Bob Dale
BBC Live reporter

A member of staff at Mascalls Academy in Paddock Wood is in hospital with meningitis and septicaemia.

The school says it has notified the authorities, but because the bacterial form of the condition is generally only passed to immediate family, the academy will continue to operate as normal.

However, parents are being warned to watch out for symptoms including fever, vomiting, drowsiness or severe headache or muscle pain.

It also says any parents with concerns should get in touch.

Ben Weisz
Political reporter, BBC Sussex

A former Tory councillor on Lewes District Council has been forced to apologise for behaving in a disrespectful and intimidating way.

In September at a meeting of Telscombe Town Council it was claimed Councillor David Neave had used obscene language towards the Conservative leader Andy Smith in an email.

Mr Neave resigned from the party and joined the Independents, creating a hung council at Lewes.

At a meeting of the standards panel Mr Neave accepted his comments were inappropriate.

His punishment is to write a letter apologising, and if he feels angry in a future council meeting, he should give himself time out until he has calmed down.

It is worth noting the district council does not have powers to ask for anything tougher than that letter.

A 12-year-old boy has taken a dip in the sea in Margate on one of the coldest days of the winter so far.

The annual Greek Orthodox celebration started more than half a century ago.

Image source, Brian Lawless

Stars including Nick Cave, Bono and Johnny Depp were among the guests at a birthday concert for The Pogues singer on Monday night.

Shane, who was born in Kent, turned 60 on Christmas Day and was honoured by Irish President Michael D Higgins with a lifetime achievement award at the party in Dublin's National Concert Hall.

Hollywood star Depp brought out his guitar to join Bono for a rendition of The Pogues' A Rainy Night In Soho, while Cave and a wheelchair-bound Shane teamed up for the band's Summer In Siam.

Singer Imelda May was there too and tweeted the star-studded image below of herself with Bobby Gillespie, Nick Cave, Clem Burke, The Libertines' Carl Barat and The Sex Pistols' Glen Matlock.

Melissa Bird Ednie says her anxiety and depression completely disappear when she takes photos.

Canon John Corbyn said brides arriving late for their wedding have disrupted the church schedule.

Yasmine Djadoudi
BBC Live reporter

The daughter of a woman killed in a house fire last week in Broadstairs says she's still struggling to believe her mother has gone.

A school for children with disabilities could receive a boost of £3.95m towards expansion plans.

Councillors at Kent County Council are set to decide this week whether Meadowfield School in Swanstree Avenue in Sittingbourne should increase its size by an additional 150 pupils.

Meadowfield School is already over its quota of 209 children.

It teaches 282 pupils with severe and complex needs aged four to 19.

The plan aims to reduce the number of children with special educational needs and disabilities being educated outside their communities.

A report by KCC shows that children in the Isle of Sheppey are travelling more than 20 miles to Maidstone and Tonbridge for school due to the lack of places in Swale.

Meadowfield has been rated outstanding by Ofsted in every category and has been praised for its “outstanding leadership and management”.

Image source, Getty Images

The Argus, external: ‘I was hounded for months over benefits’

Kent Online, external: Southeastern and Southern trains voted among worst services in Britain

Surrey Mirror, external: Bare-knuckle fighter armed with samurai sword and mallet among 435 people listed as potential risks to Surrey County Council staff

Hastings Observer, external: Sussex people urged to buy a band and support World Cancer Day

Mid Sussex Times, external: Employee forced into fridge-freezer during armed robbery at golf club

Worthing Herald, external: Man hit by train at Durrington railway station

Chichester Observer, external: Missing Bosham man found

Kent Live, external: Kent County Council is set to increase bills by the maximum allowed - here's how much more you'll have to pay

Brighton and Hove News, external: Crash blamed for bigger rush-hour jam than usual in Woodingdean while roadworks clog up Hove

Eastbourne Herald, external: Eastbourne MP calls for inquiry into Carillion as thousands of jobs put at risk

West Sussex County Times, external: Village Jaguar garage targeted by thieves

Brighton and Hove Independent, external: Police investigate alleged sexual assaults on New Year’s Eve

The man was hit over the head, then forced into an industrial fridge-freezer and tied up.

