Not long left to spend your £10s

Empty your purses and piggy banks and look under the sofa, because there is not long left to spend your £10 notes. On Thursday 1^st March the Bank of England will withdraw the legal tender status of £10 notes, which will be replaced by a new polymer note including new anti-fraud features. The notes can still be used as normal until 1^st March and you can exchange them at the Bank of England. According to the Bank of England, there are still at least £2.1bn worth of old £10 notes needing to be spent or exchanged, so make sure your notes don't go to waste!

Keep Britain Tidy!

Litter is a problem in many of our communities, and has been of particular concern for residents in Prudhoe. I am therefore pleased to learn that residents on Neale Street in Prudhoe have finally had some wasteland cut back on land backing onto their homes that had become overgrown and was attracting rats. Northumberland Estates, who own the land, have been out to clear the area in the last week, so there is finally some good news for the street’s residents.

We all have a part to play in making sure that our local areas are kept clean and tidy. The Great British Spring Clean, Keep Britain Tidy’s annual national clean-up, takes place on 2^nd-4^th March, and individuals, families, schools, businesses and groups can get involved to clean up our local streets, parks and beaches. Last year the campaign saw more than 300,000 volunteers collect 70,000 wheelie bins of rubbish over one weekend, and this year they want more people than ever to get involved. Littering has a devastating impact on our countryside and wildlife. I will be out and about next weekend helping to clean up our streets- it would be great if you joined me!

To register your participation visit- 

www.keepbritaintidy.org/gbspringclean

Funding boost for the Battlesteads

The award-winning Battlesteads Hotel in Wark has been granted £1.25m in funding from HSBC to expand and create jobs. The hotel, which is considered to be one of the finest hotels in Northumberland and was named Hotel of the Year at the 2017 North East England Tourism Awards, will use the funding to acquire two residential properties and add to its management team. Battlesteads is a hotel, restaurant and pub, championing Northumberland with much of its menu serving local produce, and it is the only hotel in the UK with its own observatory. Battlesteads is also an eco-hotel, and thanks to the new funding, its two new properties near to the hotel mean that staff can live nearby and not have to drive to work, lowering its carbon footprint. This funding is great news, ensuring that Battlesteads only continues to get better!