PUPILS and their parents have been told to stay calm after a meningitis alert at a New Forest school. A 13-year-old pupil at Priestlands School, Lymington, was rushed to hospital with the most dangerous form of the potentially fatal brain disease. However
Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith joined in sports day practice and painted a picture during a visit to a school. Mr Duncan Smith spent more than an hour talking to children at Townsend Primary and Nursery School, in Bournemouth, after making a major
A REWARD of £500 is being offered in a bid to catch the robber who held up the Bridport branch of the Halifax. The woman at whom he pointed the pistol was unhurt but shocked by the ordeal and is now on holiday. Richard Salt, a partner in solicitors Austen
WEST Dorset cheesemaker George Streatfeild is the star of a new promotional campaign for Waitrose. A picture of him, along with some of Denhay Farm's dairy cows, will help advertise West Country Farmhouse Cheddar, his award-winning, handmade cheese. Waitrose
HOMEOWNERS in Bridport's Nursery and Cordova Gardens say a new house that is going up has robbed them of their privacy and knocked thousands of pounds off the value of their properties. Twelve households have written to West Dorset District Council planners
A WEYMOUTH man died and a couple were taken to hospital after an accident on the A37 Dorchester to Yeovil road. Police said the accident happened near Holywell cross at 1.30pm yesterday when a 39-year-old Weymouth man riding a blue Suzuki motorbike was
CALLING all youngsters who crave a touch of drama in their lives this summer. Dorchester Youth Theatre (DYT) is running its annual Combined Arts Week in August and is still recruiting young people aged between 10 and 16 with an interest in the theatre
Original artwork from blockbuster Jaws movie fails to find a buyer at auction JUST when you thought it was safe to go back in the saleroom ... the Jaws phenomenon has hit Dorchester. The original artwork from the blockbuster Jaws movie went up for auction
HOUSEHOLDERS have praised new plans for Charlton Down near Dorchester, which could see a controversial Victorian ballroom refurbished as a community centre within a year. The proposals also envisage the development's first shop, children's play area and
WEYMOUTH Inner Wheel Ladies presented cheques to several local charities from their fundraising events throughout the year. President Marian Lovegrove handed over cheques of £250 each to Cathrin Dunford of South Dorset Talking Newspapers and to Peter
SCHOOLS in Dorchester are celebrating today after scooping £150,000 to ensure fewer youngsters are excluded from the classroom in future. The cash injection over the next three years from the Networked Learning Comm-unities Programme will be match-funded
ADVERTISERS will have to pay more if they want to be part of a glossy Weymouth holiday guide, borough councillors have decided. They ignored a call from hoteliers to increase advertising rates in line with inflation and settled for a five per cent rise
A touching tribute has been paid to the Bournemouth schoolgirl who collapsed and died during a night out with her twin sister. Nicola Hince was attending a school reunion at the Opera House in Boscombe on Wednesday when tragedy struck. News of her death
Children from Bridport's St Mary's School will be singing a special song at our Allington Hill picnic on Sunday. They have written the words and music in celebration of the hill and the will be accompanied by West Dorset musician Billy Bragg. The event
BRIDPORT man Roy Challis, whose son was killed in the Austrian train fire in November 2000, is calling for compensation to be paid to his daughter-in-law and grandaughter. Kevin, a ski instructor, died along with 154 others when a train caught fire in
JOBS are under threat at a Portland quarrying firm. Employees at Hanson Bath and Portland Stone are demanding answers after being told by bosses that a number of offers had been received for the business - even though it is not officially for sale. The
A REWARD of £500 is being offered in a bid to catch the robber who held up the Bridport branch of the Halifax. The woman at whom he pointed the pistol was unhurt but shocked by the ordeal and is now on holiday. Richard Salt, a partner in solicitors Austen
STAFF at Dorchester engineering specialist Dot Composites have a good reason to celebrate the landing of adventurer Steve Fossett at the end of his round-the-world balloon flight yesterday morning. The Piddlehinton firm built the specially-designed gondola
A Bournemouth firm using Ringwood's long-stay car park as a "park and ride" pick-up point for its workers has caused outrage in the market town. Traders and councillors are furious that, every day, J P Morgan buses in dozens of workers who leave their
BRIDPORT'S innovative music project for young people, ZEST!, has won an award of £28,278. The grant from the National Federation for Youth Music is the first to be given to any project in the county and means that the success of ZEST! can now be repeated
A BRIDPORT woman whose weight became such a problem to her has lost four-and-a-half stone and is now leading a slimming class. Denise Chamney is only 5ft tall but weighed nearly 15 stone. "I hated going anywhere new and meeting new people because they
Hundreds of commuters and school pupils across Dorset struggled to get to work and school, as more than 30 drivers protested about their pay and working conditions at Weymouth bus station. The drivers, members of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and
BRIDPORT'S innovative music project for young people, ZEST!, has won an award of £28,278. The grant, from the National Federation for Youth Music, is the first to be given to any project in the county and means that the success of ZEST! can now be repeated
THE Wyke Regis Horticultural Society (WRHS) held its annual sweet pea and rose show at the village Scout Hut. Dave Barter, 60, won four of the sweet pea classes with exhibits from his allotment at Green Lane, Wyke Regis, and his wife Maureen was commended
DORSET'S Workforce Development Programme has delivered a £3.5 million boost to 100 companies across the county. The first 100 firms which have participated in the Workforce Development Programme report an average financial benefit of £35,000 each. "Results
NEW Cherries skipper Carl Fletcher admits he can learn from his namesake Steve after being handed the captain's armband for the start of next season. With inspirational club captain Steve still sidelined by the knee injury which has plagued him for a
