Monday, September 5 will see the start of a new era of public transport for a number of villages in Gedling borough.
After a campaign to save the 141 bus that 3643 residents signed up to – Stagecoach will officially take over the service from Trent Barton.
The bus serves Bestwood Village, Linby, Papplewick and Ravenshead, which are based in the borough.
Councillor Jason Zadrozny, leader of Ashfield District Council, who launched the petition and suggested Stagecoach took over the service labelled it a “victory for people power.”
The full timetable has now been published and is identical to the previous one – as requested by Councillors right along the route which also serves City Hospital and Kings Mill Hospital.
As soon as Trent Barton announced they were axing the service – Councillors say they ‘swung into action’.
They tracked down the managing director of Trent Barton Jeff Counsell who was on holiday.
An emergency meeting was held where Trent Barton confirmed they had no intention of continuing the service. A petition was launched – where at one point – concerned residents signed up at a rate of one a minute.
Councillor Zadrozny then wrote to the managing director of Stagecoach – Matthew Cranwell, asking the company to consider taking over the service. They confirmed they were looking at the proposal.
Stagecoach announced they were taking over the service a few weeks ago. They have now published the timetable and will run the first service on Monday, 5 September at 6.25am from Sutton. Councillors Jason Zadrozny and Helen-Ann Smith will be travelling on the first service.
Councillor Jason Zadrozny said, “Once again, I’d like to thank residents for signing our petition in such numbers.
“There’s no doubt that people power saved the day. This service was critical and its complete removal would have seen whole estates like Carsic, Stanton Hill and Healdswood in Skegby without a bus service.
“Our petition was signed by numerous residents up and down the route.
“Councillors like Martin Atherton and Tina Thompson in Blidworth and Rainworth were instrumental in ensuring their residents backed the petition. Councillors in Hucknall did the same. It was a real team effort.”
Councillor Helen-Ann Smith, Councillor for Stanton Hill and Teversal said, “It is a relief that due to unprecedented public pressure – the 141 will continue.
“It would have left thousands of residents without a bus service. We are really grateful to all the residents who signed up to our campaign.
“Stagecoach looked at the number of people who signed our petition. It will have been a factor in taking over this vital lifeline. I’ve had residents calling me in tears – this is such a valuable bus service.”
A councillor has put in an official request to a local authority for new cameras to help enforce a speed zone in Burton Joyce.
Nottinghamshire County Councillor Mike Adams, who represents Carlton East, informed villagers of the request via his Facebook page.
He said: ” I am incredibly excited to tell you that I have today submitted my official request with the council’s highways department for average speed cameras to enforce the 30mph speed zone in the village of Burton Joyce.
PICTURED: Councillor Michael Adams
“It will need approval from the cabinet members before the end of the calendar year and installation will be scheduled, if the bid is successful, in the next financial year.
“You will no doubt be aware we have had many accidents in recent times and over the years along this stretch of road.
It continues to be my mission to make safety of the A612 better for all across Carlton East.
Villagers were recently delighted to learn that a new crossing has been approved at Millfield Close and were also pleased to see speed warning signs installed targeting motorists leaving the village.
Following months of negotiations, a devolution deal has been signed and sealed – but not quite yet delivered – in the East Midlands.
On Tuesday (August 30) pen was put to paper on a £1.14 billion agreement to bring greater spending power and decision-making to local leaders.
And, most significantly, it could lead to the creation of the region’s first-ever directly elected mayor.
The move was described by council bosses as a “really important” step in ‘levelling up’ Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Derby and Derbyshire.
But the finer details of how this will be put into practice are yet to be decided.
What is the deal?
On paper, the deal promises £38m per year for 30 years to redress previous imbalances. Some figures show the region has consistently been at the bottom of the pile for Government spending and services.
Treasury figures for 2020/21, for example, show total spending in the East Midlands was the lowest of all UK regions at £12,133 per head.
This was almost 10 per cent below the UK average of £13,414 and significantly below the £15,490 figure enjoyed by London.
But how will this deal make a difference to the level of spending made locally?
For a start, it would lead to the creation of a new combined authority – sitting above the city and county councils – to “empower” local leaders to determine how big economic schemes are funded.
