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Nottingham News

Ashfield District Council is proud to have been awarded the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme Silver Award. The Council is one of just four local authorities across the East Midlands to have achieved the prestigious award for 2019.

The Silver award replaces the Bronze award we previously held. Recognising the Council’s hard work to support the armed forces, including existing or prospective employees who are members of the community.
In 2018, the Council set out a large programme of commemorative events to mark 100 years since the end of the First World War, including planting poppy beds and installing Tommy silhouettes, poppy lights and gateway signs.

Last November, Chairman of the Council Cllr Anthony Brewer signed the Armed Forces Covenant on behalf of Ashfield at a service held at Southwell Minster.

Cllr David Walters, ADC Armed Forces Champion said: “We are humbled to be receiving this prestigious award. It marks our fantastic work in not only showing how proud we are of those who have served for our country but also that we are a veteran friendly employer as an authority. “We will continue to be proud of the Armed Forces and ensure that service personnel, families and veterans can access the help and support available.”

Information relating to the Armed Forces Covenant is available on the Ashfield District Council website at the following address:
https://www.ashfield.gov.uk/your-council/working-together/armed-forces-covenant/

The Council will be presented with the award by the Ministry of Defence in November this year and is already working towards achieving the Gold Award.

Lancashire News

A Northern Moor restaurant has been served with a penalty of more than £1,000, after being prosecuted for fly-tipping by Manchester City Council.
Scanditalia Limited admitted responsibility for a mound of dumped waste which was discovered by a council officer on land to the rear of its premises on Sale Road in July 2018. Officers investigating the fly-tip spoke to builders at the site of the offence, who explained that they were completing refurbishment work to convert the building into a restaurant and were waiting for a skip to be delivered for disposal of the waste.
The builders were given a deadline for the skip to be delivered and told that officers would return to check that the waste had been cleared from the council-owned land.

Officers followed up by visiting the site on two occasions in August 2018, but found that rather than being cleared away as promised, the pile of waste had increased. On further investigation, evidence was retrieved from within the waste, linking it to Scanditalia Limited, before the waste was cleared by the council. Investigators invited Scanditalia Ltd to attend an interview under caution, but received no response to their written request and the firm was subsequently prosecuted.

At a Manchester Magistrates Court hearing on 19 July 2019, Scanditalia’s representative blamed the contractors who had been employed to carry out the refurbishment work for the offence, saying they believed their contractors would dispose of all waste correctly. They also claimed not to have received the letters which were sent to their registered office inviting them to attend an interview under caution in time to respond.

However, the company accepted their responsibility for not having systems in place to prevent the offence from happening. After pleading guilty to fly-tipping, Scanditalia Ltd was fined £500 and ordered to pay costs of £590, plus a victim surcharge of £50 – a total penalty of £1,140.

Manchester City Council is investing an additional £500,000 in anti-flytipping resources during 2019/20, which is being invested in officers on the ground and in resources to help deter and detect offenders. So far this year, the council has brought 80 successful prosecutions for fly-tipping and related offences, while also seizing three vehicles which were involved in fly-tipping.

Executive Member for Neighbourhoods, Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, said: “There are simply no excuses for fly-tipping and the council’s dedicated officers are constantly working to take offenders to court for these selfish crimes.

Scanditalia failed in their legal duty to ensure that their waste was dealt with appropriately and deserved to be prosecuted, so I’d like to thank our officers on the ground for making sure this offence was detected and ultimately heavily penalised.

“Illegally dumping waste in our neighbourhoods is harmful to Manchester residents’ quality of life, which is why catching the culprits remains one of our top priorities.”

Nottingham News

A selection of four new small-batch artisan ciders, inspired by the Duchess of Rutland’s family connections with the Welsh Marches, is now on sale at The Fuel Tank in Belvoir Castle’s Engine Yard retail village.
International award-winning artisan cider producer Celtic Marches Beverages from Herefordshire was specially commissioned to develop Belvoir Castle’s new offer. The four ciders are each named after the Duchess and her three daughters.

Emma, Duchess of Rutland, explains: “I was brought up on the Herefordshire/Radnorshire border and my daughters recall fondly childhood visits to their grandparents in Mid Wales. So it was important to me to celebrate our heritage, as well as paying tribute to the exquisite cider apples produced in my family’s ancient orchards. “As a young woman, I enjoyed my first taste of cider at the Three Counties Show in Malvern; a lasting memory which brings us to this exciting endeavour. This family, female-led, artisan cider producer is the perfect pairing to celebrate each of the ladies who currently reside at Belvoir Castle. Each cider has been carefully crafted to reflect our very individual personalities. I am delighted with the result.”

