LOLLIPOP men and women in Darlington celebrated 50 years of school crossing patrols. In 1953 ten patrol staff and two reserves were appointed to help school children cross the road at 12 locations in the town. They were paid 30 shillings a week with 20
THE number of fire engines in North Yorkshire fitted with life-saving equipment is expected to increase this year. Proposals to fit 14 fire appliances with specialist cutting equipment, essential for road traffic accidents, will be considered by North
Darlington skipper Craig Liddle is determined to give Feethams a winning send-off this weekend. Quakers host Leyton Orient on Saturday in the last ever game at DL1 before the club moves to its new 27,500 all-seater in time for next season. And Liddle
REPLICAS of the Lindisfarne Gospels are to go on show in the North-East, the home region of the original manuscript, later this month. Expensively produced facsimile copies of the gospels will be presented to both Dur-ham Cathedral and the Heritage Centre
L is for L PLATES, LAZY and LOVE, Lots of it - which is sometimes all that gets you through the most horrible bits of your son's teenage years. You know you love your son really - why else would you be kangaroo-hopping down a country lane while he tries
SHOPPERS could not believe their eyes when 20 strapping men took to the streets in pink and lavender tutus. People watched in amazement as the 'pink fairies' and 'lavender luvvies' were blindfolded and bundled into taxis to take them to an undisclosed
To The Manor Born (ITV1) : ENTERTAINING as it was, I'm not sure this documentary, set among the landed gentry and their cap-doffing workers on a vast Suffolk country estate, did anything to alter preconceptions of such people. All the participants conformed
PENSIONERS were left shaken after vandals hurled bricks at the hall where they were playing bingo. The Scout hut in Annfield Plain, near Stanley, County Durham, came under fire as youths threw missiles at the windows. One brick landed on target, but the
AN OFF-DUTY nurse suffered a suspected broken finger after a man snatched her handbag. The incident happened at about 6pm on Monday in Elwick Road, Hartlepool, at the junction of Wansbeck Gardens. The woman was walking home when she was approached by
WAR reporter Kate Adie is to visit the North-East to talk about her experiences as a foreign correspondent. The Royal Geographic Society talk takes place at Darlington Arts Centre on Tuesday, May 20. For information and tickets contact (01325) 486555.
HELPING to resettle young offenders into the community, with life skills and job opportunities, has become the main objective for one of the region's prisons. In an otherwise glowing report, Anne Owers, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons, has recommended
MORE than four decades after a cult movie shocked 1960 cinemagoers, school actors are staging their own version for a young audience. Pupils at Wolsingham School and Community College are tackling their most ambitious production yet this week. The offbeat
A mother-of-four has suffered her first setback as doctors battle to save her leg. Ann Teasdale, of Newton Aycliffe, is receiving treatment in the United States. The 42-year-old has already had to have one leg amputated after contracting Reflex Sympathetic
A PRIVATE North-East ambulance service has been forced into liquidation by the foot-and-mouth crisis. Medical Response Team (UK) Limited, based at Aycliffe industrial estate, Newton Aycliffe, County Dur-ham, was made the subject of a compulsory winding
POLICE are hunting a man following what appears to be a serious sexual assault on a woman after she left a club. The 22-year-old had been in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, early Monday evening, before going to Greenbank Working Man's Club in Picktree
A CHEF used to cooking for thousands of people is hoping to woo a dozen men into a college kitchen. Becky Dougill will host Man in the Kitchen sessions at Darlington College of Technology every Tuesday night as part of a series of courses being held by
THE long-awaited inquiry into the Richard Neale scandal begins today against a backdrop of warnings that nothing the Government has done could stop it happening again. The former surgeon, at the Friarage Hospital, Northallerton -who was found guilty of
THE brother of a missing North-East woman has made a heartfelt appeal for her to get in touch with him. Michael Menzies pleaded with his younger sister, Jacqueline Swift, to contact him. Mrs Swift, 44, went missing on Easter Monday after going to buy
THREE friends who carried out an attack on a fourth man after a drinking binge were all jailed for 18 months yesterday. They turned on Shaun Staples, who had been drinking with them in a flat in Darlington, because they suspected he had hit two of them
