Chesterfield Council

Chesterfield Council Leader Lib Dem Ray Russell

The Liberal Democrats have controlled Chesterfield Borough Council since May 2003 when the 30 year old Labour administration was swept away in a landslide victory. Elections in May 2007 increased the Lib Dem representation on the Council still further. The Borough Council is currently (November 2009) made up of 38 Liberal Democrat Councillors and 10 Councillors of the Labour Party.

The Liberal Democrats are proud to lead a Council that has won a score of major awards in the last few years, for projects ranging through licensing, craftsmanship, tourism and health, energy efficiency, "Britain in Bloom", use of new technology and the achievements of its young craft apprentices.

For more details of the services and facilities provided by the award winning Chesterfield Council, see the council web site at www.chesterfield.gov.uk

• Full details of Chesterfield Borough Council's Polical Make-up by Ward
• Liberal Democrat Chesterfield Councillors Contact Details

Liberal Democrat Councillors on Chesterfield Borough Council 2007

• Oct 4, 2006:
  • Shadow Environment Secretary impressed by energy-saving Chesterfield
    Chesterfield's position as one of the leading energy-conscious towns in the country has been underlined with a visit from a leading national politician. Chris Huhne MP, the Lib Dem Shadow Environment Secretary, toured some of the projects that have catapulted Chesterfield to the forefront of Britain's use of renewable energy. Along with Borough Council Leader, Cllr Ray Russell, and the Council's Lead Member for Sustainability, Cllr Keith Morgan, he visited Queen's Park Sports Centre, one of two showpiece public buildings in Chesterfield powered by electricity made from light by photovoltaic cells. Chesterfield Borough Council also has four major developments which use geothermal heating and cooling systems, utilising the Earth as an energy store instead of relying on energy created by burning fossil fuels or using nuclear power and Mr Huhne visited the most recently built of these - Prospect House, a development of offices and workshops in Staveley. Mr Huhne also inspected a new housing development where the builders, Barratt, has, at the Borough Council's request, launched a scheme which for the first time gives their new homebuyers the chance to move into properties already set up with solar panels. Chesterfield's success in utilising renewable energy has attracted comment in The Guardian and only last week the town was listed in the Top 10 most energy-conscious towns in Britain in a national Sunday newspaper. Cllr Russell said: "Chris Huhne is as keen as we in Chesterfield are on the use of renewable energy, and he showed a great interest in what we are doing here. "He intends to spread the word whenever he can about our initiatives, and hopefully persuade other towns to follow suit." Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Oct 1, 2006:
  • Green-fingered school wins 'Chesterfield In Bloom' title
    Green-fingered gardeners harvested the fruits of their labours at a glittering Chesterfield in Bloom presentation evening in the Winding Wheel. Thousands of pounds worth of prizes were handed out to the winners of the 14 categories in the contest, which attracted over 100 entries. Winner of the coveted overall title was Spire Infants School from Derby Road, Birdholme, who as well as taking the main prize also claimed two first places and a third from the categories they entered. They won Best School Garden and Best School Environmental/Wildlife Garden, and the school also figured in the prize list for Best Place of Work. On top of all that, the three children representing the school at the awards evening - Jack Gill, Stephen Scott and Chloe Hill - went up on stage a fifth time to receive a certificate awarded to the school as part of the East Midlands in Bloom competition, in which Chesterfield earned a Silver Gilt award. A spokesman for the judges said: "There was strong competition but we all agreed that the school was a worthy winner, particularly as the children played such a major role in the work involved in creating their beautiful gardens." Spire Infants were pushed all the way by several contestants, particularly last year's overall winner, Malcolm Smith, of New Whittington, who triumphed in the Best Front Garden and Best Container categories. He was also involved in his neighbourhood - Caxton Close - winning the runner-up prize in the Best Residential Street competition. Overall sponsor of the competition was the Derbyshire Times newspaper and local companies sponsored every category in the Chesterfield in Bloom competition. Cllr Keith Morgan, the Borough's Lead Member for Environmental Services, said: "All sections of the community in Chesterfield responded with great enthusiasm." The judges commented on the high standard of entries received in all categories. Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Sep 14, 2006:
  • Latest successes boost Chesterfield's "medals" haul
    Two more awards for Chesterfield Borough Council, announced within the last few days, have taken the town's "medals haul" to new heights. The Council has won a score of major awards in the last few years, for projects ranging through licensing, craftsmanship, tourism and health to use of new technology and the achievements of its young craft apprentices. The last week has seen the town earn a Silver Gilt Medal in the prestigious East Midlands in Bloom competition and win the national "Best Efficiency Initiative" award from the Association for Public Service Excellence (full details in CBC press releases 116 and 118, both issued on September 13). Before that, national recognition has come the way of Chesterfield's Museum and Tourist Information Centre - the latter, which has been voted Best TIC in the country, having received bouquets both for the craftsmanship that went into building it and the service it provides to tourists and local people alike. The town's "Percent for Art" scheme has been recognised with top awards at regional and national level while a scheme to help teenage parents drew Government praise, as did improvements in Chesterfield's recycling rates. Official Government figures also put the Council amongst the top performers in the country for providing services. Moves to revitalise the town centre won national "Green Apple Civic Pride" awards for two years running while the Government plans to use the way the Borough Council runs its European-funded improvement schemes as an example for other local authorities to follow. Chesterfield's famous Market was voted runner-up in a competition to find the best market in the country and this summer Queen's Park received the coveted Green Flag award from the Government. The town's attractions have even impressed the BBC! The antiques valuation programme "Flog It!" was filmed here last Sunday (September 10) and was a roaring success. More than 1,000 people turned up with their heirlooms - the biggest turnout of the series - and BBC bosses said there was a "really good atmosphere" and are planning to return to film another programme as soon as possible. Cllr Ray Russell, Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, said: "We get many compliments from local residents for the work that the Borough Council does to try to make the Borough an even better place to live and work in than it already is - and to attract more and more visitors - so we know that we're working along the right lines. "Even so, it's really special to get official national recognition of the quality of what we are doing." Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
  • Innovation Centres boost for local employment
    Almost 800 new jobs have been created by the success of Innovation Centres run by Chesterfield Borough Council. The Centres, designed to act as "seedbeds" for young companies utilising new technology, have done just that - with several firms starting life at the Centres before expanding into their own premises. "The primary objective of the Centres is to encourage the establishment of new businesses and last year was the best so far as successful companies left the Innovation Centres to occupy their own premises in Chesterfield", said the Centres' manager, Richard Harvey. "Three substantial businesses have moved on having flourished in the supportive environment offered by the Innovation Centres. The diversity of their activity demonstrates that any business sector can offer opportunities for innovation and subsequent success. "There are now over 500 people working in the Chesterfield area for companies that have been assisted with accommodation at either Tapton Park or Dunston Innovation Centres, plus between 250 and 300 working in the centres at any one time." It is now over nine years since Chesterfield Borough Council, supported by the Chamber of Commerce and the North Derbyshire Training and Enterprise Council, opened Tapton Park Innovation Centre in April 1997. At that time there were only about 25 similar projects in the UK but the concept has proved so successful that there are now more than ten times that number built and many more planned or under construction. The second Chesterfield Innovation Centre opened on Dunston Technology Park four years later and the two Centres offer a total lettable area of over 45,000 square feet. The two Centres have maintained a high level of occupancy and have returned an operating surplus every year after their opening year. Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Feb 24, 2006:
  • New Leisure Centre set for Approval
    New swimming facilities will be provided as part of Staveley's new leisure centre from the day it opens. The new 'healthy living leisure centre' at Barlow Road will replace the crumbling Middlecroft Leisure Centre, which is scheduled to close by the end of May, at the very latest, for health and safety reasons. The final go-ahead is expected to be given by the Council's Cabinet at its meeting on Tuesday, March 7. Cllr David Stone, Lib Dem Lead Member for Leisure, said: "From the day the decision to build a new centre was announced last November, we instructed our officers to explore whether the Council could find a way to build a 25 metre pool alongside the dry-side elements in a single phase construction option, as opposed to the 2-phase development. "We always said that we wanted Phase 2 to follow on as quickly as possible after Phase 1, subject to finance being available. And you can't get much quicker than at the same time! "We know that local people shared our desire to have a pool in the new centre as soon as possible, and we have visited other leisure centres and consulted with construction companies to see whether our limited financial resources could stretch to merging Phases 1 and 2. I am delighted to say that we have now been able to do this." Work on site is due to start in January 2007, with construction likely to take a year. The new centre will cost £8m and will include a pool, 150-station fitness suite, health spa, indoor soft play arena, climbing wall, crèche and café bar. The Council will use a combination of cash from reserves, from asset sales and from borrowing and will continue its efforts to attract external funding towards the costs of developing the new leisure centre. Local residents have been kept informed of progress since November through the Staveley Community Forum and Staveley Neighbour- hood Management Board and consultations will continue with the residents and businesses of Staveley and its surrounding localities, including relevant community groups and organisations. Council Leader, Cllr Ray Russell, said: "There has been some very ill-informed comment from various sources, showing scant regard for the facts. But of course we would never have had to consider a phased construction for the new sports centre had Sport England, a Government-funded body, not withdrawn £2m of lottery funding in 2003. The facts are that Middlecroft Leisure Centre is in a rapidly deteriorating condition, is costing ever-increasing amounts of money to maintain and solely on health and safety grounds, has to close. We can't put public safety at risk! Chesterfield Borough Council is committed to providing new leisure facilities at Staveley, to promote healthy lifestyles, as one of its top priorities." The Council plans to hold an open day in Staveley in late March or early April to enable members of the public to see artists' impressions and schematic drawings of the new leisure centre, and learn more about the project. Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Feb 13, 2006:
  • Government praises example set by Lib Dem Chesterfield
