Local businesses that did not qualify for payments from the Government to help them get through the COVID-19 pandemic are being invited to apply for new rate relief support as part of a further allocation of money received by Cannock Chase Council from the Government.

The funding, available now, is part of the Government’s COVID-19 Additional Relief Fund, known as CARF. This has been in operation since the height of the pandemic and has included business grants or rate reliefs.

The funding is aimed at local businesses; primarily in the retail, leisure and hospitality sectors who were unable to trade because of the COVID-19 restrictions. Eligible businesses must be based in the Cannock Chase District and have been in business and liable for business rates as of 1 April 2021. They must be able to demonstrate that their business has been severely impacted by COVID-19.

Councillor Mike Sutherland, Portfolio Leader for District and High Street Development said: “The Council recognises that businesses are facing all sorts of pressures at the moment. For many they are still trying to recover from the pandemic. This new and welcome funding is designed to reduce some of the financial challenges we know have inflicted local shops, pubs, restaurants and accommodation providers who have been hit hard.

“To ensure no eligible business misses out we have already written to 700 businesses in these sectors to tell them about the new funding and how to apply. But if there are other business who think they might qualify, they should urgently check out the Council’s website for further information.”

For specific details on who can and cannot apply and an application form, local businesses should go to https://www.cannockchasedc.gov.uk/business/business-rates. All applications must be submitted no later than 15 September.

Photograph:
Councillor Mike Sutherland, Portfolio Holder for District and High Street Development.

Space 2022 is now underway and continues until 26 August.  Activities are available to view online, with more being added daily.
 
The Space summer programme brings together public, voluntary and private sector organisations to provide enjoyable positive activities for young people that increase their skills, improve their health and wellbeing and create opportunities, while also aiming to reduce levels of anti-social behaviour during the school summer holidays.

In 2021, over 6,000 young people, aged between 8 and 17, enjoyed over 1,400 activities funded by the Staffordshire Commissioner as part of the Space programme. There were over 17,600 attendances at events, equating to over 35,333 hours.

Space 2022 started on 25 July and will end on 26 August.  It offers a variety of activities including swimming and gym passes, multi sports and park events, trips out and arts and crafts.

Councillor Bryan Jones, Deputy Leader of the Council and Portfolio Leader for Community Safety and Partnerships said “We are delighted that Space has returned to our District for another year. Engaging young people in activities during the school holidays is important to develop their interpersonal and social skills and reduce the risk of the few who might be tempted to engage in anti-social behaviour."

Councillor Adrienne Fitzgerald, Portfolio Leader for Housing, Heritage and Leisure said “There are lots of activities in Cannock Chase, for young people to get involved in this summer.  The programme encourages participation in sport, arts and crafts, physical activity and much more, which will help to improve the health and wellbeing of our young people.”

Space was relaunched in 2015 and has since gone from strength to strength, with a 77% reduction in youth ASB during the summer period since 2016. When the programme began in 2016, 1,395 reports of youth related ASB were recorded compared to 320 in 2021.

Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire & Rescue and Crime, Ben Adams said: ‘Space clearly makes a difference, providing memorable experiences for many while diverting some away from potential involvement in low-level crime and anti-social behaviour.

‘The activities provide an opportunity for Staffordshire Police and partners to engage with young people who may be going through a difficult time to help nurture, support and develop them and this is why I have committed to Space running for a further 3 years.

‘Activities are now available to book online and I am looking forward to calling into some sessions to see the scheme in action. ’

Book your session and find out more: www.staffordshirespace.uk

Today (26 July) Cannock Chase Council is celebrating after receiving no less than six Green Flag Awards: for Cannock Park, Ravenhill Park, Elmore Park, Hednesford Park, Castle Ring Green Heritage Site, and Stile Cop Cemetery.

They are among 2,208 winners across the UK in this year’s Green Flag Awards. The award is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.