THE Tyne and Wear Metro will become a multi-site art gallery when it hosts the North-East exhibition of Self Portrait UK. Central Metro station, in Newcastle, will be the venue for the launch of the North-East's round of the Channel 4 sponsored art project
BAILIFFS were called to a football club yesterday over unpaid business rates. Debt collectors were sent to Spennymoor United's Brewery Fields ground because of outstanding business rates, believed to be about £4,000. An official from the club, which has
LAUGHING, excited children tucked into their burgers with gusto - their smiling mothers proudly looking on. An everyday scene perhaps, but there was a real sense of relief and genuine happiness permeating through the children's chatter. This was the moment
SPECIALIST training organisations and colleges across the North-East have teamed up with Tomorrow's World's Adam Hart Davis to launch the UK's first Regional Network of Centres of Vocational Excellence. Principals from the 13 colleges and training companies
ONE of the pioneering sons of the railways has been chosen by a council to symbolise the regeneration of a town's park. A bronze statue of Timothy Hackworth is being placed in Shildon's Hackworth Park and its unveiling this week marks the second phase
THE RSPB is asking people in the North-East to help them find out more about house sparrow numbers in an attempt to explain why numbers are declining. David Hirst, of the RSPB's North of England region, said: "Studies over the last 25 years have shown
FOR the fifth time Sedgefield Players long serving member Norma Neal came away from the Isle of Man Easter Festival of Plays, with the Best Actress award. The players have won the award eight times since starting to compete in the festival. The players
An 11-year-old girl was arrested for possessing drugs following a raid on a house where officers found crack cocaine and £1,000 cash, police said today. She was allegedly found with a small amount of cannabis as officers swooped on an address in Kingston
COUNCILLORS yesterday approved plans to convert a shop into two flats, despite objections from neighbours. The shop opposite the Highland Laddie pub in Haughton Green, Darlington, was last used as a hat and dress hire shop. Darlington Borough Council's
L is for L PLATES, LAZY and LOVE, Lots of it - which is sometimes all that gets you through the most horrible bits of your son's teenage years. You know you love your son really - why else would you be kangaroo-hopping down a country lane while he tries
AN exhibition of artwork goes on display today. Original framed and unframed paintings, drawings and other works of art by members of the Leven Art Society will feature in the five-day show. Many of the exhibits on display at this year's event will be
A HOUSING association yesterday celebrated its tenth anniversary and promised to deliver "more of the same, only better". The board and management team at Broadacres, in Northallerton, enjoyed a slice of cake and a glass of champagne with staff to toast
VILLAGE residents who helped to design their own community green are joining forces with two artists to add some distinctive finishing touches. Children and young people in Dene Valley, near Bishop Auckland, have been attending workshops with artists
PIGEON fanciers are putting up a reward for the safe return of birds after thieves ransacked allotments. About 100 birds were taken from the allotments in Coundon, near Bishop Auckland. John Hepple, 68, says he will give up his hobby after losing 41 of
IT IS not too late for people to vote in local elections if they have not sent in postal ballot forms. In the Darlington Borough Council area people have until 9pm to deliver their vote. The drop-off points are: the town hall reception; Cockerton library
A MAN has been told he cannot build a bungalow in his garden because neighbours consider the land open space. John Howard applied to Darlington Borough Council for permission to extend his home in Manor Road, Hurworth Place, near Darlington, and build
POLICE are warning pensioners to be vigilant after two bogus callers tried to enter an elderly couple's home in Darlington. Two men knocked at the door and said they needed a glass of water. The female occupant of the house became concerned and shut the
FURY has erupted over a renewed bid to create a waste transfer site only yards away from existing businesses. Members of Richmondshire District Council rejected a proposal for a waste site at the old potato store on Bridge Road, Brompton-on-Swale, in
IT'S not too late for people to vote in today's local council elections, even if they have not sent their postal ballot forms. Councils will still accept them today if they are handed in before deadlines at designated places. Chester-le-Street and Derwentside
