Business

Destination Chesterfield chair, Peter Swallow: “This is a golden opportunity to transform the area for future generations”

Destination Chesterfield chair, Peter Swallow shares his optimism for the future of the town, following the government’s recent announcement of the roadmap out of lockdown and a big funding boost for Staveley.

With a clear route out of Covid lockdown now in progress, schools welcoming back children to classrooms and Spring in the air, we have much to be feeling positive about right now, not least a £25.2million funding boost, announced in the recent Budget, which will pave the way for significant regeneration in Staveley.

This is a golden opportunity to transform the area for future generations. Collectively we are working hard to ensure our young people are aware of both the career opportunities and are equipped with the skills they need to achieve their ambitions – and never more so than during Covid.

Works road and canal basin plans, Staveley

To ensure young people in schools remain connected to businesses during these trying times I am delighted to see the launch of three virtual workplace tours. Produced as part of the Made in Chesterfield campaign, the films feature three local businesses operating in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) sector – MSE Hiller, United Cast Bar (UCB) and Woodhead Construction.

At the heart of these films is the understanding of the challenges students and young people in our town are facing as a result of the pandemic. It illustrates why initiatives such as this and the MyFuture careers platform are an integral component to our continued collective future success.

The virtual My Future platform

Despite the constraints as a result of the pandemic over the last year, Chesterfield’s regeneration projects have forged ahead. Chesterfield Waterside, the new Enterprise Centre and The Glass Yard all continue to accelerate, increasing local job opportunities as well as opportunities for the town to benefit from the project growth in demand for regional satellite offices by large corporations.

We have all learned a lot, adopted new, sometimes better, ways of doing things and, above all shown we are a resilient and forward-thinking town. Our own Chesterfield Royal Hospital gained national recognition recently with the incredible Covid research work over the last year. It shows that we are a town that is constantly evolving and, more importantly, leading the way.

Who knows, in the words of Charles Dickens we may look back on this period in our history and declare ‘it was the best of times, it was the worst of times.’

With normality on the horizon and so much positivity around us right now, it feels more appropriate than ever to be celebrating everything we have achieved together this past year.

This is why I for one am looking forward to Destination Chesterfield’s annual Celebrate Chesterfield business event returning virtually on the 31 March 2021. It is an opportunity for companies large and small to come together and catch up on the latest progress in the local economy.

It is indeed an exciting time for Chesterfield, and we have demonstrated that through businesses and communities working together, we are stronger than ever.

 

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Chesterfield’s NLT Training launches walk-in service to help unemployed people get work ready

A brand-new initiative has been launched by Chesterfield-based training provider and registered charity NLT Training Services to help get people work ready ahead of lockdown being lifted.

A free walk-in job support centre at NLT’s Brimington offices on Station Road, is offering use of IT equipment, free internet access, advice, training and guidance to anyone currently unemployed. It aims to boost confidence and enable people who are facing unemployment to create their own personal roadmap back to the workplace.

The service is available to use now. To ensure Covid social distancing guidelines are adhered to, people are asked to simply call ahead and make an appointment to access the service.

The walk-in job support centre builds on NLT Training Services’ successful Step into Employment 12-week programme which it launched last year following funding from the Community Funds Grant.

Employment specialist Janice Parker, who ran Step into Employment, will be running the new walk-in job support centre. She will be on hand to support people looking to get back into the workplace. Janice can advise on CV creation, interview techniques and even arrange work experience to help people regain confidence.

Sarah Temperton, Chief Executive of NLT Training Services explained: “With the prospect of lockdown ending soon, there has never been a more important time than now to ensure that people feel ready and confident to work. Our walk-in service offers full support to people who may otherwise feel daunted and vulnerable at the prospect of searching for employment during this unprecedented time.

“Our friendly team offer invaluable support and expertise on all areas of employment. With the service offered as a walk-in rather than run as a course, NLT will be able to focus on the more individual needs of people.”

NLT Training Services, based in Chesterfield, has been delivering workplace training to individuals and companies since 1968 and is registered as a charity.

If you would like to book an appointment, please get in touch with Janice Parker on 07947 550 571 or email janice.parker@nlt-training.co.uk

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

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Chesterfield-based Solicitors Elliot Mather announces new additions to residential property team

Chesterfield-based full service law firm Elliot Mather is demonstrating further growth and success by announcing new additions to the company’s Residential Property team.