After two years that have seen parks and green spaces play a vital role for people through lockdowns as a place to relax, exercise and meet friends and family safely, the news that our parks and open spaces have achieved the Green Flag Award, is testament to the hard work and dedication of the team that make the green spaces a place that everyone can enjoy.

Castle Ring has also achieved the Green Heritage Site Accreditation, supported by Historic England, for the management of its historic features.

Councillor Adrienne Fitzgerald, Portfolio Leader for Housing, Heritage, and Leisure said: “I am delighted that our parks and open spaces have retained the Green Flag Award. It is important that our communities have parks and green spaces that they can enjoy. I would like to thank all of the volunteers, parks and grounds maintenance and cemetery staff for their continued hard work to achieve a prestigious Green Flag Award for another year running.”

Commenting on the news, Keep Britain Tidy’s Accreditation Manager Paul Todd said: “I would like to congratulate everyone involved in making our parks and open spaces worthy of a Green Flag Award.

“These parks are vital green spaces for the community in Cannock Chase District. This award is testament to all the hard work of staff and volunteers, who do so much to ensure that they maintain the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.” 

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

Photograph:
At Hednesford Park holding a Green Flag Award shortly before the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton Relay passed through the town last Saturday are: John Wolfie Jones, volunteer with the Friends of Hednesford Park, Councillor Martyn Buttery, Chairman of Cannock Chase Council, Andy Williams, Park Keeper, and Jorgie Devey, a young volunteer from the Friends of Hednesford Park.

Note to editors:
The Green Flag Award Scheme (http://greenflagaward.org/) is run by the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, in partnership with Keep Scotland Beautiful, Keep Wales Tidy and Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful. 

Keep Britain Tidy is a leading environmental charity. It sets the standard for the management of parks and beaches, inspires people to be litter-free, to waste less and live more sustainably. It runs campaigns and programmes including the Great British Spring Clean, Eco-Schools, Love Parks, Eco-Schools, the Green Flag Award for parks and green spaces and the Blue Flag/ Seaside Awards for beaches. To find out more about Keep Britain Tidy, its campaigns and programmes visit www.keepbritaintidy.org.

Any green space that is freely accessible to the public is eligible to enter for a Green Flag Award.  Awards are given on an annual basis and winners must apply each year to renew their Green Flag Award status.  A Green Flag Community Award recognises quality sites managed by voluntary and community groups. Green Heritage Site Accreditation is judged on the treatment of the site’s historic features and the standard of conservation.  

There are just 13 days to go until the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games come to Cannock Chase Forest on Wednesday 3 August.

Around 2,500 ticketed spectators are expected to watch the mountain biking event, with even more predicted to be lining the trail for a glimpse of the event. The action, involving the women’s and men’s events, starts at 11.30am and finishes at 4pm.

If you have not been lucky enough to get a ticket, there are lots of ways you can watch the action on the day.

Spectators can watch along the route; we recommend that you come by bike and use the recommended cycle routes.  There will be secure cycle parking once you arrive at Cannock Chase Forest, you can then walk to the trail route.

Marshalls will be located along the route to ensure the safety of the spectators and riders.

If you can only travel to Cannock Chase Forest on the day by car, there is limited pre-booked parking available off Shooting Butts Road.  There will be no parking at Cannock Chase Forest.  More details are available at www.birmingham2022.com/venues/cannock-chase-forest (see ‘Driving’).

There is a free shuttle bus service from Stafford rail station to Cannock Chase Forest on 3 August.  This service is available to both ticketed and non-ticketed spectators.

There will be a giant screen in Cannock Town Centre where you can watch all the action for free.

The event will also be broadcast live on the BBC (TV, radio and online).

Councillor Adrienne Fitzgerald, Portfolio Leader for Housing, Heritage, and Leisure said “We are so very privileged to have the mountain bike event in Cannock Chase.  If you have not managed to get a ticket, there are lots of ways you can watch and get involved in this once in a lifetime event.”

For more information about how to watch the event visit the Council's Commonwealth Games pages.

