Four ticket and travel initiatives for Spireite fans have been agreed by the Chesterfield board to reward fans for their support.

Firstly, for the final three home games of the season (against Newport County, Mansfield Town and Wycombe Wanderers), there will be a ‘three for two’ offer. Anyone who purchases tickets for all three games will only pay for two.

The deadline for taking advantage of this offer is 12noon on the day of the Newport game (Monday, April 2). The cheapest ticket will be free. Please note that, unfortunately, the offer will not be available online.

There will also be a ‘Kids for a Quid’ offer for the Newport match. Any child under the age of 16, who is accompanied by an adult, will be eligible to gain admission for just £1.

As a gesture to season ticket holders, they will be able to secure a free ticket for either the Newport match or Wycombe match.

Also, coach travel to any of the remaining away fixtures (apart from Exeter City) via True Blue Travel has been discounted to just £10 for adults and £5 for Under-16s. No other discounts apply.

Michael Dunford, Chief Executive of Chesterfield FC, said:-

“The board appreciate how expensive it is to follow the team home and away and we want to reward fans for their support. We want as many fans as possible to get behind Jack and the team in the remaining games of the season, be it home or away.”

Schools, colleges and other educational institutions in Chesterfield and across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire are being urged to take advantage of the latest round of D2N2 Careers Local Enterprise grants to put young people on the pathway to work, training or further education.

Applications are open until the end of March for grants of up to £10,000 available to support schemes for 15 to 19 year-olds at risk of becoming not in education, employment or training (NEET).

The scheme is being managed by Nottinghamshire County Council on behalf of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership – the private-sector led partnership promoting economic and jobs growth in its area – with funding available for schemes across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. The grants are funded through the European Social Fund and the Education and Skills Funding Agency.

So far, more than 5,000 young people have benefited from 115 Careers Local Enterprise grant funded projects, supported by grants totalling more than £1.1m.

Amongst the projects to be supported to-date are:

The Lady Manners School in Bakewell is delivering a suite of activities including visits to large employers to examine job roles and progression opportunities, mentoring sessions with business mentors and a series of creative film and media sessions to raise aspirations and motivation. The school is also embedding employability into several curriculum areas.

Stubbin Wood Special Educational Needs School, Shirebrook did a hospitality “takeover” challenge where they delivered all aspects of catering and customer service for a retail and catering outlet. Undertaking a variety of roles, the young people prepared and cooked meals, provided waiting and hospitality services, marketing, visual merchandise, and sales.

Derby City Virtual School are delivering an innovative project called Act 4 Change, giving a work based insight into the creative industries and the world of work through project based activities with creative professionals. Young people will develop a crime prevention film, a theatre performance, a creative writing project and filmed case studies of their own experiences. Participants will gain a range of skills in marketing, project management, stage management, technical & production and producing.

The Woodlands Academy in Nottingham, working closely with local employers, has developed employability and life skills through a residential experience based on the working life.  They have developed team building skills, resilience, organisational skills, and meal preparation, planning and budgeting. This is followed by careers advice and insight, mock interviews with Capital One and preparation for work experience placements.

Manor Academy in Mansfield Woodhouse is using the grant to set up a digital enterprise zone to access careers related media, and an extracurricular club featuring online challenges and events to develop employability skills. Further activities include inspiring visits and involvement in practical projects to raise awareness of career opportunities in Science and Technology. This is followed up with a dedicated careers fair and one to one interventions.

The Elizabethan Academy in Retford is delivering a tailored “Think Big” project which, working with local employers, includes mentoring, visits to local employers, and supported work placements. This is backed up with CV building, interview preparation, and local labour market information, all tailored to the needs of individual pupils to support them to be aspirational in their career aims.

The grants can be used in a variety of ways, including careers guidance for young people establishing closer links with local businesses, improving enterprise and entrepreneurial behaviour and delivering local competitions and events.

To benefit from the funding, applicants must have a careers, enterprise and employability action plan. Grants must be used to deliver new projects, not support existing activity.