This takes away the need to bid to Whitehall for things like major public transport projects, such as integrated ticket schemes.
In general, it allows for more decisions on how cash is handed out to be made by those with local knowledge.
And, according to Nottinghamshire County Council leader and Mansfield’s Conservative MP Ben Bradley, the £1.14bn could become £5-6bn once it has been invested.
PICTURED:Nottinghamshire County Council leader Ben Bradley
He says this initial figure would act as a starting deal, with the region to now compete alongside neighbouring areas like Greater Manchester, South Yorkshire and the West Midlands during Treasury spending reviews.
Eventually, it will fund the linking up of public transport networks across the entire region, create highly-skilled jobs – and offer education and training to help local residents in filling them – and kickstart countless other regional projects.
Will it ‘level up’ the region?
Opposition leaders say the deal doesn’t go far enough to “truly ‘level-up’” the East Midlands – or, in other words, putting it on a more even footing with areas which have previously seen more investment, such as the south east.
The new combined authority – expected to be operational by May 2024 following the first mayoral election – would govern roughly 2.2 million people.
When broken down per head, the annual £38m settlement promises an extra £17.27 for every resident in the two cities and counties each year.
And Councillor Kate Foale, Labour group leader at County Hall, is sceptical, stating this initial figure will leave the region “continuing to play catch-up” with its neighbours.
Cllr Jason Zadrozny, the Ashfield Independent leader of Ashfield District Council, also has concerns and sees the mayoral role as a “new level of bureaucracy”.
Other councils in the region are weighing up the deal presented on Tuesday, with district and borough authorities not getting individual seats at the table of the new combined authority.
However, the overriding theme in statements from local leaders – including Mansfield District Council’s new chief executive Adam Hill – is that the deal is a “potential giant leap in the right direction”.
What happens next?
Getting the deal over the line depends entirely on MPs voting to back the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill in Parliament next year.
But there’s no guarantee this will be on the agenda as the Conservative leadership contest concludes this week.
Either Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak will be Prime Minister by next Monday and could well enforce their own, new vision of ‘levelling up’ with an entirely new cabinet.
Greg Clark, the Secretary of State who signed the the devolution deal on behalf of the Government on Tuesday (August 30), may not even be in the job next week.
But Mr Bradley is optimistic there will be no major change of approach, saying both Ms Truss and Mr Sunak are backing the Levelling Up Bill.
In the meantime, while local leaders await the bill making it through Parliament, they will look closely for the results of a consultation on the plan being held this winter.
After all the effort to get to this point; what do residents think? Has the political rhetoric resonated with people on the street, or does the public not care about devolution?
It’s only once these two steps have passed that we’ll get more details on how the new structure will look.
Spring 2023 to May 2024 would be a pivotal time in setting up projects, governance and departments for the new authority – and the new mayor – to get on with once it’s all been finalised.
And there’s the question of who will actually stand for election to the new role.
Mr Bradley, who has invested considerable political capital in backing the devolution deal, has not officially declared he will stand – but he’s consistently declined to rule it out.
One other thing could also affect how the deal works. The last time it was on the agenda locally, back in 2016, there was no cross-party consensus on how devolution would work.
Now we have leaders from all political parties backing the deal in principle and, like the rest of us, waiting to hear the finer details.
The latest pricing pledge – which is part of wider a £500 million investment commitment – comes as fresh figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) reveal that customers witnessed 9.3% food inflation in August, compared with the same month last year.
It said this will predominantly go towards the Price Lock campaign which freezes the price of a raft of its most popular products.
Around 2,000 food products and household items have had their prices fixed for at least eight weeks, including a number of own label lines.
Sainsbury’s said funding will also go towards its price match campaign against discounter rival Aldi.
Aldi and German rival Lidl have seen a jump in customer demand in recent months as cash-strapped shoppers have sought better deals for groceries as soaring energy bills continue to weigh on household spending.
Sainsbury’s said it would also use £5 million of its latest investment package to improve pricing at its Argos and Habitat homeware operations.
Mr Roberts said: “We know how tough this ‘back to school’ season is going to be for our customers.
“With families across the country facing big increases in their energy bills, the situation is serious and our most important job at Sainsbury’s is to help our customers in every way we can.
