PEOPLE who park their car in restricted areas now face a charge of £150 if it is towed away.

The county council has vowed to crack down on motorists who park cars where they stop essential highways work being carried out or affect major events, despite waiting restrictions being clearly marked.

A report to the council transport and highways committee recommends that the power to remove vehicles be approved when it meets on July 4.

The council says that despite waiting restrictions vehicles are still left where they obstruct roadworks and cause problems at events, such as the upcoming Ashes Test match at Trent Bridge.

However, one business owner in Radcliffe Road, West Bridgford, said he thought the plan was "over the top". Richard Shacklock, who has owned Stewart and Shacklock furniture store for 20 years, said: "I think this is the council going over the top again.

"During the test period there are always lots of traffic wardens buzzing around so people wouldn't really have the chance to park where they shouldn't.

"We don't really have a problem with people parking in the wrong place, to be honest."

But the council is keen to stress that most drivers will not be affected by the plans.

"We need to make it absolutely clear that the vast majority of motorists have absolutely nothing to fear from this," said Councillor Kevin Greaves, chairman of the transport and highways committee.

"We're talking about exceptional circumstances where, for example, cars have been left blocking fire exits during big events or left on-street when the council is about to begin highways resurfacing work.

"In every case like this there will have been extensive publicity for two weeks or more beforehand, so people will have had plenty of time to make alternative arrangements."

The county council plans to work with the city council under an agreement which would see the city's specialist removal trucks used to take away vehicles.

It is proposed that a charge for removal of vehicles be set at £150.

THE family of an ex-soldier were told at an inquest yesterday that there was nothing they could have done to prevent him taking his own life.

Ashley Clarkson, 23, was found dead at his Mansfield home by his ex-girlfriend on March 10 last year.

He had been a private with 43 Logistics Support (Royal Army Ordnance Corps) and served in Iraq.

The inquest heard that Ashley, of Clifford Street, had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder in 2009, but had shown signs of improvement when he left the Army in 2011.

While serving in Iraq in 2007, he saw two young children die in an explosion.

In a statement read to the inquest, Ashley's mother Mary Feels said her son felt responsibile.

"He kept saying that it was his fault and that he was supposed to be there to protect them," she said. "When he returned home in June 2008 he didn't look his usual self and didn't speak one word on the drive back."

She said Ashley also saw two close friends die, one in service and the other to cancer.

Before he left the Army Ashley trained as a plasterer and met his girlfriend Chloe Thompson, althought the relationship faltered.

The inquest heard that Ashley took his own life after a night out with friends. He had been drinking.

Ashley's sister Natasha Clarkson raised the alarm when he stopped texting her. Chloe, who still had a key, went to the house and found him hanged.

A statement from Ashley's father Wayne Clarkson said: "This was, and still is, my worst nightmare."

The inquest heard that it is only in the last six months that veterans suffering mental health problems at the time of discharge have been given continuing medical support.

However, Deputy Coroner Mrs Heidi Connor stressed that this would not have made a difference in Ashley's case as he had not been diagnosed with PTSD since 2009, and more than one medical professional gave evidence to show he had shown signs of improvement.

She concluded: "Very often, the people who take their own lives will hide it from those closest to them.

"There is nothing else you, as Ashley's family, could have done. You could not have predicted this and you did not let him down."

A TEENAGER was imprisoned by former classmates and attacked with a hot iron because of a remark he made on Facebook.

Alex Bicknell, 18, lost his Blackberry mobile phone and used the social networking site to accuse three other youths of stealing it.

The youths later tricked Mr Bicknell into meeting them and took him to a house, where they beat him and put the iron on his hands.

"I thought I was going to die," said Mr Bicknell, of Lauriston Drive, Old Basford.

"One of them came up and punched me in the face and then everyone else joined in and kept punching me.

"At one point they had an iron which they pressed on my hands – there's a good chance I'll have those scars for life.

"For all of this to happen out of a Facebook comment is scary. I just can't believe how badly they reacted."

Mr Bicknell, who attended Ellis Guilford School, suffered cuts, burns and bruises.

His assailants, who also went to the school in Basford, were: Benjamin Brandford, 16, of Oaktree Close, West Bridgford, Dayle De-Ville, 17, of Augustine Gardens, Rise Park, and Victor Unczur, 17, of Fountains Court, Beeston.

They appeared at Nottingham Crown Court and pleaded guilty to false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm with intent and were locked up for four years.

The incident brought a warning to young people about their behaviour online. Professor Mark Griffiths, psychologist at Nottingham Trent University, said it was common for social media interactions to lead to violence.

He said: "One of the main reasons why behaviour online is very different from it offline is because it provides a disinhibiting experience. This is where people lower their emotional guard and become much less inhibited in their actions."

A COOK is in the running to be named one of the country's top nursery chefs.

Staff at 213 Busy Bee nurseries across the UK were asked to create a hearty soup made of healthy ingredients for a competition.

