21/05/2014 Look North (North East and Cumbria)

Putin's That's all from the BBC News at Six.

Actions in Ukraine Hello and welcome to

Wednesday's Look North. Are we at risk

from convicted sex offenders? Claims that probation officers

aren't properly trained to deal with Honoured for bravery,

the army dog that died alongside her And a school celebrates

its 100th birthday with pupils past In sport,

we touchdown with the County Durham School invited to play in a

European American Football League. Ben Stokes could be about to make

his first team come`back for Durham. Talks to try to avert a Metro strike

on the night of one of pop concerts our region has seen

have broken down tonight. More than 50,000 people, most of them young

girls, will be at the Stadium of will be at the Stadium of Light

in Sunderland a week tonight to see The strike's been called by members

of the RMT union after one of its members was sacked by the Metro's

German operators DB Regio for having one of its members was sacked by the

Metro's German operators DB Regio Our chief reporter Chris Stewart is

at a Metro station in Gosforth now. Chris, are we expecting chaos

next Wednesday night then? The Metro managers have met the

unions, there is already a plan in place. The RMT represents less than

half of the Metro workforce, so trains were always going to run. On

the day of the strike we will have a reduced frequency throughout the

system and throughout the day. But on the night of the consulate there

will be trains between Sunderland and Newcastle every five minutes,

that's more than we would normally see. They've clearly done everything

they can to protect what they say is a really big deal for our region.

What do we know about this worker who's been sacked? Very difficult to

find out a lot. He's in his 50s, he works at the metro depot. He has had

sickness over a number of years for a number of different complaint.

They have been certified either by himself or by a GP. The company says

they've tried everything and gone through all the proper procedures,

but there came a point where he had to be dismissed. The unions say,

rubbish, that's wrong. That the company has used these procedures to

simply get rid of this man and he shouldn't have been sacked. I hope

you can hear me. Yes. Has either side said anything this evening?

I've spoken to the union and they are livid. They say that what was

put to them was derisory. They've also spoken a short while ago to a

representative from the parent company. We hope to continue talks

and reach a successful resolution and will work hard to achieve that.

Whatever happens, we will continue to work on our contingency plans to

minimise disruption for people in Tyne Wear. Will you improve an

offer that they described as derisory? It difficult to say, we

need to get everybody back round the table.

High risk sex offenders, including rapists and paedophiles, are posing

That's the claim being made by probation officers who say they

haven't been properly trained and, as a result,

In the Durham Tees Valley area, all such cases were being handled by a

But under new restructuring plans some sex offenders are

now being dealt with by regular probation officers instead.

Stuart Whincup has this exclusive report.

This is the sex offenders wing inside Durham Prison.

It houses rapists, paedophiles and child abusers.

When they leave here it's the probation service?s job to make

But officers say they haven't been properly trained to deal with

them and they worry about the risk they still pose to the public.

We are dealing with child rapists, rapists, paedophiles. People who

have abused children. The staff qualified but not in dealing with

sex offenders. Because we aren't equipped there is a fear we may not

pick up on things. Are we opening up a can of worms which in actual fact

can cause significant harm to more victims?

Durham Tees Valley Probation Trust has its own specialist public

protection unit and one of its offices used to be based here

Now those highly trained officers have been dealing with all

But now, as part of a shake`up of the Probation Service,

some of those offenders are being managed by regular probation staff.

And they're telling us they don't have the skills, training and

For the families of loved ones who have been killed by sex offenders,

They'll be more and more victims. I would like people to have to go

Mike Hall's 17`year old granddaughter Ashleigh was

kidnapped, raped and murdered by a prolific sex offender in 2009.

Peter Chapman was supposed to have been monitored by the authorities

but they lost him, and more than a year later he killed the teenager.

When it happened to Ashley, they blamed an unqualified lass who had

been shoved in on the job and didn't know what she was doing. They

promised us that there would be a proper shake`up and they'd have

qualified people to look after these sort of people. We were promised the

Working with sex offenders after they've been released back

into the community, is, the union says, difficult and

specialised work that shouldn't be carried out by probation officers

We are getting messages from staff that they are concerned about the

public safety angle, concerned about managing the cases effectively and

protecting the public and also how they are going to cope in terms of

work load and stress levels. Those anxieties are bringing the probation

Responding to our investigation, the Probation Service said...

And it says it's introducing lie detector tests for high`risk

offenders, with satellite tagging to track their movements.

