Business

The Rose and Crown Brampton doubles up

25th March 2019

The Rose and Crown Brampton has been awarded Chesterfield CAMRA Branch Cider Pub of the Year (CPOTY) 2019. They were also awarded Chesterfield CAMRA Pub of the year back in 2018 thus giving them a fantastic double achievement.

The Rose and Crown Brampton is no stranger to such awards having also been Summer and Spring ‘Pub of the Season’ on a number of occasions.

This Rose and Crown is one of three local pubs owned by Brampton Brewery. The Tramway Tavern is situated on Chatsworth Road, a mere 30 yards from the brewery, and in February the Glassworks was opened, situated on Sheffield Road directly across from the Proact Stadium.

On being presented with the award by CAMRA cider champion Yvonne Nolan, The Rose and Crown landlord Mat Randall said “We are delighted to be voted Chesterfield Cider Pub of the Year for 2019. We are extremely proud of our constantly changing wide range of ciders and perries and are always happy to find new ones to add to our list and encourage more people to try real Cider and Perry”.

Yvonne said “Cider is a natural product with great variety and is increasing in popularity. Regularly offering over 15 ciders and perries The Rose and Crown is a fantastic example of promoting cider in pubs. It is a worthy winner of Cider Pub of the Year and now goes forward to the regional round of the competition.”

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards, Destination Chesterfield, Leisure

IT lessons goes galactic for students from The Bolsover School

25th March 2019

School IT lessons were brought to life by the world’s leading independent end-to-end IT services company for a group of students from The Bolsover School recently.

Eight Year 9 students from the school visited DXC Technology as part of the Made in Chesterfield campaign. The visit to the Chesterfield-based company was designed to show the students how they could apply their IT skills to real-life work.

As part of the visit, students learned about IT security, teamwork and coding in a real-life working environment. They even got to send a message to the International Space Station (ISS) through Mission Zero. With the support of DXC Technology, the students wrote a simple programme to display a message to the astronauts onboard, proving a big hit with the students.

Debbie Crossley, Career Information, Advice and Guidance Officer at The Bolsover School commented on the visit: “We were very fortunate in being able to take several of our Year 9 students to visit DXC Technology as part of the Made in Chesterfield campaign. The students were amazed by the type of work carried out by DXC and were fascinated by what they learnt.

“The visit offered so many learning outcomes for us around careers, apprenticeships, technology and much more. DXC Technology made us feel very welcome and the students were so pleased they went on the trip – we’ll definitely be planning another visit to this employer.”

Made in Chesterfield is aligned with the National Curriculum in order to help students and teachers access the unique leaning experiences that Made in Chesterfield will deliver throughout the year.

The campaign, which is co-ordinated by Destination Chesterfield and Derbyshire Education Business Partnership and sponsored by University of Derby, is designed to bring together businesses, schools and training providers to showcase the sector to future school leavers.

Since Made in Chesterfield was established, more than 2,500 young people from schools have spent time in the area’s manufacturing and engineering businesses. The visits to businesses operating within the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) sector are being organised by Derbyshire Education Business Partnership.

DXC Technology is one of a number of companies from Chesterfield’s STEM sector which are opening their doors to students from across the borough in an effort to raise awareness of job opportunities.
Nicola Mills, Global Account Delivery Executive at DXC Technology explained why she thought the visits are so important: “Being a STEM Ambassador is a truly rewarding role; it creates the opportunity to work with young people like the ones from The Bolsover School at our recent Made in Chesterfield event. Events like this enable them to explore the wider world of technology that is outside of their normal day to day reach and hopefully inspires them to consider careers that they hadn’t previously.”

“As a technology company, it is vital for us to support the development of talent, the world is evolving and we are moving to a truly digital age. We can’t meet these demands without the foundations of a digital workforce; our graduate and apprentice programmes help make that achievable. We are all looking forward to a follow-up with The Bolsover School and to see the results of their Hour of Code being played on the International Space Station in May.”

Alongside the educational activity, there is also a programme of business events including a manufacturing conference, manufacturing and engineering forum, business masterclasses and networking events taking place throughout the year as part of Made in Chesterfield.

In addition to Destination Chesterfield, Derbyshire Education Business Partnership, University of Derby, Made in Chesterfield is also supported by, MSE Hiller, United Cast Bar Ltd, NatWest and Placing Futures.

To find out more about Made in Chesterfield or to arrange a school visit, please visit here.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Apprentice Town, Business, Destination Chesterfield, Made in Chesterfield

Shorts announced as finalist in prestigious Tolley’s Taxation Awards

22nd March 2019

Chesterfield Champions, Shorts Chartered Accountants are delighted to have received the news this week, that they are Finalists for Best Private Client Tax Practice at the 2019 Tolley’s Taxation Awards.