The winner will see their recipe included in all Busy Bee Winter 2013 menus.

Jill Brown, 45, who works at Busy Bees Nursery in Daybrook has now been named as one of the nine finalists, after creating a cannellini bean and vegetable soup.

Ms Brown, from Top Valley, said: "I can't believe I have made the final. I am delighted.

"I really wanted to introduce an ingredient that was new to the children and cannellini beans are both healthy and make a great ingredient for a tasty soup."

Ms Brown, who created several recipes for the competition, whittled it down to cannellini beans and vegetable soup after carrying out a taste test with the children.

Four-year-old Ellouise-May Green said: "I like the soup at the nursery and we have bread – it's yummy."

Since creating the soup, the children at the nursery have been busy planting some of the vegetables used in the nursery garden, including carrots and tomatoes.

Harry Stringer, four, said: "I like Busy Bees soup with carrots in it."

Three-year-old Chloe Watkins, said she also likes to food the nursery provides.

She said: "I like the different kinds of soups our cook makes."

Anna Allen, manager of Busy Bees Nursery in Daybrook, said; "We are all really proud of Jill here. All the children have loved the whole process of the competition. Jill's cannellini bean and vegetable soup gets a big thumbs up from everyone at the nursery."

Jill beat over 30 other entries in the region to make it though to the final of the Sensational Soup competition, which will be held at Marco Pierre White's Carnarvan Arm's in Newbury, Berkshire on July 2.

The nine finalists will make their soups in a Master Chef style challenge before their soup will be judged by Busy Bees managing director, Marg Randles, and guest chef Andrew Bennett, who is the executive chef at Marco Pierre White's Wheelers pubs.

Marg Randles said: Our Nurseries have always recognised the importance of healthy eating."

I was the only one in my class at Frizinghall Junior School in Bradford to go to Belle Vue Grammar School.

I remember taking my scholarship exam; I knew it was absolutely essential, and that if I didn't pass I would go to a school which would give me lesser prospects in education and in life.

Belle Vue was a single sex school; we were separated by a wall from the girls' school, but we had no contact with them, no shared social events at all.

Most of the teachers were at the end of their careers, and there was only one female teacher.

The geography teacher, Major Robinson, had fought in the First World War, and he ran the strictest regime of all. I suppose it was modelled on Army life.

I was good at English – language and literature – and I got a distinction in my School Certificate; which, perhaps, set me on my path.

We only ever had one school outing outside of Bradford, and that was when we went to Durham in the last year. I quietly marvel at the places I see students going to today.

I also see a relationship between staff and students today which is very different to what I knew. Staff addressed everyone by their surname, and so the pupils did the same to each other. It created a very different type of environment.

From the third form I knew I wanted to be a journalist. My father died when I was 14 and I knew going to university wasn't an option.

I'd written an article for the local weekly paper, so when I left school at 16 I approached the editor asking him to consider me for a trainee journalist position. I left school on the Friday, and started work on the Monday.

I always enjoyed my working life much more than my school life. School was an obligation and a duty; enjoyment didn't come into it.

A FURNITURE-MAKING business is looking to take on eight new apprentices in support of the Post's Get Notts Working campaign.

The Post is encouraging firms to take on new trainees with the hope of finding 300 apprentice places this year.

Sofa Brands International is looking to recruit the staff and has pledged to take on eight apprentices at two of its brands – three at Parker Knoll and five at Duresta.

The firm's head of human resources Emma Wharton said the recruits would play a vital part for the firm.

She said: "We are committed to ensuring that there are continued opportunities for talented and ambitious youngsters in the area to prosper in our exciting industry."

The Parker Knoll apprentices will do training in upholstery at its base in Riddings, near Alfreton, as will three of the Duresta apprentices at its base in Long Eaton.

Of the other Duresta vacancies, one is in business and administration and the other in machinery.

Current Duresta apprentice Joe Bryan, 20, said his course was progressing well.

One day a week he attends Webs Training College in Beeston to add to the on-the-job training he receives through his manager and his mentors at Duresta.

He said: "When I first started we spent the first five weeks understanding the business and following a sales order through the factory."

This took the apprentices through the sales office, production and planning, fabric ordering, cutting, sewing, upholstery, final inspection, dispatch and design and development.

Once complete, the junior team then presented that experience back to the senior operations team.

Ms Wharton added: "Having access to everyone in the business is unifying for all our teams. We actively encourage ideas to flow back and forth.

"Our graduates work right across the group, from design and production at Parker Knoll in Riddings, all the way through to supporting business development for Duresta in China."

The Post is urging other companies to follow the lead of Sofa Brands International and take on one or more apprentices.

Our campaign is being run in conjunction with the Derbyshire and Notts Chamber of Commerce, the National Apprenticeship Service, the Nottinghamshire City and County Employment and Skills Board and Nottingham City Council.

