Tourism promotion row

A ROW is looming over a tourism campaign aimed at attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Staffordshire Moorlands.

Community leaders say the Staffordshire Peak District brand was adopted  to ensure that the Moorlands gets its fair share of national park tourists.

But only one third of the Moorlands falls within the Peak District boundary and opponents fear tourism outlets in other areas, such as Biddulph and Cheadle,  could lose out.

How was the motion passed in the first place?

Former Moorlands District council leader Ron Locker has tabled a motion to Saturday’s full meeting of the district council calling on the authority to ditch the brand and market the Moorlands in its own right.

Bank helps Churnet Valley railway get back on track

Churnet Valley Railway is expanding and developing its visitor facilities after switching its banking to Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank.

Anthony Hancock, Chairman of Churnet Valley Railway said: “We are planning to develop the railway by extending platforms, create additional visitor facilities and ultimately extending the current line to Leek. Our visitor numbers are increasing year on year and the developments are required not only to maintain the railway, but also to enable us to offer a great day out for our thousands of visitors each year. Switching toAlliance & Leicester Commercial Bankhas enabled us to put our plans into action and even saved us money in the process.”

The Churnet Valley Railway is the second most popular tourist attraction in the region, carrying nearly 60,000 people a year through Staffordshire’s beautiful Churnet Valley. The route runs between Leekbrook Junction, Cheddleton, Consall and Froghall bringing tourism to the region and boosting the local economy.

Craig Iley, Senior Business Banking Manager at Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank said: “The Churnet Valley Railway has been lovingly restored over the last 35 years, thanks to the dedicated support of its volunteers, shareholders and Directors, who contribute vast amounts of time, money and equipment in order to maintain the railway. This deal will not only help Churnet Valley Railway to expand and develop its service, but will also secure its future for future generations to enjoy.”

Craig Iley continues: “We are delighted to lend our support to such an important historical attraction. Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank has experience helping heritage railways to expand and achieve their full potential, having supported the North Yorkshire Moors Railway to secure their long term future.”

Churnet Valley Railway once formed part of the North Staffordshire Railway, which was the old main line between Manchester and London. The line first opened in 1849 and went on to play a key role in the Second World War by being one of the main transport routes due to the line being largely hidden from view. The line continued running until the Beeching review in the 1960’s.

In the mid 1970’s, the local authority acquired Cheddleton Station and had started to dismantle it, when the North Staffordshire Railway Society stepped in to preserve the station building. In 1978 the North Staffordshire Railway Company Ltd was formed to provide limited liability for its members. In 1992 a light railway order was granted and the Churnet Valley Railway was born. In 1995, Churnet Valley Railway purchased the line from British Rail and since that time, the line has been lovingly restored and gradually brought back into use.

Anthony Hancock continues: “The Railway now runs a full service and caters for weddings, special events and ghost trains. Our long term plan is to extend the line into Leek, the main town in the region and build an educational visitor centre, so people can learn more about the railway and the region’s history. The deal with Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank has enabled us to kick start these plans and our continued relationship with the bank will secure the long term future of this historic railway.”

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-04-26 10:47:07

Lord Nelson Brooch found in Uttoxeter

A 200-year-old brooch that belonged to Lord Nelson’s lover, Lady Hamilton, has been found in a chest of drawers.
The anonymous owner, an elderly woman, had kept it tucked away for years, unaware of its history.

When she died, her daughter had the contents of her cottage valued, unearthing the item.

The gold-and-blue enamel brooch, which dates back to 1805, is thought to have been made for Lady Hamilton just after Nelson’s death.

A picture of her holding an anchor and mourning the admiral had been painted on.

Charles Hanson, from BBC1’s Bargain Hunt, discovered the brooch at the house in Uttoxeter, Staffs. He said the woman may have been related to a member of Lady Hamilton’s staff.

It is due to be auctioned on May 3 in Lichfield and is expected to fetch at least £300. Back in 1805, it must have cost Nelson just an arm and no leg!

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-04-26 10:38:27

Former cattle market renamed

Uttoxeter's former Cattle Market will be renamed Carters' Square to reflect the history of the town.

The multi-million pound revamp of the site, off Smithfield Road, was finally given the go ahead in December after more than a year of deliberations.

However, even though the residential part of the development has been named The Market Place since last year, the retail side has not received a new name - until now.

Personally I thought the Market Place was a little predictable favoured something in keeping with the cattle market like Uttoxeter Mews (Moos).

Housing giant Taylor Woodrow, which is leading the scheme after buying the market from East Staffordshire Borough Council in October, has decided to title the retail part of the development Carters' Square after receiving suggestions from members of the public.

