GOLFERS at Bishop Auckland Golf Club tee off today to launch fundraising for a £70,000 art programme for a new hospital. Bosses at Bishop Auckland General are working with Northern Arts to brighten their £60m building when it opens in 2003. Part of the
COMMUNITY leaders have gathered to discuss the spending of a £200,000 Government grant in Teesdale. More than 50 residents of Evenwood and Ramshaw listened to a series of presentations from various community groups on the best way to spend the seven-year
COUNCIL bosses have welcomed a £155,000 Government cash boost to help them to recruit neighbourhood wardens. Gateshead Borough Council was given the money as part of the Government's £7.5m package to help combat the fear of crime. Councillor Malcolm Graham
A £19m plan to reinstate the railway between Malton and Pickering has been given cautious support by the North York Moors National Park Authority. The decision follows warnings that it could have a detrimental effect on the Yorkshire Moors Railway. The
CLEAN living has proved the watchword for long-standing health for the North-East's latest centenarian. Mary Turnbull celebrated her 100th birthday with visits from scores of friends, relations and well-wishers at the old person's bungalow where she lives
SOCIAL services chiefs in North Yorkshire are aiming to recruit more foster carers as part of a national campaign. The Fostering Network Campaign is hoping to attract foster carers from throughout the county, allowing children to stay in their own communities
CIRCUITOUS is another resonant word, though not in the big league, like serendipity. It means going round by the houses, like - say - one or two of these columns or the 213 bus from Darlington to Sunderland. We have remarked before on the unlucky for
LOCAL people will show off their work as part of two projects on the theme of pride at a special exhibition. Earlier this year, Middlesbrough Borough Council's Arts Development Team arranged for a group of talented youngsters to work with theatre group
AN annual appeal to help impoverished children enjoy Christmas is about to be launched in the region. Operation Christmas Child will swing into action on Teesside when its roadshow visits Redcar, on October 17. Organised by the Samaritan's Purse group
AN assassin lured his victim to the scene of his execution by knocking on the window of the victim's mother's house, police revealed last night. Freddie Knights, 38, was shot at close range with a sawn-off shotgun in Lutterworth Road, Longbenton, North
A NORTH-EAST probation service is at the forefront of two projects at the centre of the Government's modernisation of the service. The pilot schemes, in County Durham, are designed to cut re-offending in women leaving prison after a short sentence and
FIREFIGHTERS are being put through their paces in hot house conditions in new facilities at a North-East brigade's training base. County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Brigade is now able to provide realistic blaze-like conditions for its operational
A CRICKET match held in memory of a fan has helped to raise money for the Teesside Heart Foundation. Businessman Les D'Souza died of a heart attack earlier this year, and his friends at Doghouse Cricket Club decided to hold a match in his honour. The
A COUNCIL is on the verge of speeding up work on its memorial safety programme after a six-year-old boy was crushed to death by a gravestone. Reuben Powell was killed when a 5ft stone fell on him as he played with a friend at the Grove Road cemetery,
A COMPANY says it is still committed to building a £70m business and retail park in Darlington, even though it has been delayed by planning problems. Last year, national development firm Miller submitted proposals for the 150-acre scheme next to the A66
A RADICAL scheme to reduce burglary in a town can finally begin after councillors agreed to "front-fund" it. The Government offered Cleveland Police £173,710 a year ago to implement the Burglary Reduction Initiative in the area. But a condition of the
TOP gardeners from all over the country arrived in the North-East yesterday for the first Britain in Bloom finals of the new millennium. Today, 60 towns, cities and villages will learn whether their efforts have impressed the judges enough to win an award
THE regeneration of Thornaby's shopping centre was halted dramatically yesterday after negotiations between a developer and Stockton Borough Council broke down. The local authority now faces an additional bill of more than £60,000 to fund property and
AN ANGRY father has put up a £500 reward to find the thief who stole his nine-year-old son's motorbike. Mike Crawford, who owns the ARC garage, in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, discovered the theft when he opened up on Tuesday morning. The Yamaha RT
HEALTH secretary Alan Milburn yesterday vowed to win the war on waiting lists - for the sake of his friend Ian Weir and thousands like him. In an emotional speech at the Labour Party conference in Brighton, Mr Milburn announced more detailed plans to
THE North has again been highlighted as the poor cousin to the South. An annual survey which is carried out by the National Statistics Office has identified health and wealth disparities placing the region poles apart from London and the South-East. Average
