05/08/2014 Look East - West

. Grief has no end. I think about Amina constantly. I still cry every

day. new research helping stroke

victims on the road to recovery Gold winning gymnast Max Whhtlock `

and his mum ` talk to us about And why was this butcher

hounded out of Peterborough? The court heard Harris struck her

in the stomach with the force It threw her six feet across the

room and split her liver in two Paramedics said she was as lifeless

as a ragdoll when they arrived. But Amina's mother had been warned

that Harris had a violent p`st. Amina Agboola's father, at the back,

arrived at court to see the man who murdered his daughter sentenced

She died after she was kickdd so hard her liver split in two.

The man responsible, her mother's boyfriend, Dean Harris

Wearing a rosary, he remained emotionless throughout

the sentencing. The judge told him he was

a dangerous young man. by this horrific act.

An expert witness said the force was similar to a road traffic accident.

It happened here at her homd. Harris said she had repeatedly

soiled herself and wet the sofa He Repeatedly lied that she had

fallen off the toilet and hht the floor,

until he confessed to anothdr prisoner at Peterborough Ro`d jail.

He was sentenced to life in prison today,

to serve a minimum of 17 ye`rs. A detective read a statement from

Amina's father outside the court. I'm pleased with the sentence

Dean Harris received today. However,

the grief feels like it has no end. I think about Amina constantly.

I still cry every single dax. I go through the motions of living,

but thinking about my daughter.

No one understands this pain except those people who are

experiencing it. My heart reaches out to every parent

only to suffering the loss of a child.

Detectives say they are shocked by the callous violence

against a defenceless two ydar old. Sentenced to 17 years.

Her father is happy with the sentence but we have to bear

in mind Amina would only be 19 when he will be eligible for parole.

Amina's mother Sarah Racquelan was found not guilty

of causing or allowing her death. She had been warned not to leave

Amina alone with Harris by social workers because he had a history

of domestic violence but shd said she believed in second chances.

Amina's father must now livd with the daily pain

of a daughter robbed of a ftture in the most horrific way.

Cambridgeshire social services is conducting a serious casd

review into what happened. But they did warn Amina's mother

about Harris's violent past. She said she believed

in second chances. It's something the NSPCC told

me they hear all too often. Once you get into these deep`rooted

violent relationships, it is difficult to get out of thel.

Violence begins to accumulate over time. Women have to underst`nd

priority of children in all circumstances. Let us look `t the

balance of responsibility. Doesn't lie with the parent or authorities?

I think there is a partnership. Firstly, parents shoot exercise

reasonable caution when thex introduce other adults into the

family. It is right and proper that the local authority, when you have

concerns about adults, should warn other or father. What is not

acceptable is when you recehve warnings, to take no action, which

is what happened in this case. Would you have preferred that sochal

injuries this two`year`old suffered where horrific, but there are signs

it was not the first time she was heart. Presumably this is group are

very vulnerable because thex cannot tell people what is going on?

Absolutely. Small children suffer from small injuries which tdnd to

increase. Then you get life threatening injuries. If people have

the smallest of concerns, they must speak out. The public must take

responsibility. We know that one child is killed by someone dlse

every week across England and Wales, do you think this sentence will be a

deterrent to people? He has been given the minimum 17 years. He may

serve longer, he will not sdrve a shorter sentence. I would lhke to

think that a clear message goes out that if you're planning to harm a

child, if your temper is out of control, you need to think `gain.

Because if you harm a child, you will be brought before the court and

receive a significant sentence. me they hear all too often.

Plans to review services at Bedford Hospital are being discussed this

evening at a public meeting. It was called by the union, Unison, which

says it's concerned that thd Accident and Emergency department

could be downgraded. Last wdek the hospital was told it could be left

without any maternity services or beds for in`patient care. The

proposals are being put forward as a way to save money.

One of the most distressing effects of a stroke for victims can be the

loss of speech. Now victims from our region are helping with a rdsearch

project to try and understand why some people recover more quhckly

than others. They will undergo special scans and monitoring to find

out more about the disease. In the East of England more than 10,00

people a year have a stroke and almost 120,000 are thought to be

This man is learning to livd with the effects of the stroke hd

suffered this summer. He is one of the lucky ones. It did not `ffect

his speech. He says the whole experience can be frightening. I

could not stand. My legs went from under me. In three hours, I crawled

to steer is. I have seen people and a worse state than I have bden in.

It is very frightening. `` two steers. Little research has been

done so far into why some rdcover language faster than others. For

patients not able to understand why they are taking longer, it can

affect their recovery. The difficulty is people are not able to

communicate, therefore they lose their self`confidence and they lose

their independence. They're not able to interact. That is a big problem

with our patients. The rese`rch is taking place at University College

London were patients will bd given a brain scan like this one. They will

also begin language assessmdnts and information from that will go

towards the overall research programme. It will help nurses to

take `` to tell patients how long it will take further speech to return.

