The offences are alleged to have taken place between 1979 and 1988.

The pair kissed and cuddled in a cleaning cupboard and sent each other love letters, a court hears.

Newcastle City Council has confirmed that road closure around St James' Park on match days are to be extended.

They were introduced on a trial basis 15 months to improve safety for fans.

Now following consultation with the Newcastle United Fans Forum, the club and Northumbria Police, a safety advisory group has decided to extend the closure period to the start of the game as fans make their way into the stadium.

The new arrangements will be operational from this Sunday, when Newcastle play Wolverhampton Wanderers - and all other match days.

Councillor Nick Kemp said: "It is clear that many fans wanted the closure before the game as well as after the game, so we've decided to bring in this change."

Details of the closures can be found on the Newcastle United website, external.

Image source, Getty

Image source, Durham Constabulary

A teenager from Darlington has released photographs of the injuries he sustained when he fell from an off-road motorbike to warn others of the dangers of not wearing protective gear.

The 15-year-old boy lost control of his bike on North Road, Darlington earlier this year and skidded across the pavement before he hit the ground, suffering severe grazes.

He said: "I was not wearing any protective clothing and was riding too fast.

"It absolutely killed when I came off. My clothes ripped and stuck to my wounds.

"Wearing proper gear could have saved me. Choosing to go without, is really not worth it."

Image source, Durham Constabulary

Sgt Steve Teasdale from the Cleveland and Durham Specialist Operations Unit said: "At 15 he should not have been riding a motorbike, but he did so and has paid for the consequences."

The teenager has taken part in the programme Back on Track which uses motorbikes to re-engage youngsters and teaches them about safety, maintenance and first aid.

Sergeant Teasdale added: "While young people think it's fun to ride motorbikes, the dangers are very real.

"Not only are they causing anti-social behaviour to the local community but they are facing being prosecuted for various road traffic offences - often facing driving bans before they are old enough to have a licence.

"It can take one time riding a bike without a helmet and protective gear which can change a life. Wear it every time."

Local Democracy Reporting Service

"Judgment day" for the fate of Durham Tees Valley airport has been set for January 24, according to the Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen.

He announced on Tuesday that a £40m deal had been struck with majority stakeholders Peel to buy it back.

hree of the five Labour leaders on the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) - made up of Redcar and Cleveland, Middlesbrough, Stockton, Darlington and Hartlepool Councils - must vote to back the deal if it is to go ahead.

Mayor Houchen said an emergency meeting of the TVCA cabinet had been pencilled in for a vote on Thursday, January 24.

He said: "If the council leaders vote for my plan, we will secure our airport's future for generations to come.

"If they reject my plan, our airport could close in 2021 - it's as simple as that."

Mayor Houchen repeated that he'd be publishing the full business case "for all to see" ahead of the meeting.

However, the full deal and details of the plan have not yet emerged.

Question marks persist over whether council leaders will want to defer their decision on the airport deal until their individual councils examine the details.

Councllor Sue Jeffrey, leader of Redcar and Cleveland Council, had doubts about the plan and said nobody had told her there would be a emergency meeting in January.

Allied Healthcare failed to visit 190 homes over a weekend with council staff having to step in.

Mark Denten
BBC Look North

A former North East football coach has been given an absolute discharge despite a jury finding he abused five boys in the 1970s and early 1980s.

John Marshall, 71, from Longbenton in North Tyneside, faced 11 charges of indecent assault.

He was deemed unfit to plead by doctors and so a trial of facts took place at Newcastle Crown Court.

A jury found that he did commit the offences.

A judge today issued him with an absolute discharge meaning that he has a criminal record but no further action is taken., external

Judge Stephen Earl said “I do not see this necessarily (as) the right outcome but the statutory outcome that I have no alternative to pass.”

Image source, NORTH NEWS

There will be strong south-westerly winds tomorrow, with a mixture of sunny spells and occasional blustery showers moving in from the west.

A Met Office yellow warning to "be aware" of strong winds has been issued.

A prison officer at a young offenders' institution who was caught having secret "trysts" in a cleaning cupboard with a 20-year-old inmate has been spared jail.

Stacey Sutherland, 27, of Marshall Street, Barnard Castle, said she looked for solace with convicted blackmailer Leon Shooter after her marriage to a fellow prison officer failed and a subsequent relationship with an older prison guard collapsed.

Sutherland, who has a six-year-old son, admitted misconduct in a public office and cried when was she handed an eight-month jail sentence, suspended for 18 months.

Image source, PA

She was also ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work and complete rehabilitation requirements.

Rebecca Suttle, defending Sutherland, said the relationship had not gone beyond kissing, explaining: "While I do not seek to minimise the offending, it does not extend to more than the occasional tryst in a cleaning cupboard."

Judge Stephen Ashurst said he was taking the exceptional course of not immediately jailing her, because of her early guilty plea and the fact she is the sole carer for her son.

FA Cup second-round replays - listen to local BBC radio commentary and follow live text coverage.

A body has been found in the River Skerne at Parkside, Darlington this morning, police have confirmed.

Emergency services attended but the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are currently treating his death as unexplained.

