06/02/2017 Inside Out East

Cracking down on people who take drugs and then take to the road.

I'm on patrol with Essex Police, who are catching 40 drivers a month

This gentleman does have cocaine in his system.

You are under arrest on suspicion of driving with a drug level over

Stepping in to take over running a daycare centre.

From Thursday, the weekend seems endless until I can come

And its 80 years since the invention of ground-breaking technology that

helped change the course of the Second World War.

People talk a lot about Bletchley Park, which is great,

big secret place where computers were born.

This place is as important and was a secret and probably has

Revealing the stories that matter closer to home.

And we'll have that story in about 20 minutes' time.

But first the RAC reckons that one in 20 people have

Well, I've been on patrol with the police in Essex

as they crack down on these motorists who are breaking the law.

It's 9:30am on a Thursday morning and I'm out

Six separate police forces are taking part in a joint exercise

They're going to keep a special lookout for people driving

I've only been in the police car for a few minutes

Yeah, they look like they've got two detained and it's

The police also suspect the driver has used drugs.

Officers are now able to do instant roadside tests to check.

As a result they're catching and prosecuting more

The RAC reckons more than one in 20 drivers have

Even though the traffic is at a halt here because of the road works,

PC Sharpe has negotiated through with his siren and lights.

Colleagues have stopped a stolen car.

In the past to prosecute the police had to show that your driving

was impaired by drugs, but now it's an offence to drive

if you've taken certain drugs whether or not it has any effect

Over the past year on average we would suggest 40 drivers

a month are being arrested for positive samples.

A lot of people would be horrified to hear that.

It doesn't matter how much advertising there is. People will

always choose to take illicit substances would not think before

taking other substances that may affect their ability to control a

vehicle. Driving while under the influence

of drugs can sometimes have very Just over two years ago a drug

driver killed two young friends on this road

near Braintree in Essex. Jill and Mike Simmons' son James

was one of the young men who died. He loved his home, he loved

family get together, he was so funny, he was like his dad

he was very funny. He was planning a career

in the music industry. This car came towards the, switched

carriageways without warning, James injuries were

catastrophic to say the least. And he would have been

rendered unconscious It is unbelievable. You can't

believe what they are telling you. I just stared at the policewoman and I

didn't know what to say. I just went numb. It just killed everything. It

has killed everything ever since. Because although we are very close,

our lives have changed completely. The joy has gone.

Mike Simmons doesn't want other people to have to experience

While the penalties for drug driving have increased,

Mike thinks the police could do more.

The police have the tools and the authority.

But I don't feel I have resources to actually enforce the law.

It's all very well having strong laws, but if you can't enforce them

Essex Police say they're very pro-active.

If they suspect anyone of drug driving they carry out a roadside

salvia test which shows the presence of illegal substances.

This particular motorist was clear, there were no drugs in his system.

But Essex Police say they are currently arresting around

500 drivers a year who have been using drugs.

But it's not just illegal drugs that can affect your

ability behind the wheel - some prescription medicines can also

As we saw earlier in the film, the patrol car I was in was called

to help with the arrest of a driver in a stolen car.

Officers believe he's also taken illegal drugs.

As PC Sharpe's colleagues have made the stop and the arrest,

they are going to be the ones that carry out the drugs test to see

if there is any drugs in the system of the driver.

I'm making a formal requirement now at 11 minutes past

ten for a drug wipe, just to see if there is any

drugs in your system while you are driving.

The saliva test will show whether the driver has taken any

This very faint pink mark is coming up just to the left of the control

line on the bottom row next to the cocaine line,

which shows that this gentleman does have cocaine in his system.

So at the moment, I am going to tell you now,

you are under arrest further under the suspicion of driving with a drug

Under section 5A of the Road Traffic Act,

you are committing an offence if you have cocaine in your

I just spoke to the man who has been arrested who is in

I asked him if he had been taking drugs.

But as you saw on the indicator it quite clearly shows

So the next stage is to take him to the police station

The police are still waiting the results of that blood test.

Now, if are you are caught driving with drugs in your system,

above a certain limit, there's an automatic

one year driving ban, there's also an unlimited fine

and the possibility of up to six months in prison.

At moment the roadside test only covers two illegal drugs.

But you can still be prosecuted for taking other banned substances.

The kits that we have got at the moment are testing

That's quite limiting, though, isn't it, the cos I suppose

they could have any other Class A drug in their system,

However, should you suspect somebody is impaired,

and they provide a negative sample, you have still got your suspicions

that they are unfit through drink or drugs and you can still arrest

and then go through the normal doctor procedure.

The drug driver who killed James Simmons and his friend

Corran Powell also died in the crash.

Tests on his body revealed he'd had taken a cocktail

His system contained cocaine, diazepam, amphetamines and cannabis

He was absolutely aware of what he was doing.

