South Yorkshire café and tea room amongst the UK’s 20 most loved local businesses
A Barnsley tea room and Doncaster board game café have been voted two of the UK's most loved businesses out of 4,000 nominees.
The list was created by ShopAppy, an online service which aims to revamp the high street by allowing people to browse, book and buy from local businesses.
Bake Battle and Roll, a board game café in Doncaster and the English Rose Tea Room, Hemingfield beat businesses from 200 towns and cities across the UK to make the list.
Adrian Barnard, who owns the English Rose Tea Room just outside Barnsley, said: "It makes you feel amazing and really proud of what we do, and the enjoyment we give to people to keep them coming back.
"We're a family run business and this makes you feel prouder of that, like what you're doing is valued and worthwhile."
This community spirit is key to the tea room, Mr Barnard said: "We've got a fantastic customer base and loyal customers. So massive thanks to them.
"We know our customers personally, you get to know them as friends as well as customers and they want your business to succeed."
After opening five years ago, their business has gone from strength to strength, opening their new Wombwell tea room opening in March.
As well as the tea room, Mr Barnard's wife Suzie also runs a beauty salon above the café, so customers can enjoy a facial before their afternoon tea.
Another South Yorkshire husband and wife duo also made the list with Bake, Battle and Roll, a board game café in Doncaster.
Rachel Whitehouse, 30, and James Whitehouse, 41, said: "To win a spot in the top 20 was amazing. There's so many great businesses in town. It was really, really great."
The pair attribute their success to going the extra mile, community building and always striving for inclusivity.
According to Rachel, board games offer a unique opportunity to connect with your local community, she said: "I love the community feel of Doncaster in general. It's really nice to put your phones down for a bit and have a conversation over a board game.
"Everyone talks to everyone here which is really, really awesome."
After the café was forced to move online just a year after opening, the owners continued their business online, hosting Dungeons and Dragons games, quizzes and more.
But Rachel and James missed the community they had built around the café. They told the Sheffield Wire: "If you want to buy a board game from Amazon, you go online and get them. But what you can't get is someone who will help you to play it, you can't get the community."
As the pandemic eases, their business continues to grow, and will soon move to a bigger location on Cleveland Street, Doncaster.
These two South Yorkshire businesses were amongst 14 winners from Yorkshire and 4,000 nominations from all over the UK. If you would like to nominate a South Yorkshire business or find more small businesses near you, visit ShopAppy.
“It feels like a stab in the back”: Salon in Crookes left vandalised with smashed windows
A salon in Crookes had its windows smashed in on Saturday night, leaving the owner “sad and frustrated”.
According to CCTV footage, the incident occurred between 3am and 4am, when an unknown suspect threw concrete through Salon 130's window on Crookes High Street.
Lauren Adams, the owner of the salon said: “It feels like a stab in the back.
“We've gone through 10 months of being closed with Covid and now I feel like I need to plough money into the business when I haven’t got any and it shouldn’t be necessary.”
Following the damage, the community came together to support the local business.
Ms Adams said: “The community response was brilliant, even random people that I don’t know searched for the salon on Facebook and tried to contact me there to help.”
According to the owner, there was another attempt to gain entry to her salon a few nights ago, which failed. Despite the damage to the window on Saturday, no goods were taken, and there are no valuables left in the shop overnight.
Caroline Taylor, a senior stylist at the salon said: “It’s a lovely community and it’s so unusual to see such random acts of violence, we’re trying to build the business back up so it’s really quite sad and shocking.
“We want the other businesses to be aware and pull together as a community to act as a restraint against people who think they can behave like this.”
The police have been made aware of both attempted robberies, and the salon will be back open as normal from Wednesday.
Sheffield Council says “you can trust us” as former Leader calls for Kate Josephs’ resignation
The Deputy Leader of Sheffield City Council has told Sheffield Wire the council can "very much be trusted" despite a budget crisis and an ongoing investigation into chief executive Kate Josephs. Cllr Julie Grocutt refused to say what the investigation into Ms Josephs, who admitted attending her own leaving party in the Cabinet Office in December 2020, is aiming to establish. The Labour councillor, who is also chairing the investigation, could not be drawn on how long the people of Sheffield will have to wait for an outcome. Ms Josephs was head of the COVID-19 taskforce during lockdown and is currently on paid leave from her £192,000-a-year role at Sheffield Council after apologising for her leaving party just minutes before The Daily Telegraph broke the news she was there.
