COUNCIL services across the region were crippled yesterday as thousands of striking workers took to the streets.

Pickets took place outside libraries, council offices and in parks as angry council workers demonstrated for more pay.

Dozens of schools, leisure centres and libraries were closed, while town halls and council offices were almost deserted.

Richard Austin, branch secretary of Unison in Sedgefield, County Durham, picketed outside Sedgefield Borough Council's offices in Green Lane, Spennymoor, and said the response from the public had been very positive.

"We hope we've sent a clear message to the employers to get back around the negotiating table and come to some sort of settlement," he said.

"If the employers aren't prepared to do that there will be further days of action planned."

In Darlington, all five council nurseries remained shut while central library staff formed an early-morning picket line outside their building.

The council-run Dolphin Centre was open as normal, but the swimming pool was closed for health and safety reasons because of a shortage of pool attendants.

A performance of Bob Dylan and the History of Rock 'n' Roll, at the Arts Centre, was postponed until Saturday, July 27.

Darlington Borough Council chief executive Barry Keel said many staff members went to work after a management plea.

He said the most worrying part of the strike was vulnerable people being without vital services.

He said: "This situation could have been very disastrous, and we were most worried about vulnerable people.

"But we continued to provide the majority of services, and from our perspective there has been a very positive response from staff and a large number of staff have turned up for work."

Meanwhile, drivers hoping to escape paying for parking, because of a lack of wardens in Darlington, were in for a shock.

The council's neighbourhood wardens patrolled car parks and streets, issuing parking tickets. They were joined by the authority's head of youth offending and community safety, Andy Errington.

In Teesside, hundreds of angry workers held demonstrations outside a number of town halls.

Most parks, libraries, leisure and community centres were forced to close, and refuse collection, litter-picking and ground maintenance came to a halt.

In North Yorkshire, placard-bearing activists demonstrated outside council offices and depots operated by the county and district authorities.

But in the Hambleton district, the council maintained services "more or less as normal", according to chief executive Peter Simpson.

He said: "Although we are down in numbers we are offering a level of service for everything we normally do.

"Overall, we have 13 per cent of staff on strike."

In York, the Castle Museum and attractions including the Yorkshire Museum and the City Art Gallery were closed for the day.

In Newcastle, libraries and leisure centres remained closed, as well as the Grainger Market and Green Market.

Cremations also had to be rescheduled. However, staff opened cemeteries and were "sensitive to the needs of the bereaved".

At Gateshead, council-run leisure centres and public parks were closed and crematoria services rescheduled.

Union officials declared themselves delighted at the response to the strike call in north Durham, Tyneside and Wearside.

Howard Pink, a regional official for the Unison union, visited picket lines in the Durham area, at county and city council premises, as well as joining a rally in Newcastle during the course of the day of action.

He said: "In Durham, virtually everything was at a standstill. I was really pleased with it.

"Very few people broke the strike at County Hall. Those that went in were from teaching unions who work in the education department, or some Royal College of Nursing members in occupational health.

"I believe this has been a successful strike in terms of stopping services."

It was a very quiet day at Sunderland Civic Centre, where workers were greeted by a jovial picket line.

Most city schools closed for the day, as did half of the ten city council-run leisure centres, while only two of the 20-plus libraries, at Southwick and Houghton-le-Spring, remained open.