STERN-faced, lips pursed, voice choked, Health Secretary Alan Milburn had a grim tale to tell. The National Health Service, his National Health Service, had let a patient down - not just any patient, but his friend - and he knew in the most painful way
THE bloodsoaked body of a little dog was discovered impaled on church railings minutes before children passed by on their way to two primary schools. A shocked headteacher lifted off the corpse, while other staff from St Joseph's RC, in Coundon, County
After leaping to the Olympic triple jump gold medal, Jonathan Edwards was asked what, at that moment, was his biggest wish. He did not hesitate when replying: ''To be at home with my wife.'' Edwards added: ''This is the longest time I have ever been away
ALAN Milburn said it: "There was no one quite like Ian Weir. But there are far too many people waiting just like Ian Weir." The campaign in this newspaper, inspired by the Ian Weir tragedy, has been well documented. Ian was our friend and our colleague
FOUR Newcastle Falcons are among the 16 development players invited to join a 30-man England squad for training on October 9. England Under 21 players Michael Stephenson and Jamie Noon will be joined by England A winger Liam Botham and newcomer Andy Mower
ORGANISATIONS in Middlesbrough are celebrating the donation of professional advice and support to various community groups. Over the past four years the Tees Valley Tomorrow Professional Firms Group (PFG) has donated almost £500,000 worth of free business
VISITING John Dodd's farm is like stepping back in time. Tractors and other machinery are nowhere to be seen. He harnesses real horsepower to work his farm in Northumberland, relying on five giant Clydesdale horses to do everything - ploughing, sowing
SATURDAY evening at Trimdon Labour Club, social centre of Blair's Britain, and the opinion polls unequivocally underwhelming. The first editions told of a party in unaccustomed second place, a leader perceived to be arrogant and out of touch, a fractious
THE second meeting of South Durham Health Care NHS Trust's patient and carers' council is held today at Bishop Auckland Town Hall. Members will get the chance to learn about the new hospital being built at Bishop Auckland, and there will be a presentation
Manchester City will be put on red alert on Saturday as Newcastle striker Alan Shearer vows to end his barren run. Shearer completed nine games without a goal from open play in the 1-1 Worthington Cup draw at Orient. Joe Royle's side will need no reminding
A LOCAL authority has promised to look at the possibility of excluding convicted paedophiles from council estates. Following protests by residents outside the home of a child molester in Hartlepool, the borough council has pledged to look at the legality
A CAR smash victim has been saved from permanent paralysis - because of her passion for line dancing. Jane Wilson was facing a lifetime in a wheelchair after an accident when her car smashed into a bridge and cart-wheeled off the road. Her injuries were
A BUILDER killed himself and his lover by dousing petrol inside her home and turning the house into an inferno only weeks after their long-term relationship ended. Billy Cummings, 38, turned up at the home of 44-year-old partner Jean Holden just after
A CONTROVERSIAL piece of river-borne art returned to dry land again yesterday as preparations were made to take it on tour. Divers removed Ambit, a 22-tonne chain of stainless steel cylinders, from the River Wear, at Sunderland, to allow marine engineering
A woman who conned authorities out of £7,500 in compensation money after falsely claiming she was raped was sentenced to six months in a young offenders' institution last night. Natalie Knighting, 20, told police she was raped by a tramp on her way home
A CONSULTANT accused of having an improper relationship with a woman patient has been criticised by health officials who investigated her complaints, The Northern Echo can reveal. It is understood that Friarage Hospital consultant gynaecologist Neil Hebblethwaite
A RADIO station manager is leaving the region after seven years at the helm of a local BBC station. David Peel, who left Radio Cleveland temporarily in the summer to work on a project with the BBC's regional controller, has now been appointed editor of
THE fragile economy of Weardale has been hit by a double whammy with one of its major employers announcing redundancies, and another expected to follow suit next week. William Cook George Blair, of Stanhope, which employs 300 people supplying components
FESTIVITIES in the region will today celebrate the 175th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. The world's first passenger rail line, it was opened on this date in 1825, and celebrations will take place in the three main sites
ANIMAL welfare watchdogs are threatening legal action against a circus which they claim is displaying highly defamatory hoardings. The RSPCA has been outraged by the posters used by Circus King and is demanding their immediate removal. The posters, which
A SOLICITOR who was "guilty of being too nice" in employing a struck-off lawyer has been suspended for two months. Frank Jeffrey Smith, 42, admitted his stupidity in using the services of Robin Heron at his firm for nearly two years. Former partner Francis