The Duchess of Rutland Herefordshire Cider is a traditional apple cider, staying true to its roots in the Welsh Marches. It is meticulously balanced, with a rich apple nose, full body and is sophisticatedly smooth. RRP £4.95 per 500ml bottle.

Lady Alice Manners Mango cider is a blend of craft cider and exotic mango. Bursting with flavour, its lightly balanced sweetness gives it a tantalising finish. RRP £5.25 per 500ml bottle. Lady Eliza Manners Strawberry & Lime cider offers complexity. A delicate balance of fresh strawberry sweetness is complemented by the citrus zing of the lime. Both flavours work effortlessly to balance each other and are mellowed by the classic blend of cider apples. RRP £5.25 per 500ml bottle.

Lady Violet Manners Wild Berries cider is full of the flavours of the quintessential British hedgerow. With a deep crimson hue, a delicate strawberry nose and wonderful afternotes of the blackberry finish. RRP £5.25 per 500ml bottle.

Collette Cumbes, Account Manager, Celtic Marches Beverages Ltd, says: “It’s not every day that you get invited to create a range of ciders for a Duchess and her daughters. Creating the personalised cider flavours has been a lot of fun, with a great deal of involvement from their namesakes. The artisan nature of our small batch production also resonates with the ethos of Belvoir Castle’s Engine Yard and its celebration of local producers and community.”

Celtic Marches Beverages Ltd is a self-sustaining cider farm with 200 acres of orchards producing vegan, gluten-free ciders, assigned Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) by the European Union to protect regional foods that have a specific quality, reputation or other characteristics attributable to that area.

The full range of Belvoir Ciders is now on sale in The Fuel Tank cafe and restaurant at Belvoir Castle’s Engine Yard retail village.

Lancashire News

A review of the HS2 rail project has been cautiously welcomed by Lancaster City Council, as it presses ahead with its calls for the city to be a primary stopping station. The Government has recently published a review to examine the costs and benefits of the HS2 rail project with a “go or no-go” decision by the end of the year. Concerns have already been raised about the future of HS2 and the effect that the scrapping of the project could have on infrastructure and the growth of the northern economy.

As the rail network is vital to the economic prosperity and competitiveness of the Lancaster district, the city council is already actively involved in discussions with local politicians, Lancashire County Council as transport authority for the district, the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership, and major business leaders regarding HS2, and the potential impacts for the district. As part of these discussions the city council passed a motion in December 2018 re-stating its position that Lancaster’s mainline station should be a primary stopping station served by HS2 trains. This would provide improved access for businesses, organisations, residents and visitors to the Lancaster District. Its inclusion as a primary stopping station will also bring with it the potential to improve future transport connections to Morecambe and to the proposed Eden Project North (and the multi-million pound tourism economy this will generate) as well as to the world-class Lancaster University. Lancaster is currently identified as one of the existing railway stations where some HS2 services would stop, but the final timetables for HS2 services are not yet fixed. The recent award of the West Coast Partnership (WCP) rail franchise to First Trenitalia West Coast Rail will start a lengthy process to determine the actual HS2 and WCP service timetable. Yesterday’s announcement by Government that there will be a comprehensive review of the HS2 project provides an opportunity to re-evaluate the primary stations and reinforce Lancaster City Council’s view that Lancaster should be among them.

The council is also of the view that the longer-distance rail network, the regional rail network and the local rail network need to be considered together. This means not only safeguarding existing services and improving capacity from Lancaster along the West Coast line, but also improving connectivity to other locations, including Morecambe, Manchester, Liverpool and West Yorkshire.

The council has been working with specially-appointed rail consultants since last year to help support the case for Lancaster retaining its status as an HS2 stopping station without impacting on the number of passenger services on the West Coast, thus helping develop the thriving regional economy. Coun John Reynolds, Cabinet Member for planning and transport, said: “We have huge opportunities for business, leisure and tourism growth in the Lancaster district. It is critical therefore that Lancaster has a HS2 stop so that the full potential of that growth is supported by sustainable transport networks.

“We also have space for crew changes and to switch rolling stock so I would urge the Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps to visit us at his earliest convenience and review the opportunities we offer as well as the risks of not doing it.”

Nottingham News

Metropolitan Thames Valley (MTVH) is turning old, unused garage sites into new affordable homes for local people in Rushcliffe, Nottinghamshire.
Working in partnership with Rushcliffe Borough Council, the housing association is working across six different locations in the borough, demolishing 55 garages and one uninhabitable bungalow to build 23 new properties.

