08/11/2017 Look North (North East and Cumbria)

Welcome to Look North.

The headlines this

Wednesday lunchtime:

People power.

The launch of a new type

of political campaign

aimed at changing lives.

And nearly ten years

after work started,

the painstaking project

to re-install York Minster's Great

East Window gets under way.

Good afternoon.

More than 1,000 people have signed

up to take part in a new type

of political campaign aimed

at changing lives

across the North East.

Tyne and Wear Citizens is looking

to use people power to tackle

issues like poverty,

racism and mental health.

But it wants to avoid party politics

and won't contest any elections.

It held its first big meeting last

night, and our political editor

Richard Moss was there.

More than 1,000 people packed

into Newcastle's Tyne Theatre,

not for a band or a comedian,

but to talk politics.

This was the launch

of Tyne and Wear Citizens.

People here want to see

change in their community.

But they're not looking

for politicians to do it.

They want to do it themselves.

People are saying we haven't got

time to wait for another election

or to wait and see what's

going to happen with devolution.

Things are too important

in our communities right now.

People are going hungry right now.

People are struggling day-to-day

right now and so the energies

around people saying,

"Right, OK, let's see

what we can do, let's do

something about it now."

This is a very

personal politics too.

Less about stats and more

about the experiences of those

affected, whether by racism

or the shortcomings

of mental health services.

Hopping onto a bus to the town may

seem like nothing to most

of you in the audience today,

but to myself, my family,

my friends and other Muslim

women in particular,

tasks like these seem

like mammoth decisions to make.

Is it worth the risk of being

harassed or racially abused today?

I'm here to speak about how some

young people with poor mental health

have had to fight way too hard

to get the treatment they deserve.

And, for a start, Tyne

and Wear Citizens will campaign

on mental health, hate

crime and poverty.

It's an approach that's already made

a difference in other countries

and other parts of Britain.

But those behind it say it also taps

into traditions we've forgotten.

This area used to be volatile,

full of public meetings

going on about anti-slavery

and so on, and we are

reviving that tradition.

But did the audience feel enthused?

Incredible seeing so many

people come together

of different faiths,

generations, yeah, and background.

It was quite emotional.

I thought was excellent.

Very inspiring, very well-organised.

And really shows that people

in the north-east are committed

to making some change in the area.

It's a positive hopeful message

and it's what we need to hear.

There's no doubting the enthusiasm

of 1,000 people who came

here tonight as they head home,

and perhaps it's not surprising that

people are seeking an alternative

to the kind of politics that's

going on in westminster

at the moment.

Richard Moss, BBC Look

North in Newcastle.

The leader of Sunderland City

Council, Paul Watson,

has died at the age of 63.

He had cancer.

Councillor Watson was from Pallion

in the city and served

as the Pallion ward councillor

for more than 20 years and as leader

of the City Council since 2008.

He turned to politics after starting

out as apprentice on the shipyards.

Colleagues have paid tribute saying

he was a man of many talents.

A bus has been destroyed

after it went up in flames.

The fire happened just after nine

o'clock this morning

on the A693 in County Durham

between Consett and Stanley,

near East Castle and Pontop Pike,

causing the road to be closed.

The bus was not in service

at the time and nobody was injured.

Around 9,000 people in Hartlepool

are thought to be caring

for their family members and loved

ones without receiving proper

support from the authorities.

And so an event is taking

place in the town to try

and encourage more people

to become registered carers.

Shelley's daugher Evie has cerebral

palsy, but she says she never

realised there was help

and support out there.

I felt like that I was the only

person out there and it was quite

hard and difficult. Within 20 47, I

could not find the time to go out

and meet other people, because it

was always Evie who came first.

Designs for a new,

permanent Pooley Bridge

are being discussed today.

A temporary crossing opened in March

last year after the original bridge

was washed away by flooding

in winter 2015.

At a meeting this evening three

possible designs will be discussed.

Organisers hope the new bridge

will reflect feedback given

by people living in the village.

Strikes taking place on rail

services across the region mean some

trains are cancelled

or being replaced by buses today.

Members of the RMT union

at Northern Rail have walked out

for 24 hours in a long-running row

over driver-only trains.

Now, this isn't your

average window repair job.

Centuries-old stained

glass panels have been cleaned

and restored, and are now being put

back into the Great East

Window at York Minster.

It's part of a multi-million

pound project to restore

the vast medieval window.

Luxmy Gopal has been

along to take a look.

The finishing touches before fitting

this 600-year-old glass

into the biggest medieval stained

glass window in the country.

The panels at York Minster's Great

East Window has been restored

and are finally being returned.

For those behind the project,

it's been a long road to get here,

starting nearly a decade ago

when the stained glass

panels were removed.

Now the restoration scheme,

one of the biggest of its kind

in Europe, is a step

closer to completion.

Gosh.

So what do you think,

your first glance at it?

Incredible to see it

at such close quarters.

Yes.

A view most people

have never ever got.

Absolutely.

As part of the work,

the window has been double glazed

with a layer of UV-resistant glass

put in to protect the stained-glass

panels from the elements.

As you can imagine, this

is not a job for people

who are scared of heights.

Each stained-glass panel is carried

up by hand up all the flights

of stairs and then delicately placed

in each section.

It's like a giant jigsaw

puzzle 80 feet in the air.

And the pieces of that jigsaw

were meticulously restored

by specialists taking more

than 92,000 man hours

after an £11 million project

helped by lottery funding.

It was probably one of the most

intricate projects that we'll ever

attempt because we actually

dismantled every single panel

so that we could clean,

repair and indeed examine every

single little fragment

of glass, so it was very

time-consuming, very meticulous.

And, on the other

hand, very rewarding.

Over the next eight weeks,

the final panels will be put

into place so this part of Minster

can once again serve its purpose.

It's a very important space

of the Minster, the Lady Chapel,

where morning prayers take place.

Prayers haven't happened

here for over ten years or so,

fully cleaned and restored

stonework, restored glass

is going to be very important

for worship here and of course

for visitors coming to look at this

magnificent building.

This window was gazed out onto York

for the past 600 years and the work

This window has gazed out onto York

for the past 600 years and the work

being done will help to keep it

stable and safe for hundreds

more years to come.

Luxmy Gopal, BBC Look North, York.

Time now for a look

at the weather with Owain.

Plenty of sunshine on offer across

the north-east and Cumbria this

afternoon. Something a bit more of

an east-west split, though. Eastern

parts hanging on to the Sunshine.

Further west, cloudier. We will see

some rain later on but until then,

it is looking pretty good. The

sunshine turning hazy across Cumbria

and this thin veil of cloud will

then extend southwards and

eastwards. Some of the light rain

and drizzle in parts of Cumbria and

Northumberland later, with

temperatures getting to about eight

Celsius. As we look at to this

evening, a band of rain continues on

its journey travelling to the south

and east. Heavy rain potentially on

hills, across parts of Cumbria. It

will lose its power and fizzle out

as it moves to the east. Mist and

fog patches tonight and temperatures

more than likely getting down to

around 4-5. Because this weather

front is lingering, it will be a

great cloudy start to the day

tomorrow. Generally speaking,

cloudier than today, I think but as

it continues to move away, things

should brighten up. Temperatures

tomorrow, 11-12. Breezy at times. We

do get this cooler air trying to

squeeze down towards us. So that

means it does turn colder as we move

towards Friday and Saturday but

there will be plenty of dry weather

around. Sunny spells and showers on

Friday. Dryer on Saturday. See you

soon.

That's it from us.

We're back at 6.30.

Until then, have a very

good afternoon.

Bye bye.