EBC Newsletter Jan 2026

New Year message from your council leader
Dear resident,
Another New Year is upon us – and it heralds exciting times for the people of Erewash as your council steps up its mission to make our borough happier and more prosperous.

There is much to look forward to in 2026 as we keep investing in our communities to enhance the everyday lives of all our residents.

Last year saw us allocate up to £2million for this express purpose in the form of our Erewash Investment Fund.

It means we can continue our support for the kind of grassroots initiatives that are the lifeblood of our communities – the clubs and the volunteer organisations that rely on big-hearted local people giving up their spare time for the benefit of others.

At the same time we can boost the smartening up of our town centres while attracting new businesses and jobs. Other fresh announcements coming soon include ones that will thrill children. These follow plans that have already been announced for new play parks.

All this is thanks to the council's prudent financial stewardship paying dividends. The result is that Erewash is in a great position compared to many other local authorities. I know times continue to be tough for many of our residents. But when it comes to your council, we will be doing everything we can to secure a brighter future for you and your families.

All the very best,

Cllr James Dawson

Flashback to '25 and how Erewash thrived
JANUARY
The council comes up with a balanced budget that keeps Erewash in the black for a second year running. Top Cabinet minister Darren Jones, visits 46 newly-built affordable homes at Oakleys Road in Long Eaton and says: "I've heard brilliant stories from residents."

FEBRUARY
The planting of 1,536 trees and shrubs nears completion at the borough's newest willdlife haven – the 25-acre Pewit Coronation Meadows Local Nature Reserve on the edge of Ilkeston.

MARCH
The borough gets another 38 affordable homes in Sandiacre on freshly built streets named in honour of local codebreaker Rolf Noskwith, who worked with Bletchley Park hero Alan Turing. A new community hub opens in Kirk Hallam following a £30k project to transform a changing room block on the edge of a football pitch at Windsor Crescent. Tv's Robert Lindsay makes a pilgrimage to Erewash Museum for an exhibition of paintings by his old teacher. The Ilkeston-born star, pictured, tells how he owes his showbiz career to the late John Lally – who encouraged him to go into acting.

APRIL
A sponsored "Sleep Out" in Long Eaton to publicise the plight of the homeless sees the Deputy Mayor join in. The event marks 30 years since the founding of the Canaan Trust, which helps those across the borough without a roof over their heads. The charity's SOS hotline – 0115 946 4903 – is manned 24/7.

MAY
Erewash marks the 80th anniversary of VE Day on 8 May. This is the month that the borough gets its youngest ever Mayor – 25-year-old Cllr Harry Atkinson, who is also believed to be the youngest in the entire country. Earlier – while still Deputy Mayor – he visits Trent Lock to see the first of 11 new defibrillators installed across Erewash. One of Harry's first acts as Mayor is to swing a sledgehammer to start the demolition of Long Eaton's derelict Galaxy cinema. The eyesore will be replaced by a commercial centre that includes new affordable homes thanks to Long Eaton's £25m Town Deal. People who feared for the future of the Cotmanhay Community Network and its vital hub in the former Bennerley School learn that the council has stepped in with £165k to ensure it keeps going.

Mayor at Gas Street
A top-level delegation led by Erewash's mayor tours a smart new development of affordable homes and hears how all 53 of the houses that are being built opposite an iconic former lace mill in Sandiacre will boast solar panels and charging points for electric cars. The properties are on Gas Street – which is where a gasworks used to power street lighting in the late 1800s. Meanwhile the council expands a grants scheme that helps pay for the frontages of new shops opening in empty premises. Existing stores can also apply for up to £2k. A "carrot and stick" crackdown on owners of empty shops who fail to maintain the buildings also gets underway – with incentives for them to make repairs as an alternative to enforcement action.

JULY

A new Erewash Investment Fund that will see up to £2million ploughed into improving the lives of residents is announced by the borough council. A £160k jungle-themed fun zone for children will be built at what is officially called Wash Meadows in Ilkeston – but which locals refer to as Johnny's Park. The town's Victoria Park and Rutland Sports Park will get £166k of new lighting to attract more visitors after dusk. There will be a £210,000 boost to street cleaning plus a £20,000 Anti-Graffiti Action Plan.

AUGUST
The 80th anniversary of VJ Day sees beacons lit in the borough. Erewash Museum hosts a War Time Variety Show. Record crowds attend the Glow Music & Arts Festival – a council-backed summer music spectacular on Ilkeston's Market Place. The headline act is The Eminem Show. Emergency "bleed kits" are added to Erewash's newly-installed network of defibrillators.

