Blog Update 26th November

View from behind the stage as lights go on

 We've had a busy couple of weeks since our last update.  Last night we all enjoyed the Christmas Lights switch on in Swadlincote.  It's always a great event and good to see the town centre busy, particularly when people seem to be having a good time.  The entertainment was very good throughout the event. It has been nice to see some really positive posts on social media with highlights and images from the night.  Our thanks go to all those who attended and the council staff who worked hard to make it a success.

Part of the entertainment team!

On a personal note it was lovely to see our friend and colleague Sean Bambrick turn on the lights in his role as council chairman accompanied by High Sherriff of Derbyshire, Theresa Peltier and Swadlincote Town Cryer, Karen Bailey.

The lights switch on is just one part of a number of different events taking place around Swadlincote over the next few weeks.  A Rudolph Trail map is currently available from the Visitor Information Centre on the Delph for children to find Rudolph in different places throughout the town and have the map book stamped.  This runs until Saturday 9th December.

Also on 9th December is a Festive Fun Day taking place throughout the town between 10am and 2pm.  Further details of this free event can be found here.

Other things of note on the SDDC website currently are the following:

• Information regarding Flood Recovery Relief if affected by storm Babet.
• News of Levelling up funding for Swadlincote.
• Consultation on plans to improve Oversetts Road Recreation ground.

Closer to home Alan and I attended a meeting with residents recently relating to the previously mentioned pre-application communication from St Modwens for 105 homes near Station Street which had been postponed.  We hope that the residents found the meeting useful and thank those who attended for their time as well as their patience, passion for the area and questions.  Thanks to Tom and Sophie at the Drum and Monkey for allowing us to have the meeting there and we wish you all the best as landlord and landlady of the pub.

We've also had a busy meeting schedule of late with Housing and Community Services and Finance and Management committees taking place during the last couple of weeks as well as a training session on Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).  

We also held our monthly surgery at Gresley Old Hall on Saturday morning and are grateful for those who attended.

Our next surgery is due to take place at York Road Methodist Church on 30th December.  This may be subject to change with it being in-between Christmas and New Year.  We will update with further information.

Recent Events (12/11/23)

Today has been a special day in Church Gresley with the Remembrance service held at the War Memorial on Market Street.  Despite the wet and cold weather the event was very well attended as always.  The formal laying of the wreaths was followed by a procession lead by Guides and Scouts to the bandstand where Rev Mike Firbank gave a short service.

It was great to see so many people attend to pay respects to those who have been killed in battle and particularly to see that the younger generation are so involved.

We had several conversations before and after the service with fellow attendees representing different organisations as well as familiar local residents.

This included a chat with SDDC cemeteries officer Joanne who informed us of some recent work at Church Gresley cemetery with planting of wildflowers involving the local infants school and also some other facts about the cemetery which were of interest.

This brought about the end of a busy week within the ward and the surroundings.  Last Sunday I attended the opening event of a new community hub based at the old Paramount Cinema in West Street, Swadlincote.  The aim of the organisation is to create safe places for young people, families and commnity living in Swadlincote.  This is done through volunteers and along with partner organisations. There are different types of sessions including youth clubs, drama groups and board game cafes as examples.  The hub aims to be fully inclusive and has activities for children with Special Educational Needs and also sessions for parents and carers as well as providing support for the LGBT+ community across Derbyshire.  There is more information on Facebook (search Collect Hub Swadlincote) or via www.crderbyshire.co.uk.

I had a chat with Mikey and Chris from the organisation at the event and they spoke passionately about the aims of the hub.  We which them all the best with the project.

Closer to Gresley, many residents received a letter from St Modwens relating to plans for a 105 house development to the rear of Station Street, Castle Gresley and an event relating to this to be held at Gresley Rovers Moat Street ground on Thursday 16th.  This had been preceded by some speculation on social media.  We had a lot of contact with residents through different communication channels through the week as well as several discussions with fellow councillors.  We had been set to encourage residents to give feedback to the developer on the proposals and to attend the event and also a meeting at the Drum and Monkey pub on 14th November at 6.30pm for residents to air their concerns.

However, a week is a long time in politics and St Modwens have since told us that they are postponing the event and will be sending out mailed communication w/c 13th November.  This is likely to be relating to issues with proposed access.  Whilst the event has been postponed, the meeting on Tuesday 14th will still be held for any further questions from residents.

We delivered a leaflet to residents of Station Street on Saturday, manually amended due to the late change post printing, and caught up with a few residents to explain the situation.  We were grateful for the feedback from residents we spoke to.  We will keep residents informed of any future developments on this.

Further up the hill, some work was undertaken on a watercourse that had been causing an issue with back gardens flooding over a period of time. We're grateful for residents feedback on such matters and also for council officers for finding a resolution and hopefully the issue will be eradicated.

In the Council Chamber there was a meeting of the Environment and Development Services committee (EDS).  Several matters were discussed including changes to Fixed Penalty Notice charges, use of CCTV in taxis, Biodiversity Duty preparation and a review of the council plan relating to EDS objectives.

Next week the Housing & Community Services committee meets.

Swadlincote Lights switch on is on Saturday 25th November starting at 4pm.  More details can be found on this link.

