Local News

A Vietnamese man who is accused of cultivating 245 cannabis plants is to stand trial next year;

Northern Rail are reminding customers to check before they travel by train tomorrow as services in our area are hit by further strike action;

...and a local college is aiming to help a group of female students make their mark in an industry typically dominated by men.

A Vietnamese man who is accused of cultivating 245 cannabis plants is to stand trial next year.

Yesterday a 26-year-old man, of no fixed address, appeared at Teesside Crown Court via video link to Durham Prison. 

He pleaded not guilty to producing the Class B drug between May 1 and August 5.

The charges relate to an incident when Redcar Town Neighbourhood Police Team raided a business unit on South Gare Court, Tod Point Road earlier this year.

It is alleged that more than 250 plants were found at the site and a man escaped through a skylight but was later found and detained.

Northern Rail are reminding customers to check before they travel by train tomorrow as services in our area are hit by further strike action.

Due to strike action by members of the RMT union, services will only operate between 7am and 7pm, with final services on some routes finishing before 7pm. 

Trains are expected to be extremely busy, journeys may take longer than normal and connections to other services may not be available.

Customers are being advised to consider whether their journey is necessary.

Details of the revised timetables can be found on Northern’s industrial action page at northernrailway.co.uk/industrialaction.

A local college is aiming to help a group of female students make their mark in an industry typically dominated by men.

Three female students have taken their first steps into a career in the construction industry with Redcar & Cleveland College.

Sarah Roth, Nicola Ward and Alexandra Forma have all been impressing so far this year on their course, with Nicola and Alexandra also securing apprenticeships. Sarah, who has previously worked in admin roles both with the NHS and in the gas & oil industry, took the big step this year to retrain in a new industry and aims to launch her own property management company once she has completed her two-year course.

According to a survey by UCATT, the UK’s trade union for construction workers, women make up only 11 per cent of the construction workforce and just one per cent of workers on site.

But with current trends changing, women are expected to make up a quarter of the UK’s construction workforce by 2020.