Bob Dale
BBC Live reporter

A member of staff at a golf club needed hospital treatment after being attacked by armed robbers and locked in an industrial freezer.

The 55-year-old was hit over the head and put in the industrial unit by three men, wearing hoodies, at Hassocks Golf Club.

The gang, who were all carrying weapons including a hammer, had demanded to know where the safe was, and broke into the office, but only escaped with the man's wallet and mobile phone.

Image source, Google

The man managed to escape using the freezer's release button, and was treated in hospital for a cut to his head.

It happened at 20:15 GMT on 13 January.

Have you received compensation from the NHS when something went wrong?

Jeni Barnett's in the chair on BBC Sussex and BBC Surrey from 09:00 GMT, and wants to hear your stories. Call her on 03459 57 00 57.

Kate Kinsella
BBC Weather

The heavy rain's gone, but temperatures are falling.

Here's my forecast.

Julia Brown was unable to escape from her three-storey home in Broadstairs.

Emma Shirley sued King's College Hospital after she suffered brain damage following surgery.

Image source, PA

A woman who suffered brain damage after contracting an infection following surgery has been awarded a £1.6m NHS payout.

Emma Shirley, 42, from Dover, had an operation to remove a brain tumour at King's College Hospital, London, in 2010.

But, following the surgery, she suffered headaches and scans revealed she had an abscess and fluid on her brain.

She later suffered a seizure and has been left with epilepsy, weakness on her right side and cognitive, memory and language impairment.

She sued King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which agreed to settle her claim, and the settlement was approved by Judge Patrick Curran QC at the High Court on Monday.

Hamish Mureddu-Reid
BBC News Online, South East

The Bishop of Chichester, the Right Reverend Martin Warner, has taken his seat in the House of Lords.

Bishop Warner was formally introduced to the house at the start of business.

He said: "I look forward to joining others from Sussex who serve in both houses at Westminster, and to sharing in the Church of England’s contribution to the national life through parliament.”

In December Bishop Warner apologised for the way the church had investigated child abuse claims against former Bishop of Chichester George Bell, who died in 1958.

A report, external into the handling of the case criticised the Church's actions, describing its process as "deficient".

Image source, Diocese of Chichester

Lizzie Massey
BBC Live reporter

Darent Valley Hospital in Kent has said it will be business as usual after its service provider Carillion announced it had gone into liquidation.

The firm has provided maintenance, catering, porter services, cleaning and security at the Dartford hospital.

A spokesman said: "We have extensive contingency plans for dealing with this issue and making sure that services to patients continue to be provided safely and to a high standard.

"All of our facilities remain open as normal, and patient appointments are unaffected."

Lizzie Massey
BBC Live reporter

A huge solar farm, being delivered by Carillion, will be finished next month.

West Sussex County Council contracted Carillion for a 7.4 megawatt solar farm on a closed landfill site next to the A27 at Westhampnett.

Now the company has gone into liquidation, the council reassured people the project would be finished by its sub-contractors, with no impact on services.

Ben Weisz
Political reporter, BBC Sussex

It’s Groundhog Day at County Hall.

Every year, as is now tradition, Cllr David Elkin, the man responsible for East Sussex’s finances, welcomes local journalists into his office to brief them on his budget plans.

And every year he tells us the same story. Less grant money from Whitehall, but rising costs – particularly in adult social care. Money must be found to bridge the gap.

This year was no different. Even after the council uses new powers to raise tax by nearly 6%, it still has to find £17m in savings.

But there’s only so much you can save by providing the same services more efficiently. There’ll need to be cuts, too.

Fewer libraries. Fewer tips. Less support for carers.

But also, crucially, less of the preventative work that saves money further down the line – less money for schools to tackle poor attendance and exclusion, for instance.

Politically, this budget may be safe – though it must be voted through next month, Cllr Elkin’s Tories now have a majority.

It’s what happens further down the line that’s keeping councillors up at night. Amid rising costs and falling income, Cllr Elkin told me it’s only a matter of time before a town hall somewhere goes bust. He’s hoping the Government offers a long-term fix well before that.