Due to the extreme hot weather and the health of our crews, they will be finishing at 1pm today (Tuesday 19 July).  This means that some collections will not be completed.  

Outstanding collections from today, will be completed tomorrow, and continue a day late throughout the rest of the week.  

Our crews will be working on Saturday to ensure that this week’s collections are complete.

Please leave your bin out until it is emptied.

Cannock Chase Forest will be hosting the mountain biking event for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games on 3 August.

Around 2,500 ticketed spectators are expected to watch the action, which starts at 11:30am and continues until 4pm.  

Parts of Cannock Chase Forest will need to be closed by Forestry England as preparations are made to host the event.  Notices will be displayed at the site about any necessary closures.

There will be parking restrictions which are designed to protect residential streets, ensure that residents living in the area can access their homes safely and reduce spectator parking in restricted areas.

The following roads will be ‘no stopping’ on 3 August:

Brindley Heath Road, Kingsley Wood Road, Marquis Drive, Penkridge Bank Road, Rifle Range Corner, Shooting Butts Lane and Stafford Brook Road

The following roads will be ‘permit access only’ on 3 August:

Birches Valley, Church Close, Field Place, Horns Croft, Jones Lane, Millside, Oakley Copse, Post Office Lane, Quarry Close, Slitting Mill Road and St Johns Close.

Residents who live or work in a controlled parking or permit access only road will need a permit to park or access their road.  These will be issued by Staffordshire County Council, residents and businesses will automatically receive two permits.  If additional permits are required, you will need to contact Staffordshire County Council directly.  

Spectators are encouraged to use public transport on the day of the event, to help to reduce traffic around the venue.

If you can only travel to Cannock Chase Forest on the day by car, there is limited pre-booked parking available off Shooting Butts Road.  There will be no parking at Cannock Chase Forest.  More details are available at www.birmingham2022.com/venues/cannock-chase-forest (see ‘Driving’).

Councillor Adrienne Fitzgerald, Portfolio Leader for Housing, Heritage, and Leisure said “This is going to be the biggest event that Cannock Chase Forest has ever seen.  I would urge anyone that is planning to watch the event or who lives in the vicinity to keep up to date with the restrictions via the link below.  Security is going to be strict and there will be no exceptions.”

You can find the most up to date information for our venue by visiting www.birmingham2022.com/getset/cannock-chase

The summer edition of Cannock Chase Council’s Chase Matters magazine for people living in Hednesford, Rugeley, Cannock and surrounding villages is out now.

This edition focuses on the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, which will see the Queen’s Baton Relay coming through Rugeley, Hednesford and Cannock on Saturday 23 July and the mountain biking event coming to Cannock Chase Forest on Wednesday 3 August.

The magazine has been delivered to every household in Cannock Chase.  It is also available as a free pick up in all local supermarkets and available online via the Council’s website.

Councillor Robert Hughes, Portfolio Leader for Innovation and Resources said “Our printed magazine is a great way for the Council to update residents.  In this edition you can read all you need to know about the Commonwealth Games and Queen’s Baton Relay.  There are some tips from our Environmental Health team on BBQ safety this summer and much more.  Our next edition will be out in November.”

An online version of the magazine is available via the link below.

http://www.cannockchasedc.gov.uk/residents/communications/chase-matters

Over 350 local primary school children took part in the Woodland Wonder Festival last week, as part of the local Chase Community Games initiative.

Children had the opportunity to experience a range of cultural and sporting activities to celebrate the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. The event took place at Cannock Chase Forest and included various activities including arts and crafts, circus skills, sporty stamps, dancing, storytelling and much more. 

Throughout the day children visited three wellness zones linking in with the Cannock Chase Can programme. These included, Feel Well, Naturally Well and Move Well. Children had the opportunity to explore Cannock Chase and meet some special guests along the way including magical fairies and butterflies.

As this event was an official 'Bring the Power' Schools Festival, Perry the official Commonwealth Games Mascot also made an appearance along with Sarah-Jane Perry, who will be competing in the Squash event this summer.