A REPLICA of the Lindisfarne Gospels goes on permanent display at Durham Cathedral, the former home of the original manuscript, next month. Expensively produced facsimile copies of the gospels will be presented by The British Library to both the cathedral
POLICE are hunting a man following what appears to be a serious sexual assault on a woman after she left a club. The 22-year-old had been in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, early Monday evening, before going to Greenbank Working Man's Club in Picktree
POLICE have hailed the national gun amnesty as a huge success, but warned they could not guarantee protection for anyone handing weapons in after last night's deadline. The amnesty, which ended at midnight, has seen hundreds of weapons and thousands of
DURHAM'S Stephen Harmison, awarded a central England contract yesterday, will hope for a livelier pitch to bowl on if he plays in the inaugural Test at Riverside next month. On the opening day of championship action at the Chester-le-Street ground yesterday
CAR thieves have stolen two new cars worth a total of nearly £50,000. The Black BMW 325 Sport, worth almost £30,000, and a black Mini Cooper 1.6, worth about £18,500, were stolen from a car transporter park-ed at Able Aggregates, on the Billingham Industrial
It is not too late for people to vote in today's local council elections even if they have not sent their postal ballot forms. Councils will still accept them today if they are dropped off before deadlines at designated places. In the Redcar and Cleveland
A SERIES of networking events has been scheduled which are designed to give regional companies an extra edge to their businesses. Excellence Yorkshire, a not-for-profit organisation which works with Yorkshire Forward to promote the region's competitiveness
KIRKLEATHAM Museum at Redcar is hosting a programme of craft activities with a seaside theme for parents and children to learn and discover together. Run by Redcar and Cleveland Council's Museums and Adult Education Services, there will be activities
AN information day for parents and carers of children with disabilities takes place today in County Hall, Durham. The event is for anyone who works with disabled children and their families. There will be information on sports and leisure activities,
PLANS for more family-friendly policies for council workers have been criticised by a councillor. Durham County Council is developing its proposals in the wake of the Employment Act 2002, which is designed to help parents balance work and family commitments
IT'S not too late for people to vote even if they have not yet sent in postal ballot forms. Councils will still accept them today if they are delivered before the deadlines at designated centres. Wear Valley District Council is piloting its postal and
NORTH West Durham MP Hilary Armstrong is backing a campaign to bring high speed Internet access to two villages in Derwentside. She is urging residents and businesses in Lanchester and Ebchester to register an interest in broadband services after BT hinted
ONE of railways pioneering sons was welcomed home this week as he took up his rightful place in the park that was named after him. A bronze statue of Timothy Hackworth was unveiled at Shildon's Hackworth Park yesterday, watched by members of the town
A CONTRACT to provide job-related training for adults with learning disabilities has been won by a North Yorkshire charity. The £54,000 contract has been awarded to Chopsticks through JobCentre Plus, which is co-financing the initiative with European
ORGANISERS of Ripon's annual classic car rally have announced a new attraction this year. The Ripon Old Cars Club meeting has become one of the main events on the city's calendar during recent years, filling the concourse with family entertainment, with
AS many as 100 people attended a public meeting called to discuss the future of Richmond's former railway station. There has already been much debate about the building's future. The last open forum at the town hall in October last year examined four
FIVE east Cleveland students are among the best in the country at making potions fizz and gases bang in the chemistry lab. The brainy teenagers at Prior Pursglove College in Guisborough have just received national awards from the International Chemistry
MORE than 100 children and parents will be pedalling along Redcar seafront in the third annual Blue Peter Bikeathon on Sunday. The event, one of 87 nationwide that aims to raise £1m for Leukaemia Research, will set off from the Majuba Road car park at
DOG-OWNERS are being urged to take part in an event later this month which will help keep their pets safe. Stockton Borough Council's animal welfare officers are offering a dog-chipping service that enables a stray dog to be identified and returned to
