The Princess Royal today was forced to cancel an engagement at one of the region's prisons.

Staff at Deerbolt Young Offenders Institution, in Startforth, near Barnard Castle, in County Durham, now hope HRH Princess Anne will be able to visit in the New Year.

The princess was due to visit Deerbolt as patron of the Butler Trust, a prison charity which aims to improve care for inmates. She was to tour the prison and open its new High Intensity Training Centre.

During her time in the region she was also spending time at the Cummins Engine Factory at Deerbolt and the Wear Valley Water Treatment Works at Wearhead, in Weardale.

However, poor weather meant she was unable to travel by helicopter and instead had to travel to the North-East by train and then travel by road.

But because she had a prior engagement in London she was unable to fit Deerbolt in her schedule.

Senior prison officer Gary Lupton said yesterday: "Although she's in the area she's now travelling around by vehicles so it's taking twice as long to get from A to B.

"Hopefully she will re-arrange for the New Year."