The firm’s latest recruit, Daniel Lindon joins the team as a Senior Associate Solicitor. Daniel has worked in the legal profession for many years, qualifying as a Solicitor in 2005. Daniel brings with him over 15 years’ experience in Property Law. During his career he has worked across offices in Nottinghamshire, as well as West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. He brings a wealth of local knowledge to the department.

This appointment comes just shortly following recent appointments of experienced Associate Solicitors; Tina Rana and Rabi Miah.

Tina possesses a high level of expertise in residential conveyancing, allowing her to advise clients locally and regionally on matters, including: residential sales and purchases, re-mortgaging, new build purchases, right to buy, declaration of trusts, auction sales and purchases, help to buy mortgages and transfer of equity.

Rabi qualified as a solicitor in 2017 after having achieved her LLB from the University of Warwick and her LPC from Nottingham Law School. She has extensive experience in dealing with all aspects of residential conveyancing including: leasehold, unregistered title, adverse possession, shared ownership, as well as new builds.

Alan Grant, Chief Operations Officer at Elliot Mather said: “The recent recruits in our Residential Property team, as well as those across the Practice, demonstrates our desire to deliver our client focused legal services to a wider audience.”

The new recruits now mean that the Residential team comprises of 5 qualified members to service the needs of more clients based locally, regionally, and even nationally.

Andrew Yates, Head of Elliot Mather’s Residential Department said: “We have been very lucky to have such talented and dedicated staff to make the department what it is today and likewise in being able to make appointments at this level in such a buoyant market. These are exciting times for the firm.

Having invested considerably recently in IT to enable us to deliver legal services efficiently and securely, together with the additional appointments to enable us to continue to develop and provide the best legal services to our customers competitively. Whist due to COVID no one is sure what will happen in the future we just wish to ensure we are number 1 in the property market.”

The team will be working from Elliot Mather’s Nottingham office, which opened its doors in 2019.

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

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New local radio station set for launch in North Derbyshire

A new local radio station serving Chesterfield and North Derbyshire is launching later this month, providing people across the area with local news and information along with a variety of music.

The team at the newly-created North Derbyshire Radio says it aims to ‘fill the void’ left by recent broadcasting changes by providing local news, sport and entertainment, as well as supporting local charities and businesses across North Derbyshire.

The service will be launched on on Monday 22nd March and has been created by Former Peak FM presenter and programmer Naz Premji, now a regular contributor to BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC TV’s Final Score’s football coverage.

“I spent many great years at Peak107/Peak FM after the people really welcomed me with open arms when I arrived in 2001,” says Premji.

“I’ve always had an affinity with the area and the people of North Derbyshire. With the help of some familiar faces and voices and some new ones too, I’m hoping we can bring truly local radio back to this very distinctive part of the country.”

The line-up includes several local presenters who are familiar voices to listeners in the area, including Mark Chadwick, Claire Salanyk, Naz Premji and the return of the legendary Richard Spinks who will be back with his famous Late Night Love Songs show.

North Derbyshire Radio will also feature another former Peak FM favourite, Jason Hardy, as well as John Isherwood, Richard Shaw Wright and Michael Weadock.

The station will play a variety of music and provide local news and information throughout the day.

North Derbyshire Radio will be available online at www.northderbyshireradio.com and on the North Derbyshire Radio Android and Apple smartphone app and on smart speakers.

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Funding available for Chesterfield businesses to take on remote-working interns

Small businesses in Chesterfield and Derbyshire can receive up to £7,000 in funding and support to recruit remotely-based student and graduate talent into their workforce.

The rise in remote working due to the COVID-19 pandemic means the University is now able to work with more businesses than ever before, including those who previously may not have had the office space to accommodate a graduate.

The opportunities are provided by the GRADS for D2N2 project which is part-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and is part of the ESF High-Level Skills programme.

ESF supports activities to extend employment opportunities and develop a skilled workforce. The GRADS for D2N2 project is delivered by the University of Derby as part of the High Level Skills consortium which also includes Nottingham Trent University, Derby College, Nottingham College, and Nottingham City Council.

Chesterfield small business (SME) owner Rebecca Erskine, owner of Yellow Bird Marketing and Communications recounted the benefits of working alongside the University after taking on a graduate, Maciej Rus and current University of Derby student, Freya Padmore.

