The five cheapest places to fill up within ten miles of Nottingham city centre:

Unleaded

1. Tesco, Middle Street, Beeston, 125.9p

2. Sainsbury's, Cross Street, Beeston, 125.9p

3. Tesco, Swiney Way, Toton, 125.9p

4. Tesco, Waverley Street, Long Eaton, 125.9p

5. Asda, Loughborough Road, West Bridgford, 126.7p

Diesel

1. Sainsbury's, Cross Street, Beeston, 131.9p

2. MRH Wollaton Spar, Wollaton Vale, Wollaton, 131.9p

3. Asda Nottingham Loughborough Road, West Bridgford, 132.7p

4. Asda, Radford Road, Hyson Green, 132.7p

5. Asda, Midland Street, Long Eaton, 132.7p

For the latest prices, check online at nottinghampost.com.

CARE providers across the country will be informed by a coroner about "gross failures" that contributed to a dementia suffer's death at a nursing home.

Stephanie Haskey, assistant coroner for Nottinghamshire, will contact thousands of registered care providers with her findings.

She intends that what happened to Betty Arch, 87, who died after she was left unsupervised at the former Spring Lane Nursing Home in Lambley – subsequently shut down – is never repeated.

Mrs Arch was found dead after she had been left unsupervised with leftover sandwiches in a residents' lounge.

She died of natural causes by neglect, the coroner ruled yesterday. The most likely cause of her death was aspiration pneumonia – when food, drink, vomit or saliva are inhaled into the lungs.

Despite the fact that she was not allowed to eat solid food for medical reasons, Betty's oesophagus was filled with undigested food.

One witness said supper was sandwiches and biscuits – "take it or leave it".

The coroner said "take it" posed a risk to her life; "leave it" meant no supper.

A post-mortem found Betty's oesophagus was full of bread material, and some peas.

"Her oesophagus could not process this unsuitable food and it backed up," said Miss Haskey. "Aspiration pneumonia was already in process, triggered by the previous unsuitable suppers, and it now reached critical point, acting upon chronically damaged lungs, and Betty died."

The coroner said this sequence of events, from the evidence, was on "a balance of probabilities" medically causative of Betty's death.

Some staff knew of Betty's dietary needs, others did not, including the night senior carer, or did not understand them.

The coroner found that Betty's death was caused by the way in which her care was delivered.

She had no care plan for her dietary needs and no risk assessment was made for her eating and drinking, which should have been supervised.

Carers complained at the inquest about staffing levels, saying they were "run ragged".

The coroner said: "The picture was little short of chaotic."

On behalf of Mrs Arch's family, solicitor Paul Balen said: "While nothing can bring Betty back, her family hopes that lessons have been learned by everyone involved in the care of dementia patients."

Caroline Baria, service director at NottsCounty Council, said swift action was taken after the case, including suspending its contract with the home. "The vast majority of care homes in Notts provide good standards of care for their residents," she said.

"This case highlights the importance of diet and nutrition in care homes.

FAILING schools and academies have been told to have regular quality checks.

Nottingham Challenge Board has also told six schools placed in special measures by Ofsted late last year that they must review pupil targets.

The board, set up in response to the Ofsted visits, met for the second time on Tuesday.

Ofsted is likely to visit again this month or next month.

The board, made up of education specialists, is providing training to head teachers and governors on how Ofsted judges good leadership.

Chairman Roger Shippam said: "We are confident but not complacent that city council schools are on track to make progress. However, I am keen to work with academy sponsors to see their action plans to improve the academy schools which fall outside of local authority control."

FIVE of the county's top attractions have been shortlisted for prestigious awards.

The VisitEngland Awards for Excellence celebrate tourism and identify some of the best events, experiences and places to stay in the country.

The awards will be held next month and those that have been shortlisted in our area include the Galleries of Justice Museum, Robin Hood Town Tour, Elemental Force, Trent Bridge Ashes Test matches and Browns of Holbeck bed and breakfast.

The Galleries of Justice is in the Small Visitor Attraction of the Year category. Its director of enterprise, Nicola Burley, said: "Not only does it recognise the hard work and creativity of our team but also celebrates the experience of our visitors which this year has reached a new high.

