Weekly round-up: Five stories you may have missed

A zoo on the Isle of Wight had asked for help to find four escaped raccoon sisters

A story about runaway raccoon sisters was among our most read stories in the south this week.

We have picked five stories from the past seven days in Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Dorset, Berkshire and Oxfordshire to keep you up to date.

Do ultra bright headlights really blind drivers?

The Transport Research Laboratory is investigating the impact of headlight glare

The impact of bright lights on road users is being independently investigated for the first time.

Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) in Berkshire will equip a car with specialist instruments to measure light levels in the same way drivers experience them.

The modified vehicle will also monitor weather conditions and ambient light to help build a complete picture of the circumstances most likely to lead to headlight glare.

TRL will report Its findings and give recommendations to the Department of Transport next spring.

Sparrowhawk hitches ride in couple's car

The sparrowhawk, believed to be male due to its "great yellow eyes" and colouring, flew in through an open window

A couple have shared memories of their "rare and unlikely" journey with a sparrowhawk after it flew into their car.

Richard and Helen Dodd, from Oxford, were driving past Bury Knowle Park in July when they heard "a sudden bang".

A few minutes later they realised there was "a young male sparrowhawk hopping around" at the back of the vehicle, they told BBC Radio Oxford.

Mrs Dodd said the bird had flown in through an open window while they had been driving at 30mph (48 km/h).

Runaway raccoon sisters reunited

The final escapee was rescued at 02:30 GMT on Wednesday

A fourth and final raccoon that escaped from an island zoo has now been rescued and reunited with her sisters.

Amazon World Zoo Park, near Sandown on the Isle of Wight, appealed for help from islanders on Friday after four, 18-month-old female raccoons escaped from their enclosure.

Three of the animals were found by Monday and the final escapee was rescued at 02:30 GMT on Wednesday.

Rachel Patrick, head keeper at the zoo, said she was "elated and so pleased that we have them all back now”.

Ex-head of police standards banned for drink-driving

Det Supt Paul Kessell, seen here giving a previous TV interview, "smelled strongly of alcohol" the court previously heard

The former head of a police force's professional standards department has been banned from driving after "swerving all over the road" while drink-driving.

Paul Kessell resigned as a detective superintendent at Dorset Police after pleading guilty to driving while three times the legal limit at Southampton Magistrates' Court in September.

The 45-year-old from Stoborough, Dorset, was subsequently found guilty of gross misconduct by the force, which said he would have been dismissed if he had not already resigned.

He admitted drink-driving along the A352 at Wool, near Wareham, on 4 August and has now been banned from driving for 25 months.

MP says she faces racist abuse almost every day

Satvir Kaur has been in public office since 2011

A new MP who served her community for 13 years as a councillor says she has faced "extreme" online hate since winning a seat in Parliament.

Satvir Kaur, former Southampton City Council leader, has been in public office since 2011.

In July's general election, she won the Southampton Test seat, but Ms Kaur says she feels like she has "attracted all the misogynists, racists and haters" online since.