The City of Lincoln’s Member of Parliament, Karl M^cCartney MP, is delighted to learn that the artificial grass pitch and changing rooms at Lindum Sports Association are set to be improved thanks to £235,717 of National Lottery funding from Sport England.

Across England, 38 artificial grass pitches and swimming pool changing rooms will be replaced and refurbished after Sport England announced £9.9 million of investment from the first round of its new Improvement Fund.

With three-quarters of people citing the quality of the pitch surface and the changing rooms as being important to their sporting experience, the Improvement Fund will improve these facilities for the benefit of thousands of people.

Sport England Property Director, Charles Johnston, said: “As the research shows people have a better experience of sport when the facilities are good both on and off the pitch.  These investments in artificial grass pitches and swimming pool changing rooms will have a big impact on sport in local communities.”

Karl M^cCartney MP said: “I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Lindum Sports Association on their long campaign to secure funding for improved facilities and this remarkable achievement.  £235,717 is a vast sum of money and I know it will be put to very good use in improving Lindum Sport’s artificial grass pitch and changing rooms for members both in my Constituency and in Lincolnshire.”

Minister for Sport, Hugh Robertson, said: “Protecting and improving local sports facilities is an important part of the legacy from 2012. This £10 million National Lottery Improvement Fund will create thousands more sporting opportunities for communities across the country encouraging people to get active and take up sport.”

Between now and 2017, Sport England will invest £45 million of lottery funding through the Improvement Fund into medium-sized projects to improve grassroots sport facilities.

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For further information, please contact Karl M^cCartney MP at karl.mccartney.mp@parliament.uk / 020 7219 7221

Lincoln’s Member of Parliament, Karl M^cCartney, has welcomed further investment to help companies set up the training schemes they need to meet specific skill requirements.

£150 million has been put into the second round of the Employee Ownership Pilot (EOP), a scheme designed to provide funding directly to employers so that they can deliver more flexible training packages. Total investment in the EOP has now reached £240 million.

This pilot has already seen £2.9 million committed to projects across the Midlands. Funded projects include providing pre-employment training, extending apprenticeships to supply chains and increasing the number of female apprenticeships.

Welcoming the announcement, Mr M^cCartney said, “Investing is employee training is a smart move for any company that wants to grow and compete.  Businesses in our City have many talented staff – and I urge them to apply for this fund to help them offer their workforce the training they want.”

Skills Minister, Matthew Hancock MP, commented, “For British businesses to succeed and compete in the global race, they need a highly-skilled workforce that can meet the challenges of the future.  With applications for round two now open, I would urge businesses – particularly small companies – to consider how the fund can help them grow, from creating new apprenticeship programmes to setting up specialist training academies.”

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For further information, please contact Karl M^cCartney MP at karl.mccartney.mp@parliament.uk / 020 7219 7221

Cllr Kelly Smith, County Councillor for Lincoln Moorland, and Karl M^cCartney MP, the Member of Parliament for the City of Lincoln, will be holding a public meeting at St George’s Church Hall on Eastbrook Road, Lincoln at 6pm on Friday, 22 February.

All are welcome – so please do come along and share your views and concerns with Mr M^cCartney and Cllr Smith!

Mr M^cCartney said, “Both Cllr Smith and myself are really looking forward to another opportunity to meet our Constituents on Friday, 22 February.  This public meeting in Moorland will provide another opportunity for residents in Moorland and, indeed, throughout our City, to speak to their elected representatives about any issue, local or national, they wish to raise.”

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For further information, please contact Karl M^cCartney MP at karl.mccartney.mp@parliament.uk / 020 7219 7221

Residents of  the City of Lincoln Constituency should ring 0300 123 1234 to save energy costs

The Green Deal went live last week, giving the public in Lincoln the opportunity to transform their homes by paying for energy efficient home improvements with the savings on their energy bills.

The Green Deal is the Coalition Government’s new initiative to transform Britain’s homes. With buildings in Britain among the least efficient in the world, the Green Deal gives homes and businesses a new way of paying for energy efficient improvements such as insulation and new heating systems.

There are 45 different types of improvements currently available under the Green Deal in Lincoln, helping people warm up their homes and pay for some or all of the improvements over time through their electricity bill.

From last week households in England and Wales who use the Green Deal to make energy saving home improvements will also qualify for hundreds of pounds of cashback from the Green Deal Cashback Scheme. The more work households decide to have done, the more cash they could receive and packages could be worth over £1,000.