"We are very proud to be flying the flag for Nottingham and, as we approach our 20th year of operation, are delighted to be celebrated in VisitEngland's awards."

Robin Hood Town Tour, based in the city centre, has been shortlisted for Tourism Experience of the Year, while Elemental Force – a projected animated performance using Nottingham Castle as a backdrop – is in the Tourism Event of the Year category.

Trent Bridge Ashes Test matches are in the running for the Tourism Event of the Year.

Michael Temple, head of marketing for Trent Bridge, said: "This recognition is testament to the strength of our partnerships with Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Rushcliffe Borough Council and Experience Nottinghamshire who contributed so much to our bid to secure Ashes Test matches.

"We were all united in striving for the highest possible standards of match delivery and our efforts to stage an international sporting contest for the entire county to be proud of were very well received."

In the Guest Accommodation of the Year category Browns of Holbeck, in Holbeck Lane, Worksop, has been nominated.

Owner Joan Brown said: "We are absolutely delighted to be nominated.

"We are a three-room bed and breakfast that has been going for 25 years.

"We work hard all year round so it is great to be recognised."

All finalists are guaranteed to receive a gold, silver, bronze or highly commended award at a ceremony on Monday, May 12, at Cheltenham Racecourse.

STAFFORDSHIRE bull terriers are the dogs most often abandoned in Nottingham.

Figures from Nottingham Community Protection show that 521 stray dogs were found in the city in just ten months, with the number predicted to rise to 625 by June.

Almost half – 201 – were Staffordshire bull terriers and 40 of them had to be put down.

Alex Cox, staff officer for Nottingham Community Protection, said that although numbers had fallen over the past two years, stray dogs were still a big issue.

"Nearly half of Nottingham's strays are Staffordshire bull terriers due to them sometimes being owned by irresponsible owners or being owned as a status dog and bred and sold on the cheap via Facebook and Gumtree," he said.

Tony Sanderson, owner of Babbington Rescue, in Awsworth, said his organisation had to stop taking strays from the city due to the huge number of Staffordshire bull terriers.

"We try very hard to tell people how nice they are and it's a very sad situation that they get turned away from so many rescues.

"But for some reason, people are letting the dogs breed and then trading them for different things. They only get between £30 and £60 and the puppy doesn't get any vet care, no microchipping, nothing that a young dog needs. It is a nationwide problem but Nottingham city is very bad."

Nottingham Community Protection offers a low-cost neutering scheme to try to tackle the problem.

It can be contacted at www.protectnottingham.co.uk/.

ENERGY company Scottish Power has apologised to a former customer, after his personal details were made available to a stranger online.

Carlo Laurenti closed an account with the energy supplier last month.

But he received a call out of the blue from a woman last Friday saying she had access to his personal details via her own Scottish Power account online.

Scottish Power said the issue arose due to a human error, as Mr Laurenti left and the new customer joined on the same day.

Despite the apology, Mr Laurenti is angry about the experience.

He said: "It's unacceptable that an organisation like Scottish Power can infringe data protection to this extent.

"It could have been anyone. My details could have fallen into the wrong hands."

The problem came to light after Mr Laurenti closed a Scottish Power account at a rental property in Jacksdale that he owns.

He said: "I had a tenant who was with Scottish Power and when they left, I became liable for the bills.

"I just paid them off and closed the account in March.

"I paid the last bill off and made it very clear to Scottish Power that a new tenant was going in."

The father-of-three, who is a self-employed wedding planner and entertainer, thought nothing more of it until he received the call from Scottish Power customer Becci Wilkes.

Mr Laurenti, 45, of Somercotes, said: "She was a total stranger. She asked whether I was a Scottish Power customer.

"I said I'd just shut an account down, and this lady said she had only just joined them. To her shock, she logged into her account and all my details were there.

"My phone number, every single bill and letter between myself and Scottish Power, was all before this total stranger."

Ms Wilkes, 21, of Birmingham, told the Post: "Scottish Power offered me an online account and said they would send me some e-mails with what to do.

"I didn't receive any, so they corrected my e-mail address. I was then able to access what I thought was my account but as I looked through it, I saw all of Mr Laurenti's bills and account details.

"All the details were his, apart from the e-mail address, which was mine."

