CHEQUE PRESENTATION: President of Soroptimists Richmond and Dales Elaine Walton has presented a cheque for £500 to the Friends of the Beacon, the unit for homeless veterans in Catterick Garrison.

The Beacon provides specialist support to single homeless veterans, offering opportunities to re- train and equipping them with skills and confidence to readjust to life as a civilian.

Soroptimists is an organisation with almost 90,000 members in more than 100 countries, and focus on transforming the lives of women and girls through education and empowerment projects.

For more information visit http://sigbi.org/richmond-and-dales.

LITERACY PROJECT: Children’s Centres in Catterick Garrison are moving forward with the National Literacy Project, Early Words Together. The project aims to support parents and children to develop communication, language and literacy development.

Parents and children who could do with extra support in this area are encouraged to attend six sessions alongside a volunteer to get ideas of activities that can be continued within the home environment.

Children will receive three books for coming along to the sessions.

Anyone interested can contact Lindsay Capstick and Nichola Bramley, Parent Support Advisors at the centres, on 01609-532113 or 01609-798199.

ART LECTURE: Author and critic Margaret Garlake will give a talk on artist Victor Pasmore - a professor of fine art and a leading British artist of the 20th century who designed the architecture of Peterlee around a controversial central abstract artwork and pavilion.

His Apollo Pavilion was never popular with residents, nor were his flat roofed houses though his designs and Pavilion were soon regarded amongst the best of Modernist design in this country.

The talk takes place on Thursday February 13 at 7.30pm at the Influence Church, Richmond.

Admission is free to members and £5.00 for visitors.

MALTON SMASH: Three people have been taken to hospital after a head-on collision on the A64 in the early hours of the morning.

Two vehicles crashed in Rillington, near Malton, just after midnight.

A woman from the first vehicle - who the police said suffered serious injury - was released from her car by firefighters.

Two men in the other car were also trapped when fire crews arrived.

They were taken to hospital by ambulance.