A COUNCIL leader perform-ed his last engagement before retirement from the post when he opened a new play area. Councillor Malcolm Pratt opened the new creche and play area at Chester-le-Street Leisure Centre on Tuesday. It was his last engagement before
RESIDENTS are being urged to back a trading standards campaign to get cold callers banned. The county-wide move follows a survey of more than 2,000 households across North Yorkshire recording people's views and experiences of cold calling and doorstep
THERE is still time to vote in local council elections, which early indications suggest have seen an increased turnout with the introduction of postal voting. The two councils introduced the scheme to make it easier and more attractive for voters to take
THE Government is to order virtually every squaddie from Europe's largest Army base to the Gulf as part of a massive operation to relieve battle weary troops. Almost every operational unit based at Catterick Garrison, in North Yorkshire, will be flown
A NEW concept in holiday villages has been given the go-ahead after a U-turn by a planning authority which seemed due to oppose it. Eco-Build UK has won permission for ten environmentally-friendly chalets after scaling down its proposals for Aislabeck
A RARE Victorian carriage will be the star attraction at a museum exhibition this weekend. Power from the Past, a display of turn of the century technology, takes place in the Beamish Museum on Sunday. The star of the show will be a newly-restored barouche
TWO amorous birds' quest for love has been brought to a swift end after their four-day courtship resulted in a spate of scratched car roofs. A lovesick peacock and his female companion were finally captured, using a plan straight from the Roadrunner cartoon
DURHAM was going to the polls today in the traditional manner to elect members of the city council. While the city's electors are having to visit polling stations, people in neighbouring areas can vote from home. Chester-le-Street, Derwentside, Wear Valley
Saddam Hussain's regime has been toppled but peace campaigner Monica Frisch still says the war in Iraq was never justified. She talks to Women's Editor Christen Pears. IT was one of the most memorable moments of the war - a crowd of Iraqis pulling down
TONY Blair has been urged to take a personal interest in Teesside steelworkers facing an uncertain future. Corus set a tough challenge to the workers when it announced that the Redcar plant would stop supplying steel to other Corus operations in the UK
TWO teachers have won an award for their science teaching. Joni White and Diane Buckle, of Framwellgate Primary School, Durham, won £100 for resources in the national Top Teacher award organised by the Ariel Stains and Science Schools Programme. The programme
PEOPLE are being urged to join a house sparrow survey. The house sparrow may be one of the most familiar birds but the RSPB fears it is under threat. The charity wants people to take part in a survey to find out why house sparrow numbers are in decline
Seven employees from Northgate plc in Darlington will attempt to climb the three highest peaks in England, Wales and Scotland in just 24 hours, all in aid of charity. The Vanco Three Peaks Challenge will raise money for CARE International, an independent
A charity is thousands of pounds better off thanks to North-East sporting stars. The cream of the region's footballing talent turned up to the golf course Ramside Hall, Durham City, to take part in Steve Harper's Celebrity Charity Golf Challenge. The
A NEW job seeking service for rural areas has been launched. The new programme will offer job seekers the chance to get advice and support from their local library instead of having to travel to a JobCentre. A team of co-ordinators, working on behalf
DISABLED people can now enjoy access to a popular Weardale pathway, thanks to the completion of the wheelchair walk project. Wolsingham Wayfarers, a local volunteer group, has adapted a route along the River Wear to enable wheelchair users to visit one
VILLAGE shopkeepers say they will continue their fight to keep out a weekly market which they say will hit their trade. Wear Valley District Council plans to start the market in Stanhope in the next few weeks as part of a drive to attract visitors to
A COMMUNITY resource centre is celebrating its first birthday with a family fun day. The Four Clocks Project has gone from strength to strength since it opened its doors in Bishop Auckland last year. This Saturday it plans to have a party that promises
WORRYING events in the area of Soapland known as Weatherfield as ordinary people take to the streets in an orgy of vandalism. The guilty person is none other than Vera Duckworth, who could certainly nag for England but has never struck me as a vandal.