This, it says, will give it one of the world's

toughest approaches to managing this group in the community.

Probation staff say they've been offered some training,

There will be two days of training. That sits badly with me. There is a

presumption from senior managers that two days is better than

nothing, so really it's a case of shut up and get on with it. Our

biggest worry is these people could reoffend and cause further harm to

others. If we aren't equipped to deal with that person, are we not

These sex offenders have often committed appalling crimes and

when they leave prison it is the job of probation officers to

Their worry is they're now struggling to do either.

Stuart, are these concerns about the training

This isn't just one disgruntled employee. We spoke to a number of

probation officers and they said these views are held by a number of

people. The union says staff in Durham and Teeside are now dealing

with around 200 sex offenders cases. The Ministry of Justice made

the point this evening that probation officers are

well`qualified, well`trained and can deal with any offenders, that

includes sex offenders. But we are hearing from officers on the ground

that they don't feel they have this training and they worry about the

public, worry that something will slip through the net.

Police are questioning a lorry driver after a crash

on the A66 in Cumbria left a man seriously injured.

The collision, involving a lorry and a van,

The 60`year`old van driver was flown to hospital in Newcastle.

The 35`year`old lorry driver was arrested at the scene on

Dean Jackson, from Newcastle, and Damian Burns, from Scarborough,

absconded on Monday evening. Jackson, on the left, was on remand

awaiting sentence for theft. Burns was serving an indeterminate

sentence for knife`point robbery. They are on the run.

It was once the bedrock of East Durham's economy.

Yet one by one the many clothing manufacturers

there shipped work overseas and made swathes of redundancies.

Admittedly it's on a small scale, but a new company has big plans.

Our business correspondent Ian Reeve explains.

Could this be the dawn of a new industry ?

East Durham once saw 5000 people making clothing, before production

went overseas to China, Morocco , anywhere that was cheaper.

This new venture , making ladies clothes in Peterlee,

thinks there is potential to bring it back and create jobs.

Our intention is to be in excess of 150 by the end of next year.

We are very ambitious about our plans and we believe

The new group says there is a trend of bringing production home,

as overseas manufacturing costs are rising .

Freight charges and import duty are expensive and retailers want

Good news for Catherine and her colleagues, who last worked in the

If it goes the way it's going now , it will take off .

It's going to be one good thing to come back into the north`east.

There's a lot of people out there who'd love to

I think the prospects will be very good .

A lot of people will want to see the English brand back and shops

I think a lot of people have missed that.

And in the shadow of the new venture a reminder of what's been lost.

This factory made suits for Marks Spencer and employed hundreds.

Many of whom are undoubtedly willing the new company to succeed,

maybe even get a job with it and see an old industry reborn.

One in eight men in the UK will at some point in their lives be

In the North East 1400 are diagnosed every year ` 400 die from it,

The organiser of a race in York dedicated to the cause says not

enough men are coming forward to help him highlight the disease.

Hairdresser Brian Hughes lost his best friend and running partner

Cancer cells multiplying at an alarming rate.

Cancer cells multiplying at an alarming rate under

the microscope at the Yorkshire Cancer Research Unit.

And while the studying continues here in York,

there's always the chance prostate cancer can be beaten one day if more

Increasingly we find that men are becoming aware of it but they are

not getting out and doing things the way women have with breast cancer.

If we think what happens to breast cancer treatment and breast cancer

diagnosis, because of the dedication of the women and those at risk

of cancer, prostate cancer is lagging ten years behind that.

The unit is expressly grateful to York hairdresser Brian Hughes,

for his work in setting up a Father's Day run in memory

Derek, one of my best pals, we used to go marathon running.

We'd go out for a run and every five minutes he'd have to go

behind the hedge and say, "I'm going for a piddle," he used to say.

Derek did die, not of it but with it.

He had the operation and found it difficult living with it.

Brian has managed to get some celebrity father

George Costigan, from the cult 80s film film, Rita,

Sue and Bob Too, and currently starring in the BBC One drama

Happy Valley, is on stage in York with his son, Niall, this week.

A mate in a band that I'm in has got prostate cancer,

so I'm very happy to raise awareness of that because men are

a bit chicken about gobbing off about it, which they shouldn't be.

It's killing people for goodness sake!

Sadly, prostate cancer diagnosis are nearly at the same level

as those for breast cancer, with 41,000 new cases last in the UK.

