After record entries in 2015 the organisers of the Ashbourne Festival 2016 Summer Art Exhibition are on the look out for local artists to submit work for this year’s event. The exhibition is always a highlight of the Festival and, the quality of submitted work gets better and better every year.  As usual the exhibition will be a mix of excellent invited artists from Derbyshire and the region, plus local artists submitting their work. 

The invited artists confirmed for this year are:

Four fun, friendly evenings of well-loved classical music with a local twist. 

First Art and Orchestras Live have teamed up to invite world-class chamber orchestra Manchester Camerata to work with local young people in creating a one-off tour of Eckington, Mansfield, Shirebrook and Sutton-in-Ashfield. Throughout March and April young people are taking part in creative workshops with professional musicians, composers and theatre artists to create 4 musical and theatrical performance pieces inspired by the people and places where they live. 

A Derby swimming teacher and her husband have just returned from a gruelling fund raising challenge which saw them complete a 500km cycle trek across Vietnam and Cambodia.

Lonsdale Swimming & Sports Trust is stepping up its recruitment of more swimming teachers to cope with the increased demand for school and public lessons with the impending closure of Moorways pool.

The Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust supports, empowers and inspires young people aged between 8 to 24 who are in recovery from cancer, through sailing. Through our sailing trips we provide the opportunity to try something new and exciting with others who have experienced a similar journey, to rebuild self confidence which is vital to their long term recovery and full engagement with future life.

Derby College is holding two special events as part of National Apprenticeship Week 2016 which are designed to support young people into apprenticeships and the world of work.

The managing director of Derby and Ashbourne funeral directors G. Wathall & Son Ltd has been appointed to the board of Golden Charter – the UK’s leading provider of funeral plans in the UK.

The first group of 2016 have successfully gained their National Pool Lifeguard Qualification after a week-long course at Lonsdale swimming pool in Mickleover, Derby.
Lonsdale Pool organise regular training programmes for lifeguards throughout the year – training people who want to work at Lonsdale, its sister pool Gayton in Littleover and other facilities across the county.

Higher Education students at Derby College came under the spotlight at an awards ceremony at the Roundhouse to celebrate their success.

As well as certificates for completing their courses at the College, there were several special awards, sponsored by the Derby College Students’ Union (DCSU) which were presented by President Charlie Baker.

Graham Hall, long-standing timpanist of Sinfonia Viva has been awarded the prestigious RPS/ABO Salomon Prize for orchestral musicians.

Graham, who lives in Pinxton, is a founding member of Derby-based Sinfonia Viva. He has been awarded the RPS/ABO Salomon Prize, for his “hugely dedicated service to Sinfonia Viva over many years: as a timpanist, player and Musicians Union rep; and also as highly skilled arranger who has supported the orchestra’s extensive outreach work, and in doing so has inspired his fellow musicians to join him in going the extra mile”.