ALAN McCormack has been snapped up by Charlton Athletic after having his contract cancelled at Southend United. The Irish midfielder has signed a two year deal at the Valley. McCormack made 156 appearances during a four year spell at
MAURICE Chambers returned career-best figures to inspire a fine fightback by Essex against LV= County Championship title-chasing Nottinghamshire at Chelmsford. The 22-year-old fast bowler finished with six for 68 as the visitors had to settle for a
A SUCCESSFUL one-off event has prompted a more regular get together for the over 55’s. Rochford District Council, Rochford Housing Association and Southend United Community and Educational Trust put together a free special exercise class for residents
A COUNCIL has shown it is a good egg by winning a national award. Rochford District Council joined top UK companies including Marks and Spencer and Sainsbury’s by winning an award from Compassion in World Farming. The council collected its award
WHEN teenager Robert Doughty rolled into a Rayleigh mansion in a top of the range Bentley, people thought a Premier League footballer was moving in. But what neighbours didn’t know was Doughty was nothing but a fantasist fraudster, who bought himself
A man suffered a broken jaw after he was punched in an unprovoked attack. The victim, a 26-year-old man from Purfleet, was outside the Towngate pub in Market Square, Basidon when the attack happened. A man walked up to him and punched him on the side
SOUTHEND High School for Boys achieved their 14th national athletics title at the weekend, winning the junior boys section in Gateshead. The success was the seventh time in 10 years that Southend High have won the trophy. And they finished runners up
A TEENAGE girl was rape in an alleyway in Grays. Police were called to Orsett Road, Grays in the early hours of Saturday morning following reports that a teenage girl from Havering had been raped in an alleyway near Grays Park. Police want to hear from
AN MP is urging landowners to stop hiring a controversial car clamping company to manage their car parks. Rochford and Southend East Tory MP James Duddridge said he wants to find out which shops and businesses use LBS Enforcement and write to them.
THE husband of a disabled woman has hit out at “selfish” drivers who clog up vital disabled parking bays at Basildon Hospital. Ken Keeping, of Tinklerside, Basildon, has to take his disabled wife Lynda, 62, to the hospital at least twice a week, but
ALMOST £1.6million of unpaid debt has been written off by Southend Council in the past year. More than half of the total, £900,000, is made up of unpaid council tax and business rates. The rest includes housing benefit which was claimed
BLUES’ new assistant manager Tommy Widdrington has urged those connected with the club to look forward not back. Widdrington, who had been in charge at Salisbury Town, will work alongside Paul Sturrock at Roots Hall. And he is sure that together they
SOUTHEND United's friendly with Ipswich Town, which was scheduled to take place on Friday, has been called off. Blues currently have a squad of just nine first team players. And new boss Paul Sturrock revealed yesterday how he felt the
GRAFFITI vandals have caused thousands of pounds of damage in Southend. Police are now urging people to look out for the tags YET’, ‘SAINT’, ‘MCNAB’, ‘EMM’ and either ‘WERD’ or ‘NERD’ which have been scrawled across walls, fences, and buildings. They
THESE men are wanted by police following an attack at Leigh railway station. A 24-year-old man had been at a work party at a pub in Leigh before leaving to get the train home. He was attacked on platform two of the station and punched
AN MP is calling for trains on the c2c line between south Essex and London to run later at weekends. Rochford and Southend East Tory MP James Duddridge said trains which are available until 1am or 2am on Fridays and Saturdays would make
A COUNCIL has hit out at residents for mucking up its recycling bins. Thurrock Council says those people who are putting food waste into its blue recycling bins could cost them as much as £200,000 in fines from its waste contractor. Council cabinet
A sensory garden is giving special needs children at Beacon Hill School the opportunity to smell different kinds of herbs and sit down and listen to stories. The garden was the brainchild of Stanford-le-Hope and Corringham sixth form students
A COUNCILLOR leading a campaign to get a commemorative plaque installed on Billericay’s war memorial to honour the town’s victims of terrorism, believes he may have come up with a compromise. For four years Terry Gandy has been battling for a fitting
THE widow of a man killed by a careless driver says she holds no grudge against the man behind the wheel. Len Johnson, 65, was knocked down as he walked along Benfleet High Road in November. The retired court usher, of Overton Drive, Benfleet, died
DOG owners are being told in no uncertain terms to clear up after their pets by a message on a seawall. The message, written in chalk, has been scrawled on Canvey seawall, near Kellington Road, and has an arrow pointing to more than 20 bags of dog mess
WANNABE word wizards can spell their way to success, thanks to a donation of new modern dictionaries. The batch of gleaming dictionaries are being delivered to every Billericay infant and junior school, thanks to the Billericay Mayflower Rotary Club
Details of a change of tactics by the taxman over Southend United's finances Four-page special on Paul Sturrock's appointment as Blues manager Latest on the girl who was seriously injured after being hit by a council contractor's van
A FAMILY’S crumbling house has been branded a health threat by their GP. Tony Perry, 28, and partner Jodi Lake, 24, live in a three-bedroom home in Panfields, Laindon, with their two children. A massive crack has developed in the front
MORRISONS has unveiled plans for a new superstore in Hadleigh on the site of a former car showroom. The proposals will see the supermarket chain’s current store in London Road demolished and a bigger supermarket built next door at the former
MOTORISTS on south Essex roads are driving on some of the safest in the UK, according to a survey. The Road Safety Foundation’s annual survey shows none of the roads in south Essex are high risk, or even medium to high risk. Taken from accident data
A SPECTACULAR topsy-turvy play garden has clinched Southend Council a prestigious award at the Hampton Court Flower Show. The Playful Garden was designed and made by the council’s parks staff to captivate children, with support from playground