Around 11,000 of those will die. It's becoming

more common because prostate cancer affects older people and we have

Now people like Brian need more men and their

And Brian is particularly proud that all the money raised here on June

15, Father's Day, will be going directly to Professor

Maitland and his team at the Yorkshire Cancer Research UK unit.

She was killed with her handler, Lance Corporal Kenneth Rowe,

Today, Labrador Sasha posthumously received the PDSA Dickin Medal, the

Sasha is in fact credited with saving many soldiers' lives

in Afghanistan, by sniffing out weapons and explosives.

Filmed in Afghanistan just weeks before their death.

Lance Corporal Kenneth Rowe and his faithful dog Sasha helped save the

The pair were regarded as the Army's best, finding weapons and explosives

Lance Corporal Rowe's bravery has already been recognised,

but in London today his yellow Labrador posthumously received

A miniature version was also presented to Kenneth's parents,

who travelled from Newcastle to accept it.

He asked specifically to work with Sasha because he wanted

But he will be looking down today thinking that his dog was

There's not much better you can get than that.

In 71 years, Sasha today became the 65th animal

to win the Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of The Victoria Cross.

And over the years it has also been awarded top horses,

cats and even messenger pigeons used during the Second World War.

Many animals in very different roles serve alongside military personnel.

They have a very unique role to play.

The PDSA Dickin Medal gives us a chance to recognise that

and to formally award them for their bravery.

On Sasha's be half the medal was received today by Fire, another Army

dog that two years ago survived serious injury in Afghanistan.

A fitting tribute to the bravery of these loyal

They are a huge asset, whether it's for surge or protection capability.

They are a huge asset, whether it's for search or protection capability.

It is undeniable the work that they do is vital.

Lance Corporal Rowe and Sasha died together as they'd

The faithful companion with a smiling face.

You're watching Wednesday's Look North.

Ex`pupils celebrate their old school's 100th birthday.

Could do better should be written for tomorrow's weather.

Up to 15,000 people are expected to converge

on Northumberland tomorrow for one of Britain's biggest farming shows.

The annual Beef Expo is taking place in Hexham for only the second

Among the stars of the show will be two 15`year`olds who are hoping to

Meet Lavender and Kath, surely the most pampered heifers in the North.

Groomed to perfection by two young men who form part

of one of nine teams in the Young Show Stars Challenge.

The highlight of the Beef Expo in Hexham tomorrow.

We've got to take these in, clip them, wash them

You go to Canada if you win so hopefully...

I want them to do well but above it, I just want them to enjoy it.

It's not just a competition, they've both done loads together

What more can ask for, to go to a job that you love and a

Both boys come from farming families and plan careers in the industry.

Not the usual choice of a typical teenager.

Some people think "farmer" and just give you a bit of a funny look.

Everything is all good about it really.

I'd much rather be outside than inside, just sat in a stuffy office.

You can't make children do things they don't want to do.

Both boys have grown up with it, they love it and it's what you're

The love of animals, the countryside, the conservation

and the business side, farming is very much in our business.

A hard fact that means despite all the love and care,

one day these Hereford heifers will no longer be here.

They will taste beautiful as well as look beautiful.

Horseradish tastes lovely with everything.

Past met present at a County Durham primary school today.

To celebrate 100 years of teaching on the site at

Fencehouses, pupils who attended Woodlea School over the past eight

Among them was 92`year`old Nancy, who first went to lessons there

Four`year`old Tia is the youngest pupil at Woodlea School.

Today she stood next to current pupils, former pupils who left

recently, others whose children and grandchildren now attend

and those who went here when it was the local secondary school.

And here at the end of the line is the most senior ex`pupil of the

school, that Nancy. You were a pupil here in 1927. How old are you now?

92. What have you made up your day here? It's been lovely to meet old

Nancy was one of 50 former pupils celebrating 100 years of a school

What it like being hit with your mum in this line`up? Strange but

wonderful, because a lot of people don't get the opportunity. I'm just

The initial idea is we are a community school, we've always been

a community school. To introduce as many people back into school as we

could, and to get one person to try and represent every year we've been

The historic moment was captured for years to come.

One ex`pupil has even returned to teach here.

I'm pleased I'm a part of helping other children have lovely memories

There was a chance for all ages to share their stories.

