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Cuts to numbers of teachers for the deaf
Kirklees Council has announced it is cutting three specialist teachers for the deaf posts. It follows a campaign by local families and the National Deaf Children's Charity against the plans.
Praise for region's clean beaches
The Calendar region has some of the cleanest and best beaches in the world.
Keep Britain Tidy has announced the winners of the 2013 Blue Flag Awards. In total, six beaches have gained the Blue Flag Award in the region.
They are Central beaches in Mablethorpe, Skegness and Sutton on Sea, Cleethorpes North Promenade, Scarborough North Bay and Whitby.
These beaches have been rewarded for their fantastic facilities, cleanliness and, in the case of the Blue Flag awards, meeting the highest international standard of water quality.
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Adrian Purtell to share heart attack story with child patients
Bradford Bulls player Adrian Purtell is marking a year since a heart attack nearly ended his career by meeting with child heart patients in Leeds to share his experience.
New Free School approved in Doncaster
Education Secretary Michael Gove has today approved 102 new free school applications to open in 2014 and beyond, delivering around 50,000 new school places. One of the schools given the go-ahead will be in Doncaster.
Free schools are state-funded schools independent of local authority control. They are run by teachers. They have the freedom to decide the length of the school day and term, the curriculum, and how they reward their teachers and spend their money
The XP School in Doncaster is a teacher-led proposal drawing on the practices of charter schools in the USA.
David Bowie's tribute to 'great man' Trevor Bolder
David Bowie has paid tribute to his former bass-player Trevor Bolder as a "major inspiration and a "tremendous guy" after he died following a battle with cancer.
Bowie said: "Trevor was a wonderful musician and a major inspiration for whichever band he was working with. But he was foremostly a tremendous guy, a great man."
Bolder went on to join Uriah Heep five years later and only stopped playing with the band a few months ago, due to his poor health.
A statement from Uriah Heep said: "It is with great sadness that Uriah Heep announce the passing of our friend the amazing Trevor Bolder, who has passed away after his long fight with cancer.
"Trevor was an all-time great, one of the outstanding musicians of his generation, and one of the finest and most influential bass players that Britain ever produced."
Final Dancing on Ice tour in Sheffield
Jayne Torvill, Christopher Dean and ITV have announced that Dancing on Ice will end next year and this will be followed by the last ever Dancing on Ice tour, starting in March 2014.
Torvill & Dean’s Dancing On Ice – The Final Tour will stop off at the Motorpoint Arena, Sheffield one last time from Tuesday 15th – Thursday 17th April 2014.
This will be the 7th time that the tour has been to the Motorpoint Arena and having previously performed in front of over 160,000 fans here in Sheffield, tickets are sure to be in high demand.
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Bradford City celebrates with open-top bus
Victorious Bradford City Football Club will celebrate their promotion to League One with an open-top bus parade through the streets of Bradford. Fans will be able to line the streets and congregate in City Park to cheer their heroes as they parade the cup.
The parade will start at around 6.30pm from outside the stadium's 1911 Club and come in to City Park for around 7pm, before players and management take to the stage to show off the cup and celebrate with the fans. They will then be welcomed in to City Hall by the new Lord Mayor Coun Khadim Hussain.
– Council Leader David GreenBradford City have achieved amazing things this season and this parade and civic reception is our way of recognising this tremendous success and the benefits that this has brought to the city and district.
– Lord Mayor Coun Khadim HussainThis caps off a terrific season for Bradford City and I am sure that this parade will be a fantastic event for the people of Bradford to celebrate with their team. I’m also delighted to be welcoming the team to in to City Hall for a civic reception.
Spiders from Mars Bassist Trevor Bolder dies
Uriah Heep and Spiders From Mars bassist Trevor Bolder has died following a battle with cancer. The Hull born musician was 62. Bolder joined David Bowie's backing band in 1971, appearing on classic albums including Hunky Dory and Aladdin Sane.
He went on to join Uriah Heep five years later and only stopped playing with the band a few months ago, due to his poor health. Tributes have been paid to him as a "world-class" rock musician.
Fuel poverty concerns for over 60s
There is concern about the rising number of people over 60 in the region seeking help over fuel poverty
The debt charity StepChange says two fifths of those getting in touch are struggling to pay their bils and are spending more than 10% of their income on energy costs.
Not only are those who are seeking help from the charity aged 60 and over spending a higher proportion of their income on energy bills, they also owe more on gas and electricity bills than younger age groups.
Gas arrears:
- The charity’s clients aged 60 and over owed an overage of £684 on their gas bills, compared to £455 for clients overall
- The amount owed by the charity’s clients aged 60 and over on their gas bills has risen dramatically since 2009, when it was only £381
Electricity arrears:
- The charity’s clients aged 60 and over owed an overage of £568 on their electricity bills, compared to £488 for clients overall
- The amount owed by the charity’s clients aged 60 and over on their electricity bills has risen since 2009, when it was £431
