A £24,000 scheme to slow down drivers through Neasham is serving no purpose at all, the annual parish meeting was told.

Chairman John Weighell said that it had campaigned for traffic calming measures for many years, but the package now in place had been a waste of time.

He said: "Unfortunately we have a £24,000 scheme in place which serves no useful purpose at all, except that it encourages some drivers to see how fast they can negotiate the restraints. The police and Darlington Borough Council are monitoring the situation."