ON your marks and get set this Sunday as Race for Life runs into Southend. Staged in aid of Cancer Research UK, charity bosses are calling on people to make it a day to remember, whether you are racing or not. Race for Life is the UK’s largest women-only
SHE has battled bankruptcy, depression and the effects of the recession, but Sandra Dean knows one fight she faces is bigger than the rest. The 35 year old, from Church Road, Benfleet, is passionate about the plight of the orangutan and says battling
A YOUNGSTER is set to appear on the Bill after learning to act in anti-knife crime roadshows. Josh Huckett, 17, had performed in the 2 Smart roadshows as part of an Essex Police project warning young people about the dangers of knives, bullying and
IT’S time to fix up and look sharp, as grime rapper Dizzee Rascal is coming to the Cliffs Pavilion. The Mercury Prize-winning solo artist will be heading to the Westcliff venue on November 1, as part of his biggest ever headline tour. Fresh from supporting
A TEENAGE cancer sufferer had the dream birthday pick-me-up when his goalkeeping hero paid him a surprise visit in hospital. Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia brought a cake and spent time with Arnie Higgs, who is battling a rare brain tumour. Arnie, now
A DRUG dealer who stored heroin and crack cocaine in a yellow plastic shell found inside a chocolate egg has been warned he faces prison. Kevin Attridge, 40, of Hastings Road, Southend, admitted three counts of intending to supply drugs, including 4.14g
EXPANSION plans for Southend Airport could be in jeopardy, as council bosses are set to abandon its support for the scheme. Informed sources say there have been thousands of objections to the Joint Area Action Plan consultation, which proposes a major
TORY MP James Duddridge used public money to help furnish a London flat, then switched claims to help fund a different property in the capital. Mr Duddridge, who represents Rochford and Southend East, spent about £7,000 renovating the apartment, then
AN OUTDOOR children’s paddling pool on Canvey remains closed for the first time in decades this week because of unfinished council maintenance work. Castle Point Council has announced the pool, at the Paddocks, in Long Road, will not reopen until mid-June
BASILDON councillors will be publishing their expenses on the internet in a bid to show they have nothing to hide, in the wake of the scandal over MPs’ expenses. The new leader of Basildon Council, Tony Ball, has backed a move to publish claims every
A LEIGH wine bar has been banned from playing music, following a High Court ruling. Judge Mrs Justice Proudman ordered no recorded music should be played at Vie bar in the Broadway, Leigh, until its licence is brought up-to-date. The ban was introduced
FORMER staff at Canvey’s Woolworths, laid off when the chain collapsed, are angry they have not been given jobs at the store which opened in its place. Almost all of the 30 staff made redundant when the well-loved shop, in Furtherwick Road, closed its
YOUNGSTERS held a French-themed charity day in memory of a former pupil who died tragically of a blood clot in February. Children from St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Canvey, dressed in blue, white and red – the colours of the French flag – for
A FORMER stage school boss has been found guilty on all charges of sexually assaulting three young girls. Daniel Holt was convicted on Thursday of assaulting two girls, and a day later the jury returned a guilty verdict in relation to an indecent assault
A 17-YEAR-OLD youth has appeared in court, accused of causing the death of teenage Eleanor McGrath after driving into a group of friends. The horrific incident, in Tyrone Road, Thorpe Bay, led to the death of 14-year-old Eleanor, of Bishops-teignton
BEDTIME stories were on the timetable at a Rayleigh school, as more than 100 children and parents joined in a pyjama-clad reading evening. Pupils at Glebe Infant School brought parents and siblings along to the event, part of the Government’s Creative
A 12-YEAR-OLD boy threatened a librarian and ripped a book after flying into a rage in a public library. The tearaway, who lives in Rochford, but cannot be named for legal reasons, unleashed a tirade of abuse against Rochford library assistant
DETERMINED Jeanette Sharp has refused to let Parkinson’s Disease stop her from living a normal life – despite being diagnosed at just 42. The mother-of-two, now 49, discovered she had the condition following a brain scan and, together with her husband
A FATHER-of-two has admitted pestering his ex-wife and threatening to attack her lover. William Moss, 44, of Leigh Hall Road, Leigh, harassed his estranged wife and said he would break her new partner’s back and kill his children, Chelmsford Crown Court
A FIRE that ripped through 15 bales of hay is thought to have been started deliberately. Crews from Hadleigh fire station were called to the blaze in a field in Mount Zion at the Salvation Army’s Home Farm at around 6.40pm on Sunday.
SOUTHEND United manager Steve Tilson would love Dan Harding back at Roots Hall next season. But he knows Blues are unlikely to be able to afford the left back’s wages. Harding, who made 20 appearances during a five month loan spell at
MILLWALL striker Neil Harris suffered play-off heartache at Wembley yesterday as the Lions went down to a 3-2 defeat against Scunthorpe United. The Eastwood based forward, who is the Londoners' record ever goalscorer, started alongside Gary Alexander
SOUTHEND based shot-putter Robin Womack claimed a bronze medal at the Paralympic World Cup in Manchester yesterday. Womack recorded a distance of 10.47m to finish behind Milan Blaha from the Czech Republic and fellow Brit, Daniel Webb. But it was
THE Tory leader of Essex County Council picked up £25,000 from taxpayers for accommodation and expenses to sit in the House of Lords – despite living less than 40 miles away. Lord Hanningfield, Shadow minister for transport, claimed more
THE sun made a guest appearance at an air show in Southend for the first time in years. Thousands of people flocked to the seafront to see the Red Arrows roar across the skies in their 45th display season. The gorgeous weather led to
CASES of sexually transmitted diseases in the over-40s have doubled in the past two years, new figures reveal. The rise is being attributed to a number of factors, including the increased use of Viagra, a surge in divorces and even internet
THE family and friends of a young man who died at the age of 30 are honouring his memory with a mammoth year of fundraising. Last January, Jan and Rob Hubbard, of Cliff Parade, Leigh, got the call every parent dreads when their eldest son, Adam, 34,
THIS family boasts five generations of daughters - spanning nine decades. The Echo caught up with the ladies, ranging from 86 years to six months, to find out what it’s like to be part of such a large and long-standing family. At 86,
THREE men have been arrested on suspicion of smuggling cigarettes into the country. The men were arrested in Gray as part of a joint operation by Essex Police and Revenue & Customs. They also seized more than 7,000 cigarettes and
Five more people have been arrested in connection with a fight which has left one man fighting for his life. Police were called to reports of a brawl near the community centre in Hoover Drive at about 11.15pm on Saturday. A 52-year-old
