WORK on a £3.5 million speculative office development will start in York this spring - giving a big vote of confidence to the city. The two-storey, 14,500sq ft development, dubbed The Edge, is being built by Shepherd Developments, part of the York-based
MISSING York school pupil Amy Lou Ginley has been found safe and well in London. A massive police search operation was launched after the 16-year-old Mount School pupil, of Wetherby Road, disappeared from her school on Wednesday morning. Officers scoured
YORK panto legends Berwick Kaler and Martin Barrass, are urging their "babbies and bairns" to support the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's SOS Day. The lifesaving charity is encouraging school children and workers to support the event by wearing
ROD Hills, the former York council leader who became embroiled in a high-profile criminal investigation, has been found dead in Leeds. The body of Mr Hills was discovered in a house in Chapeltown just after 11pm last night, West Yorkshire Police confirmed
A DISTRAUGHT pensioner claimed today that former York council leader Rod Hills spent his last moments in his Leeds flat. Wilfred Dixon, 65, said Mr Hills knocked on the door of his housing association flat in Newton Walk, Chapeltown, on Monday evening
AS some sort of picture begins to emerge of Rod Hills' last few hours, we are left to wonder how it came to this. How sad and strange that the life of the dominant York politician of the last 20 years should end on a makeshift bed on the floor of a Leeds
WHEN the news came in about Rod Hills' death, the first reaction in the newsroom was one of shock. But as more details emerged, and we learnt his body had been found in a flat in one of the worst boroughs of Leeds, the tragedy acquired a sense of terrible
This city owes much to Rod I WRITE as a former officer of City Of York Council in sadness at the passing of a great leader lost. I was privileged to work for the city for a few years and to work closely with Rod Hills in the late Eighties. As a
CHRIS TITLEY profiles the rise and fall of former council leader Rod Hills. COMBATIVE, controversial, colourful - Rod Hills was never far from a headline during his long career in York politics. But in recent years, it was accusations about his
FORMER City of York Council leader Rod Hills died of natural causes, police have confirmed. West Yorkshire Police said a post-mortem examination was completed yesterday. There will be no inquest into the 57-year-old's death. The news came as residents
ROD Hills has been praised for having helped bring 2,000 jobs and 60 companies to York. The former council leader's work in setting up and chairing the York Inward Investment Board was highlighted by the board's former Chief Executive Paul Murphy last
A QUILT museum will bring ten jobs and a massive tourist attraction to York later this year. The Quilters' Guild of the British Isles today confirmed plans to relocate its museum and office facilities to York. The Guild is scheduled to move from
THE Acting Dean of York thanked God for Rod Hills' service to the community, during the former council leader's funeral at York Minster. Canon Glyn Webster also spoke of the "last difficult years" of Mr Hills' life, and of the humanity and honesty
THE new leader of City of York Council today signalled the dawn of a new political era. And he revealed exclusively to the Evening Press the launch of his first initiative - aimed at cleaning up the city. Coun Steve Galloway, who was first elected
TORY leader John Galvin today said he still hoped to lead his party into the next York local elections - at the age of 69. Mr Galvin is coming to terms with life away from the political chamber after he, and his two Conservative colleagues, lost their
IT'S meltdown. That was one Labour activist's view even before the result was announced in English Martyrs' School. The poll there was to decide the three candidates for Holgate - York's most marginal ward at the last election, writes Matthew Woodcock
A LANDSLIDE local election result saw the Liberal Democrats sweep to power in York - an outcome that also saw the Conservatives wiped out and the city's first Green Party councillors elected. The new council has 29 Liberal Democrats, 15 Labour, no
YORK education chiefs have made the replacement of crumbling classrooms at a York school a top priority - despite a failed bid for Government funding - and are set to allocate an extra £30,000 to the scheme. But plans to set aside a further £1.5 million
COUNCILLORS have called for better provision of services for young people in North Yorkshire and demanded better communication. Hambleton district cultural and social overview committee members agreed to refer a report to cabinet for approval following
Both the Conservative and Liberal Democrat groups are aiming to take overall control of the hung authority in Ryedale, which currently has 11 Tories, six Independents, five Liberal Democrats and one Labour. Boundary changes mean the number of seats