A Scottish Power spokeswoman said: "We have contacted Mr Laurenti and apologised for this error.

"This is an exceptionally rare incident. The problem was due to human error.

"We have now corrected the problem and in way of an apology, we have offered Mr Laurenti a goodwill payment of £100."

Has a consumer problem left you upset? E-mail newsdesk@nottinghampost.com.

THAT'S it for Thoresby Colliery. After six centuries, that's it for coal mining in Nottinghamshire.

Some issues were still unclear last night but it seemed likely that struggling owner UK Coal's appeal for £10m of Government money for the Edwinstowe pit was essentially about achieving a phased shutdown.

As we understand it, the first of the mine's 500 jobs will go within weeks – the casualties of an international market in which British underground coal reserves can no longer be mined and sold at a profit.

Just over 30 years ago, even with Arthur Scargill's warning about mass pit closures ringing in our ears, it was inconceivable that a proud Nottinghamshire industry of 30 mines could be wiped off the map; that a proud Nottinghamshire workforce of 30,000 men could be thrown out of their well-paid jobs.

Then came the rancorous, socially divisive and often violent strike of 1983-84. And after that, a Conservative government's systematic destruction of the industry in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

That was the real end for coal.

The demise of Thoresby, the county's last deep mine, is a footnote to the story – but it is none the less tragic for that. Here is the end of not only an industry, but also a way of life.

THE closure of Nottinghamshire's last deep coal mine could be prevented by European aid, say union leaders.

UK Coal, owner of Thoresby Colliery, is seeking investment to bring about the phased closure of the Edwinstowe pit over the next 18 months.

However, the National Union of Mineworkers says that the loss of more than 500 jobs at the site could be prevented if the Government applied to the European Commission for State Aid for a survival plan until at least 2018.

Chris Kitchen, national secretary of the union, said: "If the Government applied to the EU for State Aid, they would get it, which would keep the mine open until 2018 – but that is not happening.

"We have been told that the only option is a closure plan.

"The EU Commission say there is no obstacle in providing modest help.

"All it will take to secure thousands of good jobs [countrywide] is commitment from this Government."

A 45-day consultation period into how any investment of taxpayers' money into UK Coal should be spent started yesterday with the first job losses expected as early as next month.

UK Coal communications manager Gordon Grant said: "What we have done is open a consultation with the unions.

"We are discussing what we will do if we get an investment and we expect it will be used to run down the business.

"As part of the consultation, we will discuss redundancies and we expect 200 jobs to be the first to go.

"Phased redundancy could start in mid-May but until the consultation ends, we just don't know."

It is thought that the company is in talks with the Government for around £10 million to help pay for a closure plan.

Sherwood Tory MP Mark Spencer said: "The Government is trying to put a deal together to keep it open for 18 more months but it depends what happens with energy prices after that.

"It is fair to say that we are talking of a figure around £10 million.

"If it went bust today, the Government would have to step in and it would cost way, way more than that.

"I presume that any investment from the Government will come from the Department for Energy and Climate Change.

"Thoresby is the best-performing mine in the country and the workers are meeting their targets but it is other elements of UK Coal that have caused this situation."

It is thought that Thoresby Colliery has enough coal to last until 2018, but unless a late deal can be made, the last Nottinghamshire mine will close.

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "The Government should back help to keep Britain's last coal mines open. This would be good for jobs, communities and for the environment, as such help can help drive investment in carbon capture and storage – a growing international market."

A spokesman for the Department for Energy and Climate Change said: "The future of UK Coal is primarily a commercial matter. However, we are in close contact with the company to ensure that Government is kept aware of the challenges they face."

BRAVE Emma Hunt has described how she thought she was going to die as Martell Campbell sank his teeth into her outside the gates of a Nottingham school.

Campbell was jailed for more than six years at Nottingham Crown Court on Tuesday after admitting wounding with intent. The 24 year old attacked his former partner after she had dropped her daughter off at a Basford primary school.

She had started dating him six years ago but said he started getting "weird" after the pair had a daughter together.

They broke up after four years but Miss Hunt allowed Campbell to continue seeing his child, who is now three.

But she said Campbell, of Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, suddenly changed in July last year.

