Sheffield Beer Week kicks off today with hops themed events across the city
The ninth annual Sheffield Beer Week began today with a series of events taking place across the Steel City.
The week, which focuses on supporting independent beer businesses and breweries, runs from 6 to 12 March.
On the line up are several tap takeovers at local bars, pub quizzes, beer showcases and tastings.
Along with the opportunities to drink craft beer and find new local favourites, there are some unique one-off events.
On 8 March, Heist Brew Co and hosting a roleplaying event based on Grant Howitt's RPG Honey Heist.
The premise: you are hired to infiltrate Sheffield's Indie Beer Feast 2023 to steal the original recipe for Stones Best Bitter and the twist: you're a bear.
Events for International Women's Day are also being held with a free celebration of the day being held at Hop Hideout on 8 March and Lost Industry holding a women's only brew day on 9 March.
Alder, which was recently named Sheffield's best bar in the Battle of the Boozers, brewed their own bitters in partnership with Big Trip Brewing as part of the week long event.
The first Sheffield Beer Week, held in 2015, was coordinated by Jules Gray and Clare Tollick after they were inspired by the success of the SIBA conference and Beer X festival.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sheffield Beer Week operated in a virtual capacity in 2021 and used a mix of in person and online events for their 2022 line-up.
Rotherham cheer team come second at NCA Championships
A cheerleading team based in Rotherham has come second in the NCA All-Star National Championships which took place in Texas last weekend.
Trailblazer Allstars were runners-up in the hardest level of the competition, losing to Cheer Extreme Super 7 who have won the title three years in a row.
The competition is one of the biggest in international cheerleading, with over 25,000 athletes taking part across various ages. The arena holds roughly 50,000 spectators, with one performance floor and three separate halls with competition floors where lower levels were competing.
Miriam Kuepper, 24, a member of the Trailblazers, said she: "couldn’t believe how well they would do, just being there was so amazing".
She added it was nerve-wracking going onto the floor on the Sunday to perform as many teams were waiting for the awards ceremony to begin but they did not let it affect their performance.
"The feeling of doing it was just amazing, I rang my mum at around 4am and just realized what we had achieved."
The Trailblazers were also surprised with a trip to Trinity Valley Community College whose team are involved in the Netflix show Cheer. Miss Kuepper said they had the opportunity to meet the team who wanted to keep their Trailblazer flag as a souvenir.
She added: "It was an even bigger highlight to the experience because it was so unexpected."
The Trailblazers have four more competitions this season with high aspirations to qualify for the World Championships, which the team failed to qualify for last year.
Doncaster Rovers Belles’ recent impressive form recognised in Manager of the Month award win
Doncaster Rovers Belles are celebrating a Manager of the Month award win after the women's side won five Division One matches on the spin.
Nick Buxton, who is formerly a professional goalkeeper, has risen through the ranks at the ladies side to become the first team manager. He was previously a coach under the tenure of ex Belles boss Andy Butler and he even helped out before this in the Doncaster Academy.
Now, however, he is bringing success back to the Belles.
Once regarded as a titan of the women's game - with six Women's FA Cups under their belt and even two FA Women's Premier League titles in their trophy cabinet - Doncaster Rovers Belles now find themselves in the Division One Midlands attempting to rebuild.
Impressive wins such as a 6-1 victory over Long Eaton United and a 3-0 win over Lincoln City has Buxton's side in second spot, three points off league leaders Stourbridge.
Nick Buxton was understandably delighted with his Manager of the Month accolade, praising his players for all their recent efforts.
Mr Buxton said: "It's a real great achievement but it's not just by me. I've said to the girls before, my name is on the award but it goes down to everybody."
A 2-0 loss to league leaders Stourbridge on Sunday does have the potential to sour this recent award win but Nick Buxton remains focussed for the season ahead.
He said: "For the rest of the season, hopefully, you know we are still in there for promotion. Unfortunately, we came up short against a really good team but there's still a month and a bit to go. We are going to give it our best shot!"
Doncaster Rovers Belles next play on the 12th of March away at Northampton Town before returning to home soil at the Iqbal Poultry Stadium to face off against Wem Town on the 19th.
Sheffield’s Snowdrop Project launch urgent appeal for Half Marathon volunteers
Sheffield's Snowdrop Project has launched an urgent appeal for Half Marathon marshal volunteers to support runners at the event.
The charity, who are partnered with Run for All for Sheffield Half Marathon and Sheffield 10k, are hoping to raise £6000 from the day and spread awareness of human trafficking and modern slavery.