THE Green Party has called for urgent action to improve school crossings in York. Andy D'Agorne, Green Party candidate for Fishergate in this week's election, said that although there was a programme of safety measures outside York schools there were
Only two days of campaigning are left before York's crucial city council election. In the latest of a series of articles, Political Reporter Richard Edwards questions the leaders of the four largest parties, this time on York's congestion problems
York's crucial local election is now only days away. In the run-up to polling day, Political Reporter Richard Edwards is putting questions on key issues to the leaders of the four largest parties. Today, he asks about York's housing crisis The question
YORK'S only Independent councillor says she wants to continue "working for the people and the community in York." Upper Poppleton councillor Janet Hopton, pictured, is seeking election to the new Rural West York Ward. She said a voice on City of
LIFELONG Labour supporters in York are deserting the party in the wake of the war in Iraq. One long-term Labour supporter and election candidate, Gordon Campbell-Thomas, has already publicly burned his party membership card because of the war. Now
REDUCED public access at two York police stations is damaging attempts to put the community at the heart of the fight to crack crime, according to senior Liberal Democrats. Launching their party's local anti-crime policy, Coun Irene Waudby, shadow
LABOUR'S local election candidates joined the crowds to meet the voters at York's late-night shopping event. Sitting and would-be councillors, including City of York Council executive members, were among the swarm of shoppers enjoying the sunshine
LOCAL election campaign stress seemed a world away for these three Tories as they took a gentle boat ride along the River Ouse. Boundary changes saw the end of group leader John Galvin's Copmanthorpe Ward, so he is now standing for election in Wheldrake
THE gloves came off today in Selby's local election campaign as the Labour and Conservative Parties launched their manifestos. The district council's Labour group vowed to tackle anti-social behaviour, while the Tories pledged to crack down on council
CURRENT and would-be councillors who braved York's voters of the future at a lively question and answer session today hailed the event a success. The Evening Press organised session, or hustings, was held at Oaklands School, Acomb. It saw a group
A VOTE for an Independent councillor is a free vote and a free voice, says long-serving Selby councillor Maurice Patrick. Farmer Mr Patrick, spokesman for the district council's Independent group, was speaking ahead of the local elections on May 1.
ROAD humps, crime and congestion charges were all on the agenda when voters of the future grilled politicians of the present at a York school election hustings event. The Evening Press-organised question-and-answer session, was held at Oaklands School
With the local elections looming, the scramble for your votes is hotting up. The three main City of York party leaders explain why you should choose them... Dave Merrett, Labour Running a successful council requires a broad vision, local focus
A GROUP of independently-minded York election candidates today urged voters to "dump the dinosaurs" - and vote Independent. Les Marsh, spokesman for the Clifton-based Independent group, says that two decades of Labour council rule have left York ready
TORIES in Selby were celebrating today after taking control following the district council elections - and adding to a night of misery for Labour in York and North and East Yorkshire. The Conservatives secured 23 of the 41 seats in Selby to return
YORK faces a "ticking timebomb" over care for its care for older people, due to rising demand and falling funding, the city was warned today. Councillors have been advised to change the way services are provided in the city in the long-term, or else
"PLEASE contact us Amy you are not in any trouble". That was the message today to bright York pupil Amy Lou Ginley who has gone missing from her school because she might be suffering exam pressure. Police said they were growing increasingly concerned
AN ENGINEER turned benefit fraud into a "way of life" while his wife ran a supermarket in Spain, York Crown Court heard. Derek William Rea, 62, headed a railway engineering business and the couple sold a house for £168,000 while he cheated his way to
STAFF and pupils at schools across the region are celebrating their success in the national school performance tables, released today. The tables, published by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), show the performance of GCSE and A-level students
"CANNY parents" will not be confused by Government education league table changes out today, according to a York head teacher. Staff and pupils at schools across the region are celebrating success in the national school performance tables, released today
SPECTACULAR views of the River Ouse are available from one pub in York thanks to the flooding. At the Lowther Hotel, in Cumberland Street, water surrounds the pub on two sides, but the pumps are on to make sure the pub stays dry and open to drinkers.
