Parents whose children are due to start primary or secondary school next year can start applying for a place from next week. Durham County Council will be accepting applications for the 2019-20 school year from Wednesday, September 12. Ian Shanks, pupil placement and education safeguarding manager, said: “We encourage parents to apply in...

Bishop Auckland 2, Newton Aycliffe 2 By Dave Strickland Newton Aycliffe drew 2-2 away to Bishop Auckland in the FA Vase after extra time, and will replay the tie on Tuesday night (September 4). The Bishops bossed the first half. Fryatt went on a good run for Bishops early on but put his shot high and wide. Keeper James Winter (pictured...

Leisure centres in County Durham are offering people the chance to try their facilities for free. Whether you’re a swimmer, fitness enthusiast or complete newbie, new customers who visit Durham County Council leisure centres, from Monday September 3 to Sunday September 16, can pick up a free seven day pass. The free pass – included at...

Newton Aycliffe-based Tekmar Energy says it has become the first North-East offshore company to be awarded an international standard accreditation. The market leading technology provider of protection systems for subsea cable, umbilical and flexible pipes and offshore engineering services has announced a successful transition to ISO...

Students across County Durham have won praise for their GCSE performance in the face of major changes to the exams. The majority of GCSE courses are now giving pupils a 1-9 grade with a level 4 being deemed as a ‘pass’ which is similar to the old ‘C’ grade and level 5 as a ‘good pass.’ County Durham students got their results...

Business confidence plummeted across the North East in August, according to new data. Confidence was down 14 points to 20% in the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking. The region’s firms reported lower confidence in their business prospects (27%) and lower economic optimism (12%), which together gave an overall...

A Teesside University academic who has long warned about the dangers of energy drinks has welcomed the proposal to ban the sale of them to children. The Government has launched a public consultation on its plans to make it illegal to sell energy drinks to anybody under the age of 18. Dr Amelia Lake, a Reader in Public Health in Teesside...

The Government needs to reform drugs policy as deaths from substance misuse continue to rise, says Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner Ron Hogg. Speaking in advance of International Overdose Awareness Day, Ron pointed to an increase in deaths due to drug misuse: the highest mortality rate was seen in the North East, with 83.2 deaths per 1...

By Donna Campbell After what was a relatively quiet week last week the runners of ARC were back out in force this past week. The racing began midweek on Wednesday August 22 with two trail races taking place. The first was at Baydale Beck, Darlington (below), and was part of the Darlington Trail Series that a number of our members have...

Time is running out to secure your spot at the North East’s most exhilarating obstacle course. On Sunday September 30, Muddy Mayhem, organised by Durham County Council, is back at Hardwick Park for its fifth year. The challenging 10k race is now sold out and the 5k is not far behind with only afternoon slots available. Anyone who wishes...