New Mayor of Erewash The new Mayor of Erewash is Councillor Abey Stevenson, who was formally elected to the role during Erewash Borough Council’s annual meeting on12th May.
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JUNE 2016
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Acrobatics, code-breaking and cooking with a French chef…
Kirk Hallam students try something different Students at Kirk Hallam Community Academy enjoyed a range of diverse activities including an acrobatic workshop and cooking with a French chef in a bid to boost their confidence. Students selected from Year 10 took part in the More Able Day at the academy which was designed to teach them real-life skills. They participated in a workshop with a thea-
Top: Georgia Smith (15), chef Chris Ince and Emily Middleton (14) taking part in the cookery sessions. Above: students supporting fellow student Lewis Scully (15) in a trust exercise. Left: the Enigma machine which was at school.
tre group called Frantic Assembly where they worked in teams and had a go at acrobatics and performing. A chef worked with students to prepare lunch but he delivered his instructions to them in French and ex-student Alex Ktenidis returned to talk about how he gained a job with an international company which has bases across the world. Students were also given the opportunity to get up close to an Enigma machine from Bletchley Park which was used to crack codes in World War Two. Ben Wilkinson, Head of English and part of the Senior Leadership Team at Kirk Hallam Community Academy, said the aim of the day was to help students develop skills that they could use later in life. He said: “There is a lot of focus on exam results and academic expectations but students need those real-life skills if they are going to go off and be successful in the world. There’s not that much time to think about where they see themselves in the future and what success means to them. “They need to have confidence and not be afraid to challenge themselves. They also need to be able to work with people they don’t know. It’s all about taking them out of their comfort zone and being proud of what they have achieved by the end of the day. “The theatre workshop was fantastic, the students looked at different ways of expressing themselves and they got braver as time went on. And they really enjoyed working with the chef and it taught them how to work in another language.” Student Natasha Burton, 14, said she thoroughly enjoyed the day. She said: “I liked the whole day; it was great to work with people who I hadn’t worked with before. I think a day like this helps to build confidence because we were trying different things that we hadn’t experienced before.” Student Libby Halford, 14, said her favourite part of the day was cooking with the French chef. She said: “He did a demonstration and we were put into different groups and cooked different food for the staff and students. I really enjoyed it, especially as we got to work with people we hadn’t worked with before.” Alex Ktenidis, 24, said he hoped his talk had inspired the current students. He said: “I talked about my experience of being here at school and then what I have done since. My message really is that you can go off and be successful. They’ve all got potential as long as they realise that it’s down to them to take the opportunities that are presented to them and that they shouldn’t let anything hold them back.”
Councillor Stevenson has represented the Little Eaton and Breadsall Ward on the Borough Council since 2011, which also covered Morley. In 2015 he was re-elected to represent the ward, which now also includes Stanley. During his mayoral year, Councillor Stevenson will be supported at civic engagements by his wife Anne, while his daughters Sara Abigail Oakes and Johanna McNeill will also step in for some events. He will be accompanied at various events by the Mayor’s Cadets from the Derbyshire Air Cadet Force, the Air Training Squadron and the Long Eaton Sea Cadets. Events will be held throughout the year to raise money for the Mayor’s ‘charity pot’ from which charitable groups and organisations from within the borough will benefit at the end of his term of office. HONOURED Councillor Stevenson is looking forward to representing the residents of Erewash during his civic year: “I feel very honoured to have been elected as Mayor and it is my greatest pleasure to serve not only the Borough Council but also the residents of our wonderful borough during my civic year.” Councillor Stevenson was born in Bombay and moved to England where he joined Loughborough College to study Mechanical Engineering. After university he joined International Combustion in Derby in the contracts department and then the project man-
Cllr Abey Stevenson agement team on the Dungeness Nuclear Power Station. After leaving IC Limited he and Anne set up Ziggi’s, a fashion store, on Sadler Gate in Derby and Victoria Street in Nottingham, both of which included the popular ‘The Q in the Corner’ coffee shop. Both he and his wife retired from the business in 2009. In his spare time, the Mayor is a keen car enthusiast and enjoys going to events to display his cars, while he and his wife also enjoy spending time with their family – they have a son in the USA, two daughters, eight grandchildren and five great grandchildren. The Reverend Gill Turner-Callis of St Andrew’s Church in Stanley Village, will be the Mayor’s Chaplain for the 2016/17 civic year. The new Deputy Mayor of Erewash is Councillor Mary Hopkinson, who represents the Little Hallam Ward on the Borough Council.