A SOLDIER on the run from the Army has been jailed after he returned to his family home for Christmas, got drunk and crashed his brother's car. Lance corporal Christopher Mark Warley crashed the car in the early hours of Boxing Day while twice the drink-driving
A FORMER day care centre in west York is set to be converted into 23 flats. City of York Council hoped to raise at least £400,000 when it controversially closed The Hebden Rise Day Centre, in Acomb, last year and put it up for sale. Adults with learning
FEW home-owners enjoy panoramic views from their windows, but you could be among them - all for £500,000. Tollerton Windmill, a former working mill, offers a unique family home swathed in history and boasts stunning views, period features and the original
IF YOUR home is bursting at the seams, you want for more space. Oak Tree House, 2c Low Catton Road, Stamford Bridge, could be the solution. Built by George Blades & Son Limited, this stunning five-bedroom detached is set in about one third of an acre
MORE than 1,500 people in North Yorkshire stubbed out their cigarettes with the help of the NHS within six months last year - but it was not enough. Managers from North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) - which runs NHS services across the
A FURIOUS couple today blasted supermarket bosses for refusing to pay for damage to their new car - caused by a runaway shopping trolley. Julie Dearing, 46, of Stuart Road, Acomb, York, was driving her new Citroen C3 along the slip road beside the Tesco
Why can't students and local residents live happily together? STEPHEN LEWIS reports on the age-old town and gown divide. BADGER Hill residents worried their estate is being taken over by students have petitioned York council to see if it can restrict
PEOPLE are living longer and, for the most part, that is good news. More people are surviving into old age in relatively good health, which is even better news. But rising longevity does bring associated problems, mainly concerned with how to look
SO Ruth Kelly intends to send her special-needs son to a private school, where she believes he will have a better chance of a happy life. So what? Good luck to her, I say, and I know that if I were in the same position, and could afford the fees, I
SAMMY the seal has been spotted again, or so the optimists among us hope. One seal might look much like another, but the seal on the banks of the River Wharfe at Tadcaster is thought to be the same one that became an overnight celebrity when he visited
POOR Ruth Kelly! Why do they dislike her? I think it may be the self-satisfied, smug grin she presents them with, which says, "Come on, fire away! I've got all the answers, I'm in charge and I know my lines." It seems to be inbred with Tony and so
I AM writing regarding the recent article reporting the biometric system of fingerprinting children in some York schools. Leaving aside the very real issue of invasion of privacy, when my son was a pupil almost five years ago we used to regularly receive
IT is appalling that former Education Secretary Ruth Kelly feels she has to send one of her children to a private school. While Ms Kelly cannot be blamed for doing what she thinks is best for her child, it is disgraceful that she and her successors
I ASSUME all the teachers, dinner ladies, cleaners and other employees at schools which fingerprint their pupils have their prints on the secure school computer and that their parents have not been told (Thumbs down, The Press, January 8). Alec Acomb
I AM writing to you in the hope that one of your readers might be able to help me find a bracelet my mother lost, while visiting York with her sister some time between Friday, December 1, and Saturday, December 2. The bracelet is a reddish-gold link
WORRIED residents are set to fail in their attempt to have an alleyway near their homes closed overnight - despite a council officer saying it would probably reduce crime. People living near Dringhouses Primary School, in York, say a snicket running
I LIVE close to the main east coast rail line and a few days ago, while out walking my dog, I saw six passenger trains race by, none of which was more than a quarter full. The day before that I was called upon to help a friend, whose car had broken
READING recently that the minimum fare on the London Underground is now £4, set me to remembering a few things: I remember: * London Underground minimum fare 2d (less than 1p). * Bus fare 1 1/2d. * Pint of mild 1/3 (6p) bitter 1d more, cider 5d
FURTHER to "Labour Pains" (Readers' Letters, January 3). Tony Blair ignored all intelligence that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. Despite knowing that Sunni, Shi-ite and Kurd opponents to Saddam's regime had been meeting in London for two
I HAVE just read last Thursday's Stage magazine and I cannot believe it has been so long since Dustin Gee's death. I kept all the press reports and have just been looking at them now. As a friend and working as a DJ, he was just a guy who made everyone
ALTHOUGH I am perhaps better known to your readers as a pedal-cyclist's champion, I am also a regular daytime pedestrian user of York city centre. The recent injury to a pedestrian in York's foot streets, by a motor vehicle driver (Are cars so safe
DESPITE all the festive warnings, some families may have received puppies or dogs as gifts this Christmas. Dogs Trust, the UK's largest dog welfare charity, asks that all new dog owners take time to think about our famous slogan: A Dog Is For Life
Spies of The Diary have sent us an internal memo from a senior York councillor about the use of TLAs - or "three-letter acronyms". The correspondence began when a clearly baffled local government colleague apparently admitted to being utterly in the
YEARS had passed, but I recognised the voice immediately, speaking on BBC Radio 4 about Kate Middleton, Prince William's girlfriend of four years. Geordie Greig was the most unlikely trainee reporter you could imagine. He had been educated at Eton and
AFTER a long career and a potentially fatal illness, Chris Rea drove down his last road with this tour last year. He is not gone for good but says that in future he will only appear as part of a three-man band, possibly to be called The Fire Flies.