News roundup 25th July

Following last weeks Liberation day, the focus turns to the younger generation with the start of the Council Summer activities.  Hopefully the weather will dry up a bit to ensure that the events are well attended.  A reminder of them can be found on this link here.

In addition to that this coming Sunday 30th July sees a Music in the Park Event at Maurice Lea Park.  Aimed at families, and a free event, the event takes place between 2pm and 4pm.  Fingers crossed for good weather.

Before that, between 10 and 11am on Saturday 29th July, we will be holding our 1st monthly advice surgery at Gresley Old Hall.  For those unfamiliar this can be found off Gresleywood Road and George Street junction.  There is a large car park at the end of the drive.  Enter through the main doors of the community centre and you'll find us.  Please feel free to come and talk about any council issues you have.

A bit further in the future will be the next round of Area Forums.  This is an open forum to discuss issues with the local police neighbourhood team as well as SDDC officers with councilors in attendance.  Church Gresley is part of the Swadlincote Area Forum and this will take place at 6.30pm on Wednesday 13th September at Emanuel Church Rooms, Church Street, Swadlincote.  Further notice will be given nearer the time.

News round up 15th July

 Whilst our blog is still to achieve a mass following, we will now start to add articles more regularly, starting with a weekly update.

This week, we look forward to a few events happening in our ward as well as at the Council Chamber. We also reflect on some sad news as explained below. 

We've also created a brief newsletter introducing ourselves and particularly to announce the dates of our surgeries as shown in the image.  So far this has only been shared on local social media based groups.

Our first surgery is due to take place at Gresley Old Hall on Saturday 29th July at 10am-11am.  Thereafter we will alternating between the Old Hall and Methodist Church on York Road on the last Saturday of the month.  Anyone is welcome to come along and discuss any local issues, in confidence if required.  We're also looking into options for a surgery in the Castleton Park area.

The sharing of the newsletter also shares a link to the blog and also our new Twitter account @Gresley Labour.

There are a few events taking place over the next week in addition to the forthcoming Summer activities for children which can be found on a link here.

Within the link is an option to download the leaflet (pictured).  This week, the focus is on the elder generation with the annual Liberation Day to take place on Maurice Lea Park on Wednesday 19th July.  A free event for the over 60s, more information can be found by clicking on this link.

A more formal event taking place on Thursday at 6pm in the council chamber is a meeting of the Finance and Management Committee.

Our newsletter also mentions former District and County Councillor Roger Redfern who passed away recently after a long illness.  Roger was well known to a lot of people in Church Gresley, both as a councillor but also as the long-standing Landlord of the Miners Arms.  Our thoughts are with Roger's families and friends at this sad time.

Our thoughts are also with the family and friends of John Richardson, of the Drum & Monkey Pub.  John tragically passed away suddenly leaving a young family.  John worked hard during the transformation of the Drum and Monkey and his community spirit was much appreciated, notably when offering the community litterpick participants refreshments after a job well done.  Details of a fund set up for John's family can be found on the Drum & Monkey Facebook page.

Happy Retirement to Trevor Southerd

 After serving Church Gresley with distinction for 28 years, Cllr Trevor Southerd decided to step down from the role at the recent election as well as the role of Deputy Leader of South Derbyshire District Council.

As well as serving the ward of Church Gresley, Trevor also served as County Councillor for Swadlincote South and Woodville divisions, representing the area at Derbyshire County Council in Matlock.

Trevor has achieved a lot over the years with a lot of hard work combined with fine negotiating skills bringing valuable assets to the area including a new school.  He has worked tirelessly to ensure that residents receive value for money in their council services.  He has held a number of roles including Chair of Planning and also been active within the Fire Authority.

At the same time, Council Leader Kevin Richards, who has represented the Newhall ward over many years has taken the same decision.

Luckily Trevor and Kevin remain in close contact with us and we can draw on their precious experience and advice over the coming term of office.  We wish them all the very best in their retirement from council and hope they enjoy valuable time with Jen and Mary respectively.

Welcome to our Blog

Hello and welcome to our new blog.  Following our election to serve Church Gresley Ward on South Derbyshire District Council we are determined to ensure communication with residents is as easy as possible.  

Firstly we'd like to say thank you to all of those who supported us during the election and thank those who voted for us.

We'll still be leafleting occasionally and try to see as many people in person as possible and will be starting up our surgeries again.  A blog enables us to keep up to date with events and be able to explain our roles in more detail than a leaflet can.  The posts will be shared via other social media methods.

The blog will be divided up into posts and pages.  The posts will give regular updates and give advice of forthcoming events.  At the start, some sections may be under construction, but we'll post updates as new sections become live.

The pages will provide information about us, about our roles in the council and the council itself but also provide information about other community groups and organisations in the area that we hope will be of use.  We also would like to ensure that everyone is aware of the different levels of council in the area and about the Parliamentary constituency of South Derbyshire.

Communication is a 2-way thing so we'd be happy to receive feedback and comments on the blog providing they are not abusive!  For matters relating directly to council business, please contact us via the email and phone numbers listed within our contact details. 

We hope the blog is of help to you.

Gordon, Alan & Ben