These highly regarded awards recognise the finest achievements and talents of remarkable individuals and teams across the entire UK tax profession. Tolley’s Taxation Awards uniquely bring together every corner of the tax profession at this highly contested annual event. Winning or being short-listed for an award brings prestige to any team and shows recognition from a first-class judging panel.

This category was open to practices of all sizes across the UK, and the winning firm will have provided sufficient evidence and documentation to provide the judges with a clear picture of their business and the service provided to clients.

Senior Partner and Head of Shorts’ Private Client practice, Chris Chambers commented “I am intensely proud of the team we have built here at Shorts, and I firmly believe that the service we provide for our clients is exemplary. The Tolley’s Taxation awards are regarded as the Industry’s Elite, recognising the very best and we are absolutely delighted to be Finalists at this year’s awards.”

Last week, it was announced that Shorts are also Finalists in three categories at the 2019 Yorkshire Accountancy Awards, for Corporate Finance team of the year, Mid-Tier firm of the year and Advisory team of the year (also recognising the work of the Private Client team). Chris added: “To continue receiving acknowledgement for our work is testament to the quality and strength of the team we have built and the quality of the service we provide to local businesses.”

The awards dinner will take place on Thursday 16th May 2019 at London Hilton, Park Lane, where finalists will gather to enjoy a black-tie dinner and entertainment. Shorts would like to extend their very best wishes to all those shortlisted.

Shorts won three awards at the Insider Dealmakers awards last year.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Destination Chesterfield

Chesterfield reveals plans to create a successful post digital high street

21st March 2019

Chesterfield has the raw ingredients to adapt and thrive in the face of the national ‘retail apocalypse,’ claims the new owner of the town’s Vicar Lane Shopping Centre, ALTERIS.

“People still want shops, but,” said Bert Broadhead, director of ALTERIS, “curating them better and creating a personalised experience for town centre visitors is the key to a successful post digital high street.”

Mr Broadhead was speaking at the town’s popular annual Celebrate Chesterfield event, organised by Destination Chesterfield, and held on Wednesday 20 March at the Winding Wheel.

The property fund company now has ambitious plans to transform the town’s Vicar Lane Shopping Centre which it bought out of administration last month. It plans to create ‘a new town centre retail model for the post e-commerce world’.

He added: “Chesterfield is already ahead of many town centres in the UK in terms of delivering a town centre experience to visitors. People no longer want identical, faceless town centres. They want a variety and mix of shops – both chain and independent stores as well as events which can engage the whole family.”

Plans to develop Vicar Lane have been driven using Facebook, which ALTERIS is using to engage the local community and help them inform the redevelopment of the shopping centre.

Colour, seating, events and high speed internet are all set to be introduced to Vicar Lane Shopping Centre over the next six months. ALTERIS has also identified independent retailers as being key to the future success of the shopping centre.

Appealing to independent retailers attending the packed event, Bert added: “We want to work with local, independent retailers and have made a number of units available with short term flexible leases to support them.” Work on the new look Vicar Lane will start later this year.

Supporting the drive to regenerate Chesterfield town centre, Huw Bowen, Chief Executive of Chesterfield Borough Council revealed that the council will be submitting an application to the government’s Future High Streets Fund to sustain and grow footfall on the high street. As part of the funding bid, Chesterfield Borough Council plans to introduce universal Wi-Fi provision across the town centre.

He said: “Our retail occupancy levels are holding up well – 92 per cent compared to 88 per cent nationally, however, it’s a journey and we need to keep going.”

Huw explained: “UK shopping habits have changed and Chesterfield is responding well to this in the town centre masterplan by encouraging more people to live within the town centre and create that all important footfall and buzz. We want to make Chesterfield town centre a very desirable place to live, work, play and do business.”

Last year the council approved plans to convert the former magistrates court into 32 apartments, create 10 apartments at 1-3 Knifesmithgate, demolish the former headquarters of North East Derbyshire District Council to make way for 64 retirement homes, and convert the historic building at 87 New Square into nine luxury apartments.

Celebrate Chesterfield, now in its ninth year, is one of the biggest and most hotly anticipated business events in the area. This year the free breakfast event attracted nearly 300 delegates.

Peter Swallow, Chair of Destination Chesterfield, said: “We must not underestimate the power of town centre living to increase footfall to enable us to adapt to the changing face of retail.