A post-mortem examination and formal identification are due to take place.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Durham Constabulary on 101

The former Archdeacon of Auckland, George Granville Gibson, has pleaded not guilty at Teesside Crown Court to two charges of indecent assault on a boy under the age of 14 and three counts of indecent assault on a man.

The retired 82-year-old, from Darlington, is accused of carrying out the offences in the 1970s and 80s, when he occupied various roles around the region within the Anglican church.

His trial has been listed for the July 2019.

Daniel Holland
Local Democracy Reporter

Gateshead Council has granted a licence for a new micropub in Ryton despite some residents feeling "very upset" about the plans.

A licensing sub-committee heard on Wednesday that, in a bid to allay fears about a potential increase in anti-social behaviour and noise in the village, the micropub The Lane Head had agreed to cut its opening hours and enforce a strict ban on drinking outside its Main Road building.

Applicant Doug Musgrove, speaking alongside business partner Edward Robson, said: "Over the last few years we have seen that Ryton and Crawcrook are going downhill when it comes to socialising and it is worrying.

"What we want to try and do is bring life back into the village."

Councilor Freda Geddes, representing a number of Ryton residents who objected to the plans, told the committee that some people felt their concerns had not been listened to.

Granting an alcohol licence for the site, committee chair Councillor Kevin Dodds said: "You seem to have a very responsible attitude towards the business you are trying to set up and are trying to be a part of the community.

"I hope that you continue in that vein."

It is hoped that the micropub will be open in early 2019.

Image source, Google

A 16-year-old boy is released under investigation following a house fire in County Durham.

A five-year-old boy who called the emergency services to say "grandad can't get up" has received a visit and a present from one of North Yorkshire Police's top officers.

Image source, North Yorkshire Police

Assistant Chief Constable Ciaron Irvine paid a visit to Whinstone Primary School in Ingleby earlier to give Lucas an early Christmas present in recognition of his quick thinking and bravery.

On Saturday, the five-year-old called 999 and asked for an ambulance and police to help his grandad who had collapsed on the sofa at his home in Catterick Village.

Lucas managed to give enough detail for the controller to send emergency services to the right address.

Seven minutes after the call, PC James Bowie arrived at the address and was able to enter the property and help his grandad.

Image source, North Yorkshire Police

PC Bowie was able to determine that Lucas' grandad Gary had fallen into a diabetic coma and was able to provide the relevant care, which he quickly responded to.

Talking about taking Lucas' emergency call, communications officer Gabby Rudge-Cox said Lucas was "brilliant on the phone".

"He managed to give me enough information to determine his grandad was in need of an emergency blue light response and he carried out all the instructions I gave him. He's amazing," she said.

A seven-year-old girl has died in hospital after a house fire in Darlington.

Fire crews, police and the air ambulance were called to Esk Road at about 13:50 on Saturday.

The child died in the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle yesterday. A post-mortem exam is due to be held.

A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of arson and then released while investigations continue.

Det Chief Insp Traci McNally said: "Our thoughts are with the little girl's family and friends following this tragic incident."

Image source, Google

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Chris Binding

You might have missed the good news for Sunderland's economy that the Tall Ships regatta and the annual airshow boosted Sunderland's economy by £19.3m, according to the city council.

The maritime event in July featured more than 50 ships from 16 countries and attracted 1.2 million people.

A further 600,000 took in the three-day 30th anniversary airshow that month.

The authority's Economic Prosperity Scrutiny Committee was told a further £6m-£8m was expected to be generated by the city's illuminations, which were staged between October and November.

Image source, NNP

Resurfacing work on the A1231 on Wearside will start tomorrow if weather permits, and the road could reopen on Monday.

Last Thursday a HGV spilled two tonnes of a by-product of the leather tanning process, which left fat-like deposits on the surface.

Despite efforts to remove the spillage, skid tests carried out yesterday found that sections of the road surface are still unsafe.

Amy Wilson, cabinet member for environment and transport, said: "This is a critical link in the road network and its closure is causing major inconvenience to the 17,000 people a day who use it, not to mention the knock-on impact on all the other roads that it links to.

"We simply can't afford to have it closed going into next week.

"That is why we have taken the decision as the local highway authority that the only realistic way of getting the road reopened quickly is by resurfacing the sections which are still below the necessary safety levels."

The council will be seeking a full recovery of its costs.

Daniel Holland
Local Democracy Reporter

Don't expect to see logos for well known brands across the Tyne Bridge.

Newcastle City Council has ruled out looking for a sponsorship deal to pay for overdue repairs.

The only regular banners put up on the bridge are for the Great North Run, with additional signs for special events such as the Rugby World Cup and Great Exhibition of the North.

The bridge needs £20m of work, including road resurfacing and fresh paint, but the authority says it won't be able to start until at least 2020.

BBC Newcastle

Work from Newcastle University which identifies the cause of Type 2 diabetes and ways to control it has been listed as one of the UK's 100 best breakthroughs for its impact on people's everyday lives.

Prof Roy Taylor is being honoured for his research which found consuming a very low-calorie diet can reverse the condition.

NHS England has recently announced that low calorie diets will be piloted by patients for the first time next year.

Water-repellent mobile phones developed at Durham University are also among the top technology innovations by UK universities.