Archive
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Pool set sights on more goals
HITTING the target in more ways than one will have been on the minds of Hartlepool United's rejuvenated players yesterday. A day after making it three games unbeaten under Paul Stephenson, the caretaker boss took his squad paintballing. Stephenson has
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Public offer ideas for Mo memorial
A MAYOR has praised the public for putting forward suggestions for a permanent memorial for one of the region's most-loved politicians. A working party, headed by Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council's mayor, Councillor Peter Spencer, recently formed
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Public sector jobs in move
UP to 400 public sector jobs are to be relocated to a new site after councillors gave the go-ahead for a new headquarters for its own workforce. Members of Durham County Council's planning committee voted yesterday to grant planning permission for a single
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Mini heart machine
A MACHINE for people with heart problems which can be used in patients' homes has been presented to Darlington Memorial Hospital. The portable cardiac ultrasound system has been bought with £28,000 from the British Heart Foundation. Other charities which
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Toilets face closure after vandal attacks
A NUMBER of public toilets across Teesdale face closure under council proposals. If approved, the loos at Toft Hill, Butterknowle, Hamsterley, Eggleston, and Staindrop could be axed. A report by Teesdale District Council has said that the toilets are
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It's all change at district network
THERE will be a change at the top of the the Wear Valley Community Network next month. Victor Cadaxa will succeed David Craggs as co-ordinator of the group. Mr Craggs is retiring four years after setting up the network to increase community and voluntary
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Sick bug shuts hospital wards
TWO hospital wards have been closed on Teesside after an outbreak of sickness and diarrhoea hit staff and patients. About 50 patients and ten members of staff at the University Hospital of Hartlepool have been affected by the virus, which is spreading
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MP meets care providers over funding
RICHMOND MP William Hague has met with disgruntled representatives from the county's care industry. Care home managers told Mr Hague that the cost of caring for vulnerable people was not being met by North Yorkshire County Council. In response, Mr Hague
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Meeting over 'no cold caller' zones
"No cold calling" zones will be the theme of a presentation by trading standards officials in Easingwold next Thursday, at 7.30pm. It follows the introduction of such a scheme in the town earlier this month, which has been welcomed by local people. The
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Team's sponsorship deal is Topps
A SCHOOL football team is hoping to head to the top of the league after agreeing a sponsorship deal. Topps Tiles will sponsor Belmont Junior School, which plays in the Chester-le-Street Schools League. The team was formed in September and players are
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Medical centre plans approved
AN environmentally-friendly medical centre costing more than £2m has been given the go-ahead. Chester-le-Street district councillors have approved plans for the Sacriston Surgery, which will be built on the former swimming pool site, in Front Street,
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Villagers urged to back petition to get paypoint in shop
VILLAGERS are campaigning to have a payment system installed in a shop. People from Low Westwood and Hamsterley Colliery are trying to get a PayPoint system at Derwent Sandwiches, a general dealers. It enables people to top up credit on the key-operated
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Further blitz on off-road vehicles
FURTHER crackdowns of illegal off-roaders disturbing North Yorkshire communities and damaging historic green lanes are planned. Police and officials from the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority have stopped more than 40 bikers and three 4x4 drivers
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Step into the Mad Hatter's world
THE lunatic world of the Mad Hatter and the White Rabbit is being brought to life by some budding stars of the future. Talented youngsters at Huntington School, near York, are staging their version of the Lewis Carroll classic, Alice in Wonderland. About
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400 jobs will be relocated in council workforce shake-up
UP to 400 public sector jobs are to be relocated later this year after councillors gave the go-ahead for a new headquarters for its workforce. Members of Durham County Council's planning committee voted yesterday to grant planning permission for a single
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Praise for workhorse Lafferty
ANDY COOKE may have outshone his new strike partner by scoring on his Darlington debut, but the work of Kyle Lafferty has not gone unnoticed. Lafferty and Cooke formed Quakers' latest new-look strikeforce in Tuesday's 2-1 defeat at play-off rivals Peterborough
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Housing estate gets an early spring clean ... criminals and litter-louts be warned
POLICE and firefighters began a three-day clean-up of a North Yorkshire housing estate yesterday. Operation Enable is taking place on the Hambleton estate, in Thirsk. Rubbish will be cleared, signs fixed, speeding drivers warned and every house on the
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Detectives moving in on killer of Audrey
OFFICERS hunting the killer of mother-of-five Audrey Badger have interviewed more than 250 people from the area. Since the murder on Saturday, Cleveland Police are confident they are building up a clearer picture of Ms Badger's life, including her friends
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Driver 'was not stitched up'
A DETECTIVE yesterday denied police had "stitched up" a disqualified driver who served four years in prison after he knocked over and killed a young girl. Detective Constable Scott Denham told Teesside Crown Court the decision to charge Colin Meek had
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McClaren predicts 'successful season'