A CIVIL Service trade union is alarmed about plans to give sensitive public records to private companies. Officials from the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) are furious that records storage sites at the Department for Work and Pensions, which
A MAN died today after he turned himself into a human fireball in front of horrified neighbours. Martin Reynolds, 31, torched himself near his home in Waterville Road, North Shields. Neighbours said he was distraught after splitting with his girlfriend
SUSAN Moore's battle with multiple sclerosis has been such an inspiration to her teenage son that he nominated her for a best Mum award. Colin Moore, 16, told bosses at Asda supermarket in Spennymoor that his mum always put others before herself despite
THE North-East was last night urged to unite to prevent the far-right British National Party from winning seats in today's local elections. Prime Minister Tony Blair called on readers of The Northern Echo to go out and vote to prevent apathy from letting
EARLY indications show that postal voting has increased the turnout in council elections. Postal voting is taking place in eight local authorities in the North-East as part of a pilot Government scheme. Latest figures show that some authorities have already
NORTH West Durham MP Hilary Armstrong is backing a campaign to bring high speed Internet access to two villages in Derwentside. She is urging residents and businesses in Lanchester and Ebchester to register an interest in broadband services after BT hinted
THE owner of a faulty fairground ride in which three teenagers narrowly escaped death was fined £1,000 yesterday. A jury at Teesside Crown Court convicted travelling showman Gilbert Findlay Jnr, 34, of failing to ensure the safety of users of his Ultimate
A front seat passenger injured when a Vauxhall Astra overturned was "comfortable" in hospital yesterday. The unnamed man, 20, from Shiney Row, Wearside, had surgery for serious facial injuries, at Sunderland Eye Infirmary, after the crash on the A690
A CRACKDOWN on a village's rowdy youths has proved a success. Police launched Operation Counter at the beginning of last month, to combat rising complaints of youth nuisance and disorder in Dipton, County Durham. During the two-week operation, local officers
A YOUNG woodworker will represent the UK in the 37th Worldskills competition in Switzerland. Lee Fawcett, of Leyburn, will compete in the joinery section of the competition this summer. The 21-year-old went through a two year selection process which saw
UP and coming artists have a chance to showcase their work at a town centre venue this summer. Artists who are chosen for Bishop Auckland's Discovery Centre's open art exhibition will have their work displayed in the gallery for two weeks in July. Paintings
AIR ambulance chiefs insisted yesterday that patients were not being put in danger by the lack of a suitable landing site in a North-East town. The Great North Air Ambulance is reluctant to land at its approved site on Abbey Road playing fields, in Darlington
SOLDIERS from the Green Howards based in Northern Ireland have done their bit to keep the Great North Air Ambulance flying. When the aircraft paid a visit to Richmond Castle it seemed the ideal opportunity to hand over money raised at a bonfire night
STUDENTS are making their debut at a professional theatre with a classic musical. Durham University Light Opera Group, in association with the newly-formed Durham University Production Society, is staging Kiss Me Kate at Durham's Gala Theatre from until
ONE of the region's oldest residents celebrated her 107th birthday quietly last week. Great-grandmother Annie Pattison shared a cake with friends at the Castle Bank Residential Home in Tow Law, where she was feted with cards and flowers. Her grandson,
DARLINGTON Association on Disability is holding an event to promote disability issues and equality. The organisation, based in the Horsemarket, is staging the Breaking Through Barriers as part of European Year of Disabled People. Disability Question Time
A PATCH of scrubland between two villages has become a magnet for young troublemakers, according to police. Residents of Burnopfield and Crookgate, near Stanley, County Durham, have complained to police about youths riding motorbikes on the fellside that
THE beaming face of Vicki Jones said it all for her family, when the young leukaemia sufferer arrived at EuroDisney. The Jones family, of Waldridge, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, have now returned home, after a dream holiday provided for the