“We have made huge strides to lower prices since we launched our new plan but we are committed to going further.
“These are difficult times and all of us at Sainsbury’s are standing with our customers to ease the financial pressure they face.”
Friends and family of a Colwick woman celebrated for penning a humorous bus blog have splashed out on a surprise banner for her birthday, which is now being displayed on the side of her favourite mode of transport.
Jennie Wiseman has been an enthusiastic bus fan for some years and started a blog all about her favourite bus service – Red 44- a few years ago, much to the amusement of her friends & family.
They say Jennie’s blog has always kept them entertained with fun posts and humorous updates – especially during Covid when there wasn’t a lot of fun to be had.
The hashtag #buseswithjen, made popular on the blog, features on the birthday banner.
Friends and family say Wiseman has no knowledge of the birthday surprise which has caused some concern from her mother, Ruth, who said: “I just hope she notices it as she’s getting on and off her beloved bus”.
Elaine Flegg works with Jennie at the Windblowers music shop on Derby Road in the city centre says she always enjoys reading the blog.
She said: “Buseswithjen is hilarious, affectionate and familiar to all us fellow travellers.”
And she’s not the only one who thinks this is an appropriate gift – school friend Nikki Murphy added “Jen’s always been a fan of an easy rider; it’s a very fitting way to celebrate her milestone birthday.
“I hope she loves this as much as we all love her”
The bus banner took to the road on Monday (August 29) and will be on display for two weeks.
Asda has today announces it has agreed to acquire 132 sites from The Co-operative Group (“Co-op”) for £438m.
It’s estimated that the transaction has a total value of approximately £600m.
The supermarket giant has said the move is part of its growth strategy to move into the convenience market ‘and bring Asda value to more local communities’.
The purchase includes 129 established sites with a grocery retail store and attached petrol filling station.
The transaction is subject to normal conditions and will be financed through a combination of existing cash resources and bank finance.
(PHOTO: Asda)
2,300 colleagues currently employed in the Co-op stores will transfer to Asda’s employment under TUPE transfer following completion and after a transition period.
Mohsin Issa, Co-owner of Asda, said: “We have always been clear in our ambition to grow Asda and are hugely excited to create this new and distinct part of our business, giving us the opportunity to bring Asda value in fuel and groceries to even more customers and communities across the UK.
“We see convenience as a significant growth opportunity for the business. This acquisition accelerates our strategy in this area and forms part of our long-term ambition to become the UK’s second largest supermarket.
“We look forward to welcoming the Co-op colleagues to this new part of our business after we complete the transaction and due processes in the coming months.”
A new free bi-monthly magazine has been launched covering in-depth news from across Gedling borough.
This is Gedling was published for the first time last week and residents can now pick up a free copy from a number of venues across Gedling borough – including most bars, leisure centres, medical centres, libraries and takeaways.
The magazine features forty pages of news, features and lifestyle articles all about the borough.
This is Gedling has been created by independent publisher Swift Publications, with support from the team at Gedling Eye.
Magazine owner Justin Doddy said he decided to publish the magazine after spotting a gap in the market.
He said: “Digitally I think the borough is pretty much covered but there wasn’t really anything on the market covering local news in depth in print.
PICTURED: Readers enjoying the new magazine after picking up a copy at The Crossings Club in Carlton
“Not everyone can get online or access digital news so hopefully now they can read about news in their neighbourhoods the old fashioned way.
“Also, I think people still like to sit down and read something that they can hold in their hands rather than just via a phone or tablet all the time.”
Mr Doddy added: “I hope people will pick up one and let us know what they think.”
The free magazine is being supported by local advertisers.
If you run a venue and would like to stock This is Gedling, you can contact the team to organise a free delivery here: https://thisisgedling.co.uk/contact-us/
A £1.14bn devolution deal has been agreed to try to kick start economic development in the East Midlands and create an elected regional mayor.
It means leaders will be given more power by the Government to make localised decisions.
Devolution involves some key powers and funding transferring to regional politicians from Whitehall. It means more political power locally on planning, housing, roads, infrastructure and economic development.
It gives councillors more decision-making ability to spend money on major projects, including investment in public transport and regional developments.