You can't be under the influence of anything like that and then deem

You get behind the wheel of a car, you have a weapon and it's your

I don't care what people do in the comfort of their own home.

But the minute they get behind the wheel of a car

If there is something you think we should be looking

into here on the programme you can get in touch with me on Twitter.

All the e-mails get passed on to the team.

You are watching Inside Out in the east of England here on BBC One.

Trying to save a secret installation here in Bawdsey in Suffolk that

Are you proud of what your mother and father did?

I actually know very little about what they did.

After the war they never ever spoke about their actual work.

Now, some daycare centres are under threat of closure

One in Northamptonshire was going to be shut down.

That is until the people that use that thought, hey, hang on,

we can step in here ourselves and run it.

Well, Jo Taylor has been to see how they have been getting on.

Years ago he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease,

but in the last six months it's got considerably worse.

Since then life at home has been a challenge for him

She's on demand 24-7 and I can understand she hasn't got

There's very little Frank can do at the moment.

I'm being exhausted and although I love him dearly

We have these big rows and it ain't that we don't love each other,

it's because how frustrated, how - suffocating

But two days a week, Frank gives Anita a much needed break.

He goes to a place where he's safe ? and entertained.

This is Glamis Hall, a daycare centre for

Frank is one of 130 people who visit the centre regularly.

Volunteers are on hand to pass around the teas and coffees -

and ready to make up a hand for cards or play Scrabble.

Oh dear, I haven't got any vowels are told.

But Glamis Hall had to fight for its survival.

Previously run by the Borough Council of Wellingborough,

when the councillors threatened to withdraw funding,

The Centre is no longer funded out of the public purse, but,

to the relief of centre users, the service it provides continues.

Instead of looking for a wooden box, I've got somewhere to go.

Betty can be found at Glamis Hall every Tuesday and Thursday.

It's a lifesaver. And I hate it, from Thursday,

the weekend seems endless until I can come back here on a Tuesday.

I think it stimulates your brain, because you chat together instead

of sitting at home either talking to yourself or no-one at all.

Glamis Hall dishes up lunch for more than 40 people every weekday.

Afterwards, it's time to sit back and enjoy the entertainment.

This afternoon there's a bit of a party atmosphere.

Glamis provides a vital service ? but what happened

In June 2014, the borough council decided it could not afford

A campaign to keep the Centre open was mounted by users and relatives.

A petition attracted 10,000 signatures.

What was your message to the Council?

To stop - because we've got friends here and all I've got at home

Whereas we've got something here to do ? and they was only

When money got really tight something had to give.

We had to concentrate on the things that we were directly responsible

for statutory duties that we had to carry out.

The decision came as a terrible blow ? but the campaigners remained

They formed a trust, and persuaded the council to give

The group was given the keys in January 2015 on condition

they paid for it and organise the running of the hall.

It was a big responsibility, particularly for Heather Saunders,

How did you persuade the council to let you run the hall?

We presented a business plan to them which was costed

going forward for five years ? with our staff and volunteering.

We employ staff ? we have seven members of staff and the people

who come pay to come ? and with the volunteer and staffing

model that we've got we keep our costs low

Services on offer include a therapeutic massage ? or more

Some people haven't had a bath for years.

And the sheer pleasure they have, the enjoyment of having a bath,

Not everybody, even with family members,

you'd be surprised how many people, they see us more than they see

the centre raises additional money by renting out space for other

From youth clubs to Zumba classes - and more.

But two years on, the daytime remains reserved for people

Across the UK, daycare centres are under threat.

But when it comes to public funding, like many district and borough

councils, Wellingborough argues the buck stops elsewhere.

Of course we can't look beyond the truth ? that daycare

facilities for the elderly should be the responsibility

But Northamptonshire County Council says it's struggling

because of the Government's nationwide cuts to social care

It argues more funding should be provided by central government ?

basis, as variable council tax receipts means social care

Meanwhile it claims squeezed budgets leave it with no option

Only recently it withdrew funding from two daycare centres to make

If cuts to council funding continue, what would Heather Saunders advice

be to others who attend daycare centres faced with closure?

Elderly people are the same as everybody.

We need to be with people, with friends ? we need

to have a laugh and that's why it works, because it's fun.

Back at home, Frank and Anita reflect on the day.

Glamis is the top row of things I want to do every week.

If I don't have it once a week, I don't know how

It's given Frank a new lease of life.

Not only is this place, Bawdsey on the Suffolk coast,

a beautiful village it also has a really significant place

In fact the science that was going on here 80 years ago has given us

all kinds of things today that we take for granted.

All of that technology that we take for granted.

But we wouldn't have any of it, if it wasn't for the scientific

work that was done here, 80 years ago.