The team put together a series of remotely-filmed videos showcasing the virtues of remote working and the importance of internships as a way for students and graduates to gain “a competitive edge” and “apply the skills learnt at the University to the workplace.”

Rebecca said: “I recently took on two interns from the University of Derby. I think it is really important that the University, regardless of its name, supports businesses across the county of Derbyshire and that is the benefit of this particular programme.

“I think that when people are hard-working, they deserve real opportunity in life. Very often there are things that sit on the back-burner as far as your business is concerned.

“As a small business owner, obviously what brings in the money is the billable work and that has to be your priority, but it can’t be at the expense of business development or promoting your business so the interns coming into the project have really helped me make sure that I am looking at every element of the business. Remote working has given me the perfect opportunity to get the candidates that I really wanted for the project, regardless of where they’re based.”

Freya said: “Having experience that I can talk about in interviews and my applications gives me just that competitive edge compared to some other students who haven’t had any experience yet.

“I’m working in a really small team now so we can really bounce ideas off each other. It’s just given me a much better idea about what I want to do when I graduate.

“I don’t have to commute to work anymore. I can literally just sit at my desk and everything’s there that I need. I can literally log on whenever I want to, finish working when I want to, just based on when I feel like working.”

Support available to SMEs includes organisations needs assessments, talent grants, graduate internships, Employability and Apprenticeship workshops, curriculum co-design and more.

For more information please contact driven@derby.ac.uk

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

 

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Chatsworth supplies hundreds of ready meals to the vaccination frontline

Chefs at the Chatsworth Estate have begun creating ready meals for distribution to Covid vaccination centres across Derbyshire, with hundreds of meals being delivered to frontline workers every week.

Hot food for hard working volunteers and staff includes Chatsworth favourites such as lasagne, macaroni cheese, cottage pie made with local beef, and mushroom and leek risotto among others.

Instead of preparing meals for visitors to Chatsworth, for the past few weeks chefs in the Carriage House Café kitchen have been cooking ready meals to provide vaccination staff working long hours with fuel for the fight against Covid. Chatsworth’s delivery drivers have been dropping off meals at destinations including Chesterfield Royal, St. Oswald’s in Ashbourne, Royal Derby and others among the county’s 24 vaccination centres.

Derbyshire has shown that it is leading the nation’s vaccination roll-out – in one week recently, the country vaccinated the second highest proportion of eligible residents in the whole of England.

Chris Baily Jones, Head of Catering at Chatsworth: “The vaccination drive in Derbyshire and elsewhere is absolutely vital in making us all safe for a way out of lockdown. We’re determined to do our bit to support Derbyshire NHS and all the people working such long hours to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible.”

Ready meals for Derbyshire vaccination centres has been made possible with funding from Chatsworth Estate alongside personal contributions from a number of individuals at Chatsworth. The Devonshire Group community forum, which includes Chatsworth, is chaired by Lord Burlington, son of the Duke of Devonshire, and was set up at the start of the Covid pandemic to reach out and support local communities.

A large number of charitable organisations are supported by the Devonshire Group through donations of money, items and complimentary tickets, and by offering savings on commercial rates. In 2019, charitable giving across the Devonshire Group amounted to £334,452.

For more information on Chatsworth and the community, visit https://www.chatsworth.org/about-chatsworth/our-shared-future/

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

Images supplied by the Chatsworth House Trust

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New business gets off to a flying start at Markham Vale

Daher Aerospace Limited is the latest business to join Markham Vale – a flagship regeneration site in North Derbyshire – creating 23 new jobs.

The aircraft manufacturer and industry and service equipment supplier has been awarded a new contract to provide logistic services from their base at Markham Vale for Alstom in Derby which is building new monorail lines in Cairo.

Cabinet Member for Clean Growth and Regeneration, Councillor Tony King said: “We are extremely delighted to welcome Daher Aerospace Limited to our family of businesses at Markham Vale creating 23 new jobs for the area.

“After a very challenging year for businesses this announcement sends a strong signal to other investors that Derbyshire is a place that helps businesses to survive and thrive.

“We’re thrilled they have chosen Markham Vale and have confidence in the Derbyshire economy and its potential for growth.”

The business has moved into MV55 – a pre-built 55,000 square foot industrial warehouse at the site located at Junction 29A of the M1 in Derbyshire.