“Chesterfield is a town of opportunity and we have the partners and collaboration in place to drive forward our ambitions to not only deliver our current development plans but also attract further investment.”

The University of Derby was this year’s headline sponsor with Central Technology and Markham Vale – Derbyshire’s flagship regeneration scheme, as associate sponsors.

To keep up-to-date with developments in Chesterfield, please visit www.chesterfield.co.uk/developments

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Chesterfield Retail Awards, Destination Chesterfield, Development

Chesterfield’s Premier Inn development offers employment to local people

20th March 2019

Chesterfield College and Premier Inn have joined together to offer a sector based work academy offering work experience opportunities for local people to gain the skills they need to be offered employment at the new 92 bed hotel on Elder Way which is soon to be handed over by Jomast Developments when work is completed in transforming the former department store.

Sixty local people joined the academy which is supported by Chesterfield Borough Council with a guaranteed interview at the end of the course. Of these, 20 were offered jobs at the hotel.

Councillor Terry Gilby, cabinet member for economic growth: said “One of the council’s key priorities is to create a thriving borough.”

“For a long period after the Chesterfield Co-operative closed down we had an empty, derelict building. Jomast Developments is in the process of completely transforming it into a 92 bed Premier Inn hotel which is offering new jobs for local people which is positive news for the borough.”

Lee Kirton, Chesterfield College’s work skills delivery manager, said: “This has been a fantastic opportunity for local people. We’ve been working with the local Job Centre Plus and the borough council to put on a sector-based work academy.

“It’s been a fantastic success for the learners, ourselves and the local Job Centre Plus.”

Mark Hill, commercial property director of Jomast Developments, which is leading the transformation of the former Co-operative department store, said:

“Although not yet complete, the new Premier Inn will be a fantastic environment for the new team to work in. It’s light, airy and contemporary. The team and I are looking forward to handing over the building to Premier Inn shortly.”

Further jobs will be created in the former Co-operative department store in when work is completed by Jomast Developments on the basement and ground floor of the building into leisure and dining space.

The development is part of the Chesterfield Borough Council-led Northern Gateway development which will also see a new Saltergate multi-storey car park and a new enterprise centre for small to medium sized businesses on part of the site of Holywell Cross (Donut) car park.

Find out more about the Northern Gateway

Posted in About Chesterfield, Apprentice Town, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Development

Work progressing on multi-storey car park

19th March 2019

Work is progressing well on Chesterfield Borough Council’s new Saltergate multi-storey car park, ahead of its opening this summer.

Work is now being carried out to pour the concrete that creates the decks of the new car park.

With 526 spaces, the new car park will be open 24 hours, have wider spaces and more disabled spaces than the previous car park it replaces and will also have six electric vehicle charging points with the option to add a further ten according to the demand.

Councillor Terry Gilby, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for economic growth, said: “It’s exciting to see the new car park nearing completion. The work has been carried out to programme and to budget.

“People using the car park will notice a real difference with 24 hour secure parking and better facilities. The car park will be open to the public as well as serving the new Premier Inn hotel on Elder Way.”

The new car park is built as part of the Northern Gateway development which includes the privately-led Premier Inn hotel and street improvements to Elder Way and Knifesmithgate.

Work is also due to begin in the coming months on Chesterfield Borough Council’s enterprise centre on part of Holywell Cross (Donut) car park. The main works are scheduled to begin after the the Saltergate multi-storey car park is complete.

For more information, click here.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Development, Leisure, Visiting

An abseil challenge for Citizens Advice Chesterfield

15th March 2019

A key local charity, Citizens Advice Chesterfield has organised a sponsored abseil on Tuesday 30 July – Medieval Market Day. Local residents and businesses are invited to take part in a rare opportunity to abseil from the roof of Chesterfield Town Hall. As you descend you will be helping a charity that supports thousands of local people who face challenges on a daily basis.

Trustee Linda Moore said: “When I took this on two years ago it was a real challenge but was also exhilarating. The views of Chesterfield from the roof are amazing and I raised funds for a charity close to my heart. We help thousands of local residents every year. If I can do it, anyone can do it.”

Individuals or teams can enter, but you must be 18 years or over at the time of the event. No previous experience of abseiling is necessary.

A local abseil team from Staveley Healthy Living Centre will run the day helped by Army Reservists. Staff and volunteers from Citizens Advice Chesterfield will be on hand to welcome abseilers and present certificates.

The event is being sponsored by several local businesses and promoted by the Derbyshire Times and Peak FM.

Registration is now open at abseil4advice@chesterfieldcab.co.uk

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business

New board members appointed to D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership

14th March 2019

Five new board members have been announced for the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, significantly boosting its representation from the business community.

