Aluminium giant Rio Tinto Alcan is helping its neighbours investigate plans for a day centre.

The company, which runs a site near Lynemouth, Northumberland, has given £1,000 towards a feasibility study into a new day centre.

At present services are provided from Lynemouth Methodist Church Hall. But villagers are hoping that it can be replaced with a new building.

A local woman who cheated death in a motorbike lesson has overcome the trauma to pass her test. Michelle Tilley is now queen of the road on her Triumph Bonneville 800cc machine, which she enjoys riding on the rural stretches of Northumberland.

Michelle, 38, of Widdrington Station, hit the headlines back in January, when she crashed through a fence and plunged down to rocks on the riverside at Blyth.

Her Kawasaki 500 went out of control as she U-turned in her driving lesson.

One of the region's smallest schools has taken part in a workshop to help the pupils become more enterprising.

The children from Linton First School discovered what it means to be an entrepreneur when they met a business success.

Final proposals to create a £48m, all-age academy for 2,700 students in Northumberland are set to be approved by council bosses next week.

The Hirst Academy - to be co-sponsored by the Duke of Northumberland and the Church of England - will create a school over five sites in Ashington, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea and Lynemouth.

It will be Northumberland's second privately sponsored academy following the £30m Bede Academy taking shape in Blyth, and aims to improve exam results in the poorly-performing Hirst schools' partnership.