This is the second year the Post has run the campaign.

THE new leader of the opposition at Notts County Council has launched her first attack on the ruling Labour party, claiming "nothing is getting done".

Kay Cutts, whose Conservative party lost 14 seats and control of the council at the polls in May, has claimed there has been a lack of action on promised policies.

Mrs Cutts pointed to Labour's pledges to introduce the living wage and 20mph speed limits outside schools as areas where she believes Labour hadn't yet delivered.

But Labour leader Alan Rhodes said Mrs Cutts "should know better" than to expect changes in just six weeks.

Mrs Cutts, who is no stranger to opposition having been in the position from 2000 to 2009, said: "I don't like opposition at all. I can see things not being done and want to see some action. Unless Labour start putting forward some ideas of their own, they are child-minding our policies."

Mrs Cutts pointed to the work programme – where the ruling group sets out details of what will be discussed over the next six months – as evidence of stagnation.

"There's nothing there," she said.

"When we took control of the council in 2009 we set about doing things from the get-go. We saved £28 million by not funding the tram extension and set about running the council like a business, just like we said in our manifesto.

"The Labour manifesto had all sorts of pledges in them and people voted for them on that basis and I don't understand why these things aren't being done."

One pledge that Mrs Cutts says the council will find hard to implement is that of the living wage.

The voluntary living wage – the basic cost of living – has been calculated at £7.45 per hour, while the current minimum wage is £6.19 per hour.

But Mrs Cutts said that in the face of a required £133 million savings in coming years such a promise didn't make sense.

She said: "The council needs to make savings, not be spending more money. The council has £133 million in savings to find and is facing further cuts in the settlement – paying the lowest-paid more is not the right priority to have at the moment.

"We want policies on the table because a stagnant council is no good for the people in this county."

But Mr Rhodes hit back and said that work on the pledges is taking place.

He said: "We are having discussions behind the scenes with council officers and with things like the living wage and 20mph speed limits, the wheels are in motion.

"I know Mrs Cutts might not like being in opposition, but she should know better than to expect us to change the world.

"We have already changed the way we handle recruitment and we are looking at ways we can deal with the £133 million gap in our funding. To say that nothing is being done is completely wrong."

TRAIN journeys between Nottingham and London are set to be sped up following improvements to the Midland Main Line.

A pair of bridges will be rebuilt in Leicestershire as part of a scheme to cut the journey time by eight minutes.

This will mean the fastest service between the city and the capital will come down to one hour 31 minutes.

The improvements will see two bridges in Leicestershire rebuilt by Network Rail as part of a £70 million investment to speed up journey times on the line.

Once complete, the new bridges will provide the extra headroom needed for trains to travel at higher speeds, when the forces involved mean trains tilt to one side as they pass through curved sections of track.

Justin Page, Network Rail acting route managing director, said: "This work will deliver quicker journeys for the ever-growing number of passengers on the Midland Main Line.

"This is an exciting time for the Midland Main Line as we upgrade and electrify the route to transform our diesel railway into one of the most modern in Europe."

The bridges will need to be closed for up to 15 weeks while they are replaced.

However, rebuilding the bridges will help to accommodate future installation of overhead line equipment as part of the proposed electrification of the line between Bedford and Sheffield.

Network Rail plans to upgrade and electrify the Midland Main Line between Bedford and Sheffield, subject to approval from the Office of Rail Regulation in October this year.

WE have all heard the old wives' tales that are thrown about during pregnancy.

While these are often fun, the truth is most of them are false and have been passed down from generation to generation. So let's take a closer look at some and get to the truth:

Don't have hot baths

Many people enjoy soaking in a warm bath. The relaxing effect is widely recognised and there is nothing to suggest that this is unsafe in pregnancy. In fact, water can be very therapeutic during labour supporting the body's coping mechanism and maximising your birth potential.

Carry high it's a boy; low it's a girl

Everyone is different, and women will often carry very differently with each pregnancy even though the sex of their baby is the same. In reality you have a 50 per cent chance of getting a boy or a girl.

If you have heartburn, it's likely to be a hairy baby

This is a myth – although many mothers will swear by it, as will some midwives. There is no reliable evidence to support this.

Heartburn is a strong, burning pain in the chest that is caused by stomach acid passing from your stomach into your oesophagus (the tube that leads from your mouth to your stomach). You can help ease the discomfort of indigestion and heartburn by making changes to your diet and lifestyle. There are treatments that are safe to take in pregnancy. Talk to your midwife, GP or pharmacist.

If the dad-to-be puts on sympathy weight, it's likely to be girl

It has been reported that Couvade syndrome exists and is described as a condition where the father-to-be experiences pregnancy symptoms like weight gain, nausea, insomnia and mood swings.

As for the suggestion that this leads to a girl – this is a myth as journals often quote that at least one of the symptoms of Couvade syndrome is experienced by up to 90 per cent of dads-to-be.

