Southend Council is to ask the Government for more than £70 million to improve its 7,000 council houses. Last night councillors voted to submit a bid for £70.765 million - £11,370 per home - to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. They say the money
The creator of a landmark statue of Boadicea is calling for her return to Colchester - two years after she was carted off on the back of a lorry. Standing tall - Sculptor Jonathan Clarke's statue of Boadicea, which stood at the Asda roundabout in Colchester
Residents up in arms over plans to build 49 new homes packed out a town council meeting to discuss the scheme. The proposed Barratt Eastern Counties development on the East Coast Disposal site off Thorpe Road, Kirby, could include some three-storey houses
A domestic row ended with a man setting fire to a flat he had only bought a week earlier. Peter Dalton piled clothes and toys on to a cooker and switched it on. But a court heard how a neighbour put the fire out with a bucket of water after he heard 33
Pupils became foresters for the day when they helped plant trees at their school. Tree time - Nicola Dyke and Simon Perry from Dawes Hall Farm help pupils Victoria Hudson, Shannon Day and Lucy Pickering plant a tree at White Court Primary School, Great
Child murderer Stuart Campbell will remain behind bars after judges threw out his appeal for the killing of Danielle Jones. The perverted builder, 46, was jailed for life in December 2002 for the kidnapping and murder of his 15-year-old niece. Her body
Canvey Island will be hoping to achieve their first ever Nationwide Conference double tomorrow when Stevenage Borough visit Park Lane. The game at the Hertfordshire play-off chasing side in early October revives mixed memories for Gulls. They triumphed
Police have uncovered a double haul of illegal guns and more than £250,000 of stolen property following two dawn raids in the Chelmsford area. Eleven officers from the Chelmsford tactical squad swooped on a home in the Moulsham area early on Tuesday and
A new scheme to recycle electrical goods for use by disadvantaged people in Tendring is proving a victim of its own success. Appeal - project manager Mark Penn, Andrew Hull, Graham Thomson, Anna Adkins, Nikita Downes and Simon Turner are desperate for
Clive Wakeford's latest creation is not so much art-y as art-tree. Seeing red - Artist Clive Wakeford with his latest creation. Picture: TERRY WEEDEN 40560-2 The Colchester-based artist has painted a tree, but it is not on canvas and not on show in any
Colchester United have bolstered their attack with the signing of Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu. Set for U's debut? Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu The Congolese striker has struck a deal with the U's that will keep him at the club for a month. The former Sheffield Wednesday
A motorist from Great Wakering has died in a road crash when his car collided head-on with another. Luciano Giardino, 37, of Seaview Drive, was driving his Vauxhall Astra on the A130 at Barnston, Dunmow at 8.30am on Wednesday. While driving from Chelmsford
A postmaster has been praised for his help in stopping Wix Post Office closing for two months. Staying open - postmaster Mahesh Mistry outside Wix Post Office. (40554-1) The village lifeline would have had to shut last week for about eight weeks due to
West Ham full-back Chris Powell is determined to take a positive attitude into Sunday's home match with Derby County - despite the disappointment of last week's loss at Wolves. Like everyone else he is baffled and frustrated by the team's inconsistent
Colchester United have bolstered their attack with the signing of Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu. Set for U's debut? Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu The Congolese striker has struck a deal with the U's that will keep him at the club for a month. The former Sheffield Wednesday
Vandals who hurled a stone through the window of a moving train could have killed someone. The stone smashed a double-glazed window in a passing London Liverpool Street to Braintree service. The train was delayed by ten minutes while railway staff made
More public toilets are to close as part of the council revamp. Loos in St John's and North Station Road have already been axed after becoming sex and drugs dens. Butt Road and Willoughby Avenue in West Mersea are earmarked for demolition. Prettygate
A hostel condemned as a refuge for drug-taking, foul-mouthed trouble-makers should not be expanded, councillors have ruled. Colchester Council's planning committee last night dismissed proposals for four extra rooms to be built on the site at 30 New Town
A football fan has been banned from every ground in the country for six years after a fight in Colchester High Street. David Gurney was also jailed for five months and told to surrender his passport before England away games. The 31-year-old was told
