ABOUT 1,000 people took the chance to learn more about Sikhism at an event in Derby on Saturday.

Visitors to Urban Turban had the chance to see an exhibition in the Market Place on the challenges faced by Sikhs.

The exhibition also covered the part Sikh men played in the two world wars.

And visitors could also try out turbans for size.

Organiser Natasha Kaur said: "Bringing an event like this into the city gives people a great chance to learn.

"The feedback has been very positive, with people saying it has opened their eyes to our religion.

"We want to make people at ease around the culture and that has definitely been achieved.

"I know people have also had a lot of fun trying on the turbans, which is a nice part of the event.

"There is a lack of awareness and people should come to these sort of events to find out more about the history."

The event featured marquees and gazebos, each containing different activities.

BLACKBURN Rovers have signed defender Shane Duffy from Everton for an undisclosed fee.
The Republic of Ireland international has joined Rovers on a three-year contract.
Duffy, 22, made 10 appearances for Everton and spent last season on loan at Yeovil Town.

MIDDLESBROUGH have signed striker Jelle Vossen and winger Yanic Wildschut.
Belgium international striker Vossen joins from Genk on a season-long loan.
The 25-year-old has scored 105 goals in 244 league games for the Belgian club.
Former Holland under-21 international Wildschut arrives on a permanent basis, for an undisclosed fee.
The 22-year-old started out in the Ajax academy and had a loan spell at Eredivisie side Den Haag last season.
He has put pen to paper on an initial two-year contract with Boro.

WIGAN Athletic have also made a double deadline day swoop.
The Latics have signed 22-year-old French striker Andy Delort from Tours FC for an undisclosed fee.
According to Wigan, they beat off competition from the likes of Queens Park Rangers, Wolverhampton Wanderers Charlton Athletic, Brentford and French club Lille.
The Lancashire club have also secured the services of midfielder Adam Forshaw from Brentford on a four-year deal.
The 22-year-old is seen by manager Uwe Rosler as a replacement for the departed Jordi Gomez.
Brentford boss Mark Warburton claims the Bees struck a deal worth more than £3m for the player.

VETERAN defender Danny Gabbidon is set to return to former club Cardiff City as a player-coach.
The 35-year-old Wales international is a free agent after being released by Crystal Palace.

A DERBYSHIRE pub has been forced to close after health inspectors saw a live mouse as well as droppings on plates and next to drinking glasses in the bar.

The shocking discovery was made at the Steamboat Inn at Trent Lock, Sawley, last Wednesday and the pub was forced to close on Friday.

Mouse droppings were found under kitchen equipment, close to food serving and food preparation equipment such as the microwave oven and on plates.

A live mouse was also seen during the visit.

Further investigation in the bar area found mouse droppings on shelves where drinking glasses being used for customers were stored, while evidence of mice was also found in other parts of the premises.

A Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice was served by Erewash Borough Council and subsequently confirmed by Southern Derbyshire Magistrates' Court.

The council says the pub will remain closed until the business can put measures in place to remove the risk to public health.

An officer from the council's food health and safety team visited the pub after two separate complaints from members of the public about mice at the premises.

The council served Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notices for food preparation and for the 'wet sales' area, which effectively closed the whole premises.

Councillor Barbara Harrison, Erewash Borough Council's lead member for environment, said: "It was important that we acted quickly after concerns were raised by members of the public.

"Our primary aim in these situations is to protect the health of the public and finding mouse droppings close to food serving equipment is a serious risk.

"Our food health and safety team is also there to help businesses and the business owner in this case has co-operated with us fully.

"We will continue to work and support them to help resolve this issue."

DERBYSHIRE applied the pressure but without luck as Worcestershire began their first innings reply on the second day of their LV County Championship match against Worcestershire at the 3aaa County Ground.

With Alex Hughes and Tony Palladino taking their ninth-wicket partnership on to 58, Derbyshire were finally bowled out for 356 in their first innings before Mark Footitt struck in the third over of the Worcestershire reply.

But Derbyshire could not break through after that in spite of beating the edge of the bat countless times as the Division Two leaders reached 126-1 at tea.

Hughes added only one run to his overnight score before he was lbw to Charlie Morris for 74, giving the young Worcestershire bowler the first five-wicket haul of his career. He finished with 5-54.

Derbyshire were nine runs short of another batting point then but two fours in an over from Footitt took them beyond 350.

The end of the innings came when Palladino drove firmly and Morris deflected the ball on to the stumps at the non-striker's end, catching Footitt (11) out of his ground. Palladino was 38 not out.

