Community Chesterfield celebrates Business Awards shortlist

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Community Chesterfield has been shortlisted in the Derbyshire Business Awards as part of the project’s successful partnership with Derbyshire Voluntary Action (DVA) and the University of Derby.

The project has been announced as a finalist in the Excellence in Collaboration category at the prestigious awards, which are organised by the East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, and Leicestershire).

The category recognises organisations that have worked together for a common goal and that have combined their skills to demonstrate what can be achieved through collaborative working.

Community Chesterfield, a National Lottery funded project, aims to link up the skills, knowledge and experience that exist within Chesterfield’s voluntary and community sector (VCS) with those of the University of Derby.

By bringing the university and community together, it is creating a resourceful, experienced and knowledgeable health and social care sector in Chesterfield and fantastic learning and personal development opportunities for members of the University of Derby at Chesterfield. 

Project activities include offering training and shared learning opportunities with University staff and students, as well as members of the local VCS; work placements and research projects with real life applications; volunteering opportunities within Chesterfield's community and other ways of creating meaningful connections.

Charlotte Repton, project manager at Community Chesterfield, said: “Since its launch in 2019, the partnership between Derbyshire Voluntary Action and the University of Derby has gone from strength to strength and we’re thrilled that this has been recognised at the Derbyshire Business Awards.

“At the heart of everything within the project has been the desire to uncover and nourish opportunities for new relationships, collaborations and innovation and to link university staff, students and programmes with community-based groups, places and initiatives. 

“We have done this by harnessing and maximising the potential of our extensive networks within Chesterfield, our intelligence and knowledge – particularly in the field of health and wellbeing - and existing well-established relationships across all sectors. It is this collaborative working that has led to the project’s success.”

Denise Baker, Deputy Dean of the College of Health, Psychology and Social Care at the University of Derby said: “It is wonderful news that our collaborative venture with Derbyshire Voluntary Action has been nominated for this award.

“Being a force for positive impact in our region is a key pillar of the University’s commitment to our county and its communities, and the Community Chesterfield initiative empowers our staff and students to do just that.

“Supporting the recent Careers that Care Week, providing academic-led sessions for DVA events and enabling students to take up internship opportunities are just some of the ways our expertise in healthcare and wellbeing has been utilised to complement the DVA’s excellent work.”

The East Midlands Chamber awards are split into three events for each county - Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire – and more than 160 organisations have been recognised as finalists in total.

The award winners will be chosen during a virtual judging day in July, which will see a panel made up of category sponsors, a Chamber board member and a representative from the Chamber’s senior leadership team. An overall Business of the Year is also selected from all the finalists for each county.

The Derbyshire Business Awards will take place on Friday 12 November.