    Government experts were so impressed by Chesterfield Borough Council procedures that they now plan to use them as an example of "Best Practice." Officers from Government Office East Midlands (GOEM) performed a full audit of the way the Council's Regeneration Directorate runs its European funded projects. They ran the rule over monitoring and project management systems and pronounced themselves so satisfied that, unusually, they did not raise any "action points" of procedures that should be looked at and improved. Lib Dem Borough Council Leader, Cllr Ray Russell, said: "GOEM have informed us that they are keen to use the Borough Council as an example of best practice, particularly in the way we incorporate environmental sustainability such as geothermal heating and photovoltaic cells into projects such as the new coach station and industrial developments like Prospect House at Staveley and Venture House at Dunston. "They also want to use a CBC procedures manual, prepared in response to a previous audit, to help other organisations with their systems. "It is a big pat on the back for the Council and I would like to thank the staff involved for their professional and high quality work." Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Feb 2, 2006:
  • Tourist Information Centre of England 2005
    Some very good news: Chesterfield Tourist Information Centre (TIC) has once again reached the finals to be held in London in mid - April. We are in a very short, short-list of 3 TIC's for the Gold award. The other two are Birmingham and Bishops Stortford. Lets hope we go one better than last year - it would be a just reward for the excellent service provided in Chesterfield by a first-class team! Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Jan 31, 2006:
  • Sunny outlook for eco-friendly buyers
    Britain's leading house builder, Barratt, has joined forces with Chesterfield's Lib Dem Borough Council to give new home-buyers the chance to help save the environment - and publicise their "green" conservation credentials at the same time. Barratt East Midlands is constructing 283 new homes on the site of the former Chesterfield Cylinders factory at Derby Road, just outside Chesterfield town centre. Working in collaboration with the conservation-conscious Lib Dem Borough Council, the planning authority responsible for approving details of the new development, Barratt has agreed to equip ten per cent of the homes with solar panels, which will heat domestic water. It is the first time the home building company has built solar panels into new homes. As well as saving the occupants money, in the form of lower heating bills, the move will help preserve the Earth's environment by reducing the amount of greenhouse gases that would have been produced by using alternative forms of energy such as gas or electricity. To showcase the initiative, the 28 flats fitted with solar panels will be in a prominent position on the new development, alongside the Derby Road frontage and easily visible from the road. Cllr Ray Russell, Lib Dem Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, said: "This is a revolutionary move, for a major house builder to fit solar panels as standard on some of their new homes. We are delighted that Barratt felt able to go along with our suggestions for these renewable energy installations. Here in Chesterfield we feel very strongly about the need to safeguard the environment for future generations. The Council already has many 'green' initiatives in place which play a part in reducing the greenhouse effect and depletion of the Earth's resources. They include commercial buildings with geothermal heating and cooling systems, which use the Earth as an energy store, instead of relying on energy created by burning fossil fuels; a sports centre and coach station with photovoltaic panels which convert sun power into electricity and community heating schemes which generate electricity whilst delivering heat at maximum efficiency to Council tenants and private households." Barratt's East Midlands managing director, Kevin Broughton, said: "Barratt is the country's most forward thinking builder, especially when it comes to incorporating environmentally friendly features in our new homes. We have already improved our energy efficiency and insulation properties and now for the first time, we are building solar panels into these new apartments. Chesterfield Borough Council is also a leader in the field and we feel this is the ideal partnership." Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
• Jan 1, 2006:
  • Council's Green Policies are Paying Off
    Following the successful accolade earned by the Liberal Democrat Council Group winning "Council Group of the Year in 2004", another success has been achieved. The group put in an entry this year for "Liberal Democrat Green Council Group of the Year and have taken the national first place. Cllr. Morgan reports a doubling of recycling rates in two years, a successful sustainability unit, the launch and ongoing work as a result of Chesterfield GreenPrint Bio-Diversity Plan and the policy of excluding all GM or GM related products from the Borough. The Council also has won the largest grant in the country, some £300,000 to install photovoltaic cells on Queen's Park Leisure Centre which will supply up to two thirds of the centres running costs, it has built a new coach station which will, it is hoped, encourage more tourism via an ecological method and photovoltaic cells have been designed into this building to provide the necessary electricity. The Council has also continues to heat its new public buildings by natural geothermal methods - which use heat taken from way down in the ground. The latest is a new £3million Office/ workshop block just being started in Staveley. In addition to all the "one-off" initiatives, the SpirePride policy has been extremely successful in lifting levels of satisfaction with tidiness and litter reduction in the town especially since fixed penalty fines were introduced. Of the success, Liberal Democrat Council Leader Ray Russell who headed up the application said, "This is not only good news for Chesterfield but indicates that many of our developing policies are running along the right lines. We are not going to claim perfection, but we are pointing out significant improvement which we intend to build upon with developing policies Councils should set an example in encouraging more sustainability in energy, waste or financial terms - and we are trying to do this. We hope this award goes some way to recognising this and, hot on the heels of last year's award, gives us great encouragement. For the future, the Council is implementing EMAS (a strict environmental management system across all departments) and this is one of its key targets over the next year. This will ensure that all the Council is working in an environmentally friendly manner, as far as this is possible within certain strict parameters. Published and promoted by Chesterfield Liberal Democrats, Office 39, The Clocktower Business Park, Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield, S43 2PE Printed (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY