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Northumberland's public health chief has urged residents to follow the new North East lockdown restrictions with coronavirus 'spreading like wildfire' across the county.
The tougher rules will come into force from midnight on Wednesday, affecting about two million people across Newcastle, Northumberland, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland and County Durham, in a bid to stop the soaring number of Covid-19 cases.
The new measures will mean that people from different households will be banned under law from mixing indoors in any setting, including pubs or restaurants, and will face fines of up to £6,400 for doing so.
However, it will not be illegal to meet up with friends from another household in a beer garden – though it will be against public health advice to do so.
Latest figures revealed all seven authority areas in the region have recorded an increase with cases up 79% to 2998 in the week leading to September 25 from 1324 in the previous seven days.
The number of Covid-19 cases in Northumberland more than doubled to 450 in the same week – the equivalent of 139.6 cases per 100,000 people. This is up from 196 cases (60.8) in the week previous.
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Almost two-thirds of residents feel the Government was too late introducing a local lockdown in the North East as Covid-19 cases continue to rocket, according to a ChronicleLive survey.
Tighter restrictions were imposed across the region's seven council areas on September 18 in a bid to combat the spike in coronavirus cases.
But numbers continue to soar at an alarming rate, with North East cases more than doubling to 2,524 in the week leading to September 21 from 1,107 in the previous seven days.
According to Public Health England data covering the seven days to September 22, Newcastle now has the highest rate of infection in the North East and the fifth-highest in England – with the city’s numbers almost tripling.
Newcastle recorded 632 new cases in that week, with an infection rate of 208.7 per 100,000 people. That was compared to 224 new cases and a rate of 74 in the previous 7 days.
South Tyneside had previously had the second-highest rate in England, but is now eighth according to the latest figures. The borough recorded 301 new cases with an infection rate of 199.4 per 100,000.
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A further two coronavirus cases have been confirmed at a Northumberland school.
The new infections come within 24 hours of a staff member at St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy in Bedlington t esting positive.
In addition, a "small number of pupils" are now self-isolating after coming into direct contact with the confirmed cases.
In a letter to parents, headteacher Kevin Shepherd accepts parents will find the latest development "concerning".
"We are continuing to monitor the situation and are working closely with Public Health England," he added.
The letter was sent to parents on Thursday, a day after it emerged two members of staff were self-isolating.
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Two members of staff at a Northumberland school are self-isolating after one of them tested positive for coronavirus.
St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy, in Bedlington, has said the infected staff member is well but is spending two weeks at home in quarantine.
The secondary school and sixth form has decided to not send any students home as a result of the confirmed case due to the employee's limited contact with pupils.
However, another member of staff has also been asked to self-isolate for a fortnight following advice from Public Health England.
A letter to parents and carers from headteacher Kevin Shepherd reads: "A member of staff at St Benet Biscop has tested positive for Covid-19 and is therefore self-isolating. The staff member is well and is self-isolating at home.
"I have been in contact with the Public Health England Protection Team to discuss the situation and the potential risk to other students and staff.
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Police are investigating a Bedlington care home where inspectors say some elderly residents weren't kept safe.
Medicines had allegedly gone missing at Baedling Manor Care Home, while the local authority was called in to monitor the home's safeguarding arrangements.
The home's 49 residents "did not always experience safe care and treatment", inspectors from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said.
The CQC said it had launched an inspection after being contacted with concerns about "safeguarding people, staffing, recruitment, medicines, infection control, consent, complaints and the governance of the service".
Downgrading the home, run by Alcyone Healthcare, from 'Good' to 'Requires Improvement', the report said: "People were not always safeguarded from the risk of harm. Incidents were not reported or recorded properly, and action was not always taken to address matters.
"The home was placed into organisational safeguarding by the local authority and there were police investigations in progress."
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More than three quarters of residents would back a local lockdown in the North East as coronavirus cases continue to soar, according to a ChronicleLive survey.
However, less than 10% believe people would follow the rules if tighter restrictions were imposed in the region.
Boris Johnson announced on Wednesday that social gatherings of more than six people will be illegal in England from Monday in a bid to curb the rise in coronavirus cases.
The new laws follow a sharp rise in infection rates which has prompted warnings from council leaders and public health experts that a local lockdown is a real possibility.
Sunderland now has the second highest coronavirus infection rate in England after 209 cases were confirmed in the seven days to September 7 - a rate of 75.3 cases per 100,000 population.
According to the same NHS data Gateshead now has the 13th highest number of cases in the country with 55.8 cases per 100,000 people.
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A £2.5m Government funding boost will help get Bedlington's stalled redevelopment works "up and running again," town bosses have said.
A start date for the scheme is expected this year after the cash boost from Boris Johnson’s “Get Britain Building” fund - but some changes to the design have been announced.
Northumberland County Council-owned company Advance Northumberland says the economic impact of Covid-19 on the high street retail market will mean some planned retail space will now be replaced by a swimming pool, relocated library and "enterprise hub".
Chair of Advance Northumberland, Richard Wearmouth, said: "Works involving the anchor supermarket store remain unaffected as will the frontage onto the market square which will still include additional shops. It is anticipated that these works will start in 2020 as previously suggested.
"However, the remainder of the scheme will be amended to provide a new leisure offer and will make use of space that had been earmarked for larger retail units, and / or the site held in reserve for a family oriented pub and restaurant.
"In addition, the design work will look at relocation of the library to a town centre site and the creation of an enterprise hub. Both will encourage further spend in the town centre by increasing footfall.
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An honest drink driver confessed "I'l be over the limit" when he was approached by police officers in Northumberland.
Police followed James Tinson after they spotted him driving erratically in his Vauxhall Insignia and watched as he was forced to come to a stop after he went down a dead-end street.
The officers then walked up to the 31-year-old's vehicle and breathalysed him after they noticed he showed all the classic signs of being drunk, a court heard.
Tinson failed the test and was arrested, later giving a reading nearly three times over-the-limit.
Now, Tinson, of Merley Gate, in Morpeth, has been given a 18-month community order after he pleaded guilty to one count of driving with excess alcohol during a hearing at South East Northumberland Magistrates' Court.
Prosecutor, Rehana Haque, said police began following Tinson after they spotted him driving erratically in Bedlington on July 31 this year.
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A drink driver has been banned from the roads after he was caught after his girlfriend phoned the police.
Dad-of-two Christopher Armstrong and his partner had been arguing at their Bedlington home when he decided to get behind the wheel of his Kia Sportage in a bid to "calm down".
However, the 31-year-old was unaware that the woman had phoned the police and officers were waiting for him when he returned minutes later.
Armstrong then failed a roadside breath test and was arrested.
The Nissan worker, of Burnside, in Bedlington Station, has now been banned from the roads for 20 months after he pleaded guilty to one count of driving with excess alcohol.
Rehana Haque, prosecuting at South East Northumberland Magistrates' Court, said the police were called to the couple's address on the evening of July 30 this year.
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Despicable Kieran Ditchburn spat at two paramedics who had just saved his life and threatened to kill them and their families.
When the ambulance men revived him after he took a drugs overdose, the thug reacted with disgusting aggression instead of gratitude.
He spat in the face of one of the paramedics, leading to an anxious six month wait to see if blood tests showed if he had contracted any diseases.
A court heard Ditchburn also repeatedly punched his mother and taunted the ambulance crew by asking what they were going to do about it.
He then spat at two police officers.
The 21-year-old had been given a suspended prison sentence just weeks earlier for spitting at police while claiming to have coronavirus and calling medical staff offensive names.


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