You need to avoid nuts

If you would like to eat peanuts or food containing peanuts (such as peanut butter) during pregnancy, you can choose to do so as part of a healthy balanced diet, unless you are allergic to them or your midwife advises you not to.

Whatever you think of these and other wives tales, it is important to always seek advice from your midwife if you are concerned about any aspect relating to your pregnancy and wellbeing.

A RECENTLY released E-book gives a fascinating insight into Nottinghamshire's gruesome past.

Tales From the Gibbet Post, written by Daniel Codd, describes 100 years of murder, riot and execution in 18th century Britain, with a number of the horrific stories taking place in Nottinghamshire.

Mr Codd, 40, who is a professional writer based in Lincoln, has a number of books published already including Mysterious Lincolnshire and Paranormal Devon.

During Mr Codd's research for the book, he discovered a number of interesting incidents from Nottinghamshire's past.

He said: "Nottingham presented some very interesting cases from the 18th century and a lot of these have never been reported or printed for the best part of 300 years.

"They seem to have slipped from the pages of history."

Before writing the E-book, Mr Codd spent the best part of seven years writing about ghosts.

Researching the ghost stories led to a number of murders committed in the 1700s, forming the basis for Tales From the Gibbet Post.

He said: "300 years ago, when somebody was convicted of a crime, punishment was a lot harsher. They would be publicly hanged and their body would be put in a gibbet cage. hey would then be hoisted up and hung from a tree or a gibbet post at the scene of the crime as a warning to others."

Tales From the Gibbet Post costs £2.94 and can be downloaded from Amazon.

AS a TV expert, author and adviser to the stars, you might expect Jo Tantum to be sitting back and taking it easy, basking in the glow of her reputation as the UK's leading baby sleep expert.

But as I catch up with her at her home in Farnsfield, she's just returned from an intense few days in Wales, where she's been trying to turn round the exasperating sleep problems of a set of one-year-old twin girls.

"They were becoming dummy dependent and the parents had been going in 11 times a night to give them their soothers back," Jo, 41, explains. "They were also being rocked to sleep in a pram instead of sleeping in their cots.

"Basically, with a case like this, I ask the parents to give me a 48-hour log of what the babies have been doing. Then I will come in the morning and take control of them. I'll do the naps in the cot in the day and then stay and do all night as well. And then another day and another night, and then off I go.

"Those girls are now sleeping through from 7pm to about 6.15am or 6.30am now, with a little bit of soothing. But yes, they are sleeping all the way through, which is exactly what the parents wanted."

This is a typical case for Jo, who has travelled around the world to carry out her sleep training techniques – mainly based on regular schedules and "spaced soothing" methods, as documented in the bestselling book Baby Secrets, published in 2006.

She's appeared as an expert on numerous TV shows, runs an 0800 advice line, offers continuous e-mail support and a Skype service to help parents who have reached the end of their tethers when it comes to getting their babies to sleep.

But her main job is still as a hands-on sleep trainer – where she moves in with a family and takes over the baby's routine for anything from 24 to 96 hours.

"It's always successful, which is really nice," Jo says confidently.

As well as this, Jo manages to fit in several stints a year as an expert at the popular Clarion Baby Shows, alongside kids' food writer Annabel Karmel and baby feeding specialist Clare Byam-Cook. She's also been filming a piece on the royal baby for ITV Tonight and is in talks with BBC3 to be an expert on a new documentary series.

Her main project this summer, however, will be the launch of a new service called Sleep Angels, where a group of top candidates from five-star nanny agency Bespoke Baby Concierge will be fully trained in Jo's methods.

She explains: "Starting in July, these girls will be personally trained by me and I'll make sure they understand all my techniques and can communicate effectively with distressed families. It will allow me to take a step back to concentrate on myself and also to do more projects.

"I'll be at the end of the phone for them and I'll be using Skype to monitor them at first. But I'm hoping by the end of November, I'll have four qualified people who can go out and do my rescue packages. It's very exciting."

Born and brought up in Woodthorpe, Jo knew she wanted to work with children from a very young age.

"I remember my friends would all be playing on the streets and I would be back in the house organising story sessions with their younger siblings," she recalls. "In the school holidays, I worked for a children's centre and we used to take the kids out to farm parks and on trips. I loved it.

"Then I went to Basford Hall College and studied childcare. I did more placements at the same nursery and then I did the NNEB and I got to work all around Notts, including at the City Hospital and at various baby units."

It was following a stint as a nanny that Jo got into the relatively new field of maternity nursing, caring for newborns from as young as one day old in their own homes 24 hours a day for at least a week.

The idea was to give new parents a chance to rest, recover and ensure feeding was properly established – and over the next ten years or so, Jo found herself working with some of the wealthiest families in London.

She also worked with a family from Bath with twins – and dealing with more than one baby at a time became something of a speciality.

