A nature reserve in Netherfield is throwing open its doors for a series of guided walks over the spring and summer months.
People can learn more about the plant life and also wild inhabitants at Netherfield Lagoons by joining one of the walks, which are being run by site manager Pete Smith
The meeting point for them all is the same: the footbridge over the Ouse Dyke onto the reserve that is reached using the footpath from Teal Close.
Here’s the schedule of walks taking place over the next few months…
Sunday, March 17, 2pm
Wildlife Walk
Come and see what life is stirring at the lagoons.
Tuesday, March 19, 2pm
Wildlife Walk
Come and see what life is stirring at the lagoons.
Tuesday, April 16, 2pm
Bird Walk – Migrants
See what migrants are going through. We may be lucky and get a Redstart.
Sunday, April 21, 9am
Bird Walk – Migrants
See what migrants are going through. We may be lucky and get a Redstart.
Tuesday, May 14, 2pm
Warbler Walk
There should be ten species of warbler singing. Get to grips with the songs and calls.
Sunday, May 19, 9am
Warbler Walk
There should be ten species of warbler singing. Get to grips with the songs and calls.
Friday, May 24, 2pm
Wildlife Walk
Enjoy the sheer exuberance of spring at the lagoons.
Sunday, May 26, 9am
Wildlife Walk
Enjoy the sheer exuberance of spring at the lagoons.
PICTURED: Netherfield Lagoons
Sunday, June 2nd, 9am
Orchid Walk
There are five species to see – if they are all in flower together.
Monday, June 3, 2pm
Orchid Walk
There are five species to see – if they are all in flower together.
Tuesday, June 11, 2pm
Wildlife Walk
The birds will be nesting. Flowers will be out and insects buzzing.
Sunday, June 16th, 9am
Wildlife Walk
The birds will be nesting. Flowers will be out and insects buzzing.
Friday, June 21, 2pm
Insect Safari
A chance to visit some areas off the path to see what is lurking there. Be prepared for mud and brambles.
Sunday, June 23, 9am
Insect Safari
A chance to visit some areas off the path to see what is lurking there. Be prepared for mud and brambles.
Sunday, July 7, 9am
Butterfly Walk
Learn to identify ‘Browns’ and ‘Whites’.
Tuesday, July 9, 2pm
Butterfly Walk
Learn to identify ‘Browns’ and ‘Whites’.
Friday, July 19, 2pm
Insect Safari
A chance to visit some areas off the path to see what is lurking there. Be prepared for mud and brambles.
Chris Pearson is inspector for Gedling’s neighbourhood policing team. His officers help uphold the law across the entire borough. Here he provides an update on policing activities in the area…
New shift patterns
Firstly the local Neighbourhood Policing teams across the force have now moved to a new shift pattern. This will allow us to have a real focus on our priorities.
I have already seen the benefits of this with a greater number of officers on duty at the weekends for example in order to increase our proactive work and respond to reported incidents. There will always be one of the local teams on duty at a time giving greater coverage across the Gedling Borough.
I’m hopeful that this approach will lead to further reductions around crime and anti-social behaviour. We continue to be supported by a team of Special Constables and our Neighbourhood Warden colleagues.
Knife Crime
Knife crime continues to be a real community concern and I know that there have been two further knife incidents reported in the media. The first was on Coppice Road in Arnold and the second a knife incident in Daybrook.
We have made arrests and investigations are ongoing. If you have any information that might assist with our enquiries then please get in touch.
I want to reassure you that we are doing all we can to address this issue locally and across the force. This type of behaviour will simply not be tolerated. Our Local teams have been continuing their proactive work in order to identify and deal with those individuals carrying knives and weapons on the streets and we are supported by resources from across the force.
We are working closely with partner agencies in order to deter those carrying or thinking of carrying knives. Education is also a large part of this and our schools officers are working with local academies to provide education as to the dangers.
Going forwards I have been successful in a funding application to purchase equipment to help with detecting weapons on our streets and I hope to report on that shortly.
As ever if you have concerns about an individual carrying a knife or other weapon then please let us know or consider reporting it to us through ‘Crimestoppers’. I would really like to prevent individuals from carrying knives on our streets and as I’ve said before we will be very robust in our approach to that.
There is lots of advice on our force website under the ‘Knife Crime’ section. This also talks about the #livesnotknives campaign which we are supporting.
We are also to support ‘Operation Sceptre’ again this year which is a national knife crime operation. I’ll talk more about that next month but it will see us engaged in even more activity around knife crime.
I will of course keep you updated around this issue and I am grateful for the support we have received.