SEPTEMBER
A £550,000 eco mission to transform one of Erewash's leisure centres into a showcase for green technology is completed – leaving environmentally-conscious pool users thrilled. The flagship project is thanks to the borough council securing Government money from what is called the Swimming Pool Support Fund. Improvements at Ilkeston's Victoria Park Leisure Centre include rooftop solar panels. There is even more good news for the town – as the Government announces £20milion of funding towards the council's mission to regenerate Cotmanhay.

OCTOBER
An Italian multi-national announces plans to build a state-of-the-art factory near Ilkeston at New Stanton Park – creating more than 100 skilled jobs. Treviso-based Fassa Bortolo specialises in pre-mixed renders and plasters for the construction industry. TV crews cover the opening of the 773rd Ilkeston Charter Fair as it is extended to become a five-day spectacular – lasting until Sunday. Halloween sees the town again host its celebrated Trick Or Treat Trail – the biggest event of its kind in Britain. Around 100 shops and businesses give out sweets as fancy dress kiddies in their thousands fill baskets.

NOVEMBER
A showcase development of 109 smart new affordable homes welcomes its first residents as families get keys to completed properties at Bennett Street – where Long Eaton's former Britannia Mills lace complex used to stand. A song written by Erewash war hero Donald Rose – Britain's oldest man when he died in July aged 110 – hits the internet after being turned into a heart-rending anthem to mark Armistice Day. The release of the track called As My Guns Fall Silent is thanks to the wizardry of talented local musician Matt Henshaw, who answered a plea to let the world hear poignant lyrics penned by D-Day veteran Donald. Thousands had lined the streets of Ilkeston for the funeral of the old soldier, who lived at the town's Canal Vue Care Home. It was there that in 2025 he was awarded the council's highest honour – the Freedom of the Borough.

DECEMBER 2025
Public transport users across Erewash get a boost thanks to a new borough council fund to tackle neglected bus shelters. The borough has a total of more than 200 shelters – all of which will undergo cleaning and repairs.The council has set aside £30,000 annually, plus an extra £20,000 in the first year. Boxing Day sees the Mayor Cllr Harry Atkinson join a record 140 cyclists taking part in a challenge to pedal up Ilkeston's notoriously steep Bath Street. The annual Boxing Day Hill Climb is won by Josh Giddings, 22 -- who completes the feat in an amazing 55 seconds. He was the reigning champ after managing it in 56 seconds last year. The New Year sees Erewash's leader Cllr James Dawson announce how the borough is in a great position compared to many other local authorities – thanks to a Fair Funding Review that was promised by the Government and which has now been completed. The settlement spells even more investment in our communities and no reductions in services. Thanks to the Erewash Investment Fund parking was free in December to get people shopping locally.

You will soon be getting a caddy so we can collect your food waste
The council is hard at work preparing to collect household food waste as part of a new service that the Government has ordered local authorities to introduce.

Special free caddies – plus liners for them – will be delivered to homes across the borough. You should already have received a leaflet about it.

The collections are due to start on 30 March. A Frequently Asked Questions page about what the Government is billing as "Simpler Recycling" is on the Erewash Borough Council website and can be found by clicking the tab below.

Come April – again from the 1st of the month – you will need to renew your subscription to keep getting garden waste collected. This can be done from the end of January and there will be a discount for anyone signing up before 31 March.

Stables become new office and studio hub
A ceremony to mark the completion of a project to transform a complex of disused stables will see Erewash's mayor handed the keys to what is now a swish new business hub. The historic buildings right next to Long Eaton Town Hall have undergone a £2.5million revamp so they can become a home for small and growing firms seeking a central base in the town.

High-spec offices and studios are already being advertised on Rightmove. The opening ceremony on Friday 23 January is thanks to the £25m Long Eaton Town Deal, which is seeing the Government fund a string of local regeneration projects. This year will see work begin on a £10million upgrade for the High Street -- while a new commercial centre takes shape where the derelict Galaxy cinema used to stand. Long Eaton will also be getting two new bridges spanning the Erewash Canal.

Chief Executive of 20 years to retire
Erewash Borough Council has announced the retirement of its Chief Executive, Jeremy Jaroszek, effective from the end of January 2026.

Jeremy has been Chief Executive for nearly twenty years. The Council thanks him for his sterling service and wishes him a long and happy retirement.