The homes comprise 16 for affordable rent – including six specifically for older people – and seven for shared ownership – a part-buy, part-rent scheme designed to help buyers on low to moderate incomes get on the property ladder. The homes are being provided for locals in the borough, with the rented properties allocated to people on Rushcliffe Borough Council’s housing register.

To date, 18 of the 23 homes have been delivered, with Cllr Roger Upton – Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Housing – recently visiting the latest site to be completed at Marlwood in Cotgrave.
Cllr Upton said: “We are delighted to be working in collaboration with Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing securing good quality affordable housing to meet local housing need, sustain jobs and improve the economy.

“The scheme here at Marlwood is designed to help residents with lower incomes to live in a property built to a very high standard and I’ve been really impressed with the finish of these homes. “It is one of six sites of a phased garage redevelopment programme which will deliver 23 homes for affordable rent and shared ownership both here and in Aslockton, East Bridgford, Radcliffe-on-Trent, Edwalton and West Bridgford.” Lisbeth Banner, Head of Delivery at MTVH, said:

“We’re proud to be working in partnership with Rushcliffe Borough Council to deliver quality new affordable homes in the area and contribute to meeting local housing need.”

As part of the redevelopment programme, new two-bedroom houses are available for shared ownership at Queens Road in Radcliffe-on-Trent. Prices start at £71,750 for a 35% share – for more information, call estate agents Benjamins on 0115 9371 713 or go to soresi.co.uk/find-a-property/queens-road.

Lancashire News

A series of additional electric vehicles charging points are set to be installed in Burnley borough. Burnley Council and five other local authorities across Lancashire submitted a successful bid for Government funding that could see four rapid charging points installed in each area.

Potential sites on council-owned car parks have been identified and are currently being evaluated by Electricity North West. The funding bid was intended to promote the uptake of electric taxis. However, until such time as taxi demand for the chargers is high enough, the aim is to initially make the charging points available for wider public use.

Councillor Cosima Towneley, the council’s executive member for community and environmental services, said: “This is part of wider work by the council to make our borough cleaner and greener. It will help address climate change, protect the environment and improve air quality for our residents.

“One of the limiting factors in rolling out electric vehicles is the availability of charging points. We are delighted to put Burnley ahead of the game by pre-empting demand for charge points in our borough and we will continue to work with the local taxi trade to encourage operators to switch to electric vehicles.

“This project has shown the power of working with partners to access external funding which will cover the cost of the scheme and we look forward to further joint working in the future for the benefit of local people and the local environment.”

The executive has given the go ahead for officers to take part in a joint procurement exercise with the other Lancashire councils to enable the scheme to go ahead.

It’s proposed that the charging points will be installed next year. For those who have already made the change to electric or hybrid vehicles charging points are already installed in Kingsway on the edge of Burnley town centre.

Nottingham News

Charnwood and Rushcliffe borough councils have received a gold award for their support of the Armed Forces. The Armed Forces Covenant Employer Scheme (ERS) Gold Award is the highest badge of honour for organisations which have signed the Armed Forces Covenant and demonstrated outstanding support for those who serve and have served.

The award recognises employers who actively support the Armed Forces community in their workplace and encourage others to follow their lead.
Both councils currently have the silver award and are the first local authorities in the East Midlands to now receive gold. Cllr Hilary Fryer, the armed forces champion for Charnwood Borough Council said: “We are extremely proud to receive the gold award for our continued support of the Armed Forces community. “The award is testament to our successful partnership with Rushcliffe and our work within the community to raise awareness of the issues affecting Armed Forces personnel.

“It’s important we continue to acknowledge the sacrifices our armed forces men and women, and their families make, and the work of the covenant gives us an opportunity to give something back.” “Congratulations to everyone involved in achieving this top award.” Cllr Debbie Mason, deputy leader and armed forces champion for Rushcliffe Borough Council said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been awarded the gold award from the Armed Forces Employee Recognition Scheme together with Charnwood Borough Council.

“The award acknowledges our work with our Armed Forces community with initiatives such as Veterans’ breakfast clubs, encouraging social enterprises and businesses to sign the covenant and events such as Proms in the Park that raise the profile of military causes and charities.
“We also introduced a guaranteed job interview scheme for Veterans and Reservists at the Council and if appointed, a buddy support system will help them settle into their new work place.