Community and Events Fundraising Manager, Melissa Mason, 23, said: "It's amazing to be able to encourage runners to take part in the race and be there on the day to cheer them on and get them to the finish line."
The Half Marathon will take place on Sunday 26 March and starts at Arundel Gate.
Miss Mason said: "Marshals are so important as they help keep our runners motivated while they take on the hills of Sheffield and we have been told we are the best cheerers on the course."
Snowdrop Project are also taking part in the Sheffield 10k in September and will be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro next Summer.
There are a number of other ways to get involved such as organising your own fundraising event, becoming a regular donor or volunteering.
For more information email fundraising@snowdropproject.co.uk
Watch the TikTok here.
South Yorkshire Police launch weeklong operation to tackle unsafe driving on the M1
South Yorkshire is one of eight regions across England where police are running a week of action to crack down on unsafe driving on the M1.
Operation Freeway takes advantage of each of these eight forces' access to an unmarked HGV tractor unit, which allows officers to see into higher vehicles and get a better view into lower ones.
Roads Policing Officers from the Operational Support Unit of South Yorkshire Police (SYP) launched the operation on March 3, and is due to run for five-days.
Roads Policing Acting Sergeant Rod McEnery said: "We are out there 24 hours a day, seven days a week and will continue to do everything we can to prosecute those who pose a risk, educate drivers and create safer roads."
"Everyone can take simple steps to reduce risk to other drivers; put your phone away, put your seatbelt on, don’t speed and ensure you’re following the laws surrounding your vehicle’s use."
In the last operation of this kind, Roads Policing Officers of SYP witnessed 244 offences.
During a short drive on the morning of 3 March, officers found one driver on their mobile phone, one driver not in proper control of their vehicle and one driver without a seatbelt on.
The unmarked HGV's have been provided by National Highways, the company responsible for operating England's motorways and major A roads, who are working with police force's on this operation.
National Highways Head of Road Safety, Jeremy Phillips, said: “We are committed to reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured while travelling on our roads by 50% by 2025 and we have a long term ambition for zero harm.
The point of the week of action aims to encourage road users to practice safer driving.
Mr Phillips added: "Those who continue to pose a risk should be aware that we are working with our police partners to make sure they are spotted and prevented from causing serious harm to themselves or others."
According to National Highways, in 2022 there were 73,593 incidents on the M1, the motorway this operation is targeting.
National Highways have published photos and videos of road users committing offences, including a video of a woman using a mobile phone whilst driving, and a video of a man driving a loaded car transporter with just his elbows, below.
Acting Sergeant McEnery added: "I urge drivers to think about how they would feel if they killed someone, as ultimately this is what can happen without your full attention being on the road."
Police want drivers to voluntarily change their behaviour and drive more safely; wearing seatbelts, not using their mobile phones, and staying in control of their cars. But they are prepared to take action against those who break the law.
Consequences for drivers range from warnings to fixed penalty notices, court summons or arrest.
Golf a main ‘driver’ in sport economy reveals Sheffield Hallam report
Golf is bringing in billions of pounds to the UK economy, according to a study that ‘surprised’ Sheffield Hallam University researchers.
The report, funded by the R&A, one of golf’s governing bodies, set out to find how much golf would contribute to the economy if it had its own account and measured the change between 2014 and 2019.
It revealed that consumer spending on golf rose by 20% over five years to £5.1bn.
Professor Simon Shibli, one of the researchers involved in the report, said: “What surprised me is that golf, a single sport, accounts for 10% of consumer expenditure on sport.
“So here you’ve got one sport, out of over 100 recognised sports, contributing quite a sizeable proportion of the overall sports industry.”
As well as measuring golf’s economic effects, the report also investigated the sport’s social impact.
The report found it contributed £1.04bn in ‘social value’, including the improved mental wellbeing of players.
But not all are convinced by the findings. James Glover, general manager of Hallamshire Golf Club, said the rise is down to ‘golf tourism’ at the country’s biggest courses, with more local clubs being less affected.
He said: “If you looked at most golf clubs, most of them don’t run a huge, if any, profit, most are just covering their expenses.
“I don’t dispute the figures, but I think if you were really looking at it, you would see there’s perhaps a regionalised bias for where that increase is coming. I’m not sure we’re seeing a huge amount of that in Sheffield.”
While acknowledging the massive role of golf tourism, Prof Shibli said the evidence goes against the elitist image of the sport and suggests grassroots growth.