COVER versions always rankle as it's seldom likely that any artist is going to improve on the original. The venerable country and western icon Willie Nelson's attempt at doing justice to a host of songs irritates still further because it seems to be
ORGANISERS of York Minster's digital art and light installation have apologised after a woman took her elderly mother along to enjoy the sight - and found the building shrouded in darkness. Barbara Edwards, of Heworth, York, said she took her mother
Concord's A&R chief John Burk found forgotten tapes in the vaults marked Ray/Basie, but excitement was dashed when the tapes revealed the Basie Orchestra recorded separately, then Ray with his band. Recorded directly from the sound desk on a 1970s
IF you thought Marti Pellow, left, was a washout after a career fronting Wet Wet Wet, his weekend victory in the BBC singathon Just The Two Of Us might have changed that view. If not, this album should. Pellow looks leaner and meaner and his voice
ON November 24 1996, 120,000 Crowded House fans gathered for the Kiwis' finale outside Sydney Opera House. The tenth anniversary is marked by the farewell show's release on CD for the first time, and surprisingly it is the first live album from their
YORK City's recently- departed loan striker Darryn Stamp is poised to join Conference rivals Halifax Town. The Shaymen have agreed a fee with Stevenage for the 28-year-old forward, who was discussing personal terms with the West Yorkshire club last
"You can't bargain with the truth", sings Yusuf Islam, the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens, on An Other Cup - and he's right. The truth is that Yusuf's widely-awaited return to mainstream pop music after 28 years in the artistic, if not spiritual
YORKSHIRE-BASED supermarket chain Morrisons has continued its post-Safeway takeover recovery with record sales in the week before Christmas. The firm, which has a store in Acomb, York, and is building a new store at Foss Islands, said the final week
MEDICAL technology experts Smith & Nephew have linked up with the University of York to help scientists discover and develop new treatments. The partnership will mean that companies, ranging from multi-nationals to new start-ups, will have access
IF you own one Lucinda Williams record, it should be Car Wheels On A Gravel Road. And now you should own two: the deluxe edition, remastered with additional tracks and a second CD recorded in casual concert at the WXPN Singer Songwriter Festival on
IT is one of York's most distinctive riverside landmarks, but the only people to use it in the last six years have been squatters. Now new life is set to be breathed into the Bonding Warehouse, in Skeldergate, as council chiefs began taking final
AN out-of-court settlement has been reached by a York law firm, in a legal challenge to determine how insurance companies should treat claims relating to asbestos deaths. The settlement has been negotiated by national personal injury practice Corries
COACH Mick Cook hopes the new points system in the National League will make little difference to York City Knights - as he hopes they'll win games anyway. The Press revealed yesterday that a system of three points for a win, two for a draw and one for
RETIRING York City Knights star Mark Cain has lauded the fans - and chief executive John Guildford - for their "immense" support throughout his career. As revealed by The Press, the 30-year-old is awaiting major surgery to reconstruct a knee and has
FORMER York City Knights favourite Rob Kama and York Wasps pair Paul Darley and Craig Booth have joined the list of players who will turn out in Mark Cain's testimonial on Sunday. The current Knights first team are to take on a squad of ex-York players
RONNIE O'Sullivan could still yet meet World Snooker officials over his quarter-final walk out at the Maplin UK Championship in York last month. The Chigwell cueman's manager, Ian Doyle, revealed that although nothing formal had been scheduled, informal
HEWORTH ARLC spokesman Ken Sykes has admitted promotion is now out of the Villagers' own hands. Heworth occupied third position in National Conference division two at the end of November, but they have not won for eight weeks - albeit having had a few
Yorkshire batsman Anthony McGrath said last night in a media release issued by his agent that he was leaving the club with immediate effect because he could not resolve his differences with them. But Yorkshire hit back saying they were now in talks