Jo explains: "Working with the twins, I made sure I tried everything I knew about babies. I looked into old wives' tales, I read every single child and babycare book going. I pored through lots of research and gave everything a try and then I started devising my own little methods to see which worked and which didn't.

"I worked and worked on it until I got to a point that the methods I was using worked all the time.

"I had all this wealth of experience and thought, I really ought to write this all down"

The book Baby Secrets deals exclusively with babies from 0-6 months.

It was an instant hit and made Jo a popular media "baby guru" – with stints on GMTV, Live with Gabby on Channel 5 and several magazine columns.

Her website includes glowing testimonies from the likes of rock star Bryan Adams, singer-songwriter Jewel and radio presenter Christian O'Connell, who used Jo's methods with his own baby at a stage when he was "desperate" because she slept for only 20 minutes at a time.

After calling Jo in, the presenter writes: "She is firm but kind with it and after only one day our baby girl slept 7pm till 7am the very first night which was astounding. We couldn't believe it."

But it was never in Jo's plan to become a TV personality, she adds.

"I'm a hands-on sleep expert, I still physically go out there and do the work and don't have any sleep for weeks on end," she points out.

Jo insists her methods are not based on rigid regimes. She explains: "I'm not pushing a routine onto a baby, I'm fitting a routine round what the baby is actually doing.

"I'm not into strict routines. My schedules are based on baby's natural feeding patterns. I know when baby is going to be hungry and tired because I ask parents to send me a log first and I use techniques that are all based on these natural routines.

"My techniques make a parent more confident. Instead of putting the baby on the breast or giving them a bottle because that's what they've been told to do, they're thinking about it more first."

And as she trains up her new team of Sleep Angels to teach parents the tricks of the trade, Jo is also looking forward to seeing her successful range of Sleepytime baby toiletries – including massage oils and hair and body wash – being launched in Boots this summer (it's already available in Waitrose and other shops).

Despite her busy and exhausting life, she is delighted at how things have turned out.

Jo says: "When the book came out, I got offered a lot of projects and I was supposed to be doing my very own TV programme, but it got stopped because of the London bombings and never came off. I was really disappointed at the time, but now I think it might not have been the right time anyway.

"Now after working with hundreds of families, I can honestly say I can help every baby sleep better. My mission has always been to make a difference to all sleep deprived, stressed parents and I will continue to do so."

THE mortality rates for operations performed by individual surgeons at Notts hospitals have been revealed for the first time.

It is part of a project that will eventually publish the performance for surgeons across the NHS undertaking nine different procedures.

The first discipline to be covered is vascular surgery, which involves the repair of major blood vessels.

The information was put on the NHS Choices website yesterday.

Operations include the elective – or planned – treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms.

This is a life-threatening condition where a bulge forms in the main artery – the aorta – leading from the heart.

If the bulge bursts the patient will die. The condition most commonly occurs in those aged 65 and over.

The average mortality rate for patients following life-saving vascular surgery across the NHS was 2.2 per cent, measured over the last five years.

Overall the Nottingham University Hospitals Trust, which runs the QMC and City Hospital had a mortality rate of 1.9 per cent in the same period.

The Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust – which runs King's Mill and Newark Hospitals – had a mortality rate, of 14.3 per cent.

The mortality rate for one surgeon, Irfan Akhtar, at Sherwood Forest Hospitals, was 22 per cent, after performing nine elective operations to repair aortic aneurysm.

Overall, 28 operations were performed at Sherwood Forest Hospitals with a mortality rate of 14.3 per cent.

The outcome of operations is influenced by the age and frailty of the patients.

In the 2013 Report on Surgical Outcomes, published by the NHS, it is stated: "Mortality rates for individual surgeons differ from the national average because of random variation – some are slightly higher and some lower.

"All surgeon outcomes were within the expected range of these differences."

Dr Nabeel Ali, medical director at the Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust said: "These results are historical and neither of the mortality rates you refer to fall outside of the 95 per cent confidence intervals as is clearly explained in the Royal College of Surgeons' report. The apparently high mortality rates quoted reflect the small number of patients operated upon, all of whom had open aortic aneurysm repairs which are known to carry a higher mortality rate.

"Furthermore, we no longer perform major vascular surgical procedures at this trust. Aortic aneurysm repairs are performed by a group of surgeons based at Nottingham University Hospitals."

At the QMC and City Hospital, 325 operations were performed and the mortality rate was 1.9 per cent.

Here, the operations were a mix of open repairs and endo-vascular procedures, which is much less invasive.

One surgeon, Bruce Braithwaite, performed 53 operations with no deaths.

Dr Stephen Fowlie, medical director at the Nottingham University Hospitals Trust, said: "The trust supports the publication of outcomes of operations by our surgeons.