DESPITE their position on the edge of the relegation zone, Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren has insisted his side can still enjoy a "successful season". Last weekend's 3-0 win over Chelsea underlined the Teessiders' undoubted ability but did little to
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Quayside regeneration scheme completed
THE regeneration of a historic quayside in Whitby has been completed - having uncovered evidence of a medieval settlement in the area. Evidence of medieval and Tudor housing and parts of an ancient harbour wall were uncovered during the complex and sensitive
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Downing hoping cup form will earn World Cup place
STEWART Downing boarded a plane to Germany yesterday and, with the start of the World Cup now less than four months away, the Middlesbrough midfielder is hoping a lengthy UEFA Cup run will enable him to make an identical journey this summer. Despite winning
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John North: The Hole truth
IT WAS coal-fired, kitchen-ranged, contented. It had oil lamps and long tables, ham and eggs still savoured in sweet memory, metal dominoes so big and so clacketty that when they were shuffled you couldn't hear yourself speak. Sometimes it might close
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Fearless approach pays off for Chemmy
Chemmy Alcott's decision to go for broke paid off handsomely as she recorded Britain's best Olympic alpine result in 18 years at Sestriere Fraiteve yesterday. The 23-year-old from Twickenham said she was ''shocked and surprised'' by her 11th-place finish
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Arson probe at blaze home
ARSON investigators will this morning sift through the wreckage of a North-East house that was gutted by fire. A man was treated for smoke inhalation after returning to the house in Sacriston, County Durham, to save the family dog. Firefighters were called
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I'll fight on, says breast cancer drug campaigner
Breast cancer victim Ann Marie Rogers was left "angry and devastated" yesterday after losing her High Court battle over her local NHS trust's refusal to fund treatment with the drug Herceptin. But Ms Rogers, 54, a mother of three with two young grandchildren
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Racing prospects
AFTER being persistently bogged down in soft ground, Water Taxi (4.30) seems sure to appreciate the forecast quicker surface at Huntingdon this afternoon, writes Colin Woods (Janus). Ferdy Murphy's five-year-old got hopelessly stuck in the mud at Sedgefield
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New in brief
CREPES EVENT RAISES £400: A coffee and crepes morning has raised £400 for six Third World charities. The event took place at Saltburn Methodist Church hall, Saltburn, on Friday. It was organised by supporters of Christian Aid, Cafod, Save the Children
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N'Zogbia's tribute to former boss Souness
GRAEME Souness may be nothing more than a footnote in Newcastle United's history books, but one player will never forget the part he played in his own fledgling career. Charles N'Zogbia may have been recruited by Sir Bobby Robson, but it was Souness who
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Head-shave for charity
PUB regular John Storey raised almost £500 for St Teresa's Hospice by having his head shaved. Mr Storey was sponsored by fellow regulars and friends, and raised £491 when all 18in of his locks were shorn at The Shuttle and Loom pub, in Whinfield Road,
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'£130,000 needed to retire'
PEOPLE retiring this year will need a pension that generates at least £130,000 over the rest of their life if they are to have a comfortable standard of living, research showed yesterday. The sum needed will be even higher for people retiring over the
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16/02/2006
INDIAN summers are supposed to be the highlight of a career but, as England's cricketers are about to discover, Indian springs can be rather less enjoyable. Three months after slogging their way around Pakistan, Michael Vaughan's men are embarking on
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Grieving parents tell of their little fighter
A COUPLE have paid tribute to their "loving and cheeky" three-year-old daughter who died after fighting bravely against illness. Ciara Elife Lovett died in Darlington Memorial Hospital last Thursday. Parents Alan and Fran Lovett, of Wesson Close, Catterick
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Family anguish over baby's empty coffin
A FUNERAL director has launched a fight for his job - after being sacked for allegedly forgetting to put the body of a baby in a coffin. The infant's heartbroken parents said their last goodbyes at a funeral service, not realising their tears were for
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Pipeline opens new HQ
AN engineering firm in the region has opened an office in Singapore after seeing export sales increase by 300 per cent in the past four years. Pipeline Engineering, in Richmond, North Yorkshire, now has four offices worldwide and is due to move into £3m
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Boost as North-East bucks UK's employment trend
UNEMPLOYMENT in the North-East dropped again last month - bucking the national trend. Across the UK, unemployment figures rose by more than 100,000, while a record 7.9 million people are now classed as economically inactive, figures showed. Manufacturing
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16/02/2006
INDIAN summers are supposed to be the highlight of a career but, as England's cricketers are about to discover, Indian springs can be rather less enjoyable. Three months after slogging their way around Pakistan, Michael Vaughan's men are embarking on
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Court of Appeal to rule on dealer
THE controversial case of a teenage drug dealer who escaped a prison term is to be referred to the Court of Appeal, it emerged last night. Cleveland Chief Crown Prosecutor Martin Goldman referred the case to the Attorney General on the grounds the sentence
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16/02/06
COMMUNITY SUPPORT: WHEN the Tory government succeeded in closing all the mines, it also thought it had got rid of mining folk and their union, the NUM. Unfortunately for them, this has not happened. Due to the continued representations of the Durham NUM
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Will my husband look good in Lycra?