These ghostly buildings are the remnants of once

on the Suffolk coast, their walls hold secrets

What they were working on was to prove invaluable

in the fight against the Nazis in the Second World War.

The grey outbuildings and that stunning place behind me,

Bawdsey Manor, were home to the world's first ever radar

station, 80 years ago. After the First World War,

protecting the UK from attack was a big priority.

The Air Ministry looked into creating radio death

rays which would blow up or disable enemy aircraft.

A Scottish scientist, Robert Watson-Watt,

He dismissed the idea of death rays, but said that radio beams could be

bounced off enemy aircraft to detect them.

And what he and his team developed was vital in the Battle of Britain.

Tests were carried out which would lead to the development of radar.

David Heath and Tony Meacock are scientists and they're

going to show me how it all came about.

Radar works by sending out a pulse of energy and picking up

You can see the outgoing pulse that goes from the transmitter. It is

reflected back and how far as the pulses is a distance of the range of

the prospect. That looks like fun. I want to do that.

This is a model of the system but in reality the first operational radar

of the system can detect enemy aircraft long before they could be

seen or heard over Britain. Just as when you clap with an echo,

you get the echo back, with Watson-Watt's case

it was giving a pulse of electro-magnetic radiation

and picking that up, measuring how long it took to come

back and that gave the distance, The radar tests were very successful

and huge amounts of money were thrown at the scientists

to develop radar further. The Bawdsey Manor estate

was bought for ?24,000, And massive towers were built

here to send and receive In 1937 it became the world's

first radar station. It was vital in defending Britain

during the Second World War. But now, this once hugely

significant building Mary Wain's mother and father met

here while working as radar My parents met at Bawdsey

and I always put my origins, If it wasn't for radar

I wouldn't be here. So they met while working

as radar operators? Yes, here at Bawdsey,

but I actually know very little about what they did,

because, though they talked about Bawdsey and I was born

in Bawdsey, after the war, they never never spoke about their

actual work, what they did. Are you proud of what your

mother and father did? Oh, yes, I am also not just proud

of my mother but I'm actually I think it was a really really

important part of her life. But the bleak crumbling concrete

blocks of the old radar station are in stark contrast to the opulent

Bawdsey Manor itself. To think this is where some

of the most important scientific work of the early 20th century

was done, is mind blowing. The manor is just a short distance

from the old radar block. And the whole site was used

by scientists developing radar, who were originally based a few

miles down the coast at Orfordness. Ann Toettcher and her husband have

owned Bawdsey Manor for 20 years and are always discovering

new things about what happened of course all the other scientific

developments that took place Starting with the beginning

of the story of the development of radar in the 20th

century at Orfordness. And the poor boffins were living

and working on that desolate spit and having to row across to the pub

every night, so they were looking for somewhere comfortable

and useful to live in, but also somewhere where they could

continue their scientific developments and this place was just

the perfect place, because it's one of the highest places in Suffolk,

you know, this great big towered These two huge towers,

the tower over there and the red tower were the perfect place

for practicing transmissions. This turret here was where they did

one of the first land to radar transmissions,

the planes could fly very easily across the sea

in front of the manor. This was Robert

Watson-Watt's office. The room he would've

burned the midnight oil, working on his calculations.

Just imagine the conversations Up until recently, Bawdsey Manor

was run as a private school. But it's in a far better condition

than the old radar block. Well, as you can see, David,

this wall is in a very bad The metal work's exposed,

the concrete's coming off the wall and something needs to be done now

if we're going to save it. Miriam Stead is hoping

to save the historic buildings. Although it's not the most beautiful

building on the planet, It's a development that helped us

win the Battle of Britain, helped us, probably to win the war

and the technology that evolved out of that has given us

so much that is important Obviously air traffic control,

weather mapping, satellites, GPS, People talk about Bletchley Park

which is a great big secret place, This place is as important

and was as secret and probably has Now is its day to come into the sun

so that people in Suffolk, in the region, in the country

and even worldwide, because the story is that important,

can learn about Bawdsey And the original radar

block will be saved, The science that was developed

here led to microwaves, speed guns, anything that uses

reflected radio waves. But back then their only concern

was to use the technology to win And they are really getting

on with the job as well. In fact, when I mentioned this

at the end of last week's programme, the firm is doing the refurbishment

got in touch and sent So it shouldn't be long

before it is all done. Well, they got in touch

with me by e-mail. Next week on the programme,

as 70 families are evicted in Peterborough, we ask

who is to blame. We reveal how one leading

supermarket's special offers aren't And how this little tractor

transformed farming for good. That's Inside Out next

Monday, 7:30pm on BBC One. Hello, I'm Riz Lateef

with your 90-second update. Overcrowded - the number of patients

on wards in England have been