A FRAIL pensioner suffered stroke after trying to chase a robber who had snatched her bag. Molly Bath, 73, has been left paralysed down her right side, after the thief struck as she returned home from a doing a good turn. Last night, her family were maintaining
THE Government is being asked to provide more than £21m to help improve transport across North Yorkshire. The county council is asking for the cash to pay for a wide range of work, and a detailed bid was submitted to Whitehall yesterday. The money will
EIGHTEEN months after a man was left for dead following a savage beating, detectives have vowed the case will never be closed. Darlington police say the mystery of who attacked Douglas Taylor is made more difficult to solve by the head injuries he sustained
'I AM listening," said Tony Blair. "This is the time for dialogue. I have heard. I have got the message. I am acting on that message. On pensions, on the Dome. I was wrong. I can do something about the former. And I have learned from the latter." But
GARY Majnusz will swap his butcher's apron for an academic gown when he graduates from the University of Teesside with a degree in consumer law. The move from butchery to books came during the BSE crisis. The 41-year-old, who left school at 16 to train
CAMPAIGNERS battling to save a landmark from slipping into the River Swale are pinning their hopes on a meeting with the Environment Agency today. There is concern that water from England's fastest flowing river could undercut a 5m-high bank in the shadow
A UNIQUE networking event organised for businesswomen from the Tees Valley area was hailed a success by all who attended. Organised by Barclays Bank Tees Valley Small Business team, the event was held in Enron's Phoenix Conference Centre at Wilton International
TWO high-profile businessmen will be in Teesside next month to address a prestigious business event. CBI director general Digby Jones will be the principal speaker at The Business Show, an event being backed by The Northern Echo. While he made his name
CHARITY workers are heading to Romania this morning for the grand reopening of an education centre funded by Teesside residents. Hartlepool resident Mike Sumpter is travelling to the city of Iasi as a trustee of the Europe Child Health Organisation (Echo
A CONTROVERSIAL piece of river-borne art returned to dry land again yesterday as preparations were made to take it on tour. Divers removed Ambit, a 22-tonne chain of stainless steel cylinders, from the River Wear, at Sunderland, to allow marine engineering
IN the bygone days of Old Labour, Harold Wilson was asked what he would do next after having just lost yet another policy vote at the Party conference. "Govern," was his reply. In his speech to the New Labour faithful in Brighton, Tony Blair drew on the
ANCIENT almshouses have been transported into the present thanks a to website designed to promote them. The 300-year-old Sir William Turner's almshouses, at Kirkleatham, near Redcar, east Cleveland, may still bear a safety rule banning the placing of
ONE of the North-East's best known pensioners, Newcastle United boss Bobby Robson, is urging older people to protect themselves against the flu bug this winter. The Magpies' chief is backing a campaign by six health authorities in the region to increase
CHOCOLATE and toffee shop group Thorntons has blamed over-ambitious expansion plans for its profits becoming unstuck over the last year. Unveiling profit figures at almost half last year's level, the group said it was "extremely disappointing" that it
A PENSIONER died after she was injured as someone tried to snatch her shopping bag, a court was told. Vera Olley was an active woman who looked after her infirm husband, but she fell as she tried to stop her shopping bag being snatched away from her in
A ROCK concert, which pulled in crowds of about 200 people, took a Richmond teenager closer to a trip of a lifetime to Belize. Eighteen-year-old Alice Lawson has been selected for an expedition to the Central American colony with Raleigh International
TEESSIDE architects practice The Dewjoc Partnership has completed a £85m project in China for a major international pharmaceutical company. The contract to design a new Glaxo Wellcome plant at Suzhou, an hour's drive from Shanghai, is the latest export
YOUNG North-East sports enthusiasts were honoured this week for their efforts at a teenage version of the Olympics. Durham's 139-strong Millennium Youth Games team, including management, coaches and support helpers, were guests at a County Hall reception
ARE we really that stupid? Lung cancer is now the biggest killer of women. Kills more than breast cancer does. But while we are desperately trying to find a reason and a cure for breast cancer - campaigning, fund-raising, wearing our pink ribbons and
AN appeal to raise funds for a minibus to take people with learning disabilities on trips has received backing from a supermarket. The appeal was launched in April to raise funds for an adapted minibus for people in supported living schemes in Bishop