Footitt gave Richard Oliver a very uncomfortable time before the opener looped a return catch and went for one at 1-1.

Footitt's six-over spell brought him 1-13 and he caused plenty more problems straight after the interval. Palladino, Hughes and Wayne White also bowled good spells but Daryl Mitchell (67) and Tom Fell (47) batted through the session.

Mitchell was dropped at gully on 40 but reached his half-century off 134 balls.

Police investigating the disappearance of a woman who was last seen in 1978 have renewed an appeal for information.

The missing woman gave her name as Susan Banner after attending a women's refuge in Derbyshire in December 1977.

She told staff that she had left an abusive relationship with a man from Wolverhampton, and had been living in the Manor Road area of Derby before heading to the refuge.

On the afternoon of January 5, 1978, she left the refuge to view a flat but never turned up for that viewing, and did not return to the refuge.

She has not been seen since that day.

Susan, who was of Irish origin, gave a date of birth of December 25, 1939, which would have made her 39 at the time of her disappearance, and 74 today.

However, detectives investigating her disappearance believe she may have given a false name and date of birth.

She was white, about 5ft 4in, of thin build and a pale complexion. She had light, greying hair.

When she was last seen, Susan was wearing a khaki green shirt, brown and white jumper and a green belted raincoat, with a brown and cream zipped shopping bag.

Despite extensive police inquiries since her disappearance, Susan's whereabouts and true identity have not been discovered.

Police are now re-appealing for information from anyone who lived in Derby in 1977/78 and knew of an Irish woman fitting the description, who may have been using the name Susan Banner.

The appeal is not related to any breakthrough in the case or new information.

Anyone who can help the investigation should call Sergeant John Troup on 101.

Rachel Wibberley, MP for Derbyshire in the UK Youth Parliament, explains why she feels politics should matter for young people.

I RECENTLY attended an annual meeting of the British Youth Council to debate issues that we feel are most important to young people.

These 96 issues were then short-listed via an online voting process for 11-18-year-olds in order to reveal the top 10 most important issues for young people.

The majority of youngsters who read this won't have the faintest idea what the UKYP is, and this is because our generation is currently politically disengaged and unaware and therefore limited as to what influential changes they can make by interacting with their UKYP members and local MPs.

We have the power to change that.

Nine out of 10 18-year-olds said they didn't vote because they felt as if they didn't have sufficient information to be able to and I'm proud to say that the UKYP is now campaigning for a "curriculum for life" which prepares students for challenges they may face in their life ahead and includes political education.

Along with thousands of others, I feel it is imperative that young people get involved in the democratic process because it gives them a chance to impact upon decisions that are made in their area that will have a direct effect on their lives.

For those young people who sit back and moan about their government and local policies etc, YOU CAN do something about it and make a positive change! Simply contact their local MYP (Member of Youth Parliament) – in Derbyshire's case you could contact me – and make me aware of the matter.

The issues raised to me will be taken to national meetings and, if many 11-18 year olds are passionate about a certain topic, then it could even be taken to our annual House of Commons debate in November.

I want to stress to 11-18s, that YOU have a right to a say in decisions that are made in your area and YOU have a right to disagree or help campaign for things that you would like to happen and, just because you're under 18 this doesn't mean that your input isn't important or valid because after all, we are the future generation and decisions made in parliament today, will essentially affect us tomorrow.

Since being elected as MYP for Derbyshire and immersing myself in campaigns and the democratic process, I've gained so much knowledge on what young people truly want and how to put together an effective argument in order to fight for what we want.

Understanding politics has given me the confidence to speak out about things that matter to me and those around me the most and allowed me to comment upon them in an effective way, whilst being taken seriously by members of parliament.

I feel young people who get involved in the democratic process are genuinely taken seriously and treated with much more respect from their government and taken into consideration when legislation is passed. We are also currently campaigning for young people to have more legislative powers so that we are ALWAYS considered before decisions are made and treated equally and with respect regardless of their age. At our annual sitting at Lancaster University in July I shared the views of Derbyshire's residents in front of MYPs from the rest of the UK in a large debate and even had the confidence to ask Commons speaker John Bercow for a "selfie", as engaging in politics has given me and many others a huge boost in confidence, especially when conversing with authoritative figures.

