Food bank

Huge rise in foodbank users

The East has seen its biggest ever increase in foodbank users. Over the last year there's been a 230% rise in numbers asking for help.

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Unemployment rate falls by 2,000

Unemployment in the East of England fell by 2,000 in the three months to March, official figures have revealed.

The Office for National Statistics showed that a total of 210,000 people were unemployed in the region between February and April.

The region's unemployment rate was 6.8% and saw a fall of 0.9% during the period. The worst area in the UK was the South West which recorded a 17,000 increase in the number of people without a job.

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RAIL: GREATER ANGLIA

Disruption on Greater Anglia between Stratford and Ipswich, between Stratford and Southend Victoria, between Stratford and Tottenham Hale and between Stratford and Shenfield due to over running engineering works.

Trains on the East Anglia line may not run between Stratford and Shenfield, while trains on the West Anglia line running to Stratford may be diverted to run to and from Liverpool Street

Thousands need measles jab in East of England

A major campaign has started to ensure children are vaccinated against measles as figures show the number of cases in the Anglia region is on the rise.

In the first three months of 2013, 42 cases were reported in the East and East Midlands, nearly half the total number of cases for the whole of 2012.

Health officials are highlighting the need for vaccinations to prevent epidemics like the one in Swansea.

Click below to watch a report by ITV News Anglia's Elodie Harper:

Q&A: What is measles and how is it treated?

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Fears of rise in measles cases in Anglia region

Measles cases in the East of England and the East Midlands since 1996 Credit: Public Health England / ITV Anglia

Around a million children are to be targeted in a national catch-up vaccination campaign aimed at curbing a rise in measles cases in England. The East of England has so far seen a relatively small number of measles cases in 2013 at 29 but in the whole of 2012 there were only 49 cases.

In recent years, the number of measles cases in the East of England peaked in 2007 with 159 before falling back. The average number of cases in the decade starting in 1996 was only 14 cases per year.

Measles cases in the East of England

The number of measles cases in the East of England in the first three months of 2013 stands at 29. The region has among the lowest occurrence of the infectious disease in England although there a fears the number of cases will rise.

It compares with a total of 49 cases in the East of England in the whole of 2012.

The government says a million children who missed out on getting the MMR vaccine in England are being targeted in a campaign to raise the level of protection against measles after an outbreak in Wales.

In the East Midlands, which includes Northamptonshire, there were 13 cases between January and March 2013 and 56 cases in the whole of 2012.

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