When given the right to reply Kate Josephs did not respond. In the meantime, Eugene Walker, executive director of resources, will now take up the role of interim chief executive at Sheffield City Council. Cllr Grocutt said: "Eugene has been around a long time, he knows Sheffield well, he knows the council well. He's ideally placed to take over at this point in time."I am today making a statement. I am truly sorry. pic.twitter.com/xWByiiKfV3
— Kate Josephs (@katejosephs) January 14, 2022
Above: Lord Scriven
But Lord Scriven, who was Leader of Sheffield City Council for three years until 2011, said the Council is now in the "ridiculous situation" of having two chief executives. Lord Scriven said: "This is expensive confusion and it shows a lack of serious leadership by the Leader and Deputy Leader of the council." He pointed out Ms Josephs could still have full access to her e-mails and could still send letters out as the chief executive of Sheffield City Council as she has not been suspended.The Liberal Democrat called for Kate Josephs to resign, saying she does not have the "moral authority to be the chief executive". With council tax rising for all residents in Sheffield by three percent - the maximum legal amount possible - the issue of whether people in the city have confidence in the council hangs in the balance. Cllr Grocutt said: "People who don't trust the council actually need to take a step back and look at what we're doing and what we've managed to do over a number of years with reduced budgeting and the fact that as a city, we've never lost our ambition."Former Leader of Sheffield City Council @Paulscriven says Kate Josephs should be suspended from her £192,000-a-year role pic.twitter.com/n1XiqClRHK
— Sheffield Wire (@Sheffield_Wire) February 21, 2022
She urged anyone struggling to pay their council tax to contact their local councillor for support and blamed the rise on the government cutting council spending by 21% over the past decade. The council's priorities for the year head, Cllr Grocutt said, are keeping people safe and "making the most of the outdoors" by maintaining parks and open spaces.Deputy Leader of Sheffield City Council talks about @SheffCouncil's record pic.twitter.com/aOshPP3gvf
— Sheffield Wire (@Sheffield_Wire) February 21, 2022
‘Scared’, ‘Intimidated’, and ‘Unsafe’ to use Crookes Valley Park
An online petition has been launched to push Sheffield council to install better pathway lighting on Crookes Valley Park, where many people described their experience as "scared", "intimidated", and "unsafe" while accessing the venue. This unlit park is recognised as a serious risk of sexual violence and drownings for the many who use the green space in the dark. Amelia Hancock, 21, the founder of petition of Light Crookes Valley Park Up said: “COVID-19 has taught everybody to make use of our local green spaces. Crookes Valley Park is a precious space that is enjoyed by the local community. “However, encouraging even greater use of the park while not investing in safety measures is negligent and irresponsible at best, callous at worst.” A sexual assault was reported at Weston Park in which a 21-year-old victim woke up without memory in 2017, which led to a similar online petition urging Sheffield Council to install additional lighting. While some lights were achieved at Weston Park, adjacent Crookes Valley Park remains unlit. Date from Police UK showcases there were six recorded violent crimes from January to October 2021. In early 2021, Our Bodies Our Streets gathered over 3,000 signatures on a petition with a series of demands to Sheffield Council. They demanded better lighting in parks to help women and minority groups feel safer. Despite the 5,600 signatures the petition has now, moving presentations given to the council and a well-run campaign, responsibility was waived. Ms Hancock said path lighting serves as a crime deterrent to enhance the chances that an offender will be noticed by a witness and so recognised, but the concrete process was frustrating. She said: “Undoubtedly, wider change is required to erase the issue of violent attacks, but the council has the opportunity to quite literally provide light in future situations and perhaps even prevent them. "In fact, the concrete was not broken at all with not a single light installed.” It is believed going through the park is the most convenient way home for students who study at Western Bank Library and the Information Commons. Additionally, the park is incredibly important for those attending Sheffield Children's Hospital or Royal Hallamshire Hospital as staff and patients. Ms Hancock said: “Our well-used park cannot be an afterthought, we cannot wait for the next horrifying publicised incident to try to scare our representatives into action. The city council is yet to respond.
