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A private landlord has been fined for illegally evicting his tenant by changing the locks while he was out the house. Trevor Bell had been served a section 8 notice - the first step in proceedings to bring a tenancy to an end. However, he failed to issue possession proceedings or secure any order of the court. South East Northumberland Magistrates' Court heard Northumberland County Council’s private sector housing team advised Bell it would be unlawful to evict the tenant without a court order. But in February 2018, the landlord changed the locks to the property while the tenant was out. Once the council became aware of the matter it was passed to the local authority’s corporate fraud team to investigate.

A man was taken to hospital with serious injuries after being assaulted in an early morning attack. Police were called to Front Street in Bedlington , Northumberland at around 2.50am on Sunday. It was reported that a man had been assaulted and left injured near to Bedlington Service Station. The victim was taken to hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries, a police spokesperson said. It is believed that a suspect made off from the scene in a vehicle. Northumbria Police have launched an investigation and ask anyone with any information to contact police by calling 101 and quoting reference number 144 28/04/19.

A Bedlington man cleared of a one-punch attack on an Aussie rugby star has been awarded A$100,000 in damages after winning a defamation case against a TV network. Sam Oliver hit the headlines when he was accused of flooring James Stannard with a 'king hit' - Australian slang for a single punch - outside a hotel in Sydney in the early hours of March 30 last year. Following the hearing, the Nine News Network broadcast a report calling the incident "a coward punch which ended the career of Rugby Sevens captain James Stannard". Now Mr Oliver has been awarded A$100,000 (£54,600) after a judge found the Australian network's report wrongly depicted Mr Oliver as being a coward who punched a defenceless man causing him grievous injury. Federal Court judge Michael Lee rejected Nine's argument that its report of the verdict was fair. Mr Stannard, who announced his retirement from rugby last June, struck his head on the pavement and suffered a fractured skull, spending two nights in hospital after the incident.

A new sports pitch at a special school in Cramlington has been given the go-ahead. A bid for the construction of a multi-use games area (MUGA) at Hillcrest Day Special School, on East View Avenue, was unanimously approved by the Cramlington, Bedlington and Seaton Valley Local Area Council on Wednesday (April 17). The application had sparked no objections and the planning officer described the facility as 'something that the Government and local authority seek to encourage', but it had to be decided by the committee as it involves a county council development on council-owned land. The proposed MUGA would measure around 30 by 16.5 metres with recessed goal ends and a synthetic-turf pitch in green. It would be surrounded by a one-metre-high perimeter fence, constructed with timber rails and steel posts in green, which would be raised to three metres behind the goals. The pitch, which would be located in the south-east corner of the school playing field with Northumbrian Road to the east and Church Street to the south, would be linked to the main school by a new concrete footpath.

A teenager called police to report a man was brandishing a knife in public - but it turned out to be him carrying the blade. Jack Barrass, 19, has been sent to prison for nine months after being caught by police in possession of the knife on March 24. The teenager had called police to claim that he had witnessed a man waving a knife above his head on St James' Crescent in Benwell. When police arrived they spotted a man who matched the description of the person given by the caller. Officers approached him and carried out a stop and search, at which point the man admitted he had a knife tucked into his trousers. Bodycam footage of the search has been shared by the force, showing Barrass admitting he has a knife seconds after being approached by an officer.

If you have an eye for a bargain these properties are going under the hammer for under £20,000. On the Auction House North East website these rundown dwellings are valued with that in mind. And if you are prepared to roll your sleeves up - you might be in for a tidy profit. These properties range from one bedroom flats to a three bedroom house. They are spread across our region in Washington, Blyth, Peterlee, Bedlington, Easington Colliery, Sunderland and Hartlepool. They go up for auction at Ramside Hall Hotel at Carrville, Durham, on Wednesday, 24 April, at 7pm.

Why Newcastle United stars of the 1950s swapped their strips for smart suits to pose for studio portraits has puzzled club historian Paul Joannou. The 12in by 9in studies are of Jackie Milburn (signed), Bobby Mitchell (signed), Tommy Walker, Ronnie Simpson, Norman Smith (signed), Bobby Cowell, Bill Foulkes, George Robledo, Alf McMichael (signed) and Ted Robledo (signed). They will be sold by Newcastle auctioneers Anderson and Garland on Tuesday, with an estimate of £150-£200. “They are lovely studio portraits and are very different from the usual pictures of Newcastle players in their black and white strips,” said Paul. “These are cinema-style portraits and are probably a one-off set. “If player pictures are taken for general sale you expect some to come on to the market, but I have never seen this type of format before. Maybe they were done for the players themselves.” Several of the pictures are signed “to Bill.”

Just 19 days after having his licence taken off him in court, dangerous driver Dean Bell was back on the road. Now, after being caught, he's back behind bars. The 33-year-old has been locked up for 26 weeks after he flouted the law by driving while disqualified. When caught, he tried claiming he was only testing the car for faulty brakes. Brazen Bell had been banned from the roads and was handed a community order by a judge in January. During the hearing, a court was also told how Bell had previously been jailed for dangerous driving in 2015. A court heard how he was arrested by police on January 30 after they saw him driving his partner's Vauxhall Insignia in Wallsend. He had a young child as a passenger so police did not engage the vehicle in a pursuit and instead arrested him later that day. At court Bell, of The Crescent, Barlow, Gateshead, claimed that he was just testing the brakes because he had suspicions they were faulty.

Blyth has been revealed as the location of a new special school, following Northumberland County Council's successful bid to the Government. The local authority submitted a bid last October for an 80-place secondary school for young people who have autism and social, emotional and mental health needs, as part of the Department for Education's Special Free School initiative. A free school is a non-profit-making, independent, state-funded school which is free to attend, but not wholly controlled by the local authority. The council would still commission and fund the places required for young people from the county. It was recently revealed that Northumberland had been successful in its bid and, at its meeting on Tuesday (April 9), the cabinet agreed to begin a formal competition for a trust which would run the school. Coun Wayne Daley, the cabinet member for children's services, highlighted that Northumberland has seen a 50 per cent increase in the number of pre-school children with complex needs since 2013 and the number of pupils in special schools has risen by 32 per cent in this period. "I'm delighted and I would like to recognise the work of the staff to get us to this stage," he said. "Next is getting that partner with a really successful track record that we can work with."

Councillors have agreed to launch an informal consultation on proposals for two Bedlington first schools to convert to primaries.

Councillors have agreed to launch an informal consultation on proposals for two Bedlington first schools to convert to primaries. At its meeting on Tuesday, Northumberland County Council's cabinet agreed to a request from the governing bodies of Whitley Memorial CE First School and Bedlington West End First School to carry out a consultation on extending their age ranges from September 2020. If the changes were to go forward, it would require a statutory proposal to be published, followed by a formal consultation. The Bedlington Partnership is currently a mix, with the majority having switched to a two-tier system of primaries and secondaries, while these two first schools and Meadowdale [Middle] Academy remain as a three-tier set-up. Since changing from high schools to secondary schools, Bedlington Academy and St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy have retained two annual intakes each September - at age 11 and age 13 - to reflect the mixed economy within the partnership. However, from September 2020, both secondary academies will only accept pupils at 11 (Year 7).

Towns across Northumberland are to share in more than £55,000 of additional community clean-up funding. This award for the county council comes from the Government's £10million High Streets Community Clean-Up Fund and will be used to help existing groups to carry out community-led street and town-centre cleans. Around £12,000 of the funding will be used for graffiti-removal kits that will be offered free to community groups; litter-picking equipment for the existing loan scheme or permanently for litter champions; Love Northumberland-branded tabards; and prizes for winners at the Love Northumberland awards. The remaining funds will be distributed through the towns of Morpeth, Alnwick, Berwick, Hexham, Blyth, Ashington, Cramlington, Ponteland, West Bedlington, Haltwhistle, Prudhoe and Amble to organise clean-up events. Coun Glen Sanderson, cabinet member for the environment and local services, said: "I am grateful to the Government for this useful award of funding. "We're so proud of our high streets and want to do all we can to keep them looking clean and tidy.

Indie rockers Pigeon Detective and former Ocean Colour Scene member Andy Bennett have been announced as the headline acts for this summer's Northumberland Live festival. The line-up is set to draw crowds to the beach in Blyth on June 22 where the free event will play out for the sixth year. Organisers announced the return of the music festival to the town h just days after it was revealed the Bedlington leg of the two-part event has been renamed . Also on its programme will be teenage singer-songwriter Chloe Rose who will be playing both festivals and Space who are best known for the hit Female Of The Species. Fans no doubt will be glad of a chance to catch up with The Pigeon Detectives, who released their fifth studio album Broken Glances in 2017 and played Leeds Festival the same year, and rock favourite Bennet, who left Ocean Colour Scene in 2015 to embark upon a successful solo career.

Murder accused Paul Johnson told a court the boss he is alleged to have choked to death was "very bad tempered" but "I loved him to bits". Johnson is alleged to have strangled building firm owner Steve Coulson after turning up at his flat in the early hours - before raiding his safe as he lay dead or dying on his bedroom floor. The 34-year-old denies murder and assault with intent to rob and is standing trial at Newcastle Crown Court. Johnson went into the witness box to begin giving evidence in the case and said Mr Coulson was a good friend but claimed he had a short fuse. He admitted he was taking crack cocaine last year, which he had begun using to try to cope with the fact his mum was suffering from cancer. She died around six months before Mr Coulson, he said. John Elvidge QC, for Johnson, asked him: “How did you regard Mr Coulson?”

Morrisons in Bedlington has donated an eggs-traodinary amount of Easter eggs to a group of bikers.

Fans of The Beautiful South can catch up with former members of the much-loved band when they headline at the newly-named Gallagher Park Live Music Festival in Bedlington this summer. The South - featuring Alison Wheeler and Gaz Birtles - will be heading north to get the party going at the free family-friendly festival - formerly part of Northumberland Live - on Saturday, July 27. Besides having a new title - named after its town location - the festival will have a new look too, while the Blyth leg of Northumberland Live is set to continue as usual. Also on its line-up for the day will be rising teen star Chloe Rose - a singer-songwriter who has performed at the likes of Old Trafford for Wayne Rooney’s testimonial and - one bound to delight young ones - CBeebies presenter Sid Sloane. Older music lovers will no doubt welcome a chance to hear favourite songs played live, courtesy of Wheeler and Birtle who front The South, which grew from the ashes of The Beautiful South - following its split-up in 2007 - and is now celebrating its 10-year anniversary. Sax player Birtles now joins Wheeler in singing duties since Dave Hemingway left at the end of 2016 and the nine-piece band continue to keep alive all those original hits such as Song For Whoever - now a remarkable 30 years old - plus the likes of Perfect 10; Rotterdam and number one hit A Little Time.

A Newcastle illustrator has been left in disbelief after one of his designs was used to mock Piers Morgan. The outspoken TV presenter has not been shy in sharing his disdain for Greggs' popular vegan sausage roll. So one viewer settled on the perfect wind-up for the Good Morning host - sending him a vegan-inspired birthday card. The early birthday card reads "I love Greggs vegan sausage rolls more than you", and even includes a fake coupon for a free vegan treat. Newcastle illustrator James Dixon - known under the business name Lines Behind - designed the card as part of his "I love you more than" card range to feature at Greggs festive bake exhibition last year. The 30-year-old, from Bedlington , was woken by friends tagging him in the Instagram post.

It's been almost a year since Miss Newcastle took us on a magic carpet ride for its Arabian Nights themed final and now we know the identities of the first nine girls in the running for this year's title. Over 300 girls from across the region applied to be Miss Newcastle 2019 , which is a record for the competition, and now the first nine finalists have been announced for the annual event which will once again raise money for The Chronicle's Sunshine Fund. The theme for this year's glittering final, hosted by the Gainford Group at The County Hotel, is Aphrodite and the goddesses already in the running for the Miss Newcastle crown are: Amy Conway, 21, Wallsend Charlotte Moore, 23, Newcastle Chelsea Simpkin, 19, Cramlington

Angry and disappointed residents remain unconvinced about the future of Bedlington town centre, after its redevelopment stalled earlier this year.

A prolific thief has been banned from all Sunderland's main shopping outlets. Samuel Metcalf, 35, is forbidden from setting foot in The Bridges Shopping Centre, Hylton Riverside Retail Park, Roker Retail Park and Pallion Retail Park for the next two years. The restrictions are set out in a Criminal Behaviour Order which came into effect last month (February) as a result of theft offences he has committed across the city. Metcalf, of Norfolk Street, Sunderland , has had four shoplifting convictions since August 2018 and was also convicted of a public order offence after becoming aggressive and threatening a shop worker when confronted about his behaviour. He is now no longer permitted to enter any of the city’s prime shopping outlets until 2021, and faces prison if he fails to comply or ignores any of the order’s strict conditions. Metcalf must also leave any other shop or commercial premises if asked by staff.