Michael Betteridge at Daher Aerospace said: “Following our success in being awarded a new logistics contract, the attractiveness of Markham Vale both in terms of location and building fitted perfectly with our requirements.”

This latest announcement follows a successful start to the year for Markham Vale as two large units for Aver Property Partnership Limited – a joint venture between Ergo and NFU Mutual – are due to complete in the coming weeks.

And popular restaurant Chester’s has chosen the site for its second location with planning permission granted and work due to begin on site in the next few weeks.

Richard Hinds, Development Surveyor at Henry Boot Developments, said: “Markham Vale proved an ideal location for Daher, with brand new industrial space close to key motorway networks and a strong local skills base. We’ve no doubt that MV55 will prove a very successful base for the business.”

Find out more about Markham Vale here: https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/developments/markham-vale/

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

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£2 million ‘Taste Local’ scheme to support more than 1,500 people across the D2N2 region

DBC Training, working in partnership with Orbital Recruitment have been allocated £2m of European Social & Investment Funds (ESIF) to deliver the ‘Taste Local’ programme in the D2N2 region.

Taste Local is exclusive to the region and will provide valuable investment in skills and recruitment to help support unemployed people into Food & Drink sector jobs– unlocking new opportunities and supporting over 1500 local people to upskill, re-skill and gain employment to provide a boost to the economic prosperity of the region and help with the Covid recovery.

Taste Local will offer fully-funded training for D2N2 residents to help improve their employability and support business’ recovery at this challenging time. This includes bespoke packages of employment, skills and recruitment solutions at no cost to your business.

Courses/Services include (but are not limited to):

  • Basic Food Hygiene
  • Food Safety
  • Standards & Certification
  • Health & Safety in the workplace
  • Bespoke modules such as Butchery / Bakery
  • Access to additional funding such as Kickstart & Apprenticeship incentives
  • Recruitment and HR support from Orbital

Kerry Bentley, Managing Director at DBC Training said: “We are delighted to launch the Taste Local programme and offer new investment for our region’s businesses in this growing sector, whilst also improving the skills and employment prospects of 1500 local D2N2 residents. This really couldn’t come at a better time as we look to support our region and local economy to recover, rebound and thrive following the pandemic”.

Mark Burton Director at Orbital Recruitment added, ‘This last year has been challenging in so many ways but as an established business owner in the D2N2 area we are delighted to help support our community with our contribution to post Covid regeneration. The Taste Local project is a fantastic opportunity to access free training and recruitment at a time when the food and drink sector needs it most.’

For more details contact DBC Training directly at info@dbc-training.co.uk or 01332 295 588.

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

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Tourism businesses in Derbyshire urged to apply for ‘safe travels’ stamp

The area’s official tourist board is encouraging businesses across the Peak District & Derbyshire to capitalise on the opportunity to apply for an international ‘Safe Travels’ stamp from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).

National tourist body VisitBritain recently announced that tourism businesses in the UK registered to the ‘We’re Good To Go’ industry standard scheme can now be automatically issued with the international ‘Safe Travels’ stamp from the WTTC.

The ‘We’re Good To Go’ scheme, launched last year by VisitEngland in partnership with Tourism Northern Ireland, VisitScotland and Visit Wales, is a free UK-wide industry standard and consumer mark to reassure customers that businesses are adhering to Government and public health guidance.

There are currently over 750 businesses in the Peak District & Derbyshire with ‘We’re Good To Go’ accreditation.

The scheme has been recognised by WTTC as meeting international global standardised health and hygiene protocols and for its role in supporting the recovery of the UK tourism sector.

The WTTC stamp enables travellers to identify destinations around the world which have adopted global standardised protocols, so they can experience ‘Safe Travels.’

Jo Dilley, Managing Director of Marketing Peak District & Derbyshire, says: “We’re delighted that businesses in the Peak District & Derbyshire certified to ‘We’re Good To Go’ can now automatically register for the WTTC’s global Safe Travels stamp, recognising the high standard of protocols we have in place.

“This international stamp sitting alongside our UK standard mark will help to provide further reassurance for visitors, staff and local residents alike that our businesses are putting all the right measures in place to ensure they are Covid-safe.

“As the tourism industry works towards reopening, it is also a timely boost for businesses as well as for future international visitors, reassuring them that they can plan future trips to the Peak District & Derbyshire with confidence.”

