MISS Selfridge in Southend town centre is to close down after Sir Philip Green's Arcadia Group has announced plans to shut 23 stores in the UK and Ireland, putting 520 jobs at risk. Miss Selfridge at Bluewater will also close. Dorothy Perkins
OFFICERS investigating reports of a disturbance at Southend United’s home game against Barnsley earlier this year have identified one of the people they want to speak to. The incident is alleged to have occurred when stewards attempted to eject
RETAIL giant Marks & Spencer has posted a 10 per cent drop in annual profits amid a sweeping overhaul that will see it shut another 110 stores. The high street bellwether said it is closing another 85 full-line stores and around 25 Simply Food outlets
RAYLEIGH and Wickford MP Mark Francois has come in for severe criticism after it was alleged he made a knife gesture in Prime Minister’s questions. The Tory MP is reported to have moved his finger across his throat while Prime Minister Theresa May
THE inaugural Southend Yoga Festival is set to take place next month - and will see yoga fanatics come together to raise awareness for Havens Hospice. Southend-based wellbeing centres, Mayura Yoga and the Yoga Factory, are joining forces to provide
A DRONE being flown illegally came dangerously close to the path of a passenger plane near Southend Airport, an investigation has found. The drone, which was being flown above the 400ft limit, was deemed by the pilot to be at risk of colliding
A MAN has gone missing from Leigh. Gavin Bird, 41, was reported missing at 1.30pm today and is described as white, 6ft 4ins tall, of large build, with short ginger hair and a black beard or stubble. He has a celtic band design tattoo on his left
Almost a quarter of a million pounds in funding has been secured by Southend Council to help homeless people regain their independence. The council successfully bid for just under £250,000 of additional funding from central Government to allow them
A WOMAN has been reported after a two vehicle crash in Southend. Essex Police were called to reports of a collision in Southend at 7.45pm on Tuesday. It occurred at the junction of North Avenue and Bournemouth Park Road, and involved a Vauxhall
Firefighters were called to a house fire in Southend this morning. The alarm was raised by concerned neighbours who spotted smoke in the downstairs window and then heard the smoke alarms from inside the house, in Fraser Close, Southend. As
CHRIS Waring is targeting promotion from the London & SE Premier Division for the second season in succession. Waring has been named head coach at Rochford Hundred just weeks after helping Westcliff win their promotion play-off. And he is setting
Southend Airport is revamping its car parking as it prepares to welcome 2.5 million passengers a year by the end of 2019 - up from 1.4million passengers last year. In order to get ready for this planned growth, construction work is underway to adapt
PLANS for a homeless shelter in Westcliff have been resubmitted on a smaller scale - even though it’s open already. Off The Streets has reapplied for a change of use at 505 London Road, from a shop to a shelter. Try again - Off The Streets has
THE number of student nurses at Southend Hospital is less than a third of what it was two years ago, it has emerged. The hospital revealed it had seen a reduction of student numbers in 2017 and only received 38 in its last intake when it expected
SENIOR police officers have welcomed ambitious plans to bring in an additional 34 special constables to Southend. Last week, the Echo reported how Southend Council’s new Conservative leader - Tony Cox - announced a ten-point plan to address criticism
A MAN who had his two bikes stolen has described the loss as like “losing his right arm”. Keith Pierce, from Vange, discovered his “pride and joys” were gone as he went to leave for work. The 63-year-old, who had the bikes for six years, said: “
YOBS have been blamed for badly damaging a children’s play area. The ramp onto a climbing frame - part of a playground near to Kathleen Ferrier Crescent, in Laindon – was heavily damaged and left sharp wooden edges exposed. The sharp, wooden
DANNY Scopes is pleased with how his Concord Rangers side is shaping up during the early weeks of the summer. Scopes has made a number of eye-catching signings since replacing Sammy Moore in the hotseat earlier this month. And Scopes believes
NO TRAINS will be running between Southend Victoria and Wickford for nine days as part of a £46m project. From Saturday May 25 to Saturday June 2, over 112 engineers will be working 24 hours a day to replace the overhead wires and supporting structures
SOUTHEND United have signed promising centre-back Richard Taylor following his release from Burnley. The 18-year-old was released by the Clarets after the second year of his scholarship. But the youngster has now signed a professional deal
A drug dealer caught with £38,000 worth of crack and heroin has avoided jail... and has been given a curfew instead. Despite being found with 997 wraps of class A drugs as well as two blocks of heroin and one of crack cocaine, Tyrese Terry, 18,
A “very high-end restaurant” will be part of £125million plans for a prominent seafront site, developers have revealed as they prepare to clear the site. Demolition of the derelict Esplanade pub is expected to start next week. Developers behind
A GP surgery has launched a new service which allows patients to be seen by their doctor via video link from their own home. The Pall Mall Surgery in Leigh yesterday launched the new service from Q Doctor, which arranges online consultations between
A FIVE–YEAR-OLD boy was mugged of a smart phone outside a chemist in Southend. His disabled mum, 45, also received heavy bruising after being shoved in her mobility scooter, as the Huawei phone was snatched from her child’s hands. Her son was
A WOMAN is warning others to never use unlicensed tattoo artists after a nasty infection landed her in hospital. Nancy Anderson has been permanently scarred after a tattoo appointment at a man’s house in Southend left her in unbearable pain.