MY husband's got himself an up-to-the-minute go-anywhere bike. He's planning to hit the local cycle tracks. Excellent exercise, and it gets him out from under my feet. I'm all in favour. At least, I think I am. The trouble is, I have a slightly equivocal
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Young musician initiative launched by giant chicken
A MUSIC initiative was launched at a school in Teesdale yesterday. Free Range Music is a Durham-based organisation which provides young people with opportunities to access and learn music. To mark the start of its latest project, The Music Hatchery, young
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Book for coastal walk
THERE is a chance to find out more about the history, geology and nature of part of the North-East coast this weekend. Hartlepool Borough Council's Countryside Wardens have joined forces with the Tees Valley Wildlife Trust to organise a five-mile walk
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Historic arts venue wants town to support funds bid
VOLUNTEERS who run an historic arts and community venue are calling for local support as they prepare to bid for cash for a makeover. The Spennymoor Settlement group, which runs the town's Everyman Theatre, hopes to breath new life into the building in
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School campaigners hope PM's comments help cause
CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save a village school from closure hope comments by the Prime Minster will help them fight their cause. The Hurworth School supporters have jumped on comments Tony Blair made in the national Press this week. Darlington Borough
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Performers take to the water for latest production
THIS year's annual production at Hummersknott School and Language College, in Darlington, opened in style last night. The Water Babies is a musical extravaganza with a dozen songs and a cast of 40 students taking the roles of the many undersea creatures
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Public decency charge
A GRANDMOTHER accused of urinating on a family grave made her first appearance in court yesterday. Annette Slight, 54, appeared before Sunderland Magistrates' Court charged with outraging public decency. Mrs Slight, of Well Street, Pallion, Sunderland
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Bollywood here we come
THE glamour of India's film industry was brought to life in the North-East yesterday. Bollywood Dreams in Sunderland was staged in the city's museum and winter gardens as part of a month of themed activities. During the day, there was a series of workshops
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Skate park flying high with 8,000 visitors
A SKATE park with Olympic ambitions is already proving to be a hit. More than 8,000 people from Britain and Europe have visited Middlesbrough's Prissick Plaza in the three months it has been open. Extreme sports expert Dean Broderick has been appointed
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Meet Flashing Blade
Veteran radio phone-in host Alan Robson will be out and about in Derwentside today meeting his fans. Mr Robson, who presents Night Owls on commercial station Metro, will visit Consett, Stanley and St Bede's School, in Lanchester, to record a Night Owls
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Improving links with ethnic minorities
People from ethnic minority backgrounds in County Durham are being given the chance to have a say on how the police and the criminal justice system treats them. The county's police force, like others across the country, is setting up an independent advisory
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Aircraft parts taken by thieves
AIRCRAFT parts have been stolen from a North-East college. Thieves broke into a yard at Newcastle College, in Maple Terrace, and took several disused items, including a tail fin, emergency door, nose cone and a chaff dispenser. The incident happened between
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County council agrees 4.9% rise on council tax
COUNCIL tax payers across North Yorkshire will have to pay 4.9 per cent more to the county authority. Councillors yesterday agreed an increase equivalent to 81p a week for the average Band D household. It will take the total paid by the average Band D
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Revamped banner unveiled at concert
A REFURBISHED mining banner will be unveiled at a concert by a leading County Durham brass band. The Reg Vardy Band - formerly the Ever Ready Band - will play at Bowburn Community Centre on Saturday, March 11. The programme will include the premiere of
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Tribute to gentle giant of local music scene
TRIBUTES were paid yesterday to a "gentle giant" guitarist who played with a number of bands at venues in the North-East. Gordon Taylor, who has died aged 56, made his debut at a social evening in the village hall close to his home at Stainton near Barnard
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Rangers want help from youngsters
NATURE rangers are calling for help from children to improve their environment. West Rainton Nature Rangers have organised a Winter Warmer event on Tuesday at the Jubilee Hall, in North Street, from 2pm to 4pm. Children will be encouraged to make feeders
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Luxury flats are region's fastest seller
THE revitalisation of Durham has been given a boost after the city's £7.2m Clements Wharf Scheme became the region's fastest-selling development. AMEC's waterfront residential project took the market by storm last year when buyers queued up to spend £4.3m