FEARS about dangerous dogs appear to have had little impact on the RSPCA's work in the York area. The RSPCA centre, in Landing Lane, Clifton, takes in abandoned dogs and helps find them new homes. Following the tragic events on Merseyside on New Year's
A PET owner has urged people not be afraid of dogs. Joanne Evans owns a Staffordshire bull terrier - and she says in the weeks since the fatal mauling of five-year-old Ellie Lawrenson on Merseyside, public reaction to it has shifted noticeably. Even
NEW Earswick All Blacks coach Chris Judge has warned his players that Saturday's trip to Halifax Irish could be one of their hardest away matches of the season. Irish are third bottom of the Pennine League premier division but they have a good record
YORK Groves ARLC are hoping a boost off the field can help bring success on it. The Terriers will have their promotion credentials in Pennine League division five tested to the full on Saturday when they visit unbeaten table-toppers Sheffield Hillsborough
BOOTHAM snooker ace Barry Rankin remains on course to retain the York Conservative Clubs' Tayrol Scruton Cup. He beat Mal Dawson (Heworth) 2-0 to set up a quarter-final meeting with three times previous champion, Clive Whyte (Heworth). Whyte had breaks
HOLDER Tim Fillingham will meet Roger Gibson in the quarter-final of the Hair Flicks Hylton Foster billiards knockout competition. The oldest competitor George Tingle, who had a close win over two-time former champion Richard Stroughair in the last round
YORK Indoor Bowls Club Ladies marched into the Yetton Plate zone final after a three-rink win toppled Hornsea 96-76. At home, Maureen Thomas's side had a good start, leading 11-0 after only five ends, though by the ninth the visitors got to within
A CULL of swans would be "complete nonsense", according to an animal rescue hospital. Volunteers from the Yorkshire Swan Rescue Hospital have dismissed claims that the birds should be deliberately killed to protect fish stocks. Some anglers say ever-increasing
STRIKING while the iron is hot. It's what Richard Fahey is good at, and one of the reasons why he accumulated prize money of more than £1million in 2006. Tomorrow, the Malton trainer adopts his tried and trusted methods by saddling Beldon Hill in a bid
PATIENTS from across North Yorkshire should wait no more than 20 weeks to have surgery by the end of March. That is the expectation from primary care trust bosses, who have to meet tough Government targets to drive waiting lists down across the National
Selby's Michael Mansell shows the style that graced an outstanding game against Hornsea's Scott Burrell in the Under-25s singles final, which he won 11-2 and 7-2 at York Indoor Bowls Club.
With Christmas over, don't you think you could stop spending and start paying off some of that debt that's been piling up? At the Citizens Advice Bureau, in both York and Selby, we are advising clients who are finding their debts have got too big to
David Stroughair and Carol Instone will represent Yorkshire in the National mixed pairs finals in February after defeating 2005 champions Mark Walton and Sue Westoby. The Hornsea pair had the best of the early rounds winning six of the first nine to
Frank Turner's team take on Alec Atkinson's South Leeds side on Saturday in the O50s triples area final at Ryedale IBC starting at noon, while on Sunday York's Kevin and Adam Liddell face Ryedale's Paul and Andrew Humphreys in the father and son pairs
A SERIES of rock gigs are being staged in York in tribute to tragic Yorkshire snooker star Paul Hunter. Local businessman Rob Scott, of Elvington, near York, was inspired to organise the events after reading messages posted on an online condolence book
VISITORS to York could be provided with a new place to stay, if plans for a caravan park get the go-ahead from councillors. A city businessman has applied to develop the park at an old agricultural storage yard, on land next to Landing Lane in Haxby,
LOCAL government in Selby is set for a big shake-up after councillors decided on a proposal to streamline the district council. Selby District Council held a special meeting of the full council on Tuesday evening to discuss central Government plans to
PLANS to create commercial fishing lakes in a historic part of the Yorkshire Wolds are to be decided next week. But the proposals have been roundly criticised by a Ryedale District Council planner, who has recommended they should be thrown out. The