Younger patients think about returning to work and it cotld help

them with their speech problems Their work is their livelihoods and

their day`to`day existence. It will have a knock`on effect on their

finances. It is hoped more patients will come forward so research can

predict how much language whll come back and just how long it whll take.

Drivers on the M1 in Northamptonshire are well used to

delays and queues. But work starts this week which could see the road

become a "smart" motorway to ease congestion. It's between Junctions

16 and 21 and is preparing for a scheme to open up the hard shoulders

in busy periods. The Highwaxs Agency says a similar plan in Hertfordshire

has worked well. When it opened in 1959, 13,000

vehicles a day pass through Northamptonshire on the M1. Today it

is more like 100,000. It is one of the biggest bottlenecks on the

motorway. This stretch from Northampton to this interch`nge

where the M1 meets the M6 and the A14. The highways agency saxs the

solution is a smart motorwax. This means converting the hard shoulder

into an extra lane of traffhc. Instead emergency Levi's ard built

every mile or so. Traffic flow is monitored from a control room and

lanes can be closed remotelx. It is cheaper and quicker than widening

the motorway. Waters are all for reducing congestion but not all

agree with using the hard shoulder. In times of congestion, it hs very

good. I agree with it. Forlh and saw better. Tomorrow work begins on a

new central reservation. `` four lanes are better. We cannot commit

to a new timescale. We have to get government approval. We are looking

to start the work in the early part of next year. In April and dight

mile stretch of the M25 in Hertfordshire became the cotntry's

first smart motorway. They have been using their hard shoulder for two

years but only in busy periods. Waters in the M1 could be w`iting

for several more years yet. `` mortar this.

has worked well. mortar this. `` motorists.

Rail travellers using the wdst coast mainline through Northamptonshire

and Milton Keynes are facing disruption to services throtghout,

August. Network Rail will bd closing the line into London Euston on three

separate weekends to carry out major engineering, work ` around Watford

Junction. It'll mean no service to Euston on the weekends of the 9th,

16th, and 23rd, of August ` including the Bank Holiday Londay.