“We will continue to do everything we can to support those with a military background and to explore further ways we can assist hard-to-reach veterans and families with the support they may require.” Charnwood and Rushcliffe have made pledges under the Armed Forces Covenant to help support the Armed forces community including serving personnel, reservists, veterans and families to ensure that they do not face any disadvantage as a result of their service.

The partnership was formed in 2017 and involves Melton Borough Council.
A ceremony will be held in London later this year when the Council’s will formally receive the ERS Gold Award.

Lancashire News, Lancs Health & Care

A Home Improvement Agency (HIA) caseworker employed by Lancaster City Council has been recognised for going that extra mile in transforming people’s lives by being shortlisted for a national award. Georgina Smith who has been working for the council for five years has been shortlisted in the Caseworker of the Year category of the 2019 Foundations National Healthy Housing Awards. Foundations is an organisation appointed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to oversee a national network of nearly 200 HIAs and handyperson providers across England.

The awards recognise the important work that is carried out every day by HIAs to support people across the country to live comfortably and independently in their own homes and celebrate the individuals who strive for excellence in their work.

Coun Caroline Jackson, cabinet member for housing, said:
“As a valued member of a committed and dedicated team of caseworkers, Georgina is well known for being a tirelessly compassionate, caring and committed employee with an absolute determination to ensure every client receives the best possible outcome.

“It’s wonderful to hear that Georgina’s work is being recognised nationally for the positive impact she continues to have on ensuring some of our most vulnerable residents get access to the help they need to make those essential adaptations to their homes so they can continue living there safely and independently. Georgina regularly receives praise from clients and key partner organisations.”

Patricia Gerrard of Heysham who recently benefitted from Georgina’s assistance in arranging for a wet room, rails and other minor adaptions to be installed in and around her home, said: “The adaptations that Georgina helped me arrange to have done in my home via the council’s Home Improvement Agency have transformed my life and as an ongoing customer of the council’s handyperson scheme, I can always rely on Georgina to come to my aid when I need her support in filling in forms or contacting other agencies so that I can continue to enjoy living happily and comfortably in my own home.” The winner of the award will be announced at a ceremony next month.

For more information on how Lancaster City Council’s Home Improvement Agency can be of assistance to you or someone you know, visit – www.lancaster.gov.uk/homeimprovement

Nottingham News

At last months Chief Officers’ Employment Committee the committee passed the recommendation to appoint Carol Cooper-Smith as the interim Chief Executive of Ashfield District Council. Carol, who has previously been the Interim Service Director, Place and Communities at ADC, will be the first female Chief Executive for Ashfield District Council or the Urban Councils that proceeded it.

Carol said “I am delighted to be returning to Ashfield District Council as the first female CEO. The Council has a strong history of female senior leaders, with two of the Council’s five current senior leaders being female. This will rise to three on my return, and I will be proud to lead an organisation that values equality.” Cllr Jason Zadrozny, Leader of Ashfield District Council said “It is a conscious decision of this administration to recommend that a female is appointed to be the interim CEO. Carol has a wealth of experience, including four years at Ashfield District Council and I am pleased that she will be returning to the authority to take on this role. “Carol will be in position for up to ten months whilst we recruitment for a permanent Chief Executive.”

Carol Cooper-Smith will take over from Rob Mitchell the current CEO, when he leaves the authority in September.

Lancashire News, Lancs Sport

Burnley Leisure has announced the launch of its new “bistro” dining experience in the tranquil surroundings of Towneley estate and golf club.
Bistro 197 has relocated to the golf clubhouse from its former premises just across the road from the Todmorden Road entrance to the golf course, into a larger venue and offering a new menu.

Husband-and-wife team Daniel and Natalie Stevenson met working in a local resturant at the age of 15 and have built up a passion for creating delicious food. Daniel later travelled the world, spending time in Spain and two years working on the Queen Mary Cunard cruise liner.

Mark Dempsey, the leisure trust’s hospitality general manager, said: “We’re really proud to be partnering with another great local family business.
The opening of the new Bistro 197 has enabled both Burnley Leisure, and Daniel and Natalie, to invest in Towneley Golf Club’s future. We have extensively refurbished the bistro and bar, introduced a new wine list and added premium lager and cash ales with excellent food and service to match.” Burnley Leisure’s head of group operations Neil Hutchinson said: “This is another exciting expansion of our portfolio of facilities.

We are proud to be investing in and securing the future of another of our local iconic buildings, supporting the local economy and complementing our other facilities in the borough.” The partnership is a further extension of the hospitality arm of Burnley Leisure whcih already has bistro and food outlets at the Mechanics Theatre, Prairie Sports Village and Thompson Park.