DARLINGTON has the safest car parks in the region thanks to heightened security measures. The town has added four more car parks to its secured car parks list, taking the total to 15 - the most in any town in the North-East. Car parks in Kendrew Street
MIDDLESBROUGH fully deserves the opportunity to host next month's Euro 2004 qualifier between England and Slovakia. Sixty-six years after a senior England team last played there, the town's club and supporters have earned the honour. It will be a bitter
THE boarded-up windows, charred beams and demolition warning signs at Middleton St George Primary School suggest nothing so much as a burnt-out empty shell. But on Monday morning more than 240 pupils, eight teachers and a handful of support staff started
It took Michael Vaughan, the world's top batsman in 2002, only seven balls to come down to earth with a bump on his seasonal debut for Yorkshire at the Rose Bowl yesterday. Vaughan played back to that old war-horse, Wasim Akram, Hampshire's overseas replacement
A FARMER has lost her Appeal Court bid to prevent National Grid contractors gaining access to her land to erect electricity pylons. Widow Rosalind Craven, 61, of Home Farm, Huby Burn, near Easingwold, North Yorkshire, had confronted representatives of
ANYONE who fancies sitting in judgement on their family and friends should be sure to be at an auction in Leyburn this week. Padded chairs from Northallerton's magistrates court are among 800 lots to be auctioned at the antiques sale at Tennants. The
COLD Feet star and father-of-two James Nesbitt, who cheated on his wife with a series of women, says he is an idiot and is now ready to change his ways. At least he's right on one count. Explaining away his infidelities, he recalls his mother telling
A North Yorkshire removals firm will feature in a BBC television show. A crew from A and G Removals, of Melmerby, near Ripon, helped with the Children in Need £1m Property Challenge, helping to return furniture to stores who assisted the show. The programme
A VILLAGE is to receive thousands of pounds from a developer as part of a housing estate scheme. Darlington Borough Council's planning committee yesterday approved plans for 84 new homes in Middleton St George, near Darlington, on condition that the developer
HUNDREDS of fitness fans have been left without training facilities after Darlington's first women-only gym closed without warning. People who went for a workout at the Peppermint Park gym, in Victoria Road, on Tuesday, found the building locked and a
A WEBSITE providing information on drugs for youngsters and parents has been launched in Darlington. Pupils from Eastbourne Comprehensive School have been working on the project for nine months with web designer John Keeble. He discussed several topics
PEOPLE have asked planning officials to ensure that security fences are installed when a two-storey medical centre is built. Members of Wear Valley District Council's development control committee last night approved plans for a one-stop medical centre
PLANS for nine detached houses in a conservation area behind Haughton Green, in Darlington, were approved by the borough council's planning committee yesterday. One resident objected to the scheme, but the council's planning services manager, Tim Wheeler
PLANS for nine detached houses in a conservation area behind Haughton Green, in Darlington, were approved by the borough council's planning committee yesterday. One resident objected to the scheme, but the council's planning services manager, Tim Wheeler
WAR reporter Kate Adie is to visit the North-East to talk about her experiences as a foreign correspondent. The Royal Geographic Society talk takes place at Darlington Arts Centre on Tuesday, May 20. For information and tickets contact (01325) 486555.
FIRE chiefs have launched a crackdown on young arsonists after dealing with hundreds of grass fires in less than a month - wasting more than £500,000 in resources. In an attempt to tackle the problem, Durham Fire and Rescue Brigade is planning a series
HARTLEPOOL UNITED boss Mike Newell last night hailed the Third Division title-decider with Rushden & Diamonds as 'the biggest game the players will ever play in'. Second-placed Pool, two points behind Rushden, travel to Nene Park on Saturday knowing
A front seat passenger injured when a Vauxhall Astra overturned was "comfortable" in hospital yesterday. The unnamed man, 20, from Shiney Row, Wearside, had surgery for serious facial injuries, at Sunderland Eye Infirmary, after the crash on the A690
Band performances at Saltburn bandstand, east Cleveland, include concerts by South Bank Band on Sunday, from 2.30pm to 4pm, and Teesside Wind Band on Saturday, May 17, from 6.30pm to 8pm. Saturday concerts are expected to continue after May 17.