DEEP in Kielder forest an American sculptor has erected what looks a bit like an old limekiln.Anyone who enters can see only the sky - just as they would if they ever found themselves in an old limekiln. Not consciously intended to resemble a limekiln
TEENAGERS can seem moody and uninterested at times, but a conference in the North-East yesterday portrayed them as quite the opposite - loyal, caring and determined. The Barnardo's Hidden Carers conference in Stanley's Civic Centre, Derwentside, highlighted
DISABLED participants in a special arts project drew back the curtain on their first creation at its launch yesterday. Members of Scope on Teesside unveiled a Millennium Window at their base in Acklam Road, Middlesbrough, to signal the start of Cleveland
HOUSING association tenants in the Darlington area are to benefit from a savings and loan scheme being offered by a building society. Darlington Building Society's Helping Hand scheme gives tenants a chance to establish a credit rating and offers a good
A COUNCIL has refused to rule out the possibility of a popular greenfield site in Darlington being used for housing. But it has allayed residents' fears that the site is on the verge of being developed. People on the Bellburn Road Estate, Darlington,
DERWENTSIDE is to become a blaze of colour, drama, music and dance with two major arts events in the next few weeks. Take Off 2000, England's only annual celebration of professional theatre for children and young people, comes to north County Durham between
A MAN who pointed his fingers at an off-duty policewoman who had arrested him earlier was jailed for two months yesterday. The off-duty officer thought Ian Donaghue had a gun in his hand and stopped at a service station to contact her colleagues at Peterlee
A NEW landmark that will transform part of the centre of Durham City is steadily taking shape. Structural work on the hall that will form the centrepiece of the £29m Millennium City development is complete. Yesterday, the final concrete on the upper floor
AN open meeting has been called to address major traffic congestion problems in two towns. Local interest groups will attend the traffic summit, which is entitled Managing Traffic Congestion in Harrogate and Knaresborough, on Saturday, October 14. The
AN oil slick on the River Skerne in Darlington yesterday raised fears that fish and ducks were being endangered. A local man contacted the Environment Agency when he saw the oil slick on the river, at the bottom of Priestgate. He said he saw fish floating
WALKERS are being encouraged to take part in an event for older people. The International Day of Older Persons is being celebrated on Saturday, with a series of walks across the world. Last year, during the International Year of Older Persons, people
CANADIAN forward Daniel Lacroix is hoping for a winning start to his Newcastle Jesters career tonight. Victory will fire his new club into the quarter-finals of the Benson and Hedges Cup. The ex-NHL star flew into Tyneside yesterday and will ice against
THE Duke of York kept up a family tradition yesterday - following in the century-old footsteps of his great-grandad. A hundred years ago, in June 1900, the then Duke travelled to Helmsley, in North Yorkshire, to place the foundation stone for the new
CAMPAIGNERS slammed Education Secretary David Blunkett last night for pledging his support to plans for the demolition of three schools. Middlesbrough Borough Council is eager to be one of only ten local authorities in the UK to be allowed to build a
MUSEUM chiefs in the region are hoping to bring part of the North-East's history home. A document which sheds light on the site of the Stockton and Darlington Railway before it became a rail line is going up for auction next week. The vellum manuscript
A DARLINGTON company is saying more than "Thank you" to a hospice by pledging five per cent of its local sales in an innovative sponsorship. Simply Thank You, based at Morton Park, specialises in delivering flowers, chocolates, wines and spirits, and
FOR more than a century the seaside delights of Scarborough have had holidaymakers from all over the country flocking to the North Yorkshire coast. They have braved the chilly North Sea, built castles in the sand, promenaded in the parks and generally
WELL-MEANING bosses in the North-East are getting it wrong when it comes to workplace perks, new research shows. The research, by Virgin Direct, highlights a growing divide between managers and staff over employee benefits. So-called "softer" benefits
NATIONAL builders merchant Builder Center has acquired regional builders Atkinson, taking control of its 11 branches across the North-East and North Yorkshire. Builder Center is a division of Wolseley Centers, based at Ripon and is a leading force in
SUNDERLAND'S Darren Holloway will resume talks with Wimbledon after the collapse yesterday of the First Division club's bid to sign Everton defender Richard Dunne. Holloway is set to discuss personal terms with Wimbledon after the Wearsiders accepted
A PLANNED strike tomorrow by hundreds of bus drivers has been suspended while they vote on new offers. About 600 drivers with Go Gateshead and Go Northern - part of North-East transport giant Go Ahead - were due to begin a series of one-day stoppages