Member of Parliament for the City of Lincoln, Karl M^cCartney MP,  said: “The Green Deal will transform the energy efficiency market and puts consumers in charge. It’s a fantastic new scheme that will allow people to make their homes warmer and save energy at the same time.

“And it’s not just consumers who will benefit. The Green Deal is also great for local businesses, creating a new market and new jobs in Lincoln. I’m truly excited about the potential the Green Deal has to transform Britain’s homes.”

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For further information, please contact Karl M^cCartney MP at karl.mccartney.mp@parliament.uk / 020 7219 7221

Lincoln’s Member of Parliament, Karl M^cCartney, has called for local amateur film makers to enter FILM THE HOUSE, a national competition that celebrates up-and-coming amateur film producers, directors and script writers across the UK.

Film lovers of all ages are urged to get their creative juices flowing, and submit their amateur films to FILM THE HOUSE. Mr M^cCartney will nominate his top film from the area for the national competition, which aims to also raise awareness of the importance of intellectual property rights, film and the creative industries.

Founded by Mike Weatherley MP and supported by the British film industry, FILM THE HOUSE gives entrants the chance to win a screening of their film to film industry executives at the House of Commons.

Mr M^cCartney said: “FILM THE HOUSE is a great opportunity for aspiring film makers of any age looking to find a way into the industry. I am excited to see the films that the people of Lincoln can come up with, and hope to see as many submissions from our City as possible.”

The competition is designed to promote the wealth and variety of film in the UK. Categories include drama, thriller, action, comedy, music video, documentary, as well as a separate category for under 18s which can be any genre.

The closing date for nominations is 30th June and the winners will be announced on the 30th October at a special reception and screening of the winning film at the House of Parliament. For more information on how to apply visit www.filmthehouse.com

For more information please visit www.filmthouse.com or contact Amy Bourke or Lucy Hopkins on 0207 618 9142, filmthehouse@luther.co.uk

Baroness Andrews OBE, the Chairman of English Heritage, recently wrote to Karl to brief him about historic sites in the City of Lincoln that appear on the Heritage at Risk Register.  The Register is compiled by English Heritage and identifies the most endangered historic sites in England.  The Register currently includes one place of worship, Lincoln Cathedral that, which although cited as ‘slowly decaying’ is considered by English Heritage to be in a ‘fair’ condition, as well as the following six conservation areas, which are described by English Heritage as ‘deteriorating’ and ‘at risk’:

• Cathedral and City Centre,
• Gowt’s Bridge,
• St Catherines’,
• St Peter at Gowt’s,
• Swanpool
• West Parade and Brayford

Karl said, “I am well aware that our City has a proud and distinguished history and these historic sites are an important part of Lincoln’s heritage.  As the Member of Parliament for Lincoln and a member of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, English Heritage and the National Trust, I am, of course, concerned at the number of historic sites in Lincoln that are currently included in the Heritage at Risk Register. 

“Baroness Andrews OBE, the Chairman of English Heritage, has promised to write to me again next year with a further update and I shall be watching this situation closely.

“It is vital that places such as Lincoln Cathedral, and the various buildings and areas that the City Council and County Council administer, that form such an important part of our local identity, are preserved for future generations.“

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For further information, please contact Karl M^cCartney MP at karl.mccartney.mp@parliament.uk

Karl M^cCartney, Member of Parliament for the City of Lincoln, enthusiastically supports the Government’s review which will boost the number of local pubs. As part of its commitment to the Great British pub, the Government this week launched a review of restrictive covenants, a legal clause that can be used to prevent community pubs reopening as public houses following a sale.

In just 5 years under Labour – between 2004 and 2009 – some 572 pubs are said to have been permanently lost following a sale with a restrictive covenant, potentially depriving thousands of regulars of an important community asset.

Speaking in support of pubs, Karl said, “Pubs are hubs of community life, as important to the local social scene as they are to the local economy here in Lincoln. But time is being called at too many of our ‘locals’, depriving people of treasured places to get together in the community.

“We are putting the people back in charge, giving them the power to step in and save their much-loved community assets. By reviewing this restrictive red tape we will enable people to use their collective powers to ensure that their locals remain local and continue to thrive at the heart of every community”.

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For further information, please contact Karl M^cCartney MP at karl.mccartney.mp@parliament.uk