A spokesman for East Staffordshire Borough Council, which was involved in the consultation process, said: "We had lots of suggestions during the consultation but we really liked the idea of Carters' Square because the Cattle Market would be where the carters would have come many years ago.

"In the feedback we got we found that people wanted something that would reflect the history of the town and we felt that the name achieved that.

"We had quite a few suggestions that incorporated the word Carters as it reflects the history and nostalgia of the site.

"It was a very difficult decision which is why it took so long but we are happy with the choice."

Work on the 40,000sq ft of retail space is due to start soon with officials now planning a naming ceremony, which effectively means a free piss up.

The housing part of the site, owned by Bryant Homes, is set to be completed by 2009, but househunters are now able to view plans and visit the purpose-built marketing suite which opens its doors on Saturday.

The development comprises 174 two-bedroom apartments and two and three-bedroom houses connected by public walkways.

Stephen Cleveley, the site's senior sales manager, said: "We are really looking forward to being able to show people exactly what we are offering.

"The new community we are building can only add to the fantastic regeneration work already going on throughout the area."

There will also be 200 car parking spaces included as part of the development which, council chiefs say, will bring £40 million of investment to the town.

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-3

Alton Towers in Court

Stephen and Suzanne Roper are challenging a decision to reduce a fine given to the owners of the theme park, Tussauds Theme Parks Ltd, after they complained about noise. They live near the Staffordshire attraction.

The company was fined at £5,000 at Stafford Crown Court in 2004 and was hit with a wide-ranging noise abatement notice.

But the fine was later cut to £3,500 after the firm appealed to the crown court and the terms of the noise abatement notice were made less strict.

The Ropers' counsel, Mr Stephen Hockman QC, told the court yesterday that the conservation area around the attraction was "predominantly rural" and local residents were entitled to a "greater expectation of quiet" than city dwellers.

Mr Hockman said the crown court had "struggled manfully" with the case, but had allowed itself to be influenced by irrelevant "commercial considerations".

The Judge is expected to give his judgement today.

But is the issue here the noise or the traffic?

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-23 03:48:08

Pimp my ride grannies

A group of grandmothers from Leek, Staffordshire, have been travelling to their bingo matches in an old rust-covered bus with a broken wheelchair lift. But thanks to MTV their bus has had a Comic Relief style makeover.

Pimp My Ride UK presenter Tim Westwood and his team come to the rescue when they revamp the bus for a special red nose edition.

"It ain't right for gran to go to bingo in a battered and busted old bucket," Westwood said.

The results were shown on BBC1 last night, with the whole edition to follow on MTV on April 8.

Clickety Click

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-17 09:16:52

Jail out of control

Prisoners at a privately run jail are intimidating inexperienced staff who are struggling to keep control of the wings, says a report by Anne Owers, the Chief Inspector of Prisons.

She says that drugs and bullying are rife in Dovegate jail, near Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, and that bad behaviour is unchecked because the staff are afraid to challenge it. Ms Owers criticises Serco, the company that runs the 600-bed, category B jail, and demands urgent improvements. Some failings identified in an inspection in 2003 had not been addressed.

Inmates told last year’s inspection team that the response to fights and bullying was that “staff run away” and “staff are slow to respond”. Bullying was believed to be linked to drug debts.

Wyn Jones, director of Dovegate, acknowledged that, despite some evidence of improvement, the prison had “further to go”.

How do people in top positions keep their jobs when clearly consistently underperforming. They should be locked up!

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-14 01:32:09

New owner for Alton Towers

The Tussauds Group, the owner of the eponymous waxworks museums and enormous London Eye Ferris wheel, has been bought in a £1 billion ($1.9 billion) deal by Merlin Entertainments, which is majority-owned by the Blackstone Group.

Dubai International Capital, which controls Tussauds, will retain a 20% stake in the combined entity, which will be the world's second-largest visitor attractions company after Walt Disney. Merlin already owns the London Dungeon and Legoland theme parks.

The Tussauds Group is best known for operating the Madame Tussauds wax museum located on Marylebone Road alongside the London Planetarium, featuring lifesize effigies of well-known figures ranging from Tony Blair to Paris Hilton. The museum famously melts down waxworks when the public tires of certain celebrities. Madame Tussauds also has attractions in New York, Las Vegas, Amsterdam, and Hong Kong.

Tussauds bought the British Airways London Eye, the world's tallest observation wheel, in February 2006. The airline was allowed to continue its brand association with the debt-laden attraction, which offers tourists a bird's-eye view of the U.K. capital from snail's paced viewing pods.

Tussauds also owns three famous theme parks in Britain: Alton Towers in Staffordshire and Chessington World of Adventures and Thorpe Park, both in the county of Surrey.

Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-11 02:35:54