TIME is no longer standing still while justice is dispensed in a North-East court building.

The clock at Durham Crown Court has remained inactive in recent years, able to neither tick nor chime.

But after a visit by a team of expert clocksmiths, the time is once more being told, and for the first time in living memory the chime has been restored.

None of the court staff can recall the old clock chiming, and are still becoming accustomed to it sounding on the hour.

But as a concession to nearby residents, including the inmates at Durham Jail, it is primed to chime between 7am and 11pm only.

Deputy court manager Paul Hann said the job of winding the clock manually had been that of the former in-house security man.

Once the security task was awarded to outside contractors, health and safety restrictions left the clock tower out of bounds.

"It involved a dangerous trip on to the roof and across the tiles to the clock tower, which was not very pleasant in poor conditions," said Mr Hann.

The situation remained unchanged for six years until clocksmiths from Potts of Leeds offered their services after restoring the city's St Nicholas Church clock.

"We brought them in when funds were available and they have got it back working fully, connected to an electric motor which deals with the winding so no one actually has to go up to wind it," said Mr Hann.

He believes that the clock and tower date back to the construction of the court, which was built at the same time as the prison, at around 1820.