Professor Andrew Rowland, Honorary Professor (Children’s Rights, Law and Advocacy) at the University of Salford, has been appointed as an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) in His Majesty the King’s 2025 Birthday Honours list for services to Safeguarding and the Protection of Children’s Rights.
Residents plead for Government inspector to reject developer's plan to build hundreds of homes above Derbyshire town
Mar 12, 2025
Source
Derbyshire Times
Summary
On Tuesday (March 11) Matlock Town Hall played host to the first day of a Government inspector-led public inquiry into rejected plans from William Davis Homes for 423 houses on the Matlock Wolds, off Gritstone Road, Sandy Lane and Pinewood Road.
The development, rejected a year ago by Derbyshire Dales District Council, is not being defended by the authority on the advice of independent experts who advised their grounds for refusal were indefensible.
Dr Adam Aitken, a lecturer at the University of Salford, said research into Matlock’s flood resilience he carried out found an “exasperated” community that faced a “tipping point” in being able to cope with future incidents.
New flood research finds Derbyshire town 'distrusts authorities' ahead of showdown over 400 homes development plan
Feb 27, 2025
Source
Derbyshire Times
Summary
A new report by climate resilience researchers has urged authorities to do more to protect Matlock from the threat of flooding, just as the town prepares for a final showdown over plans for hundreds of new houses on hillside fields.
In the hope of learning lessons to apply elsewhere in the UK, social scientists Ruth Mckie and Adam Aitken, from De Montford and Salford universities respectively, carried out field research in Matlock to understand how members of the community are trying to make the town more resilient to increasingly frequent and severe flooding.
