out on being named the overall winner of the prestigious Group Training Association (GTA) England Apprentice of the Year Award.

Casey, who is about to complete level 2 of her apprenticeship and start level 3, was put forward for the award by her apprentice training provider NLT Training Services based in Brimington. She was pipped to the post for overall winner by a level 4 engineering apprentice.

Delighted to win Casey said: “I’ve only been in the industry for about 18 months so to get this award is brilliant. I didn’t expect to be shortlisted let alone the runner up.”

The award was presented by Nick Boles, Minister of State jointly for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education, at a ceremony held at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) in Westminster, London.

Minister for Skills Nick Boles said: “The GTA England awards ceremony highlights the talent, energy and skill apprentices bring to businesses both large and small across the country.

“Apprenticeships play a vital role in building a modern, highly skilled workforce. This is why we are working with organisations like GTA England and its members to deliver 3 million apprentices by 2020.”

Andy Sheppard, CEO of NLT Training Services who was at the award ceremony explained: “Casey’s enthusiasm for engineering is infectious, matched only by her performance both in our training centre and at Foxwood Diesel. She is an outstanding student who ticks every single box and we are delighted that she has been recognised at such a high level. She is a credit to apprentices and the engineering profession.”

Casey is the only female employed on the shop floor at Foxwood Diesel where she is known as ‘The Turbo Queen’ by her colleagues because of her love of stripping down and reconstructing diesel engines. She began working at the company when she was 15 as part of a work experience organised by her school.

Owner of Foxwood Diesel Ken Worsdale, workshop manager Matt Jamson and Casey’s mum also accompanied her to the award ceremony.

Ken Worsdale added: “We’re all very proud of Casey. She did very well to be up against people who are five years into their apprenticeship. She is an asset to Foxwood Diesel. She’s only been here for just over a year but every day she impresses us with her self-motivation and effort she puts into the job.”

Casey added: “Foxwood is a great company to work for. They’re really supporting me. What I’m doing with my employer, combined with the training and qualifications I’m getting at NLT, will give me skills for life.

“Apprenticeships are a great way to gain experience, learn skills and get paid. I plan to get to the highest level I can until I’m fully qualified. Eventually though I would like to combine my skills with teaching and have my own turbo specialist business where I can employ people and teach them like I’ve been taught.”

NLT Training Services is a specialist training and provider of apprentices in welding, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering and is one of only 40 technical training providers recognised by GTA in England.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Manufacturing

Kiwi defender joins Spireites

27th October 2015

Chesterfield have signed New Zealand U20 international defender Liam Graham following a spell on trial.

The 23-year-old right-back, who was a free agent, previously played for Italian clubs Ascoli, Monza and Pro Patria.

Commenting on the deal, Spireites manager Dean Saunders said: “Liam is not a player who will immediately be in contention for a place in the first team, but we feel that we can work on developing him as a player in the reserves.”

Graham said: “I’ve played two games for the reserves and already I feel a pretty good connection with the players I’ve been playing with. Now I’m excited to get going.“

Graham, who was born in Melbourne, remains eligible to represent New Zealand or Australia.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Celebrate Chesterfield, Leisure, Visiting

Chatsworth at forefront of accessible tourism campaign

23rd October 2015

Chatsworth is one of eight businesses across the Peak District and Derbyshire playing a leading role in a pioneering project promoting England as a leading destination for accessible tourism.

Official tourist board Visit Peak District & Derbyshire was one of just seven top destinations to net a share in national tourist board VisitEngland’s ‘Access for All’ project, funded by a 125,000 Euros (more than £93,000) grant from the European Commission.

Chastworth has had a site audit to review facilities and pinpoint areas that could be improved, classroom-based and on-line training to boost customer service, a ‘mystery shop’ by people with a range of disabilities and tips to improve their accessibility statement and websites.

It also shared in a £100,000 print and on-line media and marketing campaign by VisitEngland in partnership with Express Newspapers throughout September, which aimed to raise awareness of accessible destinations and businesses across England.

VisitEngland research reveals that the overnight accessible tourism market is now worth £3 billion per annum to the English economy, with day visits boosting the figure to £12.1 billion. Over the past few years, overnight trips by disabled tourists and their companions have increased by 19 per cent, and their spending is up by a third.

“VisitEngland estimates that the overall annual value of overnight accessible tourism to Derbyshire is £45 million, so it makes sense for local businesses to invest in improving their facilities and services for this key sector of the market,” said Lindsay Rae, Deputy Director and Head of Industry Engagement at Visit Peak District & Derbyshire

James Berresford, Chief Executive of VisitEngland, said: “The accessible tourism market is worth a sizeable £12.1 billion to the English economy, and many tourism businesses are realising that catering for disabled customers is not only a necessity but a wise investment that brings a host of business benefits. Many of the changes businesses make may be small, but combined contribute significantly to the visitor experience.”

Sally Ambrose, Head of Marketing and Visitor Services at Chatsworth said: “Chatsworth is delighted to be part of VisitEngland’s Access for All initiative. We have always been committed to providing the best possible service to all our visitors, including those with mobility impairments, and this scheme has enabled us to ensure we are constantly improving our facilities to provide the best possible visitor experience for all.”

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

Chesterfield Museum highly commended in industry awards

23rd October 2015

Chesterfield Museum has been highly commended for its successful events at the recent Derbyshire Heritage Awards.

The popular Chesterfield Borough Council run attraction received the commendation in the inspiration category for its special project ‘What’s on at Chesterfield Museum’.

This campaign has seen a series of special events including using professional reenactors, talks from local organisations, as well as talents from the museum staff for storytelling, Meet George Stephenson and children’s craft workshops.