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Get Smart for free and beat burglars
RESIDENTS and business on Teesside are getting smart to find ways of beating burglars. So far, 1,500 homes and 50 businesses in one area of Middlesbrough have taken up a free offer to have their valuables given a forensic fingerprint. From Monday, community
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Youngsters organised tidy-up day
YOUNGSTERS have organised a day of tidying up to improve their community. The Willows Community Centre's Youth Forum, known as the Wyc4ts, decided they wanted to improve the area around the community centre so they organised a Make A Difference Day on
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'Careless cigarette caused man's death'
A PENSIONER found dead on his sofa after a house fire had fallen asleep with a lit cigarette in his hand, an inquest heard. The body of 81-year-old Alfred Atkinson, a known recluse, was identified by his younger sister via a phone call from the US after
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Charity shop reopens after refit
A CHARITY shop in east Cleveland is open for business and celebrating a new look. The Red Cross shop, on Chaloner Street, in Guisborough, opened on Monday after undergoing months of refurbishment work. And as well as welcoming new customers - the charity
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Towns' Bid to improve backed
SUPPORT has been received for an innovative scheme promoting businesses in two North Yorkshire towns. Firms in Malton and Norton will decide later this year if the area should become a business improvement district (Bid). If they agree, businesses will
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Plea for thieves to return veteran's stolen medals
THE grandson of a Second World War hero has appealed to thieves to return his grandfather's precious medals. Alastair Smith was devastated when he found that medals won by his grandfather, Sergeant Bert Smith, had been taken in a burglary. Sgt Smith died
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Stag goes into administration
ONE of the North-East's biggest furniture companies has gone into administration after falling victim to a downturn in consumer spending, it emerged last night. Stag Furniture, which employs more than 550 people in the region, appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers
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Providing tonic for Palestine
A PALESTINIAN woman is looking forward to helping with the development of the health service in her homeland. Rula Mohammad Ramez Al-Khayyat is the first Palestinian scholarship student to take a post-graduate degree at Durham Business School. The 26-
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Tributes paid as former teacher dies aged 102
A RESPECTED former schoolteacher has died at the age of 102. Annie Chadwick, whose late husband Robert was once the headteacher at Durham's long-established Blue Coat School, passed away peacefully in hospital last Saturday. Mrs Chadwick, who was born
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Professor highlights obesity problems
A North-East health expert has urged the Government to show more leadership in the battle against obesity. Professor David Hunter, an expert in health policy and management at Durham University, challenged Labour to take a more hands-on approach to the
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On TV
Through Hell And High Water (BBC1) Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC2) Three days into a week of TV documentaries about their 3,000 mile row across the Atlantic and yesterday oarsmen Ben Fogle and James Cracknell were only just taking to the water. What
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Sadistic killers have sentences increased
TWO sadistic killers who disembowelled a man in his home have had their sentences increased after three senior judges reviewed the case today. The case of Sean Swindon and Michael Peart was referred to the Court of Appeal in London after protests that
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County Durham care homes safe - for now
LABOUR councillors have deferred a decision on closing County Durham's remaining council-run residential care homes. More than 100 carers, relatives and residents protested outside County Hall in Durham City yesterday as members arrived for a meeting
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Shearer's gift of match cash
FOOTBALLER Alan Shearer has revealed he will be donating all the proceeds from his money-spinning Newcastle United testimonial game to charity. As The Northern Echo revealed last month, Shearer's testimonial committee has confirmed a Celtic side will
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Comment from The Northern Echo:Too many battles to fight
WHEN someone is fighting cancer - fighting for their life - the last thing they need is to be fighting the law. Our hearts go out to Ann Marie Rogers, the breast cancer patient who has lost her landmark legal challenge to be allowed the drug Herceptin
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My beautiful laundryette
STYLISH, minimalist apartments are not designed for family living. A few garish plastic toys scattered across a highly polished living room floor is all it would take to ruin the immaculately clean lines and pale, spare decor. And what would row after
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Childcare service celebrates