Priority Crime/Overview
Sadly on January 24, a burglary was reported on Dalton Drive in Arnold. The victim is 91 years old. His property was entered and searched by two men who demanded money before leaving the house empty handed. This investigation is very much ongoing but I would urge anyone with any information to contact us quoting incident 743 24/01/2019 or contact Crimestoppers.
We are continuing to support the victim and we have increased patrols in the area to reassure the community. I would urge you all to be vigilant and to consider any vulnerable neighbours particularly at this time of year.
Burglary continues to be a priority for us and I know that local teams are working alongside our County Burglary team to try and reduce these offences.
We are running ‘Op Kinkle’ which has focused on Burglary offences particularly in the Porchester and Colwick areas. This has involved late night patrols with assistance from Neighbourhood Wardens and I’m pleased to report that 3 x maleshave now been charged following a burglary prior to Christmas and they will appear in court later this month.
Over the last year we have seen some really good reductions around Burglary across the Gedling Borough.
We have also seen some reductions around autocrime. We are conducting high-visibility patrols linked to Op Kinkle. A number of arrests have been made around autocrime and I will update you once those investigations are complete.
Please remember to consider your home security arrangements and ensure that doors/windows are locked and that security alarms and lighting are used.
We have seen a rise in Shed and Garage burglaries particularly across the Colwick area. We have put extra patrols in place and officers have been reviewing CCTV footage in the area. A number of items have been stolen such as power tools and pedal cycles.
We have circulated the following advice around securing shed’s and garages:
We have seen an overall reduction in Shop Theft across the Gedling Borough and we will now be focusing on Criminal Damage and Anti-social behaviour going forwards.
We have made a small number of arrests following Anti-Social behaviour in Arnold town centre and we will continue to take positive action to reduce this type of behaviour.
Engagement
You may have seen some of our Special Constabulary colleagues out in Arnold and Netherfield over the last few weekends. They have carried out a number of engagement events to gain community feedback. They have also taken the opportunity to publicise the Cadet scheme and I would urge you to have a chat with the officers if you have any concerns.
Roads
Unsurprisingly we have dealt with an increased number of road traffic collisions across the Gedling Borough throughout January. Please take care on the roads particularly during the cold, unpredictable weather and leave extra time for journeys.
Sadly we are continuing to see drink drive cases reported across Gedling despite the Christmas drink drive campaign. We will continue to take positive action and track down those who are putting themselves and other road users at risk.
On another note I met with the fire service this week and we are looking at ways that we can jointly raise awareness of some of the causes of serious collisions in the Gedling Borough including speeding. I’ll update more on this over the coming months as this work progresses.
Teams from the Environment Agency and Trent Rivers Trust spent yesterday planting over 1,700 trees on farmland near Lambley and Lowdham to help protect the villages from flooding.
The green-fingered team were planting the native trees to support a £1million Natural Flood Management (NFM) scheme. The project aims to use a mixture of oak, alder, cherry and hawthorn trees to naturally slow the flow of surface water in times of flood, reducing the amount of water entering the Cocker Beck.
Work on the ground started in November and will continue across 15 sites upstream of Lowdham.
Measures include constructing ‘leaky’ wooden barriers to help reduce the amount of water that enters the Cocker Beck. The barriers slow and store water within the existing ditch network, reducing the rate it travels to the downstream communities. They will also help to trap sediment to improve water quality downstream.
The project runs until March 2021, with partners from the Environment Agency, Trent Rivers Trust and Nottinghamshire County Council monitoring how effective the NFM features are. It is hoped it will complement a wider flood management scheme in Lowdham.
Environment Agency area flood and coastal risk manager, Paul Lockhart, said: “We’re delighted to have secured a Natural Flood Management scheme with our partners, Trent Rivers Trust and Nottinghamshire County Council. This scheme will allow us to manage flood risk using innovative solutions that are sustainable and cost-effective and, as part of the project, we will be looking at how the measures are contributing to flood risk reduction.”
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A project to breath new life into Carlton Square has been given the green light by councillors.
The scheme was today (14) approved by Gedling Borough Council this afternoon – and will see around £790,000 spent on improving what one councillor today described as ‘an eyesore’.
The final bill we split by the borough council, the D2N2 local enterprise partnership, and the owner of building BNP Paribas.
As part of the improvements, there will be upgrades to the entrance areas, new paving and lighting, changes to the car park layout, new street furniture and ‘unattractive’ service areas will be screened.
It is currently hoped the improvements will be finished in time for Christmas 2020.
Detailed designs of exactly what the new scheme will look like have not yet been finalised – a consultation will now be sent out to the public, looking for opinions about what changes people want to see on the site.
Council leaders say the scheme is a positive step in improving the town centre.
Cllr David Ellis represents the Ernehale ward for Labour, and said: “We know it’s an eyesore and that something needs doing.