Southend travel to Hertford tomorrow hoping to leapfrog their hosts and jump back into National Division Three South's top seven. Hertford are two points and places above the ninth placed Seasiders, who have been good travellers of late, winning three
Colin "Jaws" Lloyd came within a whisker of beating Phil Taylor as the Premier League darts tournament got under way in Stoke last night. On target - Witham's Colin Lloyd in action at Stoke last night In the final match of the evening, Witham's Lloyd
Residents in Jaywick are demanding police action following a spate of arson attacks. Double attack - the burnt-out bungalow at Jaywick, next to one struck by fire last month. 40504-2 People living in the seaside village fear lives are being put at risk
Southend United winger Nicky Nicolau is confident Blues can get their season back on track at Mansfield Town tomorrow. The former Arsenal trainee has impressed for Steve Tilson's side in recent weeks and is hoping to help the Shrimpers secure another
Kent Blaxill Border League officials have admitted defeat in their bid to hold on to many of their leading clubs. Second strings from the likes of Tiptree United, Stanway Rovers and Clacton Town will quit the Border set-up to be part of a new Ridgeons
Extra cash is on the way to help people with disabilities in Tendring adapt their homes - but there is likely to be a huge shortfall in what is needed to carry out all the work. Almost £300,000 is being made available by the Government for properties
A man fed up with being ripped off by drug dealers has admitted cultivating and possessing cannabis worth between £800 and £1,000. Chelmsford Magistrates' Court heard yesterday how Benjamin Smith, 27, of Saxon Bank, Braintree, was arrested on October
Basildon Athletic Club earned praise for their organisational abilities and their peformance when the Essex Cross-Country Championships were staged at Gloucester Park. The club hosted the event, provided individual winners in three of the six races and
Two learning institutions in Braintree and Witham have benefited from more than £1.5m of European funding. Braintree College and Braintree Council, which owns the Witham Technology Centre, have been awarded grants of £685,183 and £969,923 respectively
A school has vowed to crack down on any bullying after a claim a boy was beaten up close to the site. Councillor Steven Henderson saw a group of 50 youths watching as a 15-year-old was punched by another youngster in Gordon Way, Dovercourt. It is not
Child murderer Stuart Campbell will remain behind bars after judges threw out his appeal for the killing of Danielle Jones. The perverted builder, 46, was jailed for life in December 2002 for the kidnapping and murder of his 15-year-old niece. Her body
A karate instructor who teaches his students how to stand up to bullies will star on television chat show Trisha. Black belt Jonathan Bolt, 22, has run Hadleigh Ju-Dachi Karate Club from bases in Hadleigh and Rayleigh for the past two years. He was bullied
Defiant traders have lodged an official protest over moves to do away with parking spaces in Braintree's Market Place as part of a major renovation scheme for the town centre. Removal of the town's historic fountain in the Market Square last Thursday
Manningtree's Callum Peace weaved his magic at the British Alpine Ski Racing Club Slalom Juniors competition in Austria. Slalom success - Manningtree's Callum Peace. Picture STEVE ARGENT (40544-1) The 17-year-old claimed second place in his favoured slalom
A top Tory has visited Essex as the General Election phoney war hots up. Farm visit - shadow agriculture minister James Paice, centre at Leapingwells Farm, Kelvedon, with Brooks Newmark and farmer Brian Siggers. Picture: ADRIAN RUSHTON 40592-1 With Braintree
A former mayor fears that a build-up of rubbish will ruin the image of a shopping centre. Waste - Dave McLeod with some of the rubbish on the lane between Woolworths and Card Corner, Dovercourt. Picture: TERRY WEEDEN 40562-3 Dave McLeod, Harwich councillor
A 19-year-old man has admitted having two offensive weapons in his possession after returning from a birthday party. Chelmsford Magistrates' Court heard yesterday how Mark Hensby, of Rayne Road, Braintree, was caught by police with a wooden rounders bat
The cost of restoring Southend's cliffs has rocketed to around £40million with no hope of funding in the forseeable future. Acting town clerk David Andrews told the Southend Business and Tourism Partnership: "The cliffs are still a major problem for the
Warning on data register SMALL firms are falling victim to a scheme where they pay three times the price to notify, or register, under the Data Protection Act. They are paying this even when they may not have to, warned the Essex Chambers of Commerce.
