News and Star
Newspaper

The woman helping a struggling Carlisle primary school says it could become an academy, external as early as January.

Image source, News and Star

Two sailors from Cumbria will be given awards from the Princess Royal today, to mark their contribution to Coniston Sailing Club.

Image source, RYA

Valerie Beacock was nominated for a lifetime commitment award and Rob Swyer for an outstanding contribution award by the club and selected as a winner by the Royal Yachting Association Honours and Awards Panel.

They will receive their awards at the RYA's award ceremony in London .

John Bowness
BBC Radio Cumbria reporter

Hundreds of people paraded through the streets of Kendal last night to open the town's annual mountain festival

The Kendal Mountain Festival stages, external film screenings, talks, discussions and a range of other events about exploring wild places, at a large number of venues in the town until Sunday night.

Clive Allen says the events cover all sorts of activities in the outdoors and the thousands of people who come to the town are interested in far more than just climbing.

The team which spreads rock salt on Cumbria's roads on icy winter nights and days has been asked for suggestions to name five of their vehicles and today they'll choose the favourites.

• Temperatures at 3,000ft (900m): About 8C.
• Winds: Moderate south or southeasterly winds with gusts up to 25-30mph over the summits.
• Cloud: Cloud base 650ft-1,300ft (200m-400m) in the early morning, gradually lifting to 1,600ft- 2,300ft (500m-700m) later in the day.
• Visibility: Poor under extensive fog or low cloud.

A Cumbrian factory says it's recycling more than five times as many takeaway cups as it did last year.

Since 2013 the James Cropper paper mill has been using a unique process to separate paper, plastic and print, and is one of only a handful of plants able to extract reusable materials from what previously had to go for landfill.

Cropper's, at Burneside near Kendal, says it's the only place in the world to turn them into high-quality paper and card, and it expects to deal with more than 30 million this year.

Richard Burnett, who's responsible for its cup recycling programme says there's a long way to go, and the factory is capable of dealing with many more.

BBC Weather

There could be some patchy mist at first this morning, but otherwise, there will be large areas of cloud and a few sunny intervals.

The highest temperatures should be from 11C to 14C (52F to 57F).

You can find the latest BBC weather forecast for where you are here.

Martin Lewes
Reporter

We'll be posting news and other useful and interesting information for the county through the day.

If you've got any stories or photos you think we should see, let us know by sending us an email, getting in touch on Facebook, external, or on Twitter, external.

Martin Lewes
Reporter

We've now stepped back to let the software post major breaking news and travel reports overnight. Here's a reminder of some of today's developments:

• On a day dominated by events down in Westminster, the Penrith and the Border MP Rory Stewart faced triumph and disaster, impressing many people, external as the most vocal of the Prime MInister's few supporters, until he invented a statistic live on air and had to apologise
• A week on from the collapse of the Moorside nuclear power station project, there was good and bad as well, with campaigners against electricity pylons finding something to celebrate, while others feared rail improvements would now be scrapped as well
• And if you're lucky enough to go to Tanzania and trek on the slopes on Kilimanjaro, you may think the guide's clothing looks a little familiar...

We'll be back from 08:00 tomorrow to do it all again. If you've stories or photos you think we should see, let us know by sending us an email, getting in touch on Facebook, external, or on Twitter, external.

Have a very good evening.

BBC Weather

There should be some clear periods at times tonight, especially at first.

However, large areas of cloud and perhaps some pockets of drizzle are likely as well and in places, it will become rather misty, with lowest temperatures from 6C to 9C (43F to 48F).

You can find the latest BBC weather forecast for where you are here.

The new deputy leader of Cumbria County Council is Peter Thornton, taking over from Councillor Ian Stewart, who died in October.

Image source, Cumbria County Council

Councillor Thornton (pictured) is now leading the Liberal Democrat group on the council and will also be the cabinet member for finance.

A group allowing people who use the Windermere Ferry direct access to the county council officials who run it is to be reconstituted after the service was suspended for months after a fire earlier this year.

