The news that Seabourne Freight has been awarded a contract by the government to help ferry freight lorries across the channel in the event of a 'no-deal brexit' has been met with disbelief locally and nationally.

Seaborne Freight, which has not previously operated a ferry service, was one of three firms tasked with laying on additional crossings to ease the pressure on Dover.

The Play Area toilets in Hall Leys Park Matlock were proposed for demolition at the end of the summer season, along with several others, by the Conservative run Derbyshire Dales District Council, despite the thousands of visitors who visit Matlock every year.
Peggy Edwards, a former well loved Liberal Democrat councillor, ran a campaign to provide the facility partly by public subscription, with the Council providing ongoing maintenance, but sadly they have not kept them in good order in recent years. Cllr Sue Burfoot (above) had the support of Lib Dem colleagues, as well as another 8 councillors in seeking to overturn the decision to demolish, with a 'call in' to the full Council. But it was all to no avail, as the huge Tory majority rubber stamped the original decision to close. Of course, there would have been additional costs associated with demolition, refurbishing the pool apparatus part of the toilets building and installing and removing a Portaloo, so we wonder just how much money the Council expected to save by such a cynical move. Matlock's two Conservative councillors voted for both closure and demolition !

This derelict eyesore, vandalised and partially burnt out was once a hospital in the attractive market town of Ashbourne in Derbyshire. Known then as the Ashbourne Victoria Memorial Cottage Hospital, it opened its doors in 1897 and was an imposing building on Buxton Rd., Ashbourne, next to St John's church. An Ashbourne landmark, there were even postcards issued as illustrated here; After closing in 1962 it was sold and eventually ended up in the hands of a landlord who let it out as flats, calling it Victoria Court Flats. Unfortunately this landlord, like many others, has failed to maintain the property, instead allowing it to become unfit to live in. Some have ventured inside to show just how grim it has become - see here for photos of the inside.

Town Cllr Dave Elsworth has spent the past two years or more trying to convince planners and highway engineers that the new housing developments off Chesterfield Road, especially the huge Gritstone / Pinewood Road site will inevitably create gridlocked local roads, including roads which converge on Crown Square, not to mention the public health impacts from air pollution.