The deal – the first of its kind in the region – was signed by the Government and leaders of Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Derby and Derbyshire councils at the Derby Rolls-Royce hub on Tuesday afternoon (August 30).
It follows more than a year of negotiations between councils and ministers over the scale of the powers on offer.
Councils had three options, including staying in the current format of local government and receiving little-to-no extra powers from Whitehall.
But the option selected by leaders will lead to a new East Midlands mayoral combined council being created, sitting above the city and county councils with representatives from all four authorities.
This is the maximum devolution deal on offer and will mean the new authority governs 2.2 million people.
But it does not involve widespread local government reorganisation – both cities and counties will continue to operate on the same council structures.
The combined authority will then be run by the directly-elected mayor – similar in structure to the post held by Labour’s Andy Burnham in Manchester – and a new election for this post is scheduled for May 2024.
It is hoped the deal will bring the region in line with other areas where devolution is already in place including Greater Manchester, South Yorkshire and the West Midlands.
And leaders believe it will reverse years of funding packages that saw the East Midlands consistently receive the lowest per-head investment in areas like transport, healthcare and education.
Councillor Ben Bradley (Con), Mansfield’s MP and leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, has been pushing for the deal since he took over the authority in May last year.
He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It’s hugely important, not least because it brings almost £1.2bn extra to our neck of the woods and because it’s probably more like £5-6bn by the time we’ve invested it.
“For the man on the street, it means we can deliver better bus routes, better public transport, bring in new investment into jobs, and we will have the ability locally to set up the skills and the qualifications to support those jobs.
“That, in itself, is massive, along with the extra money for all the important services people need.”
Cllr David Mellen (Lab), leader of Nottingham City Council, added: “This is really important news, the Government is choosing to invest in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Derby and Derbyshire.
“It’s choosing to give us more powers in our area and its choosing to follow that up with resources over the next 30 years.
“It won’t solve all of Nottingham’s problems, it won’t catch up with the under-funding of our council over the last 12 years, but it’s the way the Government is choosing to try to make things fairer.
“It’s about time Nottingham got its fair share.”
And Mr Clark, the secretary of state, believes the deal will allow the region to reach its full potential.
He confirmed it is worth £38m per year for 30 years and will lead to better settlements for leaders.
“It’s a big deal,” he said, “the East Midlands has been one of the areas that hasn’t benefited from the devolved powers places like the West Midlands and Greater Manchester have.
“What that means is decisions that were taken in London can now be taken here, with more than £1bn in the hands of local people rather than people in Whitehall.
“The East Midlands contributes so much. If you look at the companies here, the small businesses here, I think we should double down on that and give it more powers, more resources to do great things.”
However, some leaders of district and borough councils in Nottinghamshire have raised concerns over some elements of devolution.
Cllr Jason Zadrozny (Ash Ind), leader of Ashfield District Council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “There’s no doubt that the East Midlands has seen massive underinvestment from successive Labour and Tory Governments and that this needs to change.
“The reality, however, is that residents living in a cost of living crisis will be scratching their heads asking if a new mayor will solve their problems.”
The devolution plans will now go out to public consultation in the winter and will require final parliamentary sign-off before becoming official.
The combined authority is then expected to be set up throughout 2023 before the mayoral election takes place in May 2024.
Plans to turn a former car showroom into a gym and convert an empty church into 13 new flats have been submitted to Gedling Borough Council this week.
House extensions and new dwellings proposals make up most of the applications submitted to Gedling Borough Council in the last week.
Here is a round-up of the latest plans that the council’s planning officers will now decide on.