There are several events coming up over the coming weeks including:

Children’s Craft Workshops on Saturdays 30 October and 27 November with hands on craft activities for children aged three to five years
Storytelling on Saturdays 7 November and 5 December with an opportunity to handle and talk about objects from the museum’s collection
Meet George Stephenson Saturday 21 November 10am to noon and 1pm to 4pm.

Councillor Amanda Serjeant, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for town centre and visitor economy said: “I’m very proud that Chesterfield Museum has been highly commended in the Derbyshire Heritage Awards.

“The museum has lots of regular visitors and our staff have also been working hard to attract new ones with a series of interactive special events – we have a full programme of events coming up suitable for families.”

Chesterfield Museum is open each Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10am to 4pm. Admission is free.

The current exhibition on display is Made in Chesterfield taking a look at the many items that are made in the borough today with displays from 27 different companies.

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

Bloodhound and Mantra set to roll into town for Made in Chesterfield

22nd October 2015

Engineering and manufacturing companies in north east Derbyshire are being called on to support the annual Made in Chesterfield festival, a celebration of the town’s manufacturing sector throughout November organised by Destination Chesterfield.

Chesterfield Museum’s very own George Stephenson will attend the official launch of Made in Chesterfield 2015 to the business community at a special evening event on Tuesday 3 November.

The museum is also hosting a special Made in Chesterfield Exhibition, celebrating the wide range of amazing and sometimes quirky products being made in Chesterfield both today and bygone days, including George Stephenson’s cucumber straightener.

As well as George Stephenson, Chesterfield is welcoming a number of high-profile names from manufacturing and engineering during the festival, including Mantra – AMRC’s travelling showcase for advanced engineering, and Bloodhound, the vehicle which is Britain’s latest attempt to break the world land speed record, travelling at a speed of 1,000mph.

A replica of the vehicle will be at Chesterfield College on Wednesday 18 November as part of the Made in Chesterfield festival and is central to a special drinks reception for Chesterfield Champions.

The arrival of Bloodhound in Chesterfield has special significance for the town as local industrial weighing specialists Weightron Bilanciai Ltd have supplied the weighing systems that have been used throughout the build of the project. The company also supplying a system to measure the weight distribution through the wheels of the car, to allow the balancing of the vehicle.

Councillor Amanda Serjeant, vice chair of Destination Chesterfield and cabinet member for town centre and visitor economy at Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “Engineering has always played a major part in Chesterfield’s economy and these events show that this heritage is continuing today.

“Engineering companies are also at the forefront of work in the town to create apprentices to give young people high quality job opportunities.

“This festival is an opportunity to showcase all they do and raise awareness of the many different types of products being manufactured in the town.”

As well as the launch and Champions’ Bloodhound event, there is a packed programme of business events being held during Made in Chesterfield, including a manufacturing conference, business masterclasses and networking events.

Made in Chesterfield is organised by Destination Chesterfield in partnership with MSE Hiller, United Cast Bar, NatWest, Derbyshire Education Business Partnership, Chesterfield College, Derbyshire County Council, Chesterfield Borough Council, Placing Futures, NLT Training, UKTI, East Midlands Chamber, Institution of Mechanical Engineers and Positive 4 Young People.

Ivan Fomin, managing director of MSE Hiller and Destination Chesterfield board member responsible for manufacturing and engineering, said: “The support of companies in the sector is vital to the success of Made in Chesterfield. Manufacturing is the lifeblood of the economy, feeding other sectors such as retail and leisure and its continuing success relies on today’s students considering it for a future career. Made in Chesterfield is designed to open their eyes to this and show them the varied job roles available and also how the sector has changed. However, we can only do this of companies come forward and actively get involved.”

Ian Harrison, UKTI Regional Director in the East Midlands, said he was delighted to be involved in Made in Chesterfield.

He added: “Our breakfast event Made in Chesterfield – Sold to the World, on 9 November, will include an in-depth look at the exciting opportunities for local companies to trade internationally.

“As part of UKTI’s Export Week programme, we hope the event will show businesses that whatever their size, we can help them take their goods and services worldwide.

“The Chesterfield event is also timed to coincide with the launch of the Government’s new Exporting is GREAT Campaign (www.exportingisgreat.gov.uk), which seeks to inspire 100,000 new exporters.”

To find out more about any of the Made in Chesterfield business events and to register to attend, please visit www.chesterfield.co.uk/made

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Destination Chesterfield, Manufacturing

Further progress in devolution deal talks

21st October 2015

An historic devolution deal, which would put more power in the hands of the people of the East Midlands, remains on course to be agreed before the end of the year.

A devolution delegation of local authority and business leaders from Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire met with Government ministers and Treasury officials in London on Monday 19 October 2015 to thrash out more of the finer detail of the deal.

Further positive progress was made towards an agreement during the hour-long meeting and ministers asked the delegation to report back with further finer detail relating to two of the individual proposals in two weeks’ time.

Local politicians from Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire have been pushing for significant decisions on issues such as housing, transport, economic development and skills to be taken locally, rather than providing much greater influence for local people.

Following the meeting, Derbyshire County Council Leader Councillor Anne Western said:

“Once again, our discussions with Government have been extremely positive. Ministers have asked us to provide some further, finer detail on two specific points which we have agreed to go back with, in the next fortnight.

“We are closing in on an agreement which satisfies the Government’s requirements for devolution but, most importantly, a deal which will bring massive benefits to the people of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

“We have reassured ministers that whilst the bid currently relates to Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, our door is always open if other areas within the ‘Midlands Engine’ would like to join our devolution deal.”

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business