London Midland, who run the stations on the line, advise people, to check

the route before travelling. The Rail Users Group says

pictures. And the film makers filming the history of horsds in the

fans. The gymnast Max Whitlock,

who trains in Essex, says success at the Commonwdalth

Games is a great stepping stone to He won five medals in Glasgow,

including three golds. I've been to meet Max and

his mother at home in Hertfordshire and I asked if he'd exceeded even

his own hopes and expectations. Before the competition I just

like to do it normal. I like to look at it all thd same,

whether it is world Olympics, I don't really set targets

of how many medals I want to bring back, I just go there and do

my job and what I'm trained for To come out with five,

I'm over the moon. And out of all of those, do you have

one which means the most to you They all mean a lot,

but winning a gold in the fhnal For a gymnast to go and do six

pieces on one day is an achhevement in itself, as I've been working

so hard towards it and I'm happy. It is beautiful to watch yot,

but also quite nerve wracking. I don't like to watch too mtch

of the gymnasts If you see gymnasts falling off

on the apparatus, It might be that it has gond well,

which it did here. If I go there with confidence,

that is all I need. One of the things I notice hs that

you're competing against other gymnasts from England, Scotland but

you're also generous to each other. Is that genuine that you

care how the others do? We have been mates

for over ten years. We train together all the thme,

we compete together as a te`m, and for this one it was verx

different competing against them, You have a lot of support there

from your family. What is it

like sitting there watching? If I am nervous,

you must be something else. I do get nervous but at the end

of the day you still want to watch It is nice to be so close to Max,

to be able to see him there and to see his reactions

as well when he does a piecd. Whether he is reallu pleased with

it, or it could have been bdtter. Proud must be a bit

of an understatement. We love the opportunity

of going to watch Max as well, and then to see him up

on the podium is just so spdcial. To have achieved this by thd age Max

is, it involves You have been supporting hil

for a long time, and what effect When he was younger I used to take

him to the gym, but it didn't interfere with our family bdcause

that is what we needed to do for Max What age was he when he beg`n to

realise he was something spdcial? It has been a great journey watching

him go from strength to strdngth. Probably since the year

before the Olympics that he started to really want to do it

for himself and really focus on it. So I think it is then that we

thought he is doing it for himself and he wants to get

the goals is that he wants. We have always thought

he was special. Max said that he started focusing on

Rio. It is incredible that focus he had. He is staying training all the

way. There was a time

when no farmer could survivd without them, but after mechanisation the

heavy horses were no longer needed. Thankfully that's not quite

the end of the story. On a farm in Suffolk, film lakers

have been turning back the clock This is Weylands Farm in Stoke

by Nayland. The actors are being made rdady

so too the forge. Anything contemporary must go or

shielded discreetly from vidw. The film is called

The Horseman's Word. It's been made by the Field Theatre

group based in Littleport. Funded by the Heritage Lottdry,

it is researching the history of heavy horses in the Fens over

200 years, on the so`called horse It was possible to produce something

called drawing oils which would draw the horse to you,

bond it to you, make sure it would Conversely, you could produce

something called a jading ohl which would jade the horse, liter`lly stop

it dead in its tracks. It would not move until you

gave it a command to move. Roger Clarke has worked with heavy

horses on this farm for 35 xears and it is only

in hindsight that he realisds how he watched their demise as a tdenager

at a wholesale in the 60s. There was an older man riding an old

horse into the yard with a foal about, and what I didn't re`lise was

that I was witnessing the end of an era, because the man had retired, no

one else would use the horsd, the foal had come along, so that was it.

We must tell the stories and try to pass them on, otherwise thex will be

lost and gone forever, so Ddborah is doing great work and trying to

record some of this history. Certainly amassed thousands and

thousands of horses working with them, there are very few of them

left now to remember those days 20 years ago we would have four

pairs of horses working on this farm, because I had people

who could use them. I'm getting older and I find it more

difficult to walk behind thdm like I used to, so in a way I'm seding

the end of an era here. The film should be finished

next spring and will be An exhibition documenting mtch

of the social history of thd time will be touring museums and there

will also be an archive onlhne. This week we have been markhng

the outbreak of the First World War Tonight, the story

of a German born butcher who owned a shop in Peterborough, who fled

the city in fear of his lifd. Frederick Frank opened his shop in

the city in 1881, but in August 1914 On this street a century ago as

war broke out, a city boiled over. Their target was a butcher,

German born Frederick Frank. The shop was surrounded, its windows

smashed, after rumours he h`d spoken The building is now long gone

but the family remain. Jeff Frank among three

generations of butchers. My aunt told me the army escorted

him back to the residence. On the way there,

they were jeered and spat on, and my grandfather had to flee the town

because of certain sections of the He fled Peterborough to

a relative's in Leicester. The story goes that the mayor then

got on his bike and cycled down here One of the few times the act was

read anywhere across the cotntry around that period of time, and it

is believed the only time it was In the city's library, tuckdd away

in the archives, the headlines Steven Perry is a Peterborotgh

historian. Since 1881,

he had served the people well and then on that night, on that Friday

night, they turned against him. Frederick was later arrested

and taken to After this, though,

he didn't return until 1928. There was a lot

of anti`German feeling and ht wasn't The Royal family changed

their name to Windsor. In retrospect, yes, we ought to be

ashamed, but I think it was just With the war in its fledgling

stages, this city became a flash Tomorrow night, Shaun Peel hs

looking at the plan to evactate Nearly 1.5 million people wdre

preparing to leave the county via Church bells would signal

the evacuation. The weather. Alex. We have ` mixed

bag of weather. We will havd a lot of cloud coming in, and somd parts

of the Western region have seen some showers. They will start to fade

through this evening, so much of the evening looks dry was clear spells

before this rain pushes through into the early hours of tomorrow. Not

reaching many of us until 4pm, but some could be on the heavy side

Some persistent rain expectdd tomorrow morning. This weather

system brings warm and humid air, so temperatures for many others are not

getting lower than 16 Celsits. So it looks a wet start tomorrow. This is

a weather friend in question. It will take its time to clear

eastwards, so the east side of the region could stay wet in thd

morning. Expect a wet start where ever you are. A brighter forecast

later on, particularly along the western part where we could sue the

sunshine, and it will be warmer Look at this rain. As it he`ds

eastwards, it gets heavier `nd lingers along the counties. Staying

quite cloudy elsewhere. Somd sunshine as well, so it could be

warm, of the 23 or 24 degreds. As the sunshine comes out, we light

develop some showers and anx of these could be on the short side sub

again, this is a computer prediction of where they might be. For most of

us, it looks like we end thd day on a brighter note with some stnshine,

because it is expected to bd bright in the afternoon. Tomorrow should be

quite breezy with a moderatd southerly wind. This is the pressure

pattern for the end of the week We have low pressure on Friday, a

succession of weather fronts, bringing us some unsettled

conditions for the end of the week and into the weekend, but bdfore

then be held Thursday which looks promising. It will be cooler and

fresher with a northerly direction of the wind, temperatures of the 22

Celsius. There might just bd an isolated shower in the west but for

many others it will be dry. Friday has the chance of some heavx rain, a

bit uncertain, but it is luck in this weather will last until the

Sunday weather could be somd rain around. Elizabeth cooler for the

weekend `` a little bit. We're finishing with a look at what

happened around the region last night as services were held

and lights were turned off to mark the 100th anniversary of Brhtain

entering the First World War. # Help of the helpless, O abide with

me. In all around icy, icy, abide with

me. # The lambs are going out all over

Europe. We shall not see thdm again `` lamps.