MIDDLESBROUGH skipper Paul Ince has told England coach Kevin Keegan: "I'm your man to take on the Germans." Midfield enforcer Ince isn't guaranteed a place in Keegan's squad for the looming World Cup qualifiers against Germany and Finland. The self-styled
THE star of a cult television show will arrive in the region to perform in a major arts festival. As part of its New Reality Festival, Cleveland Arts will present a new work by Mat Fraser, who starred in the Channel Four programme Freakout. In it, the
A TEACHERS' leader last night warned the Government after a North-East teacher hanged herself when she found she was unable to cope at work. On the day Tony Blair hailed David Blunkett as one of Britain's finest education secretaries, an inquest in Middlesbrough
A woman who conned authorities out of £7,500 in compensation money after falsely claiming she was raped was sentenced to six months in a young offenders' institution last night. Natalie Knighting, 20, told police she was raped by a tramp on her way home
A woman who conned authorities out of £7,500 in compensation money after falsely claiming she was raped was sentenced to six months in a young offenders' institution last night. Natalie Knighting, 20, told police she was raped by a tramp on her way home
THE North-East organiser of a world kick-boxing championship says he is prepared to bankrupt himself to save the showcase event. Father-of-two Goff Bates has pledged to plunder his life savings to rescue next month's tournament that has been threatened
Darlington midfielder Brian Atkinson started his comeback yesterday in Quakers' reserve side. Atkinson limped out of the first game of the season at Rochdale with a knee injury and has been on the treatment table since. But the club's longest-serving
A TEESSIDE haulier is gearing up to create a Government-backed testing station, which is tipped to put the area on the map. The family firm of Les Woolston Express Haulage, in Middlesbrough, hopes the project, being supported by a £9,000 grant from South
CAMPAIGNERS have vowed to fight yet again to save a North-East's brewery. The fresh battle comes amid fears over a cost-cutting exercise launched by Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries (W&D), owner of Camerons' Lion Brewery, in Hartlepool. W&
ANGRY crowds gathered outside the home of a convicted child molester last night demanding that he leave the area. More than 60 protestors, including women and children carrying banners proclaiming "Sex Beast Out", gathered outside the boarded-up home
FEARS that North-East swimming star Susan Rolph may quit the sport after a heart-breaking Olympics were firmly scotched yesterday. Back at the Newcastle City Hall baths, the 22-year-old Commonwealth and European 100m freestyle champion declared she was
TWO teenagers' loss could be someone else's gain after they were forced to cancel a sunshine break. Gemma McCaskill and Simone Gaddas were due to fly out on holiday to Tenerife this Sunday. But the pair, who both live in Darlington, were involved in a
POLICE have finally managed to put a name to human remains found deep in a forest earlier this year. They have identified the skeletal remains as those of David Eric Sykes, a 46-year-old unemployed forester of no fixed address. An inquest into the circumstances
ANIMAL protection groups are calling for new restrictions on trapping, after the discovery of a badger strangled by a snare. The badger was discovered on a road in North Yorkshire, prompting claims it had been placed there so it would be run over, disguising
THE future of two town centres will be discussed at a public meeting tomorrow. The Spennymoor and Newton Aycliffe Town Centre Study sets out an ambitious long-term vision of revitalisation. Central to the plan is the establishment of a town centre manager
A NORTH-East burial ground has been hailed the best cemetery in the country. And as the rain and mist swirled around the neat rows of graves at Thorpe Road near, Horden, County Durham, yesterday, cemetery superintendent Jimmy Bush admitted he was bursting
A FORMER scrap metal worker was awarded more than £182,000 in damages yesterday after his treatment for bladder cancer caused further problems. Ray Bradshaw sued South Tees Health Authority for damages after radiotherapy at South Cleveland Hospital, Middlesbrough
A TEACHERS' leader last night warned the Government after a North-East teacher hanged herself when she found she was unable to cope at work. On the day Tony Blair hailed David Blunkett as one of Britain's finest education secretaries, an inquest in Middlesbrough
AN assassin lured his victim to the scene of his execution by knocking on the window of the victim's mother's house, police revealed last night. Freddie Knights, 38, was shot at close range with a sawn-off shotgun in Lutterworth Road, Longbenton, North
IT took Britain's best loved wheeler-dealer to turn it into a status symbol - but now Del Boy's beloved motor is to be consigned to the great scrapyard in the sky. Reliant Cars announced yesterday it will bring 65 years of three-wheeled car making to
HOTEL managers from the North-East are heading South in a bid to sell the region's potential as a major conference venue. With new venues springing up every month the region is establishing itself as a major rival of traditional conference settings elsewhere