A CHILDCARE information service has celebrated the milestone of helping 5,000 people since it was established. Darlington's Children's Information Service (CIS), which gives advice to parents, child carers and employers, commemorated the occasion by saying
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Mini heart machine
A MACHINE for people with heart problems which can be used in patients' homes has been presented to Darlington Memorial Hospital. The portable cardiac ultrasound system has been bought with a £28,000 contribution from the British Heart Foundation. Other
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Football fans in fight to save wall
FOOTBALL supporters are fighting to save a "wall of fame" at their club's former ground. In 1998, Darlington FC announced it would build the wall as part of the redevelopment at Feethams. Supporters paid £25 to have their names carved on a brick and built
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Chance to be mayor for day
TWO children from Darlington are being given the chance to become the town's mayor and mayoress for the day. The winners of the annual competition will carry out a day of official visits with the real Mayor of Darlington, Councillor Stella Robson, and
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ASBO breach case adjourned
THE CASE against a 48-year-old man accused of three breaches of an anti social behaviour order was ajourned today. Stephen Thoms, of Auckland, Chester-le-Street, had been due to stand trial at Peterlee Magistrates Court but his case was adjourned on medical
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Praise for workhorse Lafferty
ANDY COOKE may have outshone his new strike partner by scoring on his Darlington debut, but the work of Kyle Lafferty has not gone unnoticed. Lafferty and Cooke formed Quakers' latest new-look strikeforce in Tuesday's 2-1 defeat at play-off rivals Peterborough
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Assault victim left blinded by bar brawl
A NORTH-EAST man was left with his eyeball hanging out after he was knocked to the floor and beaten in a brawl. A night out in Newcastle left 26-year-old Omar Hussein with his eyeball detached after he was kicked and punched by a vicious gang. As he recovers
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Is this the death of the cigarette?
Does the ban on smoking in pubs and clubs finally signal the death of cigarettes? Lindsay Jennings looks at how smoking fell out of fashion. HER heavy lidded eyes are cast down seductively, a lit cigarette dangles provocatively from her fulsome lips.
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Nurse struck off for glass eye prank
A nurse who put a patients glass eye in a colleagues drink as a practical joke was today struck off. Christine Mitchelson, 53, was found guilty of misconduct after the Nursing and Midwifery Councils Conduct and Competence Committee ruled that 12 allegations
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Sellafield uses battery power
A NORTH-EAST company is supplying zero-emission electric vehicles to Britain's leading nuclear power station. British Nuclear Group has expanded its fleet of battery-powered trucks at Sellafield, Cumbria, after acquiring another van from Smith Electric
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Inflation to remain near target
The Bank of England forecast inflation to remain around its target of two per cent. The Bank projected the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to increase at a steady rate for the next two years following a dip from a recent high of 2.5 per cent in September on
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German library to be opened to public
A COLLECTION of German theological textbooks kept at Durham Cathedral could be opened to the public. The Bishop of Durham, the Right Reverend Tom Wright, has launched an £80,000 appeal to give public access to the Meissen Library, kept in the undercroft
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200 jobs lost in region as RAC cuts £80m costs
MORE than 200 jobs at an RAC call centre in the region will be gone by the end of April, it has emerged. Norwich Union owner Aviva took over the RAC last year for £1.1bn and in August announced it was cutting more than 1,700 jobs - including hundreds
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McClaren predicts 'successful season'
DESPITE their position on the edge of the relegation zone, Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren has insisted his side can still enjoy a "successful season". Last weekend's 3-0 win over Chelsea underlined the Teessiders' undoubted ability but did little to
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Bellamy piles on the agony for Sunderland
FORMER Newcastle United bad-boy Craig Bellamy may no longer be pulling on the black and white shirt but the fiery striker still managed to pile the misery on his old club's arch-rivals Sunderland last night. Bellamy's clinical double for Blackburn Rovers
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Smooth transition to chip and pin payment
CONSUMERS and retailers across the North-East last night reported a smooth transition to the compulsory use of the chip and pin system. Despite fears of chaos at the checkout, early feedback suggested it had gone well and was universally accepted as being
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My beautiful laundreyette
STYLISH, minimalist apartments are not designed for family living. A few garish plastic toys scattered across a highly polished living room floor is all it would take to ruin the immaculately clean lines and pale, spare decor. And what would row after