On August 12, our national campaign called "Make Your Mark" was launched. This is where the top 10 issues shortlisted by MYPs are put into a list and from this list we need every person in the UK aged 11-18 to pick just one issue that they feel is most important or relevant to them. From the voting process, the top five issues will be taken forward to our House of Commons debate in November this year and hopefully passed officially, making a significant change in legislation. The aim is to get as many votes as possible in the Make Your Mark campaign so that youngsters are represented in Parliament in the best way possible and everyone has the chance to have their own input in what will happen in their community. Last year in this campaign, we received 497,000 votes from 11-18-year-olds in the UK, so this year we are aiming for a million.

I encourage you all to vote because we need to work together in order to make a real difference, and the more people there are voting, the more likely our wishes are going to be granted by MPs.

I will be going into schools in Derbyshire to promote the vote as I have pledged to get 10,000 votes myself for Derbyshire and I cannot do that without your help.

I would say a youngster's vote in the Make Your mark Campaign is as important to the UKYP as an adult's vote in a general election. To bring about change you need to act upon it, to vote for what you stand for, to encourage your children to become involved in democracy by voting in our national campaign.

I will be making my way around Derbyshire with my ballot papers, but the easiest way to vote is online at https://www.mi-voice.com/mym/

If you would like to discuss any Youth Council matters, do not hesitate to contact me at rachwibb@hotmail.co.uk

FORMER Real Madrid man Royston Drenthe has joined Sheffield Wednesday from Reading on loan.
The Dutch midfielder made 24 appearances for the Royals last season, scoring twice, after joining from Russian outfit Alania Vladikavkaz.
But the 27-year-old has not figured for Nigel Adkins' side so far this term and has linked up with the Owls until January 2.

MISSED appointments are not helping the rising demand on GP surgeries, according to Dr Buk Dhadda.

The GP with Gresleydale Health Centre, in Swadlincote, said: "Most practices could make more appointments available if they knew in good time that a patient was unable to attend.

"A recent survey showed that Derby GP practices could have seen at least 4,300 more patients between 2013 and 2014 if they had not been waiting for people who failed to keep appointments.

"If patients can't keep their appointment, all they have to do is call the surgery as soon as possible or pop in and see the receptionist if they're passing.

"In addition, many surgeries now have an online option for patients needing to cancel an appointment – although this normally has to happen more than 24 hours in advance. Just search for your practice online or ask the receptionist for details."

THE reward for Derbyshire's pressure came after tea on the second day of their LV County Championship match against Worcestershire at the 3aaa County Ground.

Worcestershire, often by riding their luck, were 126-1 at the end of the second session but Mark Footitt struck straight after tea and Derbyshire ended the day still ahead by 135 with the away side 221-6.

Footitt finished with 4-61 but all four Derbyshire seamers could be very happy with their day's work.

With Alex Hughes and Tony Palladino taking their ninth-wicket partnership on to 58, Derbyshire were finally bowled out for 356 in their first innings.

Hughes added only one run to his overnight score before he was lbw to Charlie Morris for 74, giving the young Worcestershire bowler the first five-wicket haul of his career. He finished with 5-54.

Derbyshire were nine runs short of another batting point then but two fours in an over from Footitt took them beyond 350.

The end of the innings came when Palladino drove firmly and Morris deflected the ball on to the stumps at the non-striker's end, catching Footitt (11) out of his ground. Palladino was 38 not out.

Footitt gave Richard Oliver a very uncomfortable time before the opener looped a return catch and went for one at 1-1 in the third over.

Footitt's six-over spell brought him 1-13 and he caused plenty more problems straight after the interval. Palladino, Hughes and Wayne White also bowled good spells but Daryl Mitchell (67) and Tom Fell (47) batted through the session.

Mitchell was dropped at gully on 40 but finally went to the third ball after tea as he was bowled offering no shot for 67, made off 168 balls with nine fours.

Two balls later, Alexei Kervezee was caught behind for nought off Footitt and Derbyshire were on top again. When Tom Kohler-Cadmore drove Footitt straight to point for 10, Worcestershire were 144-4.

White had the first wicket of his second spell for the club when he bowled Ben Cox for 14 at 169-5 and David Wainwright finally ended the 194-ball stay of Fell (70) with a catch to midwicket at 191-6.

Derbyshire had a burst with the new ball before the close but Joe Leach (32) and Shaaiq Choudry (9) made it through to the close.

A WORKER at a Derby engineering firm is celebrating after racking up half a century of loyal service.

George Ball, of Oakwood, joined Davis Derby as an engineering apprentice in August 1964 at the tender age of 15.

Today, Mr Ball, 65, is services manager at the firm and is showing no signs of wanting to retire.