A MINERAL water company set up less than a year ago is to double its production workforce as orders continue to flood in. Harrogate Spa Water, in North Yorkshire, is making the move to cope with increasing demand from major UK supermarkets, hotel chains
TWO baby owls recently born at a North East falconry centre are expected to be a part of the attraction's public shows later this year. The two barn owls are only three weeks old and are being hand-reared at Falconry UK, at Sion Hill Hall, near Thirsk
OWNERS of old vehicles are being urged to hand them over to Stockton Borough Council as part of an amnesty scheme before a directive comes into force. The council launched Operation Magpie, in partnership with the police and fire brigade last year, in
CONSIDERED by some to be attractive creatures, they make good pets. But that is not what the average shopper would think if one appeared in a car park. This 5ft Columbian rainbow boa constrictor - closer to home slithering along a jungle floor - caused
HARTLEPOOL United will celebrate the end of season in style regardless of the outcome of this Saturday's title clincher at Rushden and Diamonds. Details were unveiled yesterday of a 90 minute open-top bus tour around the town, which will be followed by
Police are clamping down on off-road cycling in Grangetown, South Bank and Eston. They were prompted to act after numerous complaints from residents about reckless riding on public open spaces and parkland. This week officers have been working with community
NORTH West Durham MP Hilary Armstrong is backing a campaign to bring high speed Internet access to two villages in Derwentside. She is urging residents and businesses in Lanchester and Ebchester to register an interest in broadband services after BT hinted
POPULAR Radio 4 programme Any Questions will be broadcast from Tony Blair's Sedgefield constituency tomorrow - the day after the local government elections. Dr Tony Wright, chairman of the Public Administration Select Committee, is the final addition
CAMPAIGNERS have lost their battle to save a traditional Yorkshire Dales cottage from demolition. In a final bid to save the building, at Grantley, near Ripon, councillors asked the Department of Culture if the property, known as Ashville, was worthy
David SHORT has been promoted to chief superintendent and confirmed as the area commander of the North Yorkshire Police eastern area, which includes Scarborough, Whitby, Ryedale and Hambleton. Mr Short has been acting area commander for the eastern area
REDCAR'S new season kicks off with some competitive racing, including the Manny Bernstein Fillies Handicap in which Peyto Princess (3.55) is fancied to prevail for her new handler, Mark Buckley. It's been a good few days for the Buckley family considering
LIFEGUARDS patrolling the beaches of east Cleveland are to be sponsored by McDonald's for the second year running ahead of the new season. Foreshore manager Paul Castle has just taken delivery of a full-equipped first aid kit, two torpedo buoys and 22
A BOGUS gas man left empty-handed when he tried to burgle a Middlesbrough woman's house. A man claiming to be from British Gas was asked to leave the house in Langridge Crescent, Berwick Hills, when the householders became suspicious. The woman let him
It is not too late for people to vote in today's local council elections even if they have not sent their postal ballot forms. Councils will still accept them today if they are dropped off before deadlines at designated places. In the Redcar and Cleveland
FAMILY, friends and colleagues paid tribute this week to Tony Dolding, treasurer of Darlington's Talking Newspaper for the Blind. Mr Dolding died suddenly on Easter Monday after a heart attack. He was 73. A former engineer, he came to the region in the
AN internationally-celebrated musician who had his custom-made clarinet stolen within minutes of arriving in Darlington has been reunited with the instrument. Michael Whight, lead clarinettist with the London Philharmonic, made the trip to Darlington
BRITAIN'S supermarkets began the fight for Safeways last night - a move which could have profound effects on two North-East towns. Directors of supermarket chains Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury and Morrisons met the Competition Commission to set out their plans
SADIE Ayton, the specialist bra fitter, is hoping that her fitting technique, which she believes is more accurate than conventional methods, will scoop a major prize at the this year's Spirit of Innovation Awards. Lingerie Retailer of the Year 2000, she
TWO adventurous pets who wandered off have been reunited with their extended family. A heartfelt appeal in The Northern Echo for the two peachicks to be returned safely to their home in Ramshaw, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, led to dozens of calls
Reckless drivers are getting away with murder on the roads because sentences are too soft, a North-East MP has told Parliament. Labour's Gerry Steinberg said the case of Allan Jackson, responsible for the deaths of two County Durham women and their friend
Wentworth Park WI: THE annual meeting of Wentworth Park WI was held at Ouston Community Centre on Thursday, April 10. There was an excellent rendition of Jerusalem. The minutes were read and the group meeting discussed. The group then celebrated with
Band performances at Saltburn bandstand, east Cleveland, include concerts by South Bank Band on Sunday, from 2.30pm to 4pm, and Teesside Wind Band on Saturday, May 17, from 6.30pm to 8pm. Saturday concerts are expected to continue after May 17.