"The information will help patients make decisions, and help us provide better services. Outcomes for vascular surgery at this trust are better than the national average for the unit. Our consultant teams regularly and carefully monitor outcomes, agreeing changes in practice in the unit if these are necessary to ensure consistent best practice and strong patient outcomes."

Sir Bruce Keogh, national medical director of NHS England, said: "We know from our experience with heart surgery that putting this information into the public domain can help drive up standards.

"That means more patients surviving operations and there is no greater prize than that."

NEARLY 3,000 council staff in Notts are set to get a pay rise by April after senior politicians at the city and county councils pledged to pay the "living wage".

Both authorities were keen on the idea of introducing the £7.45 living wage – the amount needed to lead a "decent life" – but had not committed to a date.

This is £1.26 an hour more than the legal minimum wage for adults of £6.19.

But at a meeting of Nottingham Citizens, an alliance of community groups, the timescales were revealed.

Speaking in front of more than 900 representatives from faith groups, trade unions and schools at the Albert Hall, Diana Meale from Notts County Council said the living wage would be introduced before the turn of the year.

Nottingham City Council deputy leader Graham Chapman said it would be introduced before next April.

The move will cost the city £844,000 a year to bring around 900 employees to the living wage.

The county council said they could not calculate the cost, but that more than 2,000 employees – 25 per cent of their workforce – would see their wage increase.

Mrs Meale, who is chairwoman of the Economic Development Committee, told the meeting that the Labour Group had committed to introduce the living wage before the election. She added: "We will keep our word and our commitment to pay the living wage to the 2,000 people who currently do not get paid this amount."

Mrs Meale added that the authority was also looking at encouraging the county council's suppliers to pay the living wage.

She said: "It is a voluntary thing, but all sorts of measures will be taken into account when we look at outside contracts, such as the living wage, apprentices and other ways in which we can stimulate growth in the county."

Alan Rhodes, leader of Notts County Council, said: "We recognise the significant financial challenges facing the county council but the findings of the Rowntree Foundation report – which showed living costs have risen by 25 per cent in the last five years – show that introducing the living wage is more important than ever."

Councillor Chapman, who is also the portfolio holder for finance at the city, said introducing the living wage was "a sensible thing to do."

He added: "Staff morale is higher and people are more productive. It also helps local businesses as people have more money in their pockets.

"But it will not be without consequences. We have a diminishing budget and there will be consequences of increasing wages at the bottom end, but it's a trade off that's necessary."

The Living Wage Foundation claims that more than 45,000 families have been lifted out of poverty as a direct result of the living wage.

HOME owners are worried for their safety and believe a tree described as a "time bomb" could come crashing down on top of them at any moment.

The tree is in the garden of a house in Pasture Road, Stapleford, and its poor state was only revealed after a similar tree, that shares the same root network, fell last month.

The already fallen poplar tree came crashing down at roughly 3.30pm on Friday, May 24, and still rests on sheds and fences more than a month later.

Neighbours believe that not enough is being done to protect their property from the remaining tree.

Civil servant Stephen Smith of Pasture Road, Stapleford, said: "A 30-metre-high tree fell across three properties and destroyed a large shed as well as a trampoline.

"I contacted the owner of the tree and they won't move it.

"There is a second tree that is still standing but it is also rotten and they won't remove that either.

"With it still standing I think it is putting people in danger because it could fall at any time, on anyone."

Martin Page, who has been a tree surgeon for 35 years, looked at the remaining tree at Mr Smith's request.

He said: "It is liable to fall because part of the tree from the same network has fallen.

"It's not immediately dangerous – but it's got to be felled whatever happens and that should be done as soon as possible."

Neighbour Holly Relton, 38, said: "At the time when the first one fell down it could have been when my son, Joseph Relton, 11, was playing outside.

"The fallen tree obliterated his trampoline and the only reason he was not on it was because it was raining.

"The remaining tree is dangerous and you can see it sway in the wind.

"The tree is definitely a time bomb and if it was to fall towards our house it would come through our conservatory."

She went on: "When the wind gets up I do have sleepless nights worrying about it coming down.

"We simply do not go out in the garden and won't until something is sorted."

It is not the first time the owner of the tree has been at the centre of a controversy.

Dr Balvinder Singh Mehat owns a number of properties throughout the county.

He was ordered to pay more than £20,000 in fines and costs in 2009 after he was found not to have a proper licence for a house he rented to students in Derby Grove, Lenton, which was also found to present a significant fire safety risk.

When contacted by the Post and asked about the trees, he said: "We have contacted our insurance company and they are delaying making a decision on who should pay to have the trees removed."

THE Notts Fire and Rescue moved a step closer to axing two fire engines after it was agreed the proposals would go to a public consultation.

At a meeting at the Notts Fire and Rescue headquarters at Bestwood Lodge, yesterday, fire authority members voted to gauge public opinion about cutting services at West Bridgford and Arnold stations to try and save £1.8 million.