He decided to become an apprentice with Davis Derby after turning down jobs at the Gas Board and Rolls-Royce.

Mr Ball said: "I remember my first day at the site, which is now the location of the Park Bikeworks.

"My first job was cleaning castings. I went home looking like a chimney sweep."

After completing his apprenticeship, Mr Ball worked his way through the ranks to foreman and then works manager. His role today includes training and personnel.

He said: "The training at Davis Derby was always considered the best and it still is today.

"I've enjoyed watching young people join the organisation and growing into managers.

"There are four apprentices here and I'm proud of each of them. I really enjoy seeing the young apprentices come through the ranks as I did."

Davis Derby was established in 1842 and located in Amen Alley.

Now in Chequers Lane, it is a world leader in the design and manufacture of communication systems, electronic control and monitoring equipment and software and data logging systems for the mining industry.

Established more recently, its TruckLog division is a European leader in the provision of fleet management technology for the forklift truck industry.

The company's reputation and export sales continue to flourish based on technology and service provided by its skilled and loyal workforce.

The average length of service at Davis Derby is 24 years – something the firm says is testament to its staff development.

Gerry Beetles, executive chairman of Davis Derby, said: "George is a credit to our company and, without the dedication of people like him, we wouldn't be world leaders in our industry.

"The success of our business is based on our people and their valuable contribution.

"We are a company steeped in heritage and we use that experience to develop our products for the future."

A £100 reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest of a man believed to be responsible for two fuel thefts.

The first incident happened on August 5 at the JT Leavesley Ltd garage in Alrewas while the second occurred at the same petrol station at 8.50pm on Friday, August 22.

In the latest incident the offender, driving a vehicle with stolen number plates, stole £62.42 of fuel.

Police are linking the two offences and are investigating.

The garage owner has released a CCTV image of the suspect in the hope that someone might recognise them and contact police with information.

A reward of £100 of fuel has been offered to the first person who comes forward with information which results in an arrest.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 (Crime No:FZ47534/2014 )

BELPER'S Strutt's North Mill is holding taster sessions for groups of visitors to promote its tours.

The grade one listed building dates back to 1804 and is central to the story of industry and workers' history in the Derwent Valley.

Schools and other organisations are invited along this week and next week.

Museum manager Debbie Richards said: "As well as the innovative fireproof architecture of the building, our museum has period machinery related to the early cotton-spinning industry."

The sessions take place on Wednesday and Thursday this week and on Wednesday and Thursday next week, from 7pm to 8.30pm.

For more details, call Sue Reaney on 01773 880474.

A SIX-YEAR-OLD boy who had to have his leg amputated following a diagnosis of life-threatening bone cancer has met former Derby County star Robbie Savage.

Eddy Parry, along with his mum and dad, Claudia and Jon Parry, met the BBC pundit and were also taken out in a Porsche and a Ferrari.

Eddy, of Main Road, Smalley, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma at the age of four. He has since had 90 high-dose sessions of chemotherapy, 35 blood transfusions, 150 days in hospital and 12 major operations.

Jon, 41, said: "Eddy had a fantastic time. He hasn't stopped smiling.

"Going out in the cars was brilliant and he loved meeting Robbie.

"He gave him a ball and he hasn't let go of it."

The family travelled up to Bury, in Manchester, where they were greeted by the former Derby County skipper before being taken out for a spin thanks to car company JamJar Direct and the Make a Wish Foundation.

And Robbie was just as pleased to meet the Derbyshire family. He said: "Eddy is such a fantastic character and a great little guy. I was really touched by his story because he is so courageous.

"When you've got children of your own, these things really move you and you put yourself in the parents' shoes.

"I get so many appeals for help but this one really touched my heart."

And the family's trip also gave a boost to their petition to increase research into rare forms of cancer such as Eddy's and to increase awareness of September being Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Jon, an IT consultant, said: "Currently, most research is led by charities, and inevitably focuses on the more common cancer types, where great progress has been made.

"However, many of the less-common forms of cancers have been virtually ignored, with little or no progress being made over the last 25 years or more.

"We consider this unfair and unjust, and want our government to stop relying on smaller charities to fund and drive such research."

The petition needs to receive more than 100,000 signatures and Robbie has now backed the campaign. He said: "The family's efforts to raise awareness of childhood cancer are really important to me as well.

"I didn't even realise September was Childhood Cancer Awareness month.

"I'll be doing what I can as well to help get enough signatures on the petition so the issue will be discussed in Parliament.

"But, for now, it was just wonderful to be able to put that smile on Eddy's face."