Return of Sheffield Music Trails announced in lifeline to local venues
A free music festival is returning to Sheffield after last year’s originally one-off event was a “massive success” in helping independent music venues recover from Covid. Sheffield Music Trails is a day of free live music in a walkable trail across 19 venues on 2 April. The event is organised by The Leadmill with the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority and Sheffield City Council. Ben Hartley, live promoter at The Leadmill, said: "It's a wonderful advertisement that we're all back in business. Customer confidence is definitely returning and with the event being free entry it's the perfect excuse for music lovers to get out and visit these venues." https://youtu.be/ioRJ5fTPNOc Additional footage from The Leadmill of 2021 Sheffield Music Trails Ben said: "This whole project started out because we've been given so much support from both the council and customers that had visited our venue over the last 4 decades, and put us in a strong position to be able to extend a hand to other excellent venues in the city." Independent music venue and bar Sidney&Matilda, like many, struggled during the pandemic with closures and 'lockdowns by stealth', when people were warned against going to crowded places such as bars and nightclubs. Ollie Parker, Events and Bookings Manager at Sidney&Matilda, said of last year's event: "It was a massive success, we had around 200 people and the bar filled up." He said the event encouraged more people to check out new venues and participate in Sheffield's grassroots music scene. A year on, the impact of the Omicron variant in December has put further pressure on venues, as customers were wary to head out during what would normally be a busy period. He said: "Because the pandemic was a real struggle for music venues, just having an event where all the venues are working together is a way of being united against the adversity the industry has experienced." The funding comes in part from the £1 million funding allocated from Additional Restrictions Grants from the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA). Kate Brindley, Project Director for Arts, Culture & Heritage for SYMCA, said: “Music is a huge part of Sheffield cultural makeup, with a proud and storied history of producing some of the country’s most loved musical talent. "South Yorkshire’s MCA is passionate about supporting arts, culture and heritage, and aiding it’s recovery from the pandemic as one of the hardest hit sectors."
The heroes of Endcliffe Park: 78 years on from the Mi Amigo plane crash
After two years of COVID restrictions and further postponements due to the weather over the weekend, a memorial service in honour of the Mi Amigo plane crash victims took place at St Augustine's Church at Brocco Bank yesterday. 22 February will mark 78 years since a US B-17 aircraft called 'Mi Amigo' crashed in an area of woodland adjacent to Endcliffe Park due to engine failure during World War II. The plane's pilot, John Kriegshauser, was able to divert the aircraft away from a group of children playing in the park as it crashed into a forest nearby. All ten members of the US air crew on board the plane perished in the crash. Pilot Kriegshauser was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for the courage he showed to sacrifice his crew in order to prevent the further loss of life in the park. Unfortunately, the RAF were forced to cancel this year's official remembrance ceremony at the Mi Amigo memorial at Endcliffe Park as a result of the ongoing adverse weather.
The Mi Amigo plane crash memorial in Endcliffe Park is kept in great condition by local resident Tony Foulds.
Doncaster Knights snatch win from Hartpury
The Doncaster Knights were victorious against Hartpury 11-10 at the weekend. The tough match was worsened by weather conditions at Castle Park. Whilst Doncaster dominated the first half, Hartpury reeled it back in the second half, scoring 10-8. The Knights then seized back the game, with Sam Olver scoring a penalty at the death, in a thrilling turn of events. He said: “I think throughout the season we’ve had tight games, we’ve come to a lot of them, and it does bring you closer together, so hopefully leading into the next three games, it puts us in a good position.” The South Yorkshire team will now move onto one of their most important matches, against Ealing next weekend. They fear the latter will have a better side, will therefore need to up their game to secure a win. The Knights have three more points than Ealing, and also have the advantage of two more games. Steve Boden, Head Coach of the Doncaster Knights, said: “We’ve got to go to Ealing next week which is going to be a ridiculously hard fixture. I think they’re a brilliant side, so we’ve got that to work on. We’ve got to run ourselves up and get ready for a huge challenge at the weekend."