“I’m pleased that we’re taking a proportional approach, and this is not going to be all singing all dancing, this is still going to be recognising the problems there are in retail.
UNDERWAY: Builders have already started transforming DBH House in Carlton Square (PICTURE: Gedling Eye)
A consultation will now be sent out to the public, looking for opinions about what changes people want to see on the site.
Michael Payne is the deputy leader of Gedling Borough Council and also represents the Redhill ward for Labour.
He said: “This was a top manifesto commitment, revitalising our town centres and breathing life back into them.
“There were an awful lot of naysayers that said we would never be able to do anything about Carlton Square, and I think what is remarkable about this, is that this is not publicly-owned, this is largely privately owned and this is about – exactly as has happened with Arnold Market – the council intervening where the market is failing and stepping in to do something about it.
“This will undoubtedly make a massive difference and I’m really proud.”
Jo Davies is the council’s regeneration chief, and said without the redevelopment there was: “Concern that the are will fall into decline, and that this crucial community asset will be lost.”
Gedling Eye now has a Whatsapp group so you can keep up to date with the latest news from across the borough. We will send you one message a day with our main headlines, as well as the big breaking news alerts. To sign up text NEWS to 07958532672. Make sure you add the number to your contacts as ‘Gedling Eye’. We won’t share your phone number or use it anywhere else.
A number of students from across Gedling borough are being offered first-class support to help them achieve their lifelong dream of getting a place at one of the UK’s top universities.
A group of 11 A Level students from Nottingham College’s High Pavement Sixth Form were invited to the University of Cambridge this month as part of the university’s HE+ widening participation scheme.
Among the group were 23-year-old Shadi Alhalabi from Carlton and 19-year-old Herho Bryan Cestona from Arnold.
The scheme aims to raise aspirations, and to support students from state schools and colleges to prepare successful applications to top universities – such as Cambridge.
Sixth Form students from a wide variety of backgrounds are encouraged to join the scheme, including those who are the first in their family to go to university, live in postcode areas with traditionally low levels of progression into higher education, or from lower income households.
The students are taking part in a six-month-long project, including masterclasses in their subjects, information and guidance sessions, and other support, to help boost their chances of success.
PICTURED: Student Shadi Alhalabi at Peterhouse College, Cambridge
During the visit, the group sampled subject masterclasses with Cambridge professors, attended a talk on how to make a competitive Oxbridge application, and got the chance to present their own academic research projects to other A Level students from local schools and colleges.
High Pavement student Shadi Alhalabi is interested in a career in pharmacy.
The 23-year-old is the first person in his family to apply for university, and he is studying A Levels in Psychology, Chemistry, Biology and Sociology.
He said: “The HE+ programme is preparing me academically to go to university.
“It was brilliant to be given the chance to explore my ability to do research in my subject area and to feed it back to other students.”
Herho Bryan Cestona is studying Physics, Chemistry, Maths and Further Maths. He plans to study Chemical Engineering at university.
19-year-old Herho said: “It was a good experience getting the opportunity to visit such a prestigious university – I couldn’t believe how beautiful and amazing Peterhouse is!
“The HE+ programme has given me more confidence about the application process and it has enlightened me on what choices I need to take to be successful.”
Zoe Cutter is a Lecturer at High Pavement Sixth Form, and the College’s UCAS coordinator for A Level students. She said: “One of the best parts of my job is inspiring students from non-traditional backgrounds to believe they are capable of attending specialist universities like Cambridge, and supporting them through the often challenging application process.
“Peterhouse is the oldest college at Cambridge, and the chance to visit here is the highlight of the programme for many of our students.
“It helps to dispel a lot of myths, such as thinking you have to be rich to study at Oxbridge, and it helps make the application process more transparent.”
People who would like to find out about A Levels at Nottingham College can visit www.nottinghamcollege.ac.uk.
Nottinghamshire Police are advising people in Gedling borough to “swipe left” on Valentine’s Day to avoid falling victim to so-called ‘romance fraud’.
The warning comes as reports made to Action Fraud reveal a staggering £50,766,602 was lost to romance fraud in 2018 – an average of £11,145 per victim and a 27% increase on the previous year.
Romance fraud happens when a person thinks they have met the perfect partner through an online dating website, app, or through social media, but in fact a fraudster is using a fake profile to form a relationship with them.
They will gain the person’s trust and ask for money or enough personal information to steal the victim’s identity.
Statistics released this week reveal that many people across the UK continue to fall victim to this type of fraud, often with devastating consequences.
In 2018, 4,555 reports of romance fraud were made to Action Fraud, with victims reporting to have lost over £50 million.