He said: “Certainly it’s easy to stereotype golfers as middle-aged businesspeople or accountants indulging in their hobby.
“But the reality is, if 17% of the population of Scotland are playing, it is a sport of the people. It’s probably a more democratic sport than it’s given credit for.”
Prof Shibli also pointed out there was a clear public interest in the report, as it also found that golf raised £1.3bn in tax money in 2019.
He said: “What goes into golf from public sources is measured in the low millions, and yet it’s generating over a billion in revenue.
“So the more money you put into golf, the more you encourage it, the more the government will get back.”
More on the report can be found here.
“A place for the living as much as the dead”: The volunteer conservation group revitalising Wardsend cemetery
A long-term conservation project is underway at Wardsend cemetery to clean up the long neglected site and uncover Sheffield’s forgotten history.
The Friends of Wardsend, a local volunteer group, aim to make it a place for heritage, nature, performance and remembrance. They meet on the first Saturday of the month to clean the graves, litter pick, and generally maintain the site.
Howard Bayley, of Friends of Wardsend, said: "It’s important to conserve this place for the memory of the people that are buried. But also we wanted to create a space for the living as much as the dead.”
The cemetery was opened in 1857 as an expanded burial ground for St Philip’s Church after its own churchyard became overcrowded.
The cemetery was in use until a final burial took place in 1977. It was officially closed in 1988.
Hugh Waterhouse, local historian and a member of the group, has plotted individual graves in the cemetery since a large number of them are unmarked. The group then worked to create a burial list which was then made available to the public.
Howard says the project has been challenging due to the long neglect of the cemetery which he believes is down to lack of funding in the north of Sheffield.
“There will be lots of graves that we struggle to find because they're either very overgrown or there are no markers anywhere. So it would be a bit of a rough guess. But yes, we’re very proud of what we’ve done over the last year or so.”
The burial list has meant that relatives have been able to learn where their ancestors are buried, and Friends of Wardsend have been in contact with people internationally, including Australia and Canada.
Beverly McDonnell, a 60-year-old Sheffield woman, had her relatives’ grave located by the group.
She said felt “emotional” seeing it for the first time.
“I never knew them. They’re my mum’s grandparents. But I’m so pleased to have finally found it at last.”
Beverly is not the only success story.
87-year-old Anne Diver volunteers with the group to maintain the cemetery and her family’s graves were also uncovered with the help of the burial list.
“It was weird that there wasn’t a stone. It was just a bare piece. I don’t know whether it was knocked down or moved because of overcrowding,” she said. “But there was nobody there to protest about it.”
Anne has a total of 24 relatives in 5 different graves at the cemetery.
“I remember coming here as a little girl and my mother standing over our family grave, just crying."
Friends of Wardsend hope that, in the future, the area will be fully-accessible for everyone wanting to experience the natural beauty of heritage park.
You can find out more about their mission here on their blog and get involved on their Facebook page. You can also make a donation to their work here.
Ukrainian refugee living in Sheffield appeals for family to sponsor stranded niece
A Ukrainian refugee living in Sheffield has desperately appealed for a family to sponsor her niece who is trapped in the war-torn country.
Nataliia Holovina, a school teacher who left for the UK last July, said she wanted her niece, Vlada Yakubiv, to be protected.
She said: “It will be good for her parents because their daughter will be safe. This is the most important thing.”
The 18-year old’s parents - a primary school teacher and a factory worker - have both lost their jobs, and current rules in Ukraine mean adult males cannot leave the country.
Ms Holovina said: “It is very difficult for them to leave without any income after they lost their jobs.
“My niece told me - I want to help my parents.”
Ms Holovina's niece, Vlada Yakubiv, who is a trained hairdresser and has completed eyebrow beauty courses, would like to find work to support herself and her family while in the UK.
Ms Yakubiv originally lived in the city of Mykolaiv in the south of Ukraine, but had to flee with her family to live in a small house with Ms Holovina's daughter and grandson due to Russian bombing.
Ms Holovina said life in the country was very hard at the moment, and that she still suffers with anxiety at the sound of planes even when in the UK.
She said: “I decided to come here because every day this brings military planes over the roof of my house. It was so terrible. When I arrived here, I was afraid of the sounds of planes for four months.
“My youngest daughter is 26 and lives in Kiev. Two months ago a Russian rocket was intercepted near the house and all the windows were broken.”
The 47-year old said she is feeling better now thanks to being sponsored.