“Barclays needs to be held accountable”: Climate groups launch UK wide campaign against fossil fuel investors
Climate activists in Sheffield have launched a week-long marathon protest today against Barclays bank due to its consistent investments into fossil fuels.
Extinction Rebellion (XR) Sheffield and XR Youth Sheffield are two of the groups taking part in this UK wide campaign Better without Barclays demanding change and encouraging people to switch banks.
Barclays, out of all the European banks, is the biggest funder of fossil fuels. It is providing more than £86 billion in funding from 2016-2019.
Polly Hallam, 19, member of XR Youth Sheffield said: "Barclays needs to be held accountable, because if what they use all our money for is kept in the dark, then we can't really change it."
She continued: "We hope to show how committed we are to this cause and hopeful to show the people of Sheffield that it's really easy to switch your bank account."
XR Sheffield and XR Youth Sheffield are planning a series of actions outside the bank's branch at Pinstone Street, Sheffield, from 21 February to 26 February, including street talks and theatre performances.
Graham Rowe, 62, member of XR Sheffield said: "Climate change is an absolute nightmare, we've seen it this weekend, this is what climate change means.
"It means increasingly worse storms, it means droughts, it means food shortages because farmers aren’t going to be able to grow their crops anymore. It's got to stop."
When speaking about Barclays specifically, Mr Rowe said the bank needs to switch to renewable energy and help people to insulate their homes and invest their money sensibly, rather than investing in a "nightmare future."
The recent Banking on Climate Chaos report estimated Barclays has been Europe’s worst financier of fossil fuels by a margin of 31%, since the Paris Agreement was signed. The agreement aimed to limit future heating by reducing carbon emissions.
A Barclays spokesperson said: “We are aligning our entire financing portfolio to support the goals of the Paris Agreement - significantly scaling up green financing, directly investing in new green technologies and helping clients in key sectors change their business models to reduce their climate change impact.
"By 2025, we will reduce the emissions intensity of our power portfolio by 30%, and reduce absolute emissions of our energy portfolio by 15%. Increasing at pace, our capital markets business has already facilitated £46bn of green finance.
"We are one of the only banks globally investing our own capital – £175m – into innovative, green start-ups. By deploying finance in this way, we are accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy and will become a net zero bank by 2050.”
Climate groups will continue to protest and demand change, and Polly from XR Youth Sheffield said: "We're not going to stop telling people how awful Barclays are and we’re not going to stop telling people how important it is that we just take away the source of money which is funding the climate crisis."
The next national rebellion by Extinction Rebellion is planned for 9 April in Hyde Park, London to take action and demand an end to the fossil economy.
Sheffield domestic abuse services to receive extra support through the levelling up fund
A national support fund of £125 million has been announced by the government to support domestic abuse victims. Hollie Venn, CEO of Women’s Aid Sheffield is delighted that Sheffield City Council have been allocated around £1.3 million of the money. This provision of these services is vital for the wellbeing of women and children, Ms Venn added: “it gives them a safe space to be able to cope and a period of reflection, and a safe space to be able to recover from the trauma.”
Thought board in the women's refuge
Anger at ‘authoritarian’ measures in response to University of Sheffield building occupation
Students aired their disgust over the weekend at "hostile" policy aimed at identifying protestors from the University of Sheffield after a university building was "occupied". From 15 February to 18 February, students took over the Hicks building, protesting in solidarity with an ongoing national University and College Action (UCU) strike over "deteriorating pay" and working conditions. Twitter account Uni of Sheffield Rent Strike coordinating the protests, claims students in the Hicks building were told they could only retrieve their items after providing valid identification and a signature. Representatives from the University of Sheffield branch of the UCU told Sheffield Wire: “These actions by university management are aggressively punitive and hostile towards the students engaged in this occupation. “The decision to separate students from their property by locking a door was a deliberate one, and to treat it as “lost property” and require students to provide ID to reclaim it is an overtly threatening move on the part of management.” It was one of the five university buildings to be occupied throughout the week, along with the Diamond, Jessop West, Firth Court, and the Arts Tower.
