Sandra Haigh says she’s “honoured” to have been elected as the town’s new mayor. Independent councillor Haigh was elected to succeed Mary Dalton who stepped down as a councillor at the elections. There were big changes made during Great Aycliffe Town Council’s AGM in May, when the ‘traditional’ leader position as scrapped as...

Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen has welcomed the first of LNER’s Azuma trains calling at Middlesbrough station as part of critical driver training. The existing platform 2 has been extended by 75 metres in the first phase of a £34m station upgrade, to accommodate the Azuma trains – built at Hitachi Rail’s factory 20 miles away in Newton...

By Adam Cayless Under 8 whites started strong against Shincliffe and went into half time leading. The hosts grabbed a leveller just into the 2nd half. We then gave away an unlucky pen so didn’t get the result today. A much improved performance from the boys. MOTM Oscar Clarkson U8’s Blacks played Spraire lads in a great contest. Regan...

Year 11 students at Greenfield Community College may be leaving the school site but remain a big part of the Greenfield community. During challenging times the year group can be congratulated on their resilience and commitment throughout their journey at Greenfield, excelling in both study at home and on site, says the school. The class of...

A pioneering programme to target convicted sex offenders suspected of continuing their illegal activities online has led to eight suspects being charged with fresh offences. In the first six months of the programme, officers from Durham Constabulary have seen a surge in the number of offenders suspected of breaching court-imposed sexual harm...

Crafter’s Companion is supporting Spennymoor Town FC’s youth academy and affordable football for all strategy with a new partnership. The craft business, which has its UK head office in Newton Aycliffe and a US head office in Corona, California, is sponsoring the club’s Mini Moors two-to-five-year-olds team for two years. This is the...

Durham Constabulary continues to stay at the forefront of digital innovation for frontline policing, meaning more officers can be out in communities for longer, through a partnership with Cumbria Constabulary and a link-up with Microsoft and Tisski. Investment provided through the area’s Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner will allow...

Lee Weldon's weekly round-up from the wicket... Saturday 12th June – NYSD Division 2 Newton Aycliffe 1st XI v Marton 2nd XI – weather was warm and sunny. Newton Aycliffe won the toss and chose to bowl first. Marton 2nd XI 152 all out after 37 oversJack Slatcher 3 for 19, George Slatcher 2 for 26 and James Layfield-Carroll 2 for...

A government minister has met some of the first people to benefit from a multi-million-pound scheme to improve the energy efficiency of more than 1,000 County Durham homes. Lord Callanan, Minister for Climate Change and Corporate Responsibility, visited homes in Chilton to see how work to install free low carbon external wall insulation and...

There is still an opportunity to get insider insight into some of the secrets of the animation and games industry revealed at Teesside University’s Animex festival. Some of the biggest names in animation and computer games shared a digital stage last week for the internationally renowned event. Animex was held online on June 2 for only the...