RAIL services between Sunderland, Teesside and London will be cancelled for at least four-weeks following the national lockdown on Thursday.

Grand Central has confirmed that it is suspending all services from Saturday, November 7, with all services reduced until then.

The rail operator said it had reached the "tough but necessary" decision to remove services as the Government's "stay home" message is set to return.

A spokesperson for Grand Central said: "We hoped to avoid it, but sadly we've reached the tough but necessary decision to remove our trains from service from November 7th due to the national lockdown."

It said services are expected to resume on December 2 to coincide with the end of the second national lockdown in England.

What you need to know

For passengers with a ticket for travel between November 7 and December 2, you can change this to a future date free of charge or, alternatively, claim a full refund.

For passengers with a ticket for travel afer December 3, you will not need to make any changes.

You can still change your journey to an alternative Grand Central service without a processing fee. Tickets remain on sale for journeys from 3 December onwards.

It comes as MPs are set to approve the four-week lockdown today with the Government advising against all "non-essential" travel during the period.