University of Sheffield Court order displayed outside the Hicks Building
Top of the table Rotherham prepare to host a struggling Morecambe in Tuesday’s League One clash
Rotherham go into the Morecambe fixture having drawn against second placed Wigan Athletic in a tense fixture last Friday. An Ollie Rathbone strike in the 75th minute was enough to rescue a point for the high-flying Millers at the New York Stadium. Rotherham are currently six points ahead at the top of the league, a win against Morecambe would once again prove their status as contenders for the League One title. First team coach Matt Hamshaw summarised the atmosphere of the Wigan fixture, saying: “I thought it was a really entertaining game. I thought you could feel a bit of tension with it being first against.” Interest is building at the New York stadium as pundits are beginning to speculate the Millers chances of making an immediate return to the Championship after finishing 23rd in the 2020-21 season. On the topic of whether Rotherham had a unique team spirit, Hamshaw said: “If somebody wants to have an on-field fight with us, we'll have it, if somebody wants to play, we can play. We have different aspects of this team that can meet those requirements.”
Image: Matt Hamshaw, Credit Rotherham United FC
Building Safety Bill: Sheffield residents demand more support for unsafe cladding
Residents in unsafe high-rise buildings in Sheffield have called for the government to provide more support for the remediation of their homes. It came as Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove announced the Building Safety Bill last week. This would mean no leaseholder living in medium or high-rise buildings would "pay a penny" for the removal of dangerous cladding according to Gove. But Olivia Hill, a PhD student who bought a flat in Mandale House, Sheffield in 2019 may still be liable to pay thousands of pounds to fix the fire risks in her building. For 18 months, she and those in her building were paying £10,000 per month for a constant on-site fire warden. In 2020, a year after she bought the flat, the building failed its cladding safety test, receiving a B2 rating -- the worst of its kind. Plasterboard in the building is also flammable, meaning the final-year PhD student is still liable to pay the whole cost for corrective insulation work.
Above: Mandale House, Bailey Street
Miss Hill, who is part of Sheffield Cladding Action Group, spoke of the mental toll of living in the building, saying: "It's so all-consuming of your brain. It's mentally draining to keep up with everything that's happening. I'm not a building developer or a quantity surveyor." She told Sheffield Wire how a full fire evacuation at 3am left her in a "panic". "Knowing how catastrophic it could be at our building, it was extra daunting to walk outside to five fire engines and teams storming into the building," Miss Hill said. The draft legislation states those living in buildings over 11m high will not pay over £10,000 to remove flammable cladding if the original developers cannot pay. Other areas of buildings, such as insulation, are not covered by the proposals at all. So far, the government has not provided an estimate of how many people could be left to pay thousands of pounds. Although the draft legislation proposes to give courts powers to go after shell companies, if it is not possible to trace them, residents are still liable to pay up to £10,000 for the cladding removal. Miss Hill, who is part of Sheffield Cladding Action Group, said: "I don't think leaseholders should be paying to correct any historic defects, and the Bill should be inclusive of all fire safety-related costs." Her view is echoed by Sheffield Central MP Paul Blomfield, who said: "Recent announcements from the government are just a sticking plaster and don’t cover many of the problems caused by non-cladding related safety defects in certain blocks." William Martin, a leaseholder of a dangerous high-rise in Sheffield and the founder of UK Cladding Action Group, is also calling for the government to do more. He says the issue is first and foremost about keeping people safe. Mr Martin said: "We've lost count the number of times that the government has said that we shouldn't have to pay to make buildings safe. "But this is them writing into law that if you have tried to go after the original building owner, and you haven't had any luck with that, you're well within your rights to bill a leaseholder ten grand." Housing and public law solicitor Christian Hansen said the announcements were positive for residents, but lacked the details needed to provide certainty. He warned of "potential high costs liability" for those living in unsafe high-rises. The Department for Levelling Up did not respond to our request for comment.