Businesses already registered to the ‘We’re Good To Go’ scheme can log into their online account to download the WTTC Safe Travels stamp. Any business not already part of the scheme can apply through the usual process and indicate within that application their wish to use the additional global WTTC stamp.

For more information visit: https://goodtogo.visitbritain.com

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

Mam Tor, Visit Peak District

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BHP Corporate Finance builds on success with deal advisory teams

A multi award-winning division of leading regional accountancy firm BHP now has over 20 deal advisory specialists sharing expertise across all aspects of corporate finance.

Building on 18-months of increased deal activity during a global pandemic, BHP Corporate Finance has bolstered its headcount with Will Sykes moving into its M&A advisory team and Mathew Oldfield into Transaction Services. This closely follows significant growth in team numbers in recent years, including two partner appointments in 2019.

Following a successful year’s internship with BHP Corporate Finance in 2018, Will completed his degree at the University of Leeds before joining the firm as part of its Graduate Recruitment Scheme. With a year’s post grad experience in BHP’s audit and tax teams under his belt he has now joined Corporate Finance on a full-time basis.

Mathew followed a similar route, training and qualifying with BHP’s audit team before switching to his new Transaction Services role in November 2020.

BHP Corporate Finance has a wide range of expertise across M&A, Transaction Services and SPA advisory, with seven partners and three directors leading these specialist service lines. The firm also boasts one of the region’s largest corporate tax advisory practices.

This expertise has recently been put to good use advising Greenhous Group on its disposal of Smart Fleet Solutions to highly acquisitive online automotive dealer Cazoo, and YFM Equity Partners’ investment in marketing automation platform Force24.

Other recent deals include Foresight Group’s investment in Sheffield-based M.R. Machine Knives, and engineering service and support group Pharos on the disposal of its power generation division to RSK Group.

Kevin Davies, partner at BHP Corporate Finance, said: “I’m tremendously proud of the way our team has adapted, expanded and succeeded in spite of the unusual times and the differing challenges that all businesses are currently facing.

“With the numerous talented and dedicated individuals that have recently joined us we’re confident that we will have another strong year with a team fully-equipped to meet the increasing demands of the deal-making environment.”

Martin Athey, Transaction Services Partner, added “These recent recruits not only demonstrate BHP’s commitment to nurturing and developing its people, but also highlight the specialisms, expertise and strength in depth across all of our service lines”.

BHP Corporate Finance provides a full range of personalised lead advisory and transaction support services for corporates, management teams, investors and funders.

Find out more about how they can assist here: https://bhpcorporatefinance.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.

Bottom picture: Matthew Oldfield. Top picture: Will Sykes

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Chesterfield’s Heathcotes Group appoints Recruitment Business Partner

Chesterfield-based care provider, Heathcotes Group, has appointed Emily Frost as recruitment business partner to support its specialist residential services nationwide.

Emily brings a wealth of experience in overseeing successful recruitment and talent acquisition within the health and social care sector. Prior to joining Heathcotes, she held senior recruitment roles for a variety of major care providers, encompassing specialist services for children, the elderly and adults with mental health needs, autism and learning disabilities.

She is now responsible for recruitment across all areas of Heathcotes’ organisation including its office-based support operations and 72 residential care services for adults with learning disabilities and complex mental health needs.

Emily said: “I am very excited to join an organisation like Heathcotes Group, which has a very forward-thinking approach to investing in people and supporting their long-term progression. The company has won national recognition for its workforce development policies, including an award-winning apprenticeship programme. It’s certainly an organisation that facilitates long-term career progression – around ninety per cent of the senior management started out as entry-level support workers.

“The pandemic has given everyone a greater appreciation of social care and how vital it is to the lives of some of society’s most vulnerable people. Working life at Heathcotes focuses on helping our service users to progress from residential care to a more independent life, so our support teams know that they are making a lasting difference. Highlighting that sense of achievement is important in attracting talented, compassionate and dedicated people to our sector.”

Heathcotes Group’s range of specialist services supports individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome, autism, Down Syndrome, learning disabilities, Personality Disorder, physical disabilities, Prader-Willi Syndrome, sensory impairments, speech difficulties and severe epilepsy. The company offers full-time residential care services alongside supported living which enables service users to develop their independence in self-contained accommodation backed by 24-hour care support when needed.

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

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