AN environmental scheme aimed at recreating a fishing village's Victorian image has turned sour, say residents. Cobbles have been laid in the main street of Staithes, near Whitby - a North Yorkshire beauty spot, popular with thousands of tourists. But
PLANS to recreate a Georgian landscape are about to take a step forward. A planning application covering the first phase of work by Durham County Council at the Grade II* Hardwick Park, near Sedgefield, County Durham, is to be submitted today. It is expected
POLICE have concluded inquiries into the death of a pensioner who was dragged about half-a-mile under a bus. A file on the circumstances surrounding the death of 86-year-old Jenny Spedding, in Durham, in February, has been sent to the Crown Prosecution
THE family of a five-year-old victim of the Dunblane massacre have accused the Government of "hypocrisy" in its approach to arms export controls. Mick North, whose five-year-old daughter, Sophie, died at Dunblane in 1996, has joined forces with charities
A DRUNKEN man who stamped on his friend's head during an attack was jailed for 18 months yesterday. Mark King, 26, launched the assault, which he continued even after Stephen Milley lost consciousness. Newcastle Crown Court was told that on December 7
They volunteered for ten-hour days and months of nights, but former ATS girls Doris and Maisie still hanker after the good old days. LONG before the It girls, Doris Elsy and Maisie Waggott - and thousands like them - were the ATS girls, khaki through
PATIENTS in Sedgefield borough will soon be able to see their GP much quicker. Four GP practices have been working with Sedgefield Primary Care Trust (PCT) on an initiative aimed at improving access to primary care professionals. The practices involved
THE RSPB is asking people to help to find out more about house sparrows, in an attempt to explain why numbers are falling. David Hirst, of the RSPB's North of England region, said: "Studies over the last 25 years have shown that the house sparrow population
SINGLE CURRENCY: AS opposition to the single currency increases so does the level of desperation of the pro-euro camp. The latest comments of Peter Mandelson are a perfect example of the fact that panic mode has well and truly set in. Mr Mandelson warns
SIMON Bailes Ltd, one of the regions leading Peugeot dealers, has made a major investment in Teesside with the acquisition of Arriva Peugeot's Stockton dealership. The deal, which will be finalised today, will save 34 jobs at the dealership and create
To The Manor Born (ITV1) : ENTERTAINING as it was, I'm not sure this documentary, set among the landed gentry and their cap-doffing workers on a vast Suffolk country estate, did anything to alter preconceptions of such people. All the participants conformed
THIS is a particularly important day for democracy. We believe it is always important to vote - but today it is crucial. The North-East has been targeted by the far-right extremists of the British National Party like never before. Fifty-four candidates
UP to 2,000 jobs may be created during the next ten years as part of a £200m development on land next to Teesside International Airport. Manchester firm Peel Holdings is preparing to build a 300-acre business park near the airport, with the first phase
ANNOYED boss Steve McClaren has warned his under-performing Middlesbrough stars: "You are playing for your futures." Boro have lost their last three Premiership matches - to West Ham, Arsenal and Birmingham City - and have slipped from ninth to 13th in
An off-duty prison officer, who was punched in the face outside Yates's Wine Lodge, in North Road, Durham, on Tuesday last week, has been released from intensive care and is described as comfortable in Newcastle General Hospital. The 35-year-old man suffered
PUPILS at a Darlington school have helped to create a web site to educate youngsters across the UK about the dangers of drugs. The web site, funded by the Darlington Drugs and Alcohol Action Team, aims to give young people vital information about drugs
LEYBURN'S second Festival of Food and Drink this weekend will have an educational role this year, emphasising the close relationship between food and farming. Although entertainment is very much part of the programme between Saturday and Monday a number