To read and sign the petition visit www.childhoodcancerpetition.org.

To learn more about childhood cancer visit www.goldseptember.com.

A FIRE at Melbourne cricket ground in Derbyshire is thought to have been started deliberately.

Firefighters from the Nottingham Road were called to the ground on Cockshut Lane to reports of an outbuilding on fire at 8.50pm. The crews put out the fire which a spokesman said had started in machinery located behind the structure. They left the scene at 9.31pm and police are investigating the cause of the fire.

IF Steve McClaren wants Derby County to improve and become, eventually, a top Premier League club he needs a master ball player like Manchester United's Danny Welbeck.

Whatever the cost, Danny would prove value for money and fit into the Rams perfectly.

Ken Miller

Allestree

DERBY County's first-team squad remains intact despite speculation surrounding skipper Richard Keogh and striker Johnny Russell on transfer deadline day.

Keogh was again linked with newly-promoted Burnley and Russell with a move to Bournemouth before the window closed last night.

In turn, Bournemouth refused to sell winger Matt Ritchie after reported interest from the Rams.

Derby's stance was that no first-team squad members would be sold in the window as the club pushes on in its quest for promotion.

The message from Derby is that the ownership group and management team are convinced that the club is in good shape and are excited about the coming weeks and months.

Keogh is likely to sign a new contract when he returns from international duty with Republic of Ireland.

As the transfer window closed, these were the deals which all appeared to have been concluded among Derby County's rivals in the Championship:

Jonson Clarke-Harris - Oldham to Rotherham (undisclosed)

Mark Hudson – Cardiff to Huddersfield (undisclosed)

Danny Gabbidon – to Cardiff (free agent)

Ignasi Miquel - Arsenal to Norwich City (undisclosed)

Alex Kacaniklic - Fulham to FC Copenhagen (season-long loan)

William Kvist – Stuttgart to Wigan (free)

Betinho - Sporting Lisbon to Brentford (season-long loan)

Bruno Ecuele Manga – Lorient to Cardiff (£5 million)

Andrew Surman – Norwich to Bournemouth (undisclosed)

Yanic Wildschut - Heerenveen to Middlesbrough (undisclosed)

Shane Duffy - Everton to Blackburn Rovers (undisclosed)

Adam Forshaw - Brentford to Wigan (undisclosed)

Vitalijs Maksimenko - Brighton to VVV-Venlo (loan)

Jelle Vossen - Racing Club Genk to Middlesbrough (loan)

Andy Delort - Tours to Wigan Athletic (undisclosed)

Royston Drenthe – Reading to Sheff Wed (loan)

Brian Montenegro - Nacional to Leeds (loan)

And because a deadline isn't really a deadline in the world of the Premier League, the moves of Radamel Falcao to Manchester United from Monaco on a £6m loan and Danny Welbeck from United to Arsenal for £16m were still expected to be confirmed beyond 11pm.

Hull City had also apparently been "granted an extension" to work on a deal to sign Hatem Ben Arfa.

Other moves confirmed in the Premier League were:

Oussama Assiadi – Liverpool to Stoke City (season-long loan)

Gaston Ramirez – Southampton to Hull City (season-long loan)

Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa - Newcastle to Roma (season-long loan)

Sandro - Tottenham to QPR (undisclosed)

Micah Richards – Manchester City to Fiorentina (season-long loan)

James McArthur - Wigan Athletic to Crystal Palace (£7 million)

Ryo Miyaichi - Arsenal to FC Twente (season-long loan)

Zeki Fryers – Tottenham to Crystal Palace (£3 million)

Kris Scott – Swansea to Leicester (free)

Daley Blind - Ajax to Manchester United (£13.8 million)

Ricky Alvarez - Inter Milan to Sunderland (season-long loan)

Mohamed Diame - West Ham to Hull City (£3.5 million)

Sebastian Coates - Liverpool to Sunderland (season-long loan)

Lewis Holtby - Tottenham to Hamburg (season-long loan)

Abel Hernandez - Palermo to Hull City (£10 million)

Javier Hernandez - Man Utd to Real Madrid (season-long loan)

Brian Lenihan - Cork City to Hull City (undisclosed)

Karim El Ahmadi - Aston Villa to Feyenoord (undisclosed)

George Boyd - Hull City to Burnley (£3million)

Modou Barrow - Ostersunds FK to Swansea (undisclosed)

Modibo Diakite - Sunderland (released)

Tomislav Gomelt - Tottenham to Bari (loan)

Souleymane Coulibaly - Tottenham to Bari (undisclosed)

Marco van Ginkel - Chelsea to AC Milan (season-long loan)

Benjamin Stambouli - Montpellier to Tottenham (undisclosed)

Nathaniel Chalobah - Chelsea to Burnley (loan)

Valentin Roberge - Sunderland to Stade de Reims (season-long loan)

Jose Canas - Swansea to Espanyol (contract cancelled by mutual consent)

A GP surgery in Derby will not being taking on any new patients in the next six months because of an "unprecedented" demand for appointments.

