2 Yesterday in minutes
08:30 08:30 GCSE results After two years of hard work, coursework, revision, exams and nerves, the wait was finally over for thousands of youngsters across the North East who picked up their GCSE results.
The number of pupils achieving top exam results dropped across the North East and, like schools across the country, the region saw a fall in the numbers of children achieving the top grades, As or A*s.
The drop in the number of students achieving the top grades was 0.3%, the lowest fall across England, but the region lags behind in the numbers of As and A*s achieved with just 17.3% grades awarded being As or A*s – the second lowest number in England.
While the region did experience a fall in the number of in A*-C grades compared with 2015 — down 2.1% from last year’s 67.2% — figures published by the Joint Council for Qualifications show that the North East sits much closer to the national average than it has been in the past. 10:51 Robbery near Northumbria University A teenager was attacked and forced to withdraw money from a cash dispenser by a man and a woman next to Northumbria University.
Police only yesterday released details about the robbery, which happened on Falconar Street in Newcastle between 5am and 5.20am on Monday.
The pair assaulted the 19-year-old man and made him take out the cash.
The teen sustained minor injuries in the attack, leaving him “very distressed”, and police are hunting the man and woman who fled with his money. Witnesses should call 101. 14:24 Bogus builder warning A bogus builder turned a £15 job into a £7,000 nightmare for one elderly man from Newcastle .
The conman, claiming to be from a roofing firm, turned up on the doorstep of a 73-year-old from Gosforth and offered to clear his gutters for £15.
He then claimed he could see some structural damage to the property and asked for more cash on two occasions over the next week.
During this period the workman removed concrete and plaster from the house, causing substantial damage to the property.
The elderly resident handed over £7,000 in cash and the man claiming to be a roofer has not been seen since. 14:50 Tributes to biker Tributes have been paid to a greatgrandfather who had been a biker for more than five decades.
Eric Winn, 72, died after his Suzuki GSF 1200 motorcycle was involved in a collision with a Mazda car on a road between Windy Bank Road and the B6282 near the village of Woodland, west of Bishop Auckland, on Wednesday.
The Stanley resident had a keen love of motorcycles and had been riding for decades. 16:29 £300k cannabis farm A cannabis farm with an estimated street value of £300,000 has been found in South Shields.
Three men had kicked a door at a house in Brownlow Road before making off down an alley.
Officers attended the scene and when they went into the house found between 300 and 400 cannabis plants in a front bedroom and the loft. 18:30 Final Tall Ships arrive Some of the largest and most spectacular sailing ships have arrived in Blyth ahead of the eagerly-awaited North Sea Tall Ships Regatta.
Excited crowds gathered on the dock to watch the first of the magnificent vessels arrive. One early arrival was the Dar Mlodziezy from Poland, which, at 108 metres long, is one of the largest of our international visitors.
Some lucky youngsters were also treated to a short trip on the Morgenster before returning to port.
The vessels’ arrival heralds the start of the Regatta today. It runs until Monday, when the ships set sail from the Tyne on a 500 nautical-mile race to Gothenburg in Sweden. The four-day celebration is expected to bring more than 100,000 visitors to the region.