's Memory is good and bad, very strict teachers. We've been hearing

stories about how they got the cane and they were slapped around the

head when you are naughty in class. I've had it a lot easier. My two

girls go here. It's a lovely school, I was brought up here with my three

brothers as well. It's been a big part of the community. It's really

how it used to be when they were at how it used to be when they were at

the school. No iPads. Cricket, and Durham all`rounder

Ben Stokes could return to first After scoring 97 in an Academy match

last weekend, Stokes has made impressive performances

for the second team in T20 games, as he recovers from the wrist injury

he sustained punching a locker It's hoped he'll now be in the team

for Durham's County Championship A career`best from Chris Rushworth.

Somerset nanny just 136 for victory. With rain forecast tomorrow, the

game could end in yet another draw, which would mean Durham have drawn

all five of their matches. They've played in World and European

Championships, been national runners`up for the last four years

and this autumn have again been invited to compete in a European

League organised by the US military. Not bad for

a medium`sized secondary school in County Durham, which frequently gets

one over big city community clubs. But what's the sport,

and which is the school? I'm at the Woodham Academy in Newton

Aycliffe. Their football team has enjoyed a remarkable run of success

since it was formed to nine years ago. The new head coach at the

Academy is Danny Cech, who is desperate to land a Brit bowl

national title after those four near misses. But how can he explain their

success against the big`city clubs when Woodham can only call upon

current pupils and those who left the 11 to 16 school to attend sixth

form elsewhere? We like to instil in our students that no goal is

unattainable. We have a lot of heart. A lot of these big`city clubs

have a much wider field to recruit from, but we've always managed to be

successful and have managed to carry that on for a few years. We are very

lucky. With some away matches played on the continent, fund is a constant

challenge, but the lads love their European adventures. We played in

Brussels last year. It's a learning curve when we go away, it's long

journeys but we always put out a good score. This multiple things you

do, throwing, catching, running, it's got it all. Is it really

catching on here in the north? A lot of university teams now play it.

There's a very competitive university division appear. It's

gone from strength to strength. We've got some very cute pictures

coming up. Three new arrivals have been shown to the outside world for

the first time. The Sumatran cubs were born at flamingo land near

Malton in March. Until now, they've been kept inside with their mother

but we are finally seeing them released into their outdoor

enclosure today. Sadly, just in time for the rain!

We've had loads of Bluebell pictures today. This is one of the few. Those

at the coast. Thing is clouding over overnight, heavy rain for most of us

tomorrow, a lot of cloud and feeling cooler as well fine end to the day,

temperatures up to 20 Celsius this afternoon. Most places dry through

the evening but cloud starts to thicken up from the south`east

through the night and rain starts to spread up from the south by the tail

end of the night. The wind turns into that cool north`easterly

direction, accompanying the rain. That heavy rain will spread north

and west through the morning, right across the region. You can see the

bright colours appearing, the greens indicating some heavy

bursts. The afternoon, I don't think we will see much in the way of

brightness but we might see the rain become a bit more intermittent.

Perhaps a few dry interludes developing through the second half

of the day. Temperatures well down on the figures today. It's going to

feel cooler with all that cloud, rain and that cool north to

north`easterly wind. That is the picture for tomorrow. Low pressure

in charge of that weather system, bringing the cloud and rain. Friday,

the low pressure keeps control of the weather and it's never far away

for the weekend either. And it's never far away for the weekend

either. Unsettled. Tomorrow, most of us will see lots of cloud, heavy

rain and temperatures in the low teens at best. Friday, still some

rain around, temperatures aren't a great deal better but at least the

rain will be a bit more intermittent. The showery theme

continues as we head into the weekend. Still some heavy showers,

maybe even a rumble of thunder in amongst them. Temperatures slowly

start to recover back up towards the high teens as we head through the

weekend. Showers never that far away. We show some of your weather

pictures on Look North and put some on the gallery pages on the website.

Come the end of the month, we choose one as our winner. That winning

picture will feature in next year's Look North calendar. You can keep an

up to date with the latest forecast on the free BBC weather app.

Now for a look at tonight's headlines.

Auction site eBay is forcing users to change their passwords

after a cyber`attack compromised its systems.

Talks to try to avert a Metro strike on the night of one of the region's

biggest pop concerts have broken down. I've got a feeling I'm going

to have some prescriptions thrown at me! I will make this very quick.

Good night. that is to find that one item

that's going to change their life. Flames are beautiful. Made

nice money, that did. Nice money. ?200,000?

HE LAUGHS