Scrapyard blaze thought to be arson

A POLICE investigation is under way after it was revealed a fire at a scrapyard in Church Gresley is thought to have been started deliberately.

Fire crews from across the area were called to the site in Pool Street in the early hours of Friday, November 9, after a fire was reported inside a building.

Firefighters battled the blaze for most of the day.

Officers from Derbyshire Police are now investigating and are keen to speak to anybody who might have information that could help them to determine what happened.

Anyone with information is urged to get in touch with police by calling non-emergency number 101, quoting incident number 106 of November 6. Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. A SWADLINCOTE couple have put the success of their emerging business down to the hard work of their daughters, saying nothing would have been possible without them.

Jas and Charny Dhesi, both 48, run Stapenhill Post Office, in St Peter’s Street, which has had a chequered history over the years.

The couple, who have 27 years’ experience running convenience stores, took over the problematic post office in August 2017 and have now opened a coffee shop on site in a bid to turn its fortunes around.

Jas said: “We took over the post office last year after it had been run by an agency for the last few years.

“The agency only had the post office counter itself open and nothing else and we found it really wasn’t working so we got thinking of things that we could do. We’ve got to make a living – the post office alone can’t do that.

“We put our heads together with our daughters and came up with the idea of opening a coffee shop and a little gift shop where we could sell some unique items, many of which have been made by our daughters.

“We binned a lot of the stock we had and started again to renovate the place.

“We’re really happy with it. so hopefully customers will be, too.”

The pair, who say they love working together, are hoping the coffee shop will be a success and will mean the post office can remain open for years to come.

Charny said: “We like it that people can pop in and have a good coffee for a reasonable price and a good slice of cake to unwind.

“Some of the residents of nearby care homes come in and it’s good for them. It’s a chance to get out without having to go all the way into town, which can be too much for some people. But they can still get out of the home, have a good coffee and a natter with their friends.”

The couple have three daughters, Aman, 26, Simi, 21, and Kaya, 13, who all help out at the coffee shop or make home-made gifts that have become extremely popular with customers, selling like hotcakes.

The post office has faced problems in the past and has been closed for a significant amount of time over the last few years.

In December 2015, the post office was closed due to unknown circumstances and remained closed for more than two months until it was reopened by an agency, which ran the counter until it was taken over by the Dhesi family.

For those who plan to visit the new coffee shop, the couple recommend trying a slice of carrot cake and a mocha.