CONFERENCE South table-toppers Grays will be looking to expand their lead at the weekend with a home clash with Weston-super-Mare. Meanwhile neighbours Thurrock will travel to Weymouth in a bid to sustain their recent revival that has seen them challenging
Tommy Miller is relieved Ipswich Town are facing one of their Premiership-chasing rivals tomorrow. The Blues midfielder says it is good news they are taking on fourth-placed Reading as they look to extend their lead at the top of the Coca-Cola Championship
Joe Dunne's Colchester United youngsters were still on cloud nine today after reaching the fifth round of the FA Youth Cup for the first time in the club's history. The U's under-18s battled their way to a 3-2 extra-time defeat of Cardiff City at Layer
An ambitious bid is under way to entice Radio One back to Tendring's sunshine coast. Tourist bosses were dismayed when the BBC pulled the plug on the popular crowd-pulling Clacton roadshow eight years ago. It scrapped them in favour of mini-pop festivals
Joe Dunne's Colchester United youngsters were still on cloud nine today after reaching the fifth round of the FA Youth Cup for the first time in the club's history. The U's under-18s battled their way to a 3-2 extra-time defeat of Cardiff City at Layer
A man has ended up in hospital after his DIY exploits left him with a serious cut to his leg. The accident happened while the 49-year-old, of Kirby Cross, was using a circular saw. An ambulance and the air ambulance were sent to the address in Stubbs
Firefighters battled their way into a burning outbuilding because of fears someone could be inside. Nobody was found in the shed but a joint police and fire brigade investigation has been launched into today's blaze, which police are treating as arson
Please can you give us a home? Abandoned - Emma Caskie with Jake and Jimmy, Charlotte Cleveland with Rusty and Louisa Smith with Minnie are just some of the dogs looking for homes at Mistley Place Park. Picture: TERRY WEEDEN 40557-1 These are just some
A man is starting a two-month prison sentence after admitting a series of incidents where he was drunk and abusive in the town centre. Steven Kirkbright, 40, of Byron Lodge, New Town Road, Colchester, was also placed under an anti-social behaviour order
Commuters in Tendring have been promised improvements in their services starting from next month. That's the message from Harwich MP Ivan Henderson who has been in talks with rail operator One following a deluge of complaints from passengers. The company
There were mixed fortunes for Essex duo Ali Carter and Mark King at the Welsh Open in Newport. Tiptree's Carter having beaten world number two Mark Williams in the previous round lost 5-2 against home favourite Ryan Day. Day now plays Great Notley's Mark
A slimmed-down management structure at Colchester Council will see managers having to re-apply for their jobs and some will find themselves out of work. The number of head of services roles is being cut from 12 to nine, as the authority responds to its
Top squash players from around Essex will be battling it out for county glory in Basildon this weekend. The 2005 Essex County Closed Championships takes place at Club Kingswood, in Sparrows Herne, on Saturday and Sunday. There will be no prize money this
A family is celebrating the return to Britain of the father they feared had died in the Asian tsunami disaster. Pensioner Anthony Blake, 70, of Colchester, was holidaying on the Thai island of Ton Sui when the tidal waves struck. In the days afterwards
Southend Sports Council honours its heroes tonight when they presentation of the annual sports awards are made. The traditional junior, senior and coach/administrator of the year awards have been added to for 2005. Awards for the team and sponsor of the