She obtained a non-molestation order against him in October after Campbell hurled a brick through her window.

Miss Hunt said Campbell chillingly phoned her the night before the attack and told her "I'm going to kill you" because she refused to take him back.

She said: "It was okay at first when we broke up two years' ago, he still had our daughter at weekends.

"But when it got to July of last year he started harassing me and stalking me.

"He smashed my windows and was going through my bins and he used to ask people where I was.

"We had an argument on the phone the night before he attacked me because I wouldn't get back with him.

"He said he was going to come to the school and kill me. I was shaken up but I didn't actually think he would attack me."

Campbell attacked Miss Hunt at 8.30am on November 6 last year.

"I was walking back from the school and someone said to me that a big black guy was hiding in the bushes," she said.

"Then I saw him and that is when he pounced on me. He's a lot bigger and stronger than me, I was just trying to defend myself.

"I was worried I was going to die, I can't really remember much of the attack but my only thoughts were that I wasn't going to see my daughter again.

"Everyone was on the phone to the police and I think that is the only reason he stopped and ran off.

"Someone took a photo of him and the police found him nearby and arrested him."

Miss Hunt was rushed to the Queen's Medical Centre after the attack.

As well as 11 stitches where he bit her ear, she was also treated for a broken nose and bruising to her face – including around her eye after Campbell dug his fingers in to try to gouge it out.

She added: "My ear was hanging off, I had a broken nose, my knees were grazed and my face was bruised.

"I'm glad he's locked up and can leave me alone. I think he should have been jailed for longer though."

Last year the Nottingham Post led a campaign called Man Enough, during which nearly 6,000 men promised to help end domestic violence by signing our White Ribbon pledge.

STUART Pearce will today officially sign up to be Nottingham Forest's next manger.

The Reds legend is understood to have agreed, in principle, to a two year deal with the Championship club.

And, barring any late snags, he will put pen to paper at the City Ground this afternoon.

The former Manchester City and England under-21 coach was in Paris last night covering the Champions League clash between PSG and Chelsea for TalkSport.

When asked if he was taking the job at Forest, he said: "I'm still talking with Nottingham Forest and will meet them tomorrow (Thursday).

"Will I be the manager next season? It's very likely."

Pearce is due at the club at lunchtime today, where it is expected he will officially seal the deal to become the full time successor to Billy Davies.

Pearce will not take the reins at the club until the summer, with Gary Brazil set to remain in caretaker charge for the remaining seven games.

"We are expecting Stuart at the club at lunchtime," said Forest ambassador John McGovern, who has been advising owner Fawaz Al Hasawi on the appointment.

"There are still a few things that are to be agreed. But we hope that everything will be sorted. We hope to complete the formalities of his appointment during that meeting."

In the meantime, while Brazil looks to steer the side into the play-offs, Pearce will put together his backroom staff for next season.

Whether they end up being part of the first team coaching staff or not or revert back to working in their academy roles, the jobs of Brazil, Steve Sutton and Jimmy Gilligan are thought to be safe.

The trio will take charge when Millwall visit the City Ground this weekend and, in former team-mate Pearce, Sutton believes Forest have chosen a man with real passion for the club.

"I played with Stuart back in the 80s, which seems a long time ago," said Sutton. "He will bring a dynamic to the club that people want.

"He is an ex-player, but he is also somebody who has legendary status at this club."

"If he can transmit that into the managerial side of things, time will tell."

Sutton says the challenge facing Brazil, for the rest of the season – and Pearce after next summer – is to put the spark back into a Forest side that has not won in ten games.

The Reds produced a vastly improved, promising performance, at Ipswich last weekend.

"Every manager at every club wants to find the spark that makes their team play well," said Sutton.

"We have to dig in, we have to win the physical battles. But if we can earn the right to play, we believe we have the ability and the pace to put teams to the sword.

"It is a big ask, but there is no reason why we cannot produce."

SEVEN years ago, Rob Taylor's three-bedroom West Bridgford home was worth £170,000.

Following a large kitchen extension, its value shot up to between £210,000 and £220,000.

And now that the property's valuation has climbed even higher, much to the surprise of Rob and his wife Sarah.

He said: "We are looking to move to somewhere which is larger and we have now had the house valued at around £245,000. I was shocked. But this is a fantastic area for people to live in."