A range of options are available for delivery of the schemes, including the use of Nottinghamshire County Council’s pre-approved providers or applicants using their own in-house provision.

Matthew Wheatley, D2N2 Chief Executive, said:-

“To someone who has never entered the world of work, doing so can seem a daunting task. At D2N2, we’re trying to close the divide between school and work through a number of initiatives, including Careers Local.

“This is to ensure that the next generation of the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire workforce are as ready for the world of work as they can be; inspired by the numerous and varied opportunities open to them, and equipped with the skills needed and wanted by local businesses.”

Councillor Kay Cutts, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, said:-

“One of the key building blocks of economic growth is the availability of a skilled, job-ready workforce. So improving skills, employability and awareness about the opportunities available for young people is hugely beneficial both for the young people individually and the wider economy.”

Further information is available from www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/careerslocal

Derby County Community Trust are holding open training sessions for their Football and Education programme, a unique platform that gives talented young individuals the chance to achieve a football scholarship while continuing their full-time academic studies.

The programme is designed to give 16 to 18-year-olds the best opportunity to gain A Level and BTEC qualifications while training and competing in an elite football programme. Coaches will be on hand to provide guidance to help participants find the correct balance of being a student athlete. The course will combine the technical, tactical, psychological and physical facets of the game to promote the development of both students’ studies and game play.

On the pitch, the programme looks to test the players’ ability at the highest level of play outside of academy football. Competing in the NYFL League will give players the opportunity to also trial at local semi-professional and professional clubs.

Past participant Thomas Hodges said, “the two years on the course gave me the chance to develop as a player and a coach, and become an inspiration for other kids wanting to pursue a career in the football industry.”

The open training sessions, recruiting for study at venues in Chesterfield, Coalville, Friesland School and Derby, are taking place at The Racecourse Fields (3G), St Mark’s Road, Derby, DE21 6AL, from 1pm-3pm on March 27^th, March 29^th, April 3^rd and April 5^th.

If you are interested in the course and want more information or to attend one of the sessions, email Kieron.wicks@dcct.co.uk.

Chesterfield fitness studio, Studio 44, will be taking part in a synchronised ‘Boogie Bounce-athon’ to raise money for Sports Relief at Chesterfield College on Sunday 18th March.

The studio are looking for 200 fun and fitness fans to join two giant charity Boogie Bounce classes – exercising to music on mini trampolines. Organisers hope that, as well as raising up to £10,000 for charity, participants will discover a love for Boogie Bounce and become regular ‘boingers’.

Boogie Bounce is an exclusive exercise programme offering cardiovascular, toning, fat burning and strengthening benefits with low impact on the body. NASA agrees that ‘bouncing is the most efficient and effective exercise yet devised by man’ – while studies by NASA scientists have shown that bouncing is 68 per cent more effective than jogging but requires less effort.

Boogie Bounce was the very first ‘exercise to music on mini trampolines’ to launch 21 years ago. It now has 55,000 participants across the UK and is expanding worldwide.

The event at Chesterfield College will see instructors lead 100 bouncers at a time through fun routines in two separate hour-long classes.

Daniel Harries, Owner of Studio 44 at Markham Vale, said:-

“Boogie Bounce is suitable for all shapes, sizes, ages, levels and abilities.

“Because the exercise is low-impact, it offers cardiovascular, toning, fat burning and strengthening benefits with far less chance of injury than other forms of working out.”

He stresses:-

“Don’t worry if you haven’t exercised for years or are a complete newbie. Each trampoline can comfortably take up to 25 stone and comes fully equipped with a T Bar handle for extra stability and confidence – thereby suiting all levels of ability. And bouncers can work entirely at their own pace.

“Guest instructors from nearby towns will also be on hand to offer plenty of help, encouragement and guidance.

“If I can get just one person exercising regularly as a result of our bounce-athon it will have been a great success.”

Daniel’s Sport Relief Boogie Bounce classes will run from 10am to 11am and 11pm to 12 noon at Chesterfield College, Infirmary Rd, Chesterfield S41 7NG.

Chesterfield College