At a full county council meeting Councillor Matt Brereton (pictured) asked cabinet member Keith Little whether he would make good on promises to reinstate the group, which was closed a number of years ago.

Image source, Matt Brereton

Councillor Little said he would bring back the group and it would meet twice a year, at the start and end of the tourist season.

Councillor Brereton said: "This authority's handling of the loss of the Windermere Ferry service following the fire in May left much to be desired, with the service out of action for five whole months and the entire tourist season badly hit."

The Penrith and the Border MP Rory Stewart has apologised after inventing a statistic live on air to illustrate what he believed was the extent of public support for the Prime Minister's deal to start Britain's exit from the EU.

Mr Stewart said "80% of the British public support this deal" as he was interviewed by Emma Barnett on BBC Radio 5 Live.

Ms Barnett challenged him repeatedly, until almost two minutes later, he apologised, as you can hear on the recording.

News and Star
Newspaper

The mother of a psychiatric patient who was jailed for assaulting health staff says she is "appalled" that her daughter ever ended up in prison, external.

A man who bit his partner after assaulting her teenage son has been given a suspended jail term by a judge at Carlisle Crown Court.

Philip Edward Bloomer, 48, of Hayton, Brampton, admitted wounding Claire Woods and beating her 19-year-old son Samuel.

The court heard Bloomer hit the teenager several times with his clenched fist. When Ms Woods put her hand out to protect her son's face, Bloomer bit her finger hard enough to leave an open wound.

Bloomer, a highly regarded transport manager with no previous convictions, was said to have apologised for his "momentary loss of self-control".

Mr Justice William Davis suspended a 12-month prison sentence for two years and ordered Bloomer to complete 80 hours' unpaid work, and pay Ms Woods £500 compensation.

The Tour of Britain cycle race brought £11m to Cumbria when it spent two days in the county earlier this year, according to an independent analysis.

Image source, Getty Images

The study, carried out for the Tour organisers, found the two stages attracted 240,000 people to the county, two thirds of them from outside the county and nearly half of this group staying overnight.

Cumbria was the first county to host two stages of a single tour.

A number of people have been taken to hospital after a crash between a bus anda lorry just over the border into Scotland on the A7 near Langholm.

Police said some bus passengers suffered "cuts and bruises" in the collision on a bridge at about midday.

It is thought there were 12 passengers travelling on the bus at the time of the crash and those needing treatment were taken to Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary in Dumfries and the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle.

The bridge is to be checked for damage before the route reopens.

Weatherproof clothing from England's wettest national park has been handed to guides working on Africa's highest mountain.

The uniforms worn by Lake District National Park Authority rangers have just been replaced because of a new sponsorship deal, and the second-hand waterproofs, fleeces and shorts were taken out to Tanzania by a charity called Robertson Outdoor Bursary, external.

Image source, ROB

The guides working on Kilimajaro, which stands 5,895m (19,341ft) have to work in temperatures ranging from 27C (80F) at the base to -29C (-20F) at the summit.

Richard Leafe, the chief executive of the Lake District National Park, said: “It’s heartwarming to think that our kit will enable staff at another national park to carry out their jobs safely and comfortably."

BBC Cumbria Sport

Barrow are set to complete the signing of an experienced defender, understood to be recent trialist Kemy Augustien ahead of the weekend.

The 32-year-old former Swansea and Brighton midfielder or defender was given a trial in last week's run-out against the Bluebirds under-21 side.

Image source, Getty Images

The Barrow manager Ian Evatt says that once Augustien is in board, he doesn't expect to need more players before the January transfer window.

Copeland councillors are looking to cut £500,000 from its annual budget of just under £10m in the year starting next April.

It has has started a round of consultations, external, asking residents in particular about spending in town centres, cemeteries and open spaces, and whether changes should be made to garden waste collections.

Image source, Mayor of Copeland

Mike Starkie (pictured) said no cuts were being proposed in frontline services, but the savings had to be found.