Leaflets and posters advertising public meetings will be displayed in the areas affected between now and the vote in September.

The authority could save up to £700,000 per year by cutting the services from Arnold and West Bridgford.

Notts' Chief Fire Officer Frank Swann warned that further cuts could see Notts Fire and Rescue unable to meet response targets in the future.

Mr Swann explained that cutting two engines would leave Notts with 32 full time services and, through their Integrated Risk Management Plan, they currently aim to attend 90 per cent of incidents within ten minutes.

"If we go below 30 appliances we wont be able to fulfil our contract with the public," he said.

"But I'm confident that this will not put the people at any significant risk," he added, before warning councillors that they may have to alter their response targets or face missing them if the government continues to cut their funding.

Darrel Pulk, chairman of the fire authority, added: "We would be making these changes anyway, but we would have liked to use the money we saved elsewhere. Difficult times require people to make difficult decisions and this is not the end of the story."

DEATHS and injuries on Notts roads have fallen, according to a council report.

However, child deaths have increased by 100 per cent, while cyclist deaths and serious injuries have remained the same.

A report from Nottinghamshire County Council showed that fewer people died on the road in 2012 compared to the previous year.

Serious and slight casualties dropped as well.

Child deaths rose from zero to four, while cyclists killed or seriously injured remained at 56.

Based on averages from 2005 to 2009 the number of cyclists killed on the roads has risen by about 10.

The number of deaths or serious injuries arising from incidents involving 17 to 24-year-old drivers increased from 85 to 94.

The report appeared before a committee meeting next week, outlining progress and targets to councillors.

Nottingham City Council has not published a similar report but a spokesperson said they were on target for meeting casualty reduction figures.

The news comes as findings from the Office for National Statistics and Department of Transport show deaths on Britain's roads have dropped to a record low of 1,754 a year.

It also showed that on average, 10 per cent more cyclists were killed.

The county is on target for a 40 per cent reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on the roads by 2020.

This is based on figures recorded from 2005 to 2009.

The council spent £2.5m in 2012 on 100 casualty reduction schemes including junction improvements, rural route treatments and speed reduction.

It worked closely with police enforcement officers and launched a 'Ditch the Distraction' campaign to get young people to take off headphones and stay off their phone while crossing the road.

Councillor Chris Greaves, chairman of the transport and highways committee, said the report reflected Notts' priorities om road safety. He said: "Casualty reduction has always been taken very seriously in Nottinghamshire and although any accident is one too many, this is excellent news.

"We all know that there is more to be done and we are committed to carrying on this vital work to bring casualty levels down further."

But Faith Dale, whose 14-year-old son Josh was hit by a car on Colwick loop road and died of head injuries, said not enough has been done to improve roads for cyclists and other users.

She said: "We've got more traffic on the roads than ever before, it's incredible.

"Every question that was put to the county council about the Colwick junction, the answer was always that they've looked into it but it would cause too many delays.

"It's too little too late."

NINETY jobs are on offer at a new care home which is set to open in West Bridgford in August.

Church Farm at the Skylarks Nature Reserve, in Adbolton Lane, will be a dementia specialist nursing home.

It is part of the Church Farm family of homes, which includes the Church Farm nursing home in Cotgrave.

Patrick Atkinson who set up Church Farm in Cotgrave nine years ago said the ethos of Church Farm was all about caring for each individual and making every person with dementia feel cared for.

He said: "We are a 'dementia care matters home', which is about focusing on the person and not the dementia.

"In our care home everything is about making sure it feels as much like home as possible. We have worked very well in the small community of Cotgrave for the last nine years so we decided to branch out to West Bridgford.

"The building is a gem, right next to the nature reserve but not isolated. There is a real sense of community."

The new care home at West Bridgford will have room for 31 full-time residents, each of whom will have an en-suite bedroom and their own individual gardens.

Ninety staff will be needed to run the home.

Lucy Atkinson who works in the administration department at the Cotgrave care home said: "We are currently looking at recruiting administration staff, care assistants, trained nurses, plus domestic, laundry and kitchen staff.

"In total there are 90 jobs on offer.

"We will provide specialist dementia care training but we are looking for people who have a person-centred approach and who really care about others – the sort of person who wears their heart on their sleeve and who would share their life history with a stranger at a bus stop."

The nursing home is holding an open afternoon tea party and recruitment day today from 2pm to 4pm at the Church Farm Nursing Home, in Church Lane, Cotgrave.

If you are interested in applying for one of the jobs but can't make this date, the managers are available on the phone for a chat and to arrange a mutually convenient time.

Call 0115 989 4595 or e-mail info@churchfarmnursinghome.co.uk for more information.

FEWER people are being killed or injured as a result of not having a working smoke alarm in their homes.

Just one person died and 13 other were injured in house fires in Notts in 2012-13 where there were either no smoke alarms or alarms that were not working.

