An award-winning Derbyshire business has made the move to larger premises in Chesterfield, bringing employment opportunities to the local area.
Oasis Studio, a creative design agency, has moved from Eckington into Chesterfield, bringing the potential for new creative roles.
The studio specialises in architecture and visualisation services and recently reached the 15-year milestone.
Paul Deakin, Director of Oasis Studio, says: “2019 marks 15 years in business for us and we’ve got big plans for growth.”
“Chesterfield is a great base for us; there’s so many exciting projects going on and a fantastic community of local businesses, which we’re glad to be joining.”
Ahead of the move, Oasis Studio has become a Chesterfield Champion; a group of businesses involved with the Destination Chesterfield scheme, networking to promote the area as a desirable place to live, do business, invest and visit.
Paul adds: “We exhibited at Destination Chesterfield’s Celebrate Chesterfield event earlier this month, meeting other businesses in the area and listening to the plans for development in the coming months and years.
“Chesterfield is known for its history, but it’s also a thriving place to do business and we’re very excited to be joining the area.”
Oasis Studio is now based at Unit 4, Chatsworth Technology Park, Dunston Road, Chesterfield. For more information visit oasisstudio.uk.
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.”
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.”
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.
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.
Work is starting to create the new artificial sports pitch on the site of the former Queen’s Park Sports Centre.
The new all-weather sports pitch, which will be owned and operated by Chesterfield Borough Council will support seven-a-side and five-a-side football games as well as other sports.
The area surrounding the pitch will be landscaped with trees, shrubs, bedding plants and grass to support a planting scheme that is sympathetic to the original park design by William Barron that was in place before the old Queen’s Park Sports Centre was built in 1968.
Work on the pitch is due to be completed in the summer.
Councillor Chris Ludlow, the council’s cabinet member for health and wellbeing said: “The pitch will be available for hire by individuals, groups and clubs and from April we will be seeking expressions of interest from those interesting in hiring this excellent facility. We want to ensure a range of user groups can access the facility to support increasing physical activity and healthier lifestyles.”
“The pitch helps to meet a need identified by Sport England to increase the number of artificial pitches available in the borough. We are really pleased that this development is taking place and the positive impact that this will have on Chesterfield’s sporting infrastructure.”
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.
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.
March is most certainly a month of celebration for Chesterfield. Local and national events and acknowledgements come together to create an opportunity to showcase how we excel as a town.
The annual Celebrate Chesterfield event returns to the Winding Wheel on 20 March, with around 300 delegates set to attend and join us in not only celebrating the recent successes of our town but also looking to the future and ensuring that we have the best plans in place to continue the investment and success for future generations.
More than £1 billion of investment is currently taking place in Chesterfield. With huge investment underway in the town and massive infrastructure and development on its way (such as HS2’s arrival due in 2033), it’s imperative that we have a skilled workforce to support this. That is why apprenticeships are key to Chesterfield’s economy.
As a town we really excel with Apprenticeships – continually creating them, supporting and raising awareness of them and as usual we’re one step ahead of other towns. For example, we were the first town to establish our Apprentice Town initiative two years ago in order to keep apprenticeships in the spotlight with young people, schools and employers.
You can expect to hear a lot about apprenticeships in March however as nationally they will be celebrated from 4 – 8 March as part of the National Apprenticeship Week.
It’s important that apprenticeships are not just given cursory consideration once a year. If you’re a parent of a child, talk to them about the value of apprenticeships at the same time as you may talk about university, A Levels and college.
Last month we were able to strengthen links between education providers, local businesses and school leavers at the Chesterfield and North Derbyshire Employability and Skills Conference. One thing that came through loud and clear at the conference is that employers are looking for school leavers, and there are job and career opportunities ready and waiting for them now.
Let’s create a bright future for our young people right here in Chesterfield so that the town can continue to thrive as a destination, a place to do business, build a career and, importantly, call home.
On Wednesday 13th March at 7.30 pm, John Lower, a long-term volunteer at Chesterfield Canal Trust, will be giving a talk at the Winding Wheel on ‘The History and Restoration of the Chesterfield Canal’.
The Chesterfield Canal Trust is a charitable company run entirely by volunteers. Their aims are to promote the full restoration and appropriate development of the Chesterfield Canal, and to campaign for the construction of the Rother Valley Link, a navigable waterway to join the Chesterfield Canal to the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation.
John Lower has been a volunteer on the Chesterfield Canal since 1981, most recently involved in the construction of a replica wooden horse-drawn narrowboat of a type unique to the Chesterfield Canal. He is a well-known writer of waterway guides and magazine articles who has given hundreds of talks about the Chesterfield Canal right across the country.