Mickleover Medical Centre said a rise in its workload, together with a increase in nearby housing, had led to a "significant rise" in demand for its services.

As a result, staff at the Vicarage Road practice have closed their list to all new patients – other than newborn babies – for at least six months.

It comes as decisions are pending on plans to build hundreds of new homes on the edge of Mickleover.

Regional health bosses said no other practices in the city have applied to close their lists.

Dr Les Redlaff, partner and GP at Mickleover Medical Centre, said: "In order to safeguard a high-quality service to existing patients, we have decided to close the list to new patients.

"At the same time, we are working with NHS England Area Team to hopefully expand our service provision – by increasing the size of the surgery premises.

"Lack of investment into primary care over recent years has made premises improvement very difficult but, with the appropriate support and backing, we would hope to expand our space.

"Our priority is to maintain a safe and responsive service to our patients."

Dr Redlaff apologised to patients wanting to register who were unable to do so. He said Derby North MP Chris Williamson had "offered his support and assistance" to the practice.

A spokeswoman for NHS England in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire said it had received the practice's application to close its list.

She said: "The practice is operating within relatively small premises and this period will enable the practice and the area team to look at future options for delivery of its primary care services.

"A GP practice may wish to close its list to new registrations for a number of reasons, including if it has staffing or internal capacity issues or premises refurbishments.

"No other practices in Derby or southern Derbyshire have applied to the area team to close their lists and there are a number of neighbouring practices accepting new patients."

Dr Buk Dhadda, a member of the NHS Southern Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Group which oversees healthcare in Derby, south Derbyshire and Amber Valley, said there was an unprecedented demand for appointments nationwide and there was a decrease in numbers of young doctors wanting to enter into GP training.

Dr Redlaff said anyone unable to register with Mickleover Medical Centre could call NHS England on 0300 311 2233 or visit www.nhs.uk for further advice.

A DERBYSHIRE distribution firm is rolling out an expansion plan after picking up a grant from the Derby Enterprise Growth Fund (DEGF).

DG Light Haulage is expanding its warehouse and has employed a trio of fresh employees, having secured £41,000.

Based in Tonge, near Melbourne, the company provides haulage and warehousing.

The cash injection will also help the business improve its premises with expanded offices and an area for vehicle maintenance.

It is part of the firm's £140,000 investment programme that includes leasing an additional 13,000 sq ft of warehouse space.

With more capacity, the company's existing transport management and light haulage services have been expanded to offer UK and international pallet services, towing services, pick and dispatch as well as container handling for companies around the Midlands.

So far, the business has recruited an additional driver, a warehouse manager and administrator and there are plans to recruit at least one more driver in the coming months.

DG Light Haulage was set up by managing director David Guilford after leaving school 20 years ago.

He said: "The support and funding available from DEGF has been a fantastic boost to my business.

"It has enabled me to drive it forward much more quickly than would otherwise have been the case.

"Although it has been daunting in terms of how quickly things have taken off in the last few months, the DEGF has been a fantastic opportunity to increase the services I can offer to other business, as well as the number of employees working with me.

"With the business development going as well as it is at the moment, we're expecting to recruit at least one additional full time driver in the next few months.

"If things continue as they are at the moment, we will certainly be looking to increase the head-count even further in the future."

DEGF is supported by the Government's Regional Growth Fund and run by Derby City Council.

It aims to support the growth and job creation at businesses in Derby and companies throughout its travel-to-work area through a mix of loans and grants.

Councillor Martin Rawson, Derby City Council deputy leader and cabinet member for planning, environment and regeneration, chairs the DEGF panel of industry and financial experts who consider applications.

He said: "Logistics is at the heart of the local and national economy – moving goods between manufacturers, suppliers and customers in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

"DG Light Haulage is a growing business in this industry and is already demonstrating that grant support from DEGF is a highly-effective catalyst for expansion and job creation."

Derby City Council is still accepting applications for the Derby Enterprise Growth Fund.