CANVEY youngsters will be given lessons from space when they get to quiz astronauts orbiting the earth. Winter Gardens Primary School, in Hilton Road, is on a waiting list of 40 schools worldwide for its chance to hold a question and answer session
THERE were medals, tumbles and some superb individual performances from our top athletes as they represented Essex at an action-packed UK Intercounties Cross-Country Championships. South Essex athletes Tom Richardson (under-20 men), Gemma Holloway
DEVELOPERS have lodged an appeal after controversial plans for a drive-through KFC were turned down for a second time. Laindon Holdings first submitted plans for a 24-hour fast food restaurant on the former Laindon Hotel site, in High Road, at
A FAMILY were threatened in their own home after raiders forced their way in. The crooks forced their way into the house in Clayburn Circle, Basildon at 9.15pm on Thursday. They threatened the family and demanded cash before fleeing. One
A £30 million revamp of Pitsea will finish with the opening of a new supersized Morrisons supermarket by Christmas 2014, the Echo can reveal. Major changes to the town have been in the pipeline for 15 years, but they will get underway this month
ANOTHER Basildon school has been accused of allowing children to chill in classrooms due to broken heating. Parents of children at The Willows primary School in Church Road, Basildon, claim their children are having to wear coats in class because
FIRMS have been urged to take on apprentices, by the county’s largest business organisation. Speaking as part of National Apprenticeship Week 2013, Denise Rossiter chief executive of Essex Chambers of Commerce, said: “We fully support the new style
AT the age of 78, silversmith Christopher Lawrence is just starting to ask the million dollar question: “Is it time at last to hang up the hammer?” If so, he would certainly be going out on a high. The Westcliff master craftsman
WHEN Debbie Bines lost her wedding ring down a drain she thought that was the last she would see of it, but she didn’t reckon on the determination of two Cory workers. Debbie, from Thorpe Bay, lost the ring down a drain at the junction of Rectory
A PROLIFIC burglar has been jailed for breaking into schools and threatening his mother with a bicycle chain. Basildon Crown Court heard Connor Diack’s mother was so afraid of her son after he threatened her near outside her home on November 22
PLANS to axe a vital bus service on Canvey have “outraged” local councillors who have called on a bus company to save it. The number 16 route which takes passengers from Canvey, through Rayleigh and on to Southend, is underthreat because of a lack
TUESDAY night’s game against AFC Wimbledon was our worst home performance of the season so far and we need a strong reaction in tomorrow’s game with Torquay United. They may be down towards the foot of the table but we’ve already learnt the hard
A MAN was blinded in his right eye after he was struck with an iron bar whilst playing football. The 35 year-old, from Basildon, was playing in a six-a-side football match at Basildon Sporting Village in Cranes Farm Road, on February 19. He
MARC Laird looks set to return to Southend United’s squad for tomorrow’s game against Torquay United at Roots Hall. The 27-year-old midfielder has missed Blues’ last seven matches with a hamstring injury he suffered against Cheltenham Town at the
BEN Reeves hopes his loan switch from Southampton will be renewed in time for him to figure in Southend United’s clash against Torquay at Roots Hall tomorrow. The 21-year-old midfielder has not featured for a fortnight after his initial month long
MOTORISTS should drive more carefully in snowy weather and stop moaning about the gritters, according to Southend’s council chief. Nigel Holdcroft, the Tory leader of Southend Council, hit out after his authority came under fire for the slippery
POLICE have been carrying out 100 home visits a week to parents of truanting children as part of a new crackdown. They have also been searching for children who are ‘bunking off’ in the Southend area and taking them straight back to school.
MILLIONS of pounds will be spent transforming Hadleigh County Park into a top tourism hotspot in a bid to attract 400,000 visitors a year. Essex County Council is setting aside £6.8million over the next three years to turn the Olympic mountain
A MASSIVE air and sea search was sparked on Thursday evening after reports of a missing man. Police received a call at 7.25pm from a 59 year old local man saying he wanted to jump in the water. A spokesman said: "Due to concerns forhis mental
SYNTH pop legends Heaven 17 will headline Bas 2013, Basildon’s annual tribute to their boys, Depeche Mode. The event is in its third year, and has grown from a small-scale affair into a weekend of music, tours around the town and exhibitions dedicated
A FATHER who plundered £112,000 from his dead neighbour’s bank account has been jailed for two-and-a-half years. Darius Kersys, 37, stole thousands of pounds from William Carrington’s bank account, which he blew on games consoles for his children
WORKERS at an animal charity battled blizzards and sub-zero temperatures to rescue five horses that were dangerously close to live railway lines. The Essex Horse and Pony Protection Society, based in Pitsea Hall Lane, Basildon, rescued three horses
SHE sold out last time she threw an event on the pier, and Liz Lincoln is hoping for a repeat performance as she launches a new jazz club on Sunday. The bill features singer and trumpet player Georgina Jackson, who’ll present her new show Peggy
A MOTHER was beaten up by a vicious gang of girls who gate-crashed her daughter’s 15th birthday party. The yobs are thought to have found out about the party on Facebook and had taken drugs before trying to storm the house. Sarah Conteh, 40