She chose her sponsor family because of her background working with children, and feels they've helped her greatly.
Ms Holovina said: “This is an amazing family. They always support me and help me in everything.”
The UK government statistics show that, as of 28 February 2023, there have been 883 visa applications made under the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship scheme in Sheffield.
Ms Holovina said her niece is worried that she won’t be able to find a sponsor, and that she is concerned that those who were willing to have a Ukrainian guest have already done so.
Anyone who would like to help or view Ms Yakubiv’s original post should visit the Facebook page here.
Sheffield Street Trees Inquiry finds ‘Thousands of healthy and much-loved trees were lost’
Thousands of healthy trees in Sheffield were chopped down unnecessarily, according to an inquiry released today which also accused the City Council of lacking transparency and misleading the public.
The felling took place between 2016 and 2018 and led to daily angry confrontations between protesters and contractors in some of Sheffield's leafiest middle-class suburbs.
A number of people were arrested during the long-running dispute including two pensioners and a middle-aged woman who was arrested for blowing a toy trumpet.
Head of the inquiry, Sir Mark Lowcock, who presented his findings in a live report on the council's website, said: “Thousands of healthy and much-loved trees were lost, many more could have been.
"Sheffield’s reputation was damaged, public trust and confidence in the council was undermined and it has not been fully rebuilt. People on all sides suffered anxiety, stress injuries, wider physical and mental health problems and other harms which some continue to carry.”
Sheffield City Council acknowledged it got several things wrong in the handling of the street trees dispute and have reiterated their apologies.
It said: "We have taken huge steps already to ensure past mistakes are not repeated and we hope the release of this report will further help us to learn lessons as we move forward from the dispute"
The controversial decisions stemmed from a £2.2 billion contract which Sheffield City Council signed with infrastructure services contractor, Amey, in 2009 to resurface pothole-ridden roads and maintain roadside trees over a 25 year period.
The plan was to cut down dead, diseased, dying and dangerous trees but many healthy trees were also destroyed in the process.
The report said the public mood at the time was against the Council and protestors were met with a heavy police presence.
Former United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Sir Lowcock has made several recommendations regarding reconciliation and future risks but said: "Identifying a lesson is not the same as learning it".
Photos take by Paul Selby
Short dance film ‘Chinese Laundry’ wins best in category at the Sheffield Adventure Film Festival
A short dance film displaying the exceptional story of a British Chinese immigrant in South Yorkshire has won the ‘Made in Sheffield’ category during this weekend’s Sheffield Adventure Film Festival (ShAFF).
Produced and acted by Tala Lee-Turton, 'Chinese Laundry' is based on her experience growing up in a Chinese takeaway shop in Barnsley.
Tala, on making the film, said: “It's something that I always thought about, but never really thought of starting until I got a commission opportunity which I applied for and surprisingly won.”
The film's background takes place in the Peak District which is said to reflect the "cyclical banality and frustration experienced from within the daily grind of the dry cleaners, contrasting with aspirations to feel freely Chinese and British."
Tala highlighted the importance of her three-person crew who shot the film in one day, with director Patricia Zhou receiving a special mention,
Of Ms Zhou, Tala said: “She was someone that had experience in front of and behind the camera. She was able to translate my vision, which wasn't necessarily as polished or as clear as it could have been, into something that was actually executable."
The film was screened last Friday at the Showcase Cinema and has received high praise for its unique voice.
Paul Hodgson, ShAFF's music judge, according to the festival's website, said: " [The film is] both a wonderful modern dance film, and an affecting immigration story."
ShAFF is renowned for representing immigrant experiences with an aim of displaying the city’s diversity.
In the 2021 census, figures showed that Sheffield’s non-white British population increased by 6.3%, and that now 25% of the city (141,825 of the population) comes from a non-white British background.
The film is available to watch here.
Northern leaders discuss fixing South Yorkshire’s broken transport systems
The state of South Yorkshire's broken transport network has been a topic of discussion this week as leaders from across the North discuss how to transform public transport.
Mayor Oliver Coppard convened a Transport Summit on 1 March to discuss the future of the region's public transport and bring together experts in the field to help fix the system that has seen thousands of train cancellations.
He said: "My vision is for public transport as a public service, the clue is in the title; trains, buses, bike lanes that create and sustain our communities rather than being at the mercy of officials in London or shareholders in Dubai.