In comparison, there were three deaths and 25 injuries in 2011-12, and four deaths and 25 injuries in 2010-11.

Among those to escape injury were Teri Baker and her six-year-old daughter Abbie when a fire broke out at their home in Roker Close, Aspley, last December.

Abbie, now 7, was sleeping on the top bunk of her bed when she was awoken by the smoke.

She screamed out and woke Teri, 27.

Teri's husband, Steve, 40, said the couple had taken down two smoke alarms to change their batteries in the days before the fire but hadn't put them back up.

The cause of the fire was attributed to a fault with their shower.

Mr Baker, who was at work at the time of the fire, said: "I could have lost two members of my family. If the smoke alarm had gone off, they could have got out or put out the fire earlier."

A new fire alarm, as well as heat and carbon monoxide detectors, have now been installed at the house. The family check them on a weekly basis.

Mr Baker said: "It's cost between £55,000 and £60,000 to get back to normal and caused us a lot of upset. We're still getting over it."

He added: "I'm glad fewer people are getting injured because there's nothing worse than being in that situation. You always think it's not going to happen to you, and when it does, it's shocking."

Notts Fire and Rescue Service welcomed the drop but reiterated the need for the public to check that their smoke alarms work.

Kevin Tedds, city risk reduction officer at Notts Fire and Rescue Service, said: "It's really pleasing to note the high percentage of dwelling fires we are attending where smoke alarms are fitted.

"Much of this can be attributed to the hard work of our firefighters and risk reduction teams, who are working to ensure that everyone has working smoke alarms.

"However, we still need the public's help in getting this message out there.

"We recommend that one smoke alarm is fitted on each floor of a house and that it is tested once a week."

Firefighters have been called out to 146 house fires in Notts between April 1 and June 12.

Of those, 38 had no smoke alarms fitted, while five either had a faulty alarm or one that didn't have a battery fitted.

These fires resulted in two people being injured, but no deaths.

Mr Tedds added: "Smoke alarms literally are life-savers, giving vital early warning of smoke, fumes or fire and critical extra time to escape and call for help."

Nottingham City Homes said it was making smoke alarms compulsory in all of its 29,000 properties. It is also looking into installing sprinkler systems into some of its Independent Living Scheme properties for older people.

A spokesman said: "In regard to fire safety, we are in the process of installing smoke detection devices in all of our properties.

"This programme of works is due to be completed by the end of 2014.

"It is not mandatory to install these, but we have made a commitment to do it."

A MAN was caught walking around Toton with a meat cleaver down his trousers in the early hours, a court heard.

Alan Pendreigh, who has a drink problem, was arrested as he walked to buy booze from Tesco on January 11 this year.

Police had been investigating a burglary in Spinney Rise, Toton, when they saw Pendreigh walking along just after 3am.

They spoke with him in Stapleford Lane, Toton, about where he was going, Nottingham Crown Court heard.

They searched him and found the meat cleaver, which had a 16-centimetre blade, concealed in his waistband. "His speech was slurred and he was intoxicated," said prosecutor Sue Matthews.

Pendreigh, 26, of Hopkinson Court, Bestwood Village, took the weapon with him for protection as he set out to buy more booze from Tesco, the court was told.

He was arrested and charged with possessing an offensive weapon.

He was convicted at Nottingham Magistrates' Court and sent to the crown court for sentencing.

The judge, Recorder Tina Landale, said: "The weapon you went out with is absolutely terrifying and potentially could have been lethal.

She gave him a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, with supervision from the probation service for 12 months and £300 costs to pay.

The court heard Pendreigh had previous convictions for burglary, criminal damage, battery, disorderly conduct, producing cannabis and for stealing booze.

FIVE Notts men have been jailed in connection with a £26 million tobacco-smuggling operation.

A gang of eight men flooded the north of England with more than 150 million cigarettes.

They created a distribution network which transported the cigarettes to warehouses, storage yards and farms, which were then broken down in to smaller loads and sold on the black market.

The men were arrested in early 2011 as part of a HM Revenue and Customs investigation codenamed Operation Hornbeam.

HM Revenue and Customs officers uncovered the gang's "safe house" – discovering large amounts of cash and customer order books in an under-floor safe.

The organisation has now been able to reveal full details about the investigation after sentencing took place at Derby Crown Court.

Samual Jeffrey Tomlinson, 26, of Grove Coach Road, Retford, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to evade excise duty and was jailed for ten months.

Ben Phillip Kirk, 27, of Windsor Road, Retford, was pleaded guilty to conspiracy to evade excise duty. He was jailed for five months.

Jonathan Ellis, 24, of Century Road, Retford, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to evade excise duty and received a 20-month jail sentence.

Peter Lawrence, 23, of Claters Close, Retford, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to evade excise duty. He was jailed for six months.

William Bowie Tomlinson, 29, of Lifton Avenue, Retford, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to evade excise duty and was jailed for three years and eight months in November 2012.