D2N2 is the private sector-led Local Enterprise Partnership of business, local authorities, skills and training providers, and community and voluntary organisations; promoting economic growth across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.

The LEP’s board of experienced people, from a range of sectors, use their knowledge to give strategic advice on boosting the D2N2 LEP area’s economy; deciding how and where it should invest over £500 million in resources (via UK Government and European Union funding) to promote business growth, capital projects, better infrastructure, jobs growth, social and community projects, and other services.

The five new board members are:

Karen Smart, Managing Director of East Midlands Airport (EMA)

Karen was appointed EMA’s Managing Director in April 2018. As the region’s international gateway the Airport serves just under five million passengers a year; connecting them to over 80 destinations in Europe, and further afield to Florida and Cancun. As the UK’s most important airport for dedicated cargo aircraft, it plays a nationally important role in the UK’s ability to trade globally. Prior to joining EMA Karen was Director of Landside Operations at London Stansted Airport, worked for service company Serco and was a Royal Air Force officer.

Viv Russell, Group Managing Director for the Longcliffe Group

Viv was appointed Group MD to the Matlock-based company in March 2018. Longcliffe, established in 1927, employs over 170 people and is the UK’s leading independent supplier of pure limestone powder, granules and aggregates.

Viv’s previous experience includes working for Tarmac Cement and Lime business based in Buxton, as its Lime & Powders Director, and he was responsible for its £90million per annum turnover operations. He is Institute of Quarrying Deputy Vice-Chair, Chair of the Quarries National Joint Advisory Committee (QNJAC) and board member of the Eastwood-based Mineral Products Qualifications Council (MPQC).

Emma Rigler, Logistics and Manufacturing Excellence Leader, Laing O’Rourke

Emma’s expertise is in helping businesses improve how they work, particularly around seeking growth by maximising supply chain partnerships. She works for Laing O’Rourke, supporting its drive towards leading innovation and excellence in the construction industry. Much of that ambition is realised through the company’s Explore Industrial Park (EIP) in Steetley, Nottinghamshire; Europe’s most automated concrete products facility and employer of 400 people.

Emma’s past experience includes promoting ‘business transformation’ in the manufacturing and financial services sectors. Previous employers include multi-national insurance company The RSA group, where she was Operational Excellence Manager and Business Transformation Programme Manager.

Jayne Mayled, Managing Director of True Story, Nottingham

Jayne is the owner of retail and brand creative agency True Story; where her team of 90 help businesses and brands grow, through designing customer experiences and communication. Jayne spent her early career in marketing and PR in the premium beauty sector before joining Boots plc; where she worked across a wide range of roles and business areas before becoming Communications Director, leading all group internal and external communications. Jayne is also the founder of specialist hair care brand, White Hot, sold globally in stores and online.

Graham Cartledge CBE, Chairman of Handley House

Handley House is the parent company overseeing three leading international design teams; Benoy, Holmes Wood and Uncommon Land. Graham joined Benoy in 1974 and became its Chair in 1992. Handley House has more than 500 people globally, working on diverse and complex projects to strengthen communities and deliver lasting economic value.

A passionate supporter of British design and champion of international trade, Graham has worked with UK and international Prime Ministers, Cabinet Ministers and numerous dignitaries in furthering the work of British business overseas. Graham maintains his global network via multiple roles including Honorary Member of The 48 Group Club, Vice-Chairman of the China-Britain Business Council, Board Advisor for the UK India Business Council and Board Member at Infrastructure Exports UK. In 2014/15 Graham held the position of High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire and is currently a Deputy Lieutenant for Nottinghamshire County Council. In 2007, Graham and his family established The Domlal Foundation; a grant-making charitable trust which has supported tangible, lasting projects in building sustainability, community and education, from Nottinghamshire to India and Vietnam.

The board members were recruited to join the D2N2 LEP board following an advertisement seeking applications from the private sector, in November 2018, followed by an interview process.

The new board members will begin their roles effective immediately; apart from Jayne Mayled, who will become a board member from summer 2019.

Elizabeth Fagan, Chair of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “I am delighted to welcome such an array of new talent to be D2N2 LEP board members.

“We were clear when we asked for board applications that we wanted people who’d bring fresh thinking and new ideas, and who would best reflect the business sectors and communities in our LEP area. I’m confident our new members will be a great asset, in dealing with the area’s economic challenges and opportunities in the future.”