"Getting there won’t be cheap, and it won’t be easy. But if we want to meet the government’s own ambition of a ‘London style public transport system’ by 2030 then we will need the same level of power, money and control over our public transport network as they already have down there."
Trains in South Yorkshire are frequently being cancelled with one of the area's main train lines, TransPennine Express, on track to cancel 23,000 services this year.
Speaking on the TransPennine Express train cancellations, Tracy Brabin, the mayor of West Yorkshire, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: “The first four weeks of this year, over 1700 scheduled services, during that four week period were cancelled.
"If things don’t improve, by the end of the year, 23,000 services will have been cancelled. This is totally unacceptable, and ministers must get a grip.”
We asked members of the public in Sheffield what they thought of the state of the rail service in the North.
This comes as the annual Transport for the North conference will be held today (6 March) in Newcastle.
The conference will bring Northern leaders together to discuss how the lack of investment in transport infrastructure is preventing its success.
North of Tyne Mayor, Jamie Driscoll, said: “I’m alarmed at how bad our transport system has got. Kids can’t get to school. I’ve heard of businesses not opening because staff can’t get to work. The North deserves better.
“Until we get a public transport system that’s as fast as a car, that’s affordable, reliable and where everyone feels safe travelling day or night, we’ll never get the economic lift off we need or tackle the climate emergency.
"With the newly agreed devolved powers on transport, we have a once in a generation opportunity to fix this.”
South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard is unable to attend the conference due to a clash in his schedule.
He has confirmed that while he could not be at Transport for the North, he instead attended a SYMCA board meeting at which "huge sums of funding for active travel" have been agreed.
In his Twitter statement, he said: "As rail fares go up by the largest increase in a decade, scores of passengers stand on platforms across the North, stranded and let down by cancelled or delayed trains.
"I know my fellow Northern Mayors will make it clear that the current state of transport across our regions can’t continue. The system is broken - it’s holding back the well-being of our communities and the growth of our economies."
Sheffield Wednesday fan launches successful football fitness app in wake of rare cancer diagnosis
A passionate Sheffield Wednesday fan has launched a successful football fitness app after a rare cancer diagnosis encouraged him to become more active.
Lee Brown, a mental health community leader from Sheffield, created this new app to try and get football fans out and about after beginning to embrace the outdoors.
The app, called the 'Virtual 92', allows fans to use their daily exercise - whether that be walking, running or cycling - to tick off all 92 grounds on a virtual map up and down the country.
He said: "The positive outlook I had on my cancer battle and doing the fundraising got me into walking.
"It showed the benefits of physical and mental health of exercise. That's where I got the idea from."
Mr Brown was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called Gist back in 2016 which left him with a tumour the size of a football in his stomach.
Even in spite of constant chemotherapy and multiple surgeries, his positivity remained thanks to a new-found love of walking and the outdoors.
It has even led to Lee raising £20,000 for Gist Cancer UK alongside raising an extra £100,000 for other local causes.
Through getting outdoors and being involved in fundraising after his cancer diagnosis, Mr Brown found a new lease of life.
He said: "I wasn't a walker, I was a footballer. I had played football since I was eight-years-old at different levels and coached in America and Australia so I was an active person.
"I wasn't into the actual walking though. That came about when I was struggling with my mental health. I got a love for it then and found virtual challenges."
You can complete the over 2000 mile journey to check the grounds off whenever you want, something that keen runner and football fan David Bayley is attempting.
Running over 300 marathons in total, the 50 year old event organiser has found a new fun motivation using the Virtual 92 app.
He said: “I took up running in 2005 and was hooked instantly going on to run 355 marathons, including all 50 states, ten marathons in ten days on six occasions and 100 mile ultra events on four occasions.
"Having completed all my goals, I was struggling for motivation. The Virtual 92 has kept me motivated and kept me going out.”
Tim O’Hare, an associate professor at University of Plymouth, has also taken up the virtual 92 challenge with exercise positively impacting his life.
He said: “Running, walking and football are central parts of my life and it is hard to imagine life without them.
"Starting running in 2013 was the beginning of a long journey to self-discovery and since then I have been able to cope better with setbacks and stressful times.”
The app isn’t just geared towards marathon runners however, Lee Brown stressed that the app is inclusive and aims to get anyone out and about.
Working with Run End to End, who boast daring challenges such as a run, walk or cycle from Lands End to John O’Groat’s, a community of football and exercise fans have taken to Virtual92 with open arms.
To learn more about the Virtual 92 app, visit their website: https://virtual92.com/