Rob's experience is one which is familiar to many.

The Land Registry shows that house prices in Nottinghamshire rose 3.2 per cent in the year to this February. In the city it was even higher, at 3.9 per cent. (See graphic).

According to the Government, the average UK house price went up 6.8 per cent during the past year, driven by a 13.2 per cent increase in London. Excluding London and the South East, UK house prices increased by 3.8 per cent over the year, putting the Nottinghamshire statistics just below average. Estate agents say that the disparity between supply and demand – with more people looking to buy than there are houses on the market – is causing the rise.

The Land Registry also shows that there was a 17 per cent rise in sales in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire in 2013 when compared to 2012. (See graphic).

So now may well be the ideal time for Rob and Sarah to put their home, in Portland Road, on the market.

Rob said: "It looks like it could be a good time to be selling our home. The figures do suggest that."

In February, the average price of a house in Nottinghamshire was £122,231, up from £118,445 in the same month in 2013.

The average price in Nottingham was £86,000, up from £82,779 in the same period.

James Kirk, managing director of Alexanders estate agents, valued Rob's home.

He said the agency had noticed a big rise in house prices across the board, adding: "Some areas are seeing a bigger increase than others. There is a lack of supply which is actually driving up those prices. In the middle sector the increases are most noticeable.

"The December, January and February times are generally difficult in the property markets, but now we are into spring we suddenly get the buyers coming.

"With the increased confidence in the economy and people having more money as well, I believe that prices will continue to go up. The only concern is with the level of supply and demand."

In 2012, 9,882 homes were sold in Nottinghamshire compared to 11,588 in 2013. Similarly, house sales in Nottingham increased from 2,498 to 2,933.

In the coming years, thousands more homes are to set to be built in the county, which will improve supply and should, experts say, limit price rises.

Among the developments are a £100 million development will see 450 homes built at Cotgrave Colliery, while there are plans for 600 on the site of the former Gedling Colliery.

Dan Bennett, associate director of Nottingham-based estate agents Chesterton Humberts, said that until those extra homes are available, the cost of the current housing stock will continue to go up.

He said: "We have seen the price of some properties going up, though not all at the rate suggested. The lack of new properties coming on to the market is certainly leading to increases in prices.

"There are certainly more buyers right now and less stock and this is pushing the prices up. As long as this trend continues, prices will rise.

"However, the situation as it is does not really help your first-time buyers. It is certainly not a good thing for them."

Improvements in the market have also been seen by the Nottingham Building Society. It has been reporting big leaps in mortgage lending, reaching levels last seen before the start of the financial crisis in the summer of 2007.

Chief executive David Marlow said: "We've been working hard to ensure we can continue to lend into the market and, as a mutual, we are not necessarily constrained in the same way as some other institutions."

FIRST-time-buyer Jennifer Robinson, 27, bought her three-bedroom semi in Greenacre, Edwalton, last summer for £145,000.

The married mum-to-be said: "We had saved up a deposit over about five years because we wanted to get on the property ladder.

"Rather than renting and handing over money every month we wanted our savings to be invested. We were aware when we bought the house that the market was low and prices would probably go up – so we got in while we could.

"If we had left it any longer and prices went up we would either have needed a bigger deposit or had look at a cheaper property.

"I'm obviously really pleased if the house is worth more now.

"The mortgage payments are more than we were paying when we were renting but at least we will pay it off one day and have a house at the end."

ESTATE agents say Nottingham- shire still offers good value for money in the property market.

While prices have gone up 3.2 per cent in a year, the level of increase is still lower than other regions, especially the south-east.

In today's Nottingham Post Property, this home in Bestwood Village, complete with its own lake and woodland, is priced at £895,000.

Orchard House has it all, its current owner says, including a mammoth 13 acres of grounds.

The owner said: "Whether you want to take the boat out on the river or just sit in the sunshine and soak up the views, there is always something to do here.

"This is the kind of place you return home to, sit outside in the evening sun, and relax as all your stresses just melt away."

The house's extensive grounds not only encompass a section of the river and a mill pond, but also include an area of woodland and a six-acre field which is suitable for horses or other livestock to be grazed.