John’s presentation will feature an illustrated journey along the beautiful and historic Chesterfield Canal. On the way, attendees will discover its history, the 12 miles of restoration already completed and what work is still required to once again link Chesterfield with the River Trent. Guests can also learn about the varied activities of the Chesterfield Canal Trust and its more than 1800 members.
On Saturday 2nd February the iconic Devonshire Dome in Buxton hosted the second annual #ChallengeDerbyshire Charity Ball. The event was attended by nearly 500 guests and raised a staggering sum in excess of £170,000, taking the total amassed by the initiative so far to well over three quarters of a million pounds.
#ChallengeDerbyshire was formed in 2015 to support the three amazing end of life care charities in North Derbyshire; Ashgate Hospicecare, Blythe House Hospicecare and Helen’s Trust.
David Hopkins, CEO of M Markovitz Ltd and Co-Founder of #ChallengeDerbyshire said on the night: “Excellent end of life care provided by our three charities should not be a ‘nice to have’ and with all three of our charities receiving barely 30% of the funds they need from government, it is essential that as local business owners and employers we play our part in helping to bridge that shortfall. We are very proud to cover the costs of running #ChallengeDerbyshire, meaning that every penny of every pound donated to our cause goes directly to providing end of life care by our three amazing charities.”
The fabulous evening, hosted by High Peak Radio’s Paul Jenner and Damian Senar, included a lavish four course dinner, live music from band Function Fever, as well as a fantastic guest performance from Derbyshire children’s choir Perfect Pitch, who continue to support #ChallengeDerbyshire, having themselves raised over £10,000 for the cause.
Caroline Morgan, who used the services of Ashgate Hospicecare and Blythe House Hospice when her husband Dean died, gave an emotional speech, saying, “People think of a hospice as a place of palliative care and death… I think of it as a place that gives life to those left behind. Your support is so vital, not just for the person with the illness or life limiting condition, but also for families like mine and for children left to cope with life after loss.”
Many local businesses contributed to the success of the evening and the event organisers expressed particular thanks to the University of Derby for their most generous support, which undoubtedly helped contribute to the incredible total raised.
Co-Founder Esther Wakeman went on to say, “Currently one in four families who need hospice care can’t get it, that’s about sixteen families a week across North Derbyshire. #ChallengeDerbyshire’s support is changing that and giving local people the choice to die at home, free from pain, with dignity and respect. Please help us be there for every family when they need us.”
David urged any people with business links to Derbyshire to consider lending their support to #ChallengeDerbyshire. For more information please contact Jennifer McBain on 01298 72021 or events@challengederbyshire.org.uk
Leading regional estate agency Redbrik have strengthened their lettings proposition with the acquisition of Noble Hardy Property Management.
Redbrik has purchased the assets of the Chesterfield-based property management company and will take over managing the company’s portfolio with immediate effect.
Peter Lee, Lettings Director at Redbrik, said: “This acquisition is fantastic news for Redbrik as we look to expand our lettings service further.”
“We were attracted to the business as it had a very similar ethos to Redbrik in terms of delivering outstanding customer service and striving for 100 per cent occupancy. The company has been run very well by Wilson Spencer, aided by Sam Cauldwell and Joshua Whittaker, and we have inherited a great business with no debt or arrears. It is a really nice fit for the Redbrik brand and a great opportunity to expand our lettings offer in Chesterfield.”
“We are continually looking at ways to attract new landlords so we can work with them and help to maximise their assets. We have an extensive database of tenants waiting for properties and are always eager to add new properties to the market.”
Abigail Wilks, Redbrik’s Chesterfield Lettings Manager, added: “This is an exciting time for the business, and we are looking forward to welcoming the Noble Hardy’s Tenants and Landlords to Redbrik.”
“Providing unrivalled levels of customer service is at the heart of everything we do, and we offer a personal, consistent service with one Lettings Negotiator dealing with properties from beginning to end.”
“Our expert Lettings team provide Tenants and Landlords with a concierge-style service, which is entirely tailored to each individual. We understand what Landlords are looking for in a Tenant and go the extra mile to ensure they find the perfect match.”
When looking so sell Noble Hardy Property Management, Owner Wilson Spencer identified Redbrik as his preferred buyer for the business he started over fifteen years ago. He commented: “I have built a real bond with my clients and my primary focus when I knew I was selling was to choose an agency that would look after and take care of my landlords and tenants. I have known Redbrik’s co-founders Julie Bulheller and Mark Ross for many years, and when I knew they were interested, they were my number one choice.”
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