Date Safe tips on how to avoid a #fauxmance
Don’t rush into an online relationship – get to know the person, not the profile and ask plenty of questions.
Analyse their profile and check the person is genuine by putting their name, profile pictures or any repeatedly used phrases and the term ‘dating scam’ into your search engine.
Talk to your friends and family about your dating choices. Be wary of anyone who tells you not to tell others about them.
Evade scammers by never sending money to, or sharing your bank details with, someone you’ve met online, no matter what reason they give or how long you’ve been speaking to them.
Stay on the dating site messenger service until you’re confident the person is who they say they are. If you do decide to meet in person, make sure the first meeting is in a public place and let someone else know where you’re going to be.
Two primary schools in the borough are to receive a cash boost after the council announced it would be spending £7m on a county-wide programme to improve health and safety.
Nottinghamshire County Council carried out feasibility studies at more than 50 schools where there was an urgent need for improvement works or an assessment of risk.
Lambley Primary School and Woodthorpe Infant School were amongst those listed.
The planned work includes remedial work to biomass boilers, kitchen ventilation, boiler and heating pipework replacement, heating cabinet replacements, drainage and roofing.
Coun Philip Owen, chairman of the Children and Young People’s Committee, said: ”It is vital that we carry out essential health and safety and maintenance work at our schools to avoid the risk of closure, so I’m delighted that so many schools across the county will benefit from the Schools Building Improvement Programme.
“These works will be carried out at a number of schools where other major works are planned, thereby maximising investment whilst saving on project costs and minimising disruption.”
He added: “Many of the heating cabinets in schools are original dating back to the early 1960s, and though it is believed that most have had the asbestos removed some are still being found with asbestos which is unacceptable; the majority still have the original electrics within the cabinets which could be a major fire risk to the property.
““Although what goes on inside school buildings is the most important factor in education, these improvements will go a long way towards improving the learning environment for the children and staff alike.”
People in Gedling borough are being given the chance to have their say on where money raised from a levy on developers could be spent.
The two projects shortlisted are seeking cash so they can move forward – and now the public can help decide which should benefit.
A car park extension at Gedling Country Park would cost up to £100,000 – and is up for consideration.
The money could also be spent on new changing room facilities at Lambley Lane Recreation Ground – costing up to £40k.
Once the public consultation is over, the money would be allocated to the chosen project from monies received from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) in non-parish areas.
The money, 15% of what has been collected from developments outside of the Parish areas of the borough, has to be spent on priorities that should be agreed with the local community in areas where development has taken place.
The council has sought potential infrastructure projects that could be part or wholly funded by the neighbourhood funding. Nine projects had been submitted and assessed, the assessments carried out recommends that two projects are funded.
A spokesman for Gedling Borough Council said: “We are inviting you to have your say on whether you agree, or disagree, with how we propose to use the CIL Non-Parish Neighbourhood Funding.
“Your comments will be considered as we prepare our final recommendations, before a final decision is made by Cabinet in March 2019.”
Officers recovered a hunting knife and a quantity of drugs from the vehicle.
A spokesman for Nottinghamshire Police said: “An 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon, dangerous driving, failing to stop for police, driving whilst otherwise in accordance with a licence, driving without third party insurance, fraud by false representation and possession of Class B drugs.
“A 22-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and possession of Class B drugs.”
Police have appealed to the public for help in tracking down medals stolen during a burglary in Colwick.
Officers investigating the burglary in Colwick, which took place on January 24, are trying to trace the medals (pictured), which are of sentimental value, and were won at European Championships and World Championships between 2000 and 2014.
The medals (pictured), which are of sentimental value, were won at European Championships and World Championships between 2000 and 2014.
A custom bike was also stolen during the burglary, but this was recovered in the St Ann’s area.
Nicola Robinson, of Blue Bell Hill Road, Nottingham, has been charged with handling stolen goods. She is due to appear at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on 8 March 2019.
A 44-year-old man has also been arrested on suspicion of burglary.
A number of items were stolen during the burglary, including The medals (pictured), which are of sentimental value, were won at European Championships and World Championships between 2000 and 2014.However, The medals (pictured), which are of sentimental value, were won at European Championships and World Championships between 2000 and 2014.
Sgt Luke Todd, from the Gedling Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “These medals are still missing and we are keen to reunite them with their owner. They are completely irreplaceable to the person who won them and we want to make sure they are returned to their rightful owners as soon as possible.
“They are very distinctive and I would urge anyone who may have seen them available to buy, or been offered them, to call us on 101 quoting incident 167 of 24 January, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”
The medals stolen include two gold medals (European Championships), five silver medals (European Championships), six bronze medals (European Championships) and two bronze World Championship medals.
