THEY are seen as the jewels in Southend’s crown – and the pier, Southchurch Hall, the mayor’s parlour, Porters and the cliff lift give the town its distinctive character. But few realise they actually cost taxpayers more to maintain every year
ABOUT 100 residents took part in a lively debate with Police and Crime Commissioner Nick Alston. The public meeting, at The Paddocks in Long Road, Canvey, was a chance for Castle Point residents to hear about crime trends in their area, question
TRADERS are queuing up to bag a spot on the new-look Wickford Market. Trevor Day, who runs the market, has revealed he has a long waiting list of budding entrepreneurs wanting to snap up one of the 28 stalls or three permanent kiosks. Basildon
GRAHAM TUCKER ended a 21-year wait when he finally became Rayleigh Bowls Club's men’s champion on Sunday. The club stalwart from Hullbridge, who was junior champion in his first season at the club in 1993, had lost his two previous championship
SCHOOLCHILDREN across Castle Point are being encouraged to put pen to paper to design their own Christmas card. Castle Point MP Rebecca Harris wants primary school children across Castle Point to enter her annual Christmas Card Competition.
COMMUTERS face a difficult journey home after this evening's rush hour trains on the c2c line between London Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness were cancelled. Due to the ongoing signal failure between West Ham and Limehouse on the London-bound
STUART Bingham will face Alan McManus in the quarter-finals of the Shanghai Masters. Bingham, from Vange, breezed past Dominic Dale in the second round this morning - winning 5-1 - but he can be sure of a much tougher test tomorrow night. World
ROCHFORD HUNDRED: Young talent Taylor Carter stamped his authority on the field in the club’s RHGC day, sweeping the board in both prize sextions with a record 36-hole total. Scratch handicapper Carter scored a total of 133 as he posted rounds
STEVE Lloyd turned back the clock after making his first appearance in the Rayleigh men’s singles final for nearly 28 years. But there was to be no fairytale ending for Lloyd, who beat last year’s champion Dave Barham in the semi-finals to reach
CANVEY cyclist George Wood continued an impressive season at the Jef Schils Memorial Race, narrowly missing out on a win in a tight sprint finish. The Richardsons-Trek rider took to the Colchester roads on Sunday and produced a storming ride, contesting
AN overgrown bridleway will be tidied up, thanks to a group of volunteers. Castle Point Wildlife Group will clear up part of Downer Road, in Benfleet, on Sunday following complaints about the state of the path. After getting permission from
BENFLEET teenager Matthew Hamilton returned from the Sainsbury’s 2014 School Games with an armful of gold and silver medals won on the cycling track. Fresh from his successes in a GB vest on the athletics track at the International Wheelchair &
CCTV cameras could be installed as part of longawaited plans to rid a Southend beauty spot of drink and drug abusers. Southchurch Hall Gardens, which surrounds the Grade I listed Southchurch Hall, has been beset by problems down the years.
ESSEX head coach Paul Grayson believes his team will need to win their final two matches of the season if they are to secure promotion. Grayson’s team defeated Kent by nine wickets after knocking off the 22 runs they needed for victory today in
ROCHFORD Hundred’s Mitch Starling, Taylor Carter and Bradley Bawden have helped Essex under-18s boys’ side win the English Boys County crown. Essex beat Derbyshire on the final day at Sandiway Golf Club to lift the title for the third time.
ALEADING campaigner for the blind hit out at taxi drivers who refused to take a passenger because she had a guide dog. Jill Allen-King, secretary of of the National Federation for the Blind’s Southend branch, spoke after the member was refused
HULLBRIDGE Sports is launching three new ladies and girls’ teams in the hope they can replicate the success shown by its mens’ teams as they prepare for the big kick-off. The girls and ladies sides are gearing up for their new seasons – at under
IT’S going to be a great atmosphere for our game against Portsmouth this weekend and we cannot wait to sample it. I would imagine Portsmouth will be bringing 1,500 to 2,000 supporters and I’m sure our fans will also be bringing their noise to the
TRANSPORT police are ramping up patrols to protect university students from thieves who have been given branded names to describe how they target victims. Officers are warning students to beware of The Easy Dip, The Plucker, The Earlybird and The
TWO people were seriously injured in a three-vehicle road crash. A motorcyclist, aged 17, suffered a suspected broken leg when he was involved in the rush-hour crash. He was rushed to Basildon Hospital for treatment along with a 21-year-old
CONCORD Rangers boss Danny Cowley has said his team need to show more of their fighting spirit in their bid to become an “established Conference South club”. The Beachboys battled back from 2-0 down to draw 3-3 at home against Bishop’s Stortford
ZUZANNA Glowacz produced one of the best performances of the Essex Closed Junior Tennis Tournament to win two events. The Westcliff Hardcourts player beat the number two seed in the semi-finals before defeating top seed Phoebe Collins in the final
FRUSTRATED residents are pleading with Southend Council to bring in parking permits to allow them to park on their own road. Residents of Tyrrel Drive are being forced to park in neighbouring streets, including the already crowded Southchurch Road
SOUTHEND Bowls Club have been crowned champions of Group Six of the Essex League just one year after gaining promotion into the top division. After gaining promotion to the A League in 2013, the club were just hoping their A team would survive
A YOUTH club is set to open at a community centre that was closed amid fears it was being used as a drinking den. Presidents Community Hall Association has received more than £8,000 from Basildon Council to set up Just For Kids Alliance classes
The emergency services have been called to a two vehicle crash outside Basildon Hospital. They were called to the accident between a car and a van on Nethermayne just after 9am. They remain on the scene treating a women with suspected back
THE Shrimpers Trust have agreed to continue their sponsorship of Southend United’s youth set up. The fans organisation have backed Blues’ young players for the past six seasons. And the Trust’s Paul Yeomanson is pleased to again be helping
CRYSTAL Palace’s Jerome Binnom-Williams is close to completing a loan switch to Southend United as a replacement for the injured Ben Coker. Coker has been ruled out for around four months with the elbow injury he sustained towards the end of Saturday
AN annual community festival is set to be bigger than ever, organisers say. The Noise Arts Festival is back for its fourth year and with 26 events taking place over a week there is something for everyone to enjoy. Organised by The Beacon at
A VETERAN has spoken of his pride after being awarded a Russian convoy medal for braving some of the harshest conditions of the Second World War. Douglas Joyce was honoured for his part in helping the British Arctic convoys transport supplies to
POLICE are appealing for information after a cyclist was assaulted in a ‘road rage’ incident in Rochford. The incident happened at about 7.15pm on Wednesday, September 3 at Malting Villas Road, Rochford. A 60-year-old was pushed off his bike
OPPOSITION councillors are calling for a review of Basildon Council’s use of consultants after it emerged costs have soared to more than £2million a year. The council annual spend on external staff grew by nearly a million over just two years from
PLANS to spend £140,000 on flooding problems in mid- Essex have angered people on Canvey whose homes and businesses were ruined by floods. Essex County Council is spending £140,000 on a scheme providing a permanent solution to road flooding problems
TECHNOLOGY is about to scupper a former greengrocer and his prized collection of fruit stickers. Christopher Crawcour’s 30,000 hoard is unlikely to grow further thanks to a European Union ruling that fruit can now be “tattooed” with brands,
Security guards will be drafted in to patrol the Queensway estate from November, the Echo can reveal. The three-month trial will see security patrols carried out from 5pm to 2am in some areas of the Victoria ward, with the estate set to be given
