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Thousands flock to hospice in Mapperley to bid farewell to popular Hoodwinked robins

Gedling Eye
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Thousands flock to hospice in Mapperley to bid farewell to popular Hoodwinked robins

Thousands flocked to a Hospice to bid farewell to a number of robin sculptures which had been dotted around Notts as part of the Hoodwinked trail.

More than three thousand people came to view the 35 sculptures for one last time at the Farewell to the Flock event in the beautiful grounds of Fernleigh House, home to Nottinghamshire Hospice before they go under the hammer this Thursday (16).

The robins were illuminated at night to create a magical atmosphere.

Nottinghamshire Hospice patient Lene Pearce switched on the lights at a VIP preview on Thursday evening with her daughter Lexi. This was the latest in a series of activities that Lene, who has motor neurone disease, has been doing to create memories with her daughter, including a trip to Disneyland Paris for Lexi’s birthday and a holiday in Australia.

Anita Harris, head of fundraising at Nottinghamshire Hospice said: “It was wonderful to see Lene and Lexi switch on the lights for such a special event. The whole weekend was a great success and I’d like to thank all the people who braved wind, rain and some sunshine to come out and support the hospice.”

The event, which saw weather conditions ranging from balmy blue skies and summer temperatures to high winds and persistent rain, raised more than £7,000 for Nottinghamshire Hospice.

Amanda Payne, who visited with her two year old son Jonah, said: “We’d only seen the odd few in town, my son was really excited to see them all here especially the spaceship rocket robin. It’s a beautiful setting and it’s great to see all the robins together in one place.”



Among those volunteering at the event was 12-year-old Sophia Brook, whose mother Janine Brook’s name is featured alongside well-known Nottingham names on the ‘What’s Notts’ robin, sponsored by BBC Radio Nottingham. Janine, who died last year of secondary breast cancer, raised funds for her own cancer treatment and donated thousands to various cancer charities.

Sophia said: “My mum would have been proud to know her name was on a robin and it’s great to see my mum’s robin again here today. I’ve enjoyed volunteering at the event.”

Next stop for the robins is the Grand Auction at St Mary’s Church on Thursday with TV auctioneer Charles Hanson. Online bidding has already begun with a reserve price of £3,000 per robin. Proceeds will go to help patients at Nottinghamshire Hospice, charity partner for Hoodwinked.

To book tickets for the auction go to https://www.nottshospice.org/events/hoodwinked-the-auction/ or phone the ticket hotline on 0115 9555856

To bid for a robin online go to: https://bid.charleshanson.com/m/view-auctions/catalog/id/3

 

Company directors jailed for seven years after scamming small firms out of £220,000

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Company directors jailed for seven years after scamming small firms out of £220,000

Two fraudsters from Calverton have been jailed for a total of seven years after a Trading Standards investigation revealed they had scammed thousands of businesses out of a total of £220,000.

Jamie Watkins, 29, and Callum Clay, 30, both of Moor Lane, operated two businesses – Abbey Rowe Ltd and Hywood Consultants Ltd – which would cold call small businesses all over the country such as local convenience stores, cafes, hairdressers and nail bars, offering to reduce their business rates.

A Nottingham City Trading Standards investigation discovered how they then completed an online application to the Valuation Office Agency, the Government department responsible for business rates, to have the business rates reduced. This is a service which is completely free, but these two companies charged either £399 or £499 for this. The companies should then have followed this up by submitting information on behalf of their clients to the Valuation Office Agency to evidence their request for a reduction in the business rates.

They never did this and as a result no individuals received any reduction in their businesses rates. Instead the companies put their energies into chasing the people they had cold called for payment of their fee. They stood to gain £1.6 million from their illegal practices.

The pair were found guilty of fraud at Nottingham Crown Court and were sentenced to four years in jail for Watkins and three years in jail for Clay. Both were barred from becoming company directors for seven years.



Portfolio holder for Community Protection, Cllr Toby Neal, said: “We are very pleased that these two fraudsters have received sentences to fit the crimes they committed. They targeted small businesses across the country, a large percentage of which had owners whose first language was not English.

“They guaranteed to reduce business rates, saving the owner up to 25% off their rates. They merely filled out an online application form, which any member of the public could do themselves, after which they did nothing. They charged each business owner either £399 or £499, and aggressively chased the owners for payment. This activity netted them in the region of £220,000, with a potential gain of over £1.6 million.

“Our Trading Standards officers were commended by the Crown Court judge for carrying out an excellent investigation, which has resulted in these two criminals being jailed today.”

