The Spirit of Alfreton is part of The Christopher Nieper Foundation, established in 2020 as the philanthropic arm of international fashion business David Nieper Ltd, created to help make Alfreton a better place to live, work and learn.

Christopher’s family business has been one of the largest employers in the town for over 60 years, today employing over 300 staff. The business is committed to manufacturing in Britain and prioritises local jobs, building economic prosperity and has been recognised with the Queen’s Award for Sustainable Production.

Christopher Nieper OBE is a businessman, educationalist and environmentalist. CEO of his family fashion business and founder of the David Nieper Education Trust and the Christopher Nieper Foundation.

To help raise education standards for young people in the town, in 2015 Christopher established an Education Trust and become sponsor of the David Nieper Academy, the town’s secondary school.

In 2020, as a reaction to the Covid-19 crisis, Christopher launched The Spirit of Alfreton as an online community forum, designed to help local people stay in touch and support each other during difficult times.

The Spirit of Alfreton remains at the heart of the Foundation’s ambitions and goes from strength to strength, giving the community a voice, sharing news and helping to restore local democracy in forgotten towns.