Children also had a go at cycling on the Pedal and Play Trail and experienced firsthand the new cycling routes that have been developed as part of the Commonwealth Games legacy.

The aim of the day was to promote how much fun Cannock Chase can be and to show children how it can improve their quality life – which in turn will contribute towards a healthier lifestyle.

The day was made possible thanks to the help and support of local organisations, especially the students from The Hart School in Rugeley.

Councillor Adrienne Fitzgerald, Portfolio Leader for Housing, Heritage and Leisure, said: “It was great to see so many young children taking part in the Woodland Wonder Festival. It really helped to raise the profile of the Commonwealth Games. We hope the children have been inspired by what they have seen and will go and visit the Pedal and Play Trail with their families.

“I would like to say a big thank you to everyone involved in making this event happen especially the providers and organisations that provided activities throughout the day.

“Finally, we hope this experience of the great outdoors will encourage the children and their families to visit Cannock Chase again – but next time as fully fledged ‘Chase Explorers’!”

Chris Derbyshire, Managing Director of Inspiring Healthy Lifestyles, said: “It was great to see children and teachers having fun and enjoying themselves at the Woodland Wonder Festival. It’s events like these that help showcase what is on offer locally for families and helps promote Cannock Chase  as a place to visit”.

“It was brilliant to see all the children coming together especially after the last 2 years. We hope they all had a fantastic experience and will come and visit some of the team again at our leisure and cultural facilities and services.”

The event was led by Cannock Chase Council in partnership with Inspiring Healthy Lifestyles. Cannock Chase Cultural Education Partnership and the Bring the Power programme contributed funding towards this event as part of their youth engagement work.  

Woodland Wonder Festival is part of the Chase Community Games initiative which has been inspired by the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.  The next event will be the Queen’s Baton Relay which will be visiting our District on Saturday 23 July.  To find out more visit www.cannockchasedc.gov.uk/queensbatonrelay. 

Photos of the Woodland Wonder Festival are now available to view on the Council’s Facebook page – search for Cannock Chase Life. 
 

Cannock Chase Council is consulting on a replacement of its Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) in relation to the control of dogs which has been in place since 2018. 

This follows a consultation exercise in 2021, where the Council resolved to extend the original 2018 Order for a further three years.  

In response to comments received during the consultation, and reports of incidents involving dogs, the Council now proposes to remove the current Order and make a new one in respect of dog fouling and dogs off leads.

The new PSPO, made under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 1984, will extend the areas from which dogs are excluded to include specified childrens’ play areas, tennis courts and multi-use games areas and will require owners to put dogs on leads when instructed to do so by an authorised Council or Police Officer.

Persons who fail to comply with the provisions set out in the proposed PSPO, without reasonable excuse, will be committing an offence and may be issued with a £100 fixed penalty notice.  

Councillor Justin Johnson, Portfolio Leader for Environment and Climate Change said, “It is important that the Council implements this Order as it ensures our public spaces can be used safely by everyone.  I am sure responsible dog owners will welcome this Order as we have had a number of reports of dogs being attacked and injured by dogs off leads.  It is the irresponsible owners, not their dogs, whose behaviour we are seeking to change.

“PSPOs are intended to address activities carried out in public spaces which are of an anti-social nature. The proposed replacement Order identifies public spaces and either prohibits specified activities or requires steps to be taken to ensure our public spaces are more welcoming for the community to use.

“I would encourage residents to have a look at the proposed Order and let us know their views.”

The consultation will run until 7 August 2022.

Copies of the proposed Order are available for inspection from the Civic Centre and can be viewed online here: https://www.cannockchasedc.gov.uk/residents/environmental-health/environmental-protection/stray-dogs-dog-warden-service

Comments can be sent via post or email. Email comments should be sent to environmentalhealth@cannockchasedc.gov.uk .

For more information about this consultation process, contact the Environmental Health team on 01543 464491.