Head of Trading Standards Jane Bailey added: “This investigation has been extremely complex, with nearly 3,500 businesses involved. It has taken nearly three years to finally get the case to court, and the convictions of the perpetrators. We’re very pleased with this outcome.”

CCTV: Police issue footage of men they would like to speak following Burton Joyce burglary

Gedling Eye
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CCTV: Police issue footage of men they would like to speak following Burton Joyce burglary

Police have issued CCTV footage following a burglary in Burton Joyce.

Officers investigating the burglary are keen to speak to the two men captured on camera.

A spokesman from Nottinghamshire Police said: “We were called to reports that two men had broken into a house at around 12.10pm on Monday, August 132018 but fled when an alarm sounded.”


If you recognise these men or have any information that could help, please police us on 101 quoting incident 337 of 13 August. You can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

MATCH REPORT: Spalding Utd 1-4 Carlton Town

Alan Murphy
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A stunning hat trick from Aaron Opoku helped Carlton Town to a 4-1 at Spalding Utd in the FA Trophy.

Opoku and Mamoke Akaunu were back in the Millers starting eleven after injury and the pair of them were simply too hot for the Tulips defence to handle. They were a constant threat all game and they bullied Spalding into submission.

Akaunu, whose season so far has been restricted to a few minutes in the opening-day win at Tadcaster was excellent throughout and Opoku clearly benefitted from his fellow-striker’s willingness to run at the Spalding defence and pull them all over the place.

Opoku and Akaunu replaced the injured pair of Ben Hutchinson and Aidan Austin from the team which lost to Sheffield last time out.

Playing with an extremely strong wind at their backs, Carlton should have been two ahead inside the opening five minutes. Akaunu was fouled on the right inside the first minutes and when Connor Bartle found the striker with his free kick, he played the ball into the near post where Oliver Clark tried to back-heel it into the net when a firmer strike would have sufficed.

Clark then fed Akaunu who ran into the area with Ellis Humble making a desperate tackle that almost put through his own goal before Michael Duggan made a decent save.



Clark then headed over the bar from just six yards from a Bartle corner as Carlton threatened to run riot.

Instead, it was the home side who took the lead on six minutes with their first attack. Luke White out-paced Kieran Walker before calmly picking his spot with an angled drive past Jack Steggles.

Back came Carlton and another excellent run by Akaunu led to Luke Smithson whipping in a cross that was missed by everyone.

The game then settled down for a period, with the sides looking evenly matched until just before the half hour. Duggan, no doubt due to the wind, completely missed a long throw from Bartle and could only look on as Humble diverted the ball into his own net. The goalkeeper was somewhat relieved when the referee awarded a foul on the goalkeeper that no-one in the ground could see.

Smithson then got himself into a good position in the right but his shot lacked power and was comfortably saved.

Carlton levelled on 35 minutes when Opoku got ahead of his marker to head home a delicious Smithson cross with a glancing header then went in via the post.

Opoku was then dragged down by Jack Fixter as Carlton again upped the pressure.

The Millers went ahead five minutes before half time. Akaunu ran onto a lofted through-ball. Duggan came out to clear but his clearance struck Fixter and rebounded towards goal. Akaunu kept his composure and his footing and steered the ball into the empty net.

Trading standards launch blitz on rogue traders in borough

Gedling Eye
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Trading standards launch blitz on rogue traders in borough

Officers from trading standards have been visiting some of the borough’s businesses to spread the word on rogue traders as part of a blitz on doorstep crime.

The teams visited some of the borough’s larger taxi firms to raise awareness of doorstep crime as some recent reports involved rogue trader victims using private taxis to the bank or a cash machine for payment.

Trading standards will also write to smaller taxi firms in the area to encourage them to look out for potential incidents and report them, and larger builder’s merchants have had awareness visits as many doorstep crime incidents involve poor quality building work.

Trading Standards officers and Nottinghamshire Police also carried out high visibility patrols in areas where there have been recent reported incidents, which involved giving advice to traders and conducting vehicle checks.

Councillor John Handley, Vice-Chairman of Nottinghamshire County Council’s Communities and Place Committee, said: “We’ve already carried out a lot of work with banks to spot and report any suspicious behavior relating to doorstep crime and this week of action has built on this awareness raising.

“Taxi drivers, builder’s merchants and other traders can be our eyes and ears on this crime as many victims stay silent about their experiences, allowing these ruthless people to carry on with their misdemeanors.”