A list of all D2N2 LEP board members is at website link www.d2n2lep.org/about/board

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business

Council supports local businesses through business rates relief scheme

13th March 2019

Chesterfield businesses are saving more than £1 million in business rates in a scheme administered by Chesterfield Borough Council.

The Government announced in the budget last October it will provide a business rates retail discount scheme for occupied retail premises with a rateable value of less than £51,000 in each of the financial years 2019/20 and 2020/21.

The value of discount should be one third of the bill, and must be applied after mandatory reliefs and other discretionary reliefs have been applied.

The council administers the business rates relief as part of the discretionary rate scheme, offering the relief to around 362 businesses in the borough, saving them a total of around £1,088,520.

Councillor Amanda Serjeant, Chesterfield Borough Council’s Deputy Leader, said: “Creating a thriving borough is one of the council’s key priorities, which is why we have contacted all eligible local businesses to make sure they have taken advantage of the business rates reliefs they are entitled to.“

“This is one of a number of measures including the Local Labour clause that we take to support businesses in the borough.”

The council has adopted a Local Labour clause in every major planning application it accepts, which requires developers to provide a strategy that uses materials supplied by local companies. This has meant that local suppliers have benefitted from potentially more than £2.3 million worth of business.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Apprentice Town, Business, Celebrate Chesterfield, Development, Visiting

Increase in grant funding for construction apprentices

12th March 2019

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) announced a major boost in funding to help employers take on construction apprentices.

From 1 April, CITB’s attendance grants to employers will increase to £2,500 per year, while achievement grants will rise to £3,500 for companies whose apprentice successfully completes their training.

This is an overall funding increase from £10,250 to £14,500 for each apprentice an employer takes on – an uplift of over 30% on existing rates.

CITB has decided to increase employer funding at a time when construction apprenticeships are falling. This is due to factors such as economic uncertainty caused by Brexit and employers adjusting to new apprenticeship reforms, including the Apprenticeship Levy.

But construction needs many more learners not only starting, but completing their apprenticeships and joining the workforce. CITB’s forecast shows the industry needs to fill some 168,500 new jobs over the next five years, and to grow much more of its own domestic workforce, given likely limits on future access to migrant workers.

Stephen Radley, CITB Director of Strategy and Policy said: “We know that taking on an apprentice is a big investment for employers who have seen the cost of doing this go up significantly in recent years.”

“These grant increases are designed to help employers of all sizes take on apprentices and ensure those learners complete their courses.”

“CITB support isn’t just about money, but we believe that this major rise in grant funding will improve both apprenticeship starts and completions in our sector.”

This announcement follows extensive consultation with employers across Great Britain through discussions, online surveys and feedback from employer events. In the coming weeks, CITB will share further measures to support apprenticeships in construction.

Sarah Garry, Skills Manager of Build UK said: “We welcome the increase in funding for apprenticeships which should make a real difference for all employers, regardless of the size of their business. This is one piece of the puzzle. CITB and industry working together will ensure the apprenticeship process is easy to understand and is accessible for everyone.”

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders said: “The increase in grant funding is good news for employers in the construction industry, particularly small construction firms. It will allow SME businesses to take on even more apprentices, including for specialist courses in order to meet the construction industry’s demand for highly-skilled individuals.”

For more information visit the CITB website.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Apprentice Town, Business, Development

Local teen chef enters national finals

12th March 2019

The Tickled Trout’s work experience student has progressed to the final of the prestigious FutureChef competition. FutureChef is a programme organised by Springboard where over 12,000 12-16 year olds compete to get a place in the national final in Westminster to represent their region against 11 other finalists.

Leigh Speight, aged 15, is currently a student from Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School and is doing work experience on Saturdays at The Tickled Trout. She has beat off competition from across the region to get to the national final. This will be the second time Leigh has reached the milestone after previously reaching the landmark two-years-ago.

Her mentor and Owner of The Tickled Trout, Chris Mapp, said: “Hopefully we will be second time lucky this year. Leigh cooked an amazing cote de porc with potato rosti, cider jus and a beautiful lemon posset with macerated raspberries and caramelised popcorn, and achieved excellent feedback from the judges, almost faultless from the majority.”

“I am proud to say that Leigh now joins us on Saturdays for work experience to learn more in my kitchen, which is a credit to her as she has fantastic talent and is keen to learn. I hope that she gets the bug and wants to be a chef full time as this would be a great example to the industry and to Springboard’s FutureChef.”

The final is on 19 March, and the pair will soon receive their ‘mystery basket’ to begin putting ideas together for the trip to London. For updates on Leigh’s progress, check out the Tickled Trout’s Facebook page.

Posted in About Chesterfield, Business, Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards