Appeal for new house thrown out A PLANNING inspector has thrown out an appeal for a new house to be built in the grounds of a listed former church in the hilltop hamlet of Kingston near Corfe Castle. When the plan came before the council architect Barry
PEOPLE ignoring a red light stop signal at the pedestrian rail crossing at Wareham are risking it being closed, a town councillor warned colleagues. Coun David Budd said: "Some people are continuing to ignore the red stop and wait light." He added:
A WHO'S who of the world of science has gathered in Weymouth to draw up new European guidance for catching shellfish. Experts from across the globe have been drafting water hygiene surveys at an international conference in the Centre for Environ-ment
A TANK used by the Germans during the Second World War occupation of Jersey is on its way back to Dorset - by ferry. The 29-tonne French vehicle was shipped to a museum on the island on loan back in January. Now nine months on Condor Ferries is set
NEW students at Weymouth's Budmouth Technology College overcame terrible weather during an adventure week on Dartmoor. The trip, which included principal David Akers, gave the youngsters a valuable opportunity to get to know senior students and staff
A fond farewell to home stalwart SHELTERED housing officer Pat Sherret has retired after more than two decades serving the residents of Fiveways in Weymouth. But the 60-year-old won't be putting her feet up for long... she'll be making herself available
MENTAL health services in Dorset have been given top marks. A new survey carried out by the Healthcare Commission found that Dorset Primary Care Trust and the Dorset HealthCare NHS Foundation Trust were providing top services in many categories and at
CHARITIES in Dorset are being urged to enter a new competition. Nominations are now open for the Wessex Charity Awards. PAS Charity Recruitment Consultants is running the contest. Director Jenny Warner said: "We work with so many fantastic charities
MILLIONS of pounds of public money could be ploughed into Dorset's bus network to ensure services stay on the road. Council chiefs are keeping a firm check on services which are going through significant change.' Dorset County Council may increase financial
TRADITIONAL Dorset songs, poetry and humour will be performed from 7pm onwards this evening (Sat) at West Stafford village hall in aid of the roof appeal for St Andrew's Church's in the village. Contact Gordon Shaw on 01305 261771 for more information
COUNCILLORS have unanimously refused retrospective planning permission for an MoT servicing and vehicle repair business at a yard off Melcombe Place, Weymouth. Members of Weymouth and Portland planning and traffic committee went against their officers
A MOVE to close Dorset's regional fire control centre in Poundbury will cost more than it will save, it has been claimed. David Fox, the chairman of Dorset Fire Authority, says the plan to transfer fire control rooms in the South West to a main control
THERE was a double celebration at Holy Rood Church in Wool as its patronal festival, Holy Cross Day, coincided with national Back to Church Day. It was the first time that the church had taken part in the Back to Church event, designed to encourage newcomers
AGATHA Christie's most popular mystery, And Then There Were None, comes to Dorset this month with a stellar cast of performers. Prolific theatre producer Bill Kenwright has teamed up with the official Agatha Christie Theatre Company to bring the production
BUSINESS and community leaders have presented a framed photograph of Pulpit Rock, Portland, as a farewell gift to Dorset Echo managing director Paul Kinvig. He was saying goodbye after three years hosting regular monthly meetings of senior local figures
A MEETING is to take place between members of a cash-strapped club and a potential investor. Weymouth's Centenary Club's treasurer Mike McManus said that a businessman was interested in supporting the club and helping to keep it running. Mr McManus
A MOTHER-OF-THREE bought £3,000-worth of stock including counterfeit computer games and children's toys to sell through an internet auction site, a court was told. Michelle Louise Hallworth, 25, of Newstead Road, Weymouth, admitted selling a counterfeit
A WOMAN driver was left unconscious in her car overnight after it left the road and crashed into a tree. Police said her red Vauxhall Agila careered into a wooded area and flipped onto its roof, knocking her out. The woman, 21, was not found until the
Advice for worried parents PARENTS and individuals who are worried about dyspraxia are being invited to a special surgery on the condition. Dyspraxia, often called clumsy child syndrome', is an impairment of the organisation of movement that leads to
FEARS that a fisherman had fallen overboard sparked a major search and rescue operation by coastguards. Search teams, two lifeboats, a rescue helicopter, a Dorset Police boat and three other vessels spent three hours searching the Fleet near Weymouth
A BRAVE youngster from Weymouth who is winning her battle with leukaemia has won the personal support of Prince Charles. Katie Ings was diagnosed with the disease two years ago and fell so ill at one stage there were fears she might die. But the battling
WEYMOUTH Doonan Wildcats' team manager Jem Dicken believes tonight's Challenge meeting at the Wessex Stadium against the Oxford Cheetahs (7.15pm) will be a chance for his riders to "redeem themselves". Despite being able to celebrate a secured place
WEYMOUTH'S Anton Robinson described gaining his first cap for the England C team as an "unreal" experience. The midfielder played all 90 minutes in Tuesday's 6-2 international friendly defeat to Bosnia & Herzegovina's second-string. Despite losing in
ROB Pavey's nomadic Weymouth Sunday League outfit AFC Black Dog - now sporting their third club name in as many years - have made a bizarre start to their Premiership campaign. They suffered a heavy 11-0 drubbing in their opener with the Kingswood before
ANY non-League football club announcing a £1.1m profit in these uncertain financial times would certainly make big news. The headline figure from Weymouth Football Club's annual accounts for the year ending May 31, 2007, unfortunately gives a misleading
THEY do say that life imitates art, and that certainly seems to be true of many of the towns that are grouped in our corner of south-western France. Many are the times that one of our happy tourist visitors has declared that the medieval town with the
C. Percival's letter Relief road will help us view countryside highlights a positive and hitherto unexpressed aspect of the project, and I, for one, fully agree with him. Another advantage which I have not seen referred to in the press is that the new
A WING mirror was removed from a silver Toyota car parked in Edward Road, Dorchester, police said.
Madonna was staying in the same hotel as the journalists on the new Honda Jazz launch. On the correct side of the half-century to be a potential customer, we thought she'd be delighted to test-drive one of the superminis. Apparently not. By declining
FIREFIGHTERS carried out a 40-minute rescue operation to free a woman who was trapped in her car. The woman was freed after an accident at Spire Hill Farm in Stalbridge. Sturminster Newton firefighters removed the back of the woman's car in order to
THE door of a lock-up in Earl Close, Dorchester, was damaged when it was forced open by an intruder, but nothing was stolen, police said.
WEYMOUTH'S popular beach donkeys have the best feet in the business - and that's official. The donkeys, owned by Maggie Aldridge, walked away with the Best Trimmed Feet Award in a national competition. The annual contest, run by the Donkey Sanctuary
A BODY found in a submerged car has been confirmed by Dorset Police as that of missing Bridport woman Victoria Jane Mann. A force spokesman said an inquest into her death was opened and adjourned at Blandford yesterday. Miss Mann's Ford Ka was recovered
HE WAS delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. Romans Ch4v25
By JIM THORNEYCROFT Minister of Radipole United Reform Church I'VE been a member of the RAC for years now and the reason I mention it is that those three letters help us remember three important points in the Lord's Prayer. The first point is