More details can be found on Gedling Borough Council’s planning site HERE
Arnold
Extension & Alterations to Ground Floor to form Open Plan Kitchen, Utility and Store with Extension to First Floor to form Bedroom and Bathroom and Alterations to form En-Suite. 43 Castleton Avenue Arnold NG5 6NH Ref. No: 2022/0947
Bestwood
No planning applications this week
Burton Joyce
Replacing existing flat roof with pitched roof over garage; external rendering to front elevation 19 Foxhill Road Burton Joyce Nottinghamshire NG14 5DB Ref. No: 2022/0852
Alteration to roof; enlarged vehicle access and altered boundary fencing. 2 Lee Road Burton Joyce Nottinghamshire NG14 5GP Ref. No: 2022/0902
Calverton
No planning applications this week
Carlton
Front extension, side and rear dormers, cream render to external walls, slate roof tiles and erection of detached garage 135A Cavendish Road Carlton Nottinghamshire NG4 3ED Ref. No: 2022/0860
Colwick
No planning applications this week
Daybrook
No planning applications this week
Gedling
Erection of rear extensions comprising two new residential units (Re-submission of planning permission 2019/0646) 17 Main Road Gedling Nottinghamshire NG4 3HQ Ref. No: 2022/0831
Create balcony over existing single storey extension to property rear 7 Digby Hall Drive Gedling NG4 4JT Ref. No: 2022/0542
Conversion of existing outbuilding to self-contained annexe and single storey rear extension to main dwelling 41 Shearing Hill Gedling Nottinghamshire NG4 3GY Ref. No: 2022/0907
Erection of two storey detached dwelling, alterations to existing curtilage, and associated works. 1 Perlethorpe Crescent Gedling Nottinghamshire NG4 4GL Ref. No: 2022/0900
Lambley
No planning applications this week
Linby
No planning applications this week
Mapperley
Demolish porch; erect new porch; construct level parking area with retaining wall and steps 23 South Devon Avenue Mapperley Nottinghamshire NG3 6FT Ref. No: 2022/0808
Two storey and single storey rear extension and annexe at rear 125 Kenrick Road Mapperley NG3 6EY Ref. No: 2022/0762
Retain summerhouse to rear of property. 48 Chedington Avenue Mapperley Nottinghamshire NG3 5SG Ref. No: 2022/0660
Single storey rear extension with monopitched roof 433 Westdale Lane West Mapperley Nottingham Nottinghamshire NG3 6DH Ref. No: 2022/0965PN
Netherfield
Conversion of existing church property, with subsequent change of use, from community centre (Class F2 – former class D2) to 13 one-bed residential dwelling spaces (Class C3) with accompanying internal and external communal spaces, secure bin store, cycle store and parking provisions. Netherfield Methodist Church Victoria Road Netherfield Nottinghamshire NG4 2HU Ref. No: 2022/0240
Change of use from B2 (General Industry) to Sui Generis (dog day care) for a temporary period of 10 years 27 Forester Street Netherfield Nottinghamshire NG4 2LJ Ref. No: 2022/0944
Change of use from car showroom (sui generis) to gym E(d) 2A Victoria Road Netherfield Nottinghamshire NG4 2HE Ref. No: 2022/0931
Newstead
No planning applications this week
Papplewick
No planning applications this week
Ravenshead
Single storey side extension. Raise ridge height and change angle of previously approved extension to front elevations and existing rear elevation. Create first floor bedrooms and en suite bathrooms. 11 Regina Crescent Ravenshead NG15 9AE Ref. No: 2022/0811
The redevelopement, modernisation and extension of an existing two storey house to create a modern high spec family home, including gym, swimming pool, games room, cinema, office & family space. 30 Regina Crescent Ravenshead Nottinghamshire NG15 9AE
Ref. No: 2022/0916
Redhill
No planning applications this week
Stoke Bardolph
No planning applications this week
Woodborough
Remove the existing bar fixture in bar room; extend and replace existing bar in function room Woodborough Hall Bank Hill Woodborough Nottinghamshire NG14 6EE Ref. No: 2022/0869
What do Spider-Man, Alice Cooper and Humpty Dumpty all have in common? They’ve all been greeting passing motorists for this year’s Stoke Bardolph Scarecrow Festival.
The annual festival sees residents in the village decorate the outside of their homes or roadside verges with a colourful array of homemade straw-filled sculptures over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Over 30 of the residents took part.
Among the best scarecrows this year include a CSI team investigating a murder, an eco-friendly Hulk made from compostable bags and a karate instructor.
Trent Valley Councillors Mike Adams and Sam Smith were invited to judge the event and chose the village tennis match as winners.
This year’s scarecrows were on display from Saturday, August 27 until the festival ended on Monday, August 29.
Money raised, which is believed to be around £200, will be donated to the winner’s chosen charity.