This activity was part of Operation Rogue Trader, a national multi-agency campaign coordinated by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) with Liberal, the Police National Intelligence Unit.

CTSI Lead Officer for Doorstep Crime, Tim Day, said: “Rogue traders and doorstep fraudsters prey on the most vulnerable in society. Working closely with the police and other agencies means we can intervene sooner and safeguard potential victims.”

“This campaign is a core part of a wider strategy to ensure trading standards and the police can work together so there’s no place for these kinds of criminals to hide.”

Activities during the week of action include executing warrants, identifying vehicles used by criminals through automatic number plate recognition (ANPR), conducting intelligence-led patrols and raids, and educating members of the public and frequently-targeted groups before they can be scammed.

Residents can report a suspected rogue trader or an aggressive uninvited doorstep sellers by contacting the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 040506.

Labour councillors to boycott ‘secret’ super council meetings

Gedling Eye
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Labour councillors to boycott ‘secret’ super council meetings

Labour councillors have today revealed they will stop attending ‘secret’ meetings being held to discuss the future of Gedling Borough Council and other smaller authorities.

The Labour group said they feel the meetings, which are being held behind closed doors, are being used to ‘legitimize a flawed process designed to mislead the public’, and that the meetings were not ‘fair and open’.

But the Conservative leader of the council, Kay Cutts, said she was surprised by the decision, and that people in Nottinghamshire should not be ‘misled by claims that the current local government structure is sustainable’.

Nottinghamshire County County is currently working on a plan which would see Gedling Borough Council and six other district and borough councils, and the county council itself abolished, and one or two new councils set up to cover the entire county.

Supporters say it would streamline council services by reducing duplication, and could save £20 to £30 million a year.

But critics fear it would erode local decision making and accountability, and could cost a large amount to set up.

While the plans are being drawn up, the council set up meetings to keep councillors informed of the progress.

Pictured: Cllr Alan Rhodes

The BBC’s Local Democracy Reporting Service asked to report on the meetings – known as cross party working groups – but the request was denied.

Now, County Councillor Alan Rhodes, the leader of the Labour group on the county council, has withdrawn his party from the working groups.

He said: “I assumed when I accepted the invitation to take part, that the process would be fair and open, that we would be treated with respect and that our involvement would be a positive experience.

“Regrettably, it has become clear to me that any notion of serious cross party working in this instance is false. Councillor Kay Cutts, the Conservative leader of the county council has shown that she has no interest in considering any alternative options to her own plans to abolish all district and borough councils in the county and creating one council for the whole of Nottinghamshire.

“Her recent interviews with the press have been riddled with inaccurate comments, shown disrespect for the work of our district and borough council partners and undermined the integrity of the cross party working group.

PICTURED: Cllr Kay Cutts

“I believe that she is clearly attempting to achieve her own objectives through a campaign of fear, by wrongly suggesting that her way is the only way for the county council to avoid bankruptcy.

“In doing this she is deliberately misleading the public by omitting to say that any savings from devolution are several years away.

“Furthermore, the first phase of the consultation process – which the cross party working group had no influence on – is in our view unfairly biased in favour of a unitary council; with questions that appear designed to lead people in that direction.

“It is my belief therefore that by remaining within the Cross Party Working Group, Labour members will be legitimizing a flawed process which is designed to mislead the public of Nottinghamshire.

“I have therefore taken the decision to withdraw my members from this process with immediate effect’.



The leader of the council, Councillor Kay Cutts, said: “I am disappointed by Councillor Rhodes’ decision to withdraw from the working group meetings.  The most recent scheduled meeting had to be postponed because he was on holiday and did not wish to send a substitute.

“I agreed that we would look for another date to suit his diary, so his decision today took me by surprise.”

“Our unitary authority proposals are a constructive plan to tackle the council’s £54 million budget gap without cutting popular services over the coming years, such as libraries and the Local Improvement Scheme.

“I don’t mind people disagreeing with that plan and arguing in favour of the current structure, but in that case they need to be honest with people about what their alternative plan is and what services they would cut.

“Labour has a history of opposing things without setting out an alternative. The onus is on them to show how they will save £54 million.

“It is nonsense for Councillor Rhodes to say I would not consider alternatives to one council for Nottinghamshire, because it’s already in the public domain that we are examining up to seven different options.

“This is not a campaign of fear but a campaign setting out the truth of the harsh reality of rising demand against falling income.

Cllr Cutts added: “I sincerely hope people will have their say by taking part in phase one of the FutureNotts consultation at www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/futurenotts or by filling in a form at your local library.”

The next meeting of the cross party working group is scheduled to be held on Wednesday, November 14.

Plans underway to open Nando’s and Starbucks drive-thru at Victoria Retail Park in Netherfield

Gedling Eye Reporter
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Plans underway to open Nando’s and Starbucks drive-thru at Victoria Retail Park in Netherfield

A popular restaurant and also coffee shop chain could be the latest additions to Victoria Retail Park in Netherfield.

Plans for a Nando’s and a Starbucks drive-thru were recently submitted were recently submitted to Gedling Borough Council.

They show the chains are planning to construct a restaurant and a drive-thru on land currently used for car parking by customers at Morrisons.

PICTURED: Designs for the new units

The application proposals “involve the redevelopment of the northern extent of the existing Morrisons car park to provide a Starbucks drive thru’ coffee outlet (Use Class A1 / A3) and Nando’s restaurant (Use Class A3) with associated drive thru’ lane, car parking, refuse stores, hard and soft landscaping and associated works.”



Plans state the drive thru’ unit will be sited towards the western boundary of the site and will have a total GFA of 167 sq.m. A drive thru’ lane will be provided around the building and the whole development will be served by a total of 23 dedicated parking spaces, including disabled and parent and child bays to be provided to the front of the proposed units

It says the development will create a significant number of jobs in the area.

The document states “The proposed uses will generate a significant number of job opportunities for local people across both full and part-time roles and the economic and employment benefits of the proposals should be afforded significant weight in the assessment of the proposals.”

You can find the plans HERE

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Time is running out for talented borough athletes to get their hands on fresh funding from council

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Time is running out for talented borough athletes to get their hands on fresh funding from council

The deadline is fast approaching for the borough’s prospective Olympians and Paralympians of tomorrow to get funding to support them in their chosen sport.

The latest round of Nottinghamshire County Council’s Talented Athletes Fund closes next week (October 15) and is offering grants of up to £400 for borough athletes who have represented their country in the last year.

The Talented Athletes Fund is part of the council’s Local Improvement Scheme which offers financial help and support to local communities.

Grants are available to pay for travel, training, accommodation, competition and coaching fees and kit costs. The council awarded 65 grants worth more than £23,000 last year.

Two of the borough’s successful recipient have spoken of their delight at receiving funding last year.

17-year-old Joshua Plumridge from Carlton was last year picked for the Great Britain U18 handball team. He has travelled the country for training and competitions in Scotland, Manchester and London to name a few – and has just returned from Austria where he competed in the European Handball Championships.

He received fantastic feedback and as well as being named man of the match in the first match against Macedonia, and went on to be top scorer in several matches.

Toby_Fisher_Gedling
SUCCESSFUL: Toby Fisher from Arnold won funding to help finance his ice hockey dream

He will travel to Portugal later this month to compete in a local tournament and then will go to Kosovo in October to represent GB in the Emerging Nations Championship.

Mum Anne Jardine said: “Josh has really progressed in the last year with his handball. It has been a very busy year and alongside his sixth form studies and a part-time job at a supermarket, Josh has continued to be dedicated to his sport and to train hard. Since last year Josh has continued to play for both the Nottingham U19 and Men’s handball team.



“He also successfully completed a coaching course which has meant he has been able to coach younger Notts players as well as his school team – but also he has done quite a bit of refereeing of league matches.

“Sadly there is still no funding from UK Sport. However, it is increasingly important that our teams are given the opportunities to compete at an international level. This year the GB parents set up a Just Giving page which successfully helped raise £4000 toward the £15000 cost to send the team to Austria.

“Personally, the cost of fees, competition, travel at home and abroad and kit and physio increases as Josh progresses. Therefore, Nottinghamshire County Council’s Talented Athlete’s grant is a massive help towards the yearly costs.”

Toby Fisher from Arnold was with the Nottingham ice hockey team’s U15 Tigers for the last two seasons, and he will now be playing for the Nottingham U18 Cougars for 2018/2019 season. They train on a Tuesday night at the National Ice Centre, and Toby also trains with the U20 Leopards on Wednesdays and Nottingham Lions senior team on a Thursday night.

The 14-year-old lifted the U15 Division 1, North Champions title and the U15s National Champions titles with Nottingham Tigers, and has been selected for Team England, competing for his country in Bratislava. Toby also plays for Midlands Conference – a team that is made up from elite players from each club side, competing against Scotland, North, south east and south west. With Midlands Conference, the team were Winter Classic Champions in January this year and Toby was top points scorer of all players at the tournament.

Dad Glenn said: “As a family, we have supported the Nottingham Panthers Ice Hockey Team since the 1990s and Toby was just five days old when he attended his first game and there has been no looking back! He started skating at four years old with the Squirts sessions run by the NIC and joined his first team – Nottingham Sabres U10’s, aged just five.

“Toby’s passion is playing a skilled, fast paced, high octane team sport and being a winner.”

Toby attends Arnold Hill Academy, in his very little spare time away from ice hockey. He is signed for Arnold Town football club and had has a season ticket for Nottingham Panthers. In five years he would like to be playing at the highest possible level and to be part of the GB squad aiming for the Winter Olympics.

Both mum Alison, dad Glenn and older brother Jake who has also been through the Nottingham Ice Hockey Club system, support Toby, along with both sets of grandparents . The family travel all over the UK and abroad in support of him.

Cllr John Handley, vice-chairman of the Communities and Place Committee, at Nottinghamshire County Council is urging those needing funding to get in touch before the deadline.

He said: “The Talented Athletes Fund is a great opportunity for young athletes to secure funding to enable them to continue their training to whatever level they are able to reach.

“In Nottinghamshire, we are proud of our sporting heritage and want to encourage as many young people as possible to become as talented in their sport as they possibly can.”

  • Applicants must live in Nottinghamshire – please read the ‘Talented Athletes Fund Application Guidelines’ for full details of the criteria for funding, which is available to download from the County Council’s website: www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/talented The closing date for applications is Monday, October 15 at 5pm.

Take a chance and enjoy Abba tribute night in Arnold for borough charity

Gedling Eye
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Take a chance and enjoy Abba tribute night in Arnold for borough charity

An Abba tribute night is being organised to support a local charity which offers support for families in need. 

The event is being held at Arnold Liberal Club on Friday, October 19.

The main attraction during the evening will be ‘One-of-Us’ – a unique solo tribute to Abba with a mix of feel-good party hits from across the decades. This will then be followed by a 70s and 80s disco.

All funds raised on the evening will go to local charity We R Here, which provides funds needed to provide therapeutic counselling for families in need.

The event is being organised by Sarah Hewson, who is local councillor for the Plains Ward and will also be under the wig and taking centre stage as One-of-Us on the night.

Hilary Brown, CEO for We R Here said: “Sarah decided to organise this event after attending our AGM in July and hearing about the work which We R Here do and the difference it makes for people in her ward area.”
Tickets from the event, which starts at 7.30pm, can be purchased for £11.

Further information can be found here http://www.one-of-us.co.uk/ and also at werhere.org.uk

You can buy tickets for the event here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/abba-tribute-night-tickets-50438589178

Gedling Borough Council reassures residents in Arnold that CCTV is on its way

David Bratton
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Gedling Borough Council reassures residents in Arnold that CCTV is on its way

Residents in Arnold are being reassured that a new CCTV camera will be installed in the town centre by the end of the month.

Campaigners had called on Gedling Borough Council to put improved security measures in place after a series of stabbings and a spate of anti-social behaviour in the town.

Councillors committed to installing a new CCTV camera in the town centre.

An application was then made to put up CCTV on the footpath linking Front Street in the town centre with Smithy Crescent after a number of people had complained about noise from youngsters in that area.

Gedling Borough Council is now reassuring residents this work will be completed by the end of October.

CONCERN: Police and council officials on the beat in Arnold town centre (PICTURE: GBC)

A spokesman for the council said: “The CCTV on Smithy Crescent, Arnold is expected to be installed and working by the end of this month.



“We required planning permission before work could begin on the excavation of the footpath and roadways. We then needed to procure a supplier to install the camera and provide a power supply, which is expected to be done in the next week. Once we have all of this in place, the camera will be operational.

The council say CCTV installation is just one of the things they are doing to tackle knife crime and anti-social behaviour in the area.

They have also given neighbourhood wardens  extra powers to tackle anti-social behaviour around the town centre, situated a police response team at Jubilee House and  took part in the Nottinghamshire Police knife amnesty and collected the second highest number of knives in Nottinghamshire – with 53 knives handed into at our civic centre.

The spokesman added: “We want to assure residents that we are moving as quickly as possible to have the CCTV installed but we are relying on partners and suppliers in this process, we are expecting the cameras to be fully operational by the end of this month.”

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