Death of a serving Police Officer : Inspector Mark Hall

​Family, friends and colleagues of Newton Aycliffe Neighbourhood Inspector Mark Hall have paid tribute to him after his sudden death last week.
Mr Hall, 47, who lived in Newton Aycliffe, fell ill when he was out on his bicycle on the evening of Thursday, April 23. He was taken to hospital in Darlington then transferred to Durham, where he sadly passed away on Friday, April 24.
Mark leaves behind his wife Tina, children Rebecca, 25, Luke, 24, and Ben, 9; three step-children, Nathan, 24, Chris, 22 and Joshua 20, and three grandchildren.
Mr Hall’s family said: “Mark was a beloved son, brother, husband, father and grandfather. To have him taken from us so suddenly is heart-breaking.
“His career as a police officer, his membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and his work with young people were all extremely important to him, however his first priority and love was his family.
“He loved to watch his youngest son play football and other sports, and in the past couple of years has spent many a weekend playing golf with nine-year-old Ben to help him develop his love and passion for the sport.
“The world has lost not only a highly respected member of the community but most importantly a committed, loving and charitable son, husband, father, grandfather, colleague and friend.”
Superintendent Kerrin Smith said: “We are deeply saddened and shocked by the loss of Mark. He was a much-loved friend and colleague of so many people at Durham Constabulary and will be hugely missed.
“Mark began his career as a police officer with Bedfordshire Police in 1990, transferring to Durham in 2001. During his time with Durham he undertook a number of different policing roles, but most recently was the Neighbourhood Inspector for the Newton Aycliffe, Shildon and Sedgefield areas. He was passionate about the role, leading the team by example, and doing all he could to ensure local people felt safe in the communities in which they live.
“All our thoughts are with Mark’s family and friends at this difficult time.”
An online book of condolence has been opened so that people can leave messages about Mark. You can add a message by following the link below and clicking on the ‘contribute’ button at the top of the page: http://mark-hall.muchloved.com/

Death of a retired Police Officer : DC Donald Stephen Brett

It is with regret that we have to announce the death of a retired Police Officer, DC Donald Stephen Brett , who died on 22^nd April 2015  aged 89 years.
Mr Brett joined Durham Constabulary 1^st September 1951 and served at Houghton, Willington, Dog Section, Crime Stats, NECRO, Newton  Aycliffe CID before retiring from Special Branch at Teesside Airport, 31^st August 1981.
He leaves two sons, John and Leonard.
The funeral will take place at 9:45 am on Wednesday 6^th May 2015 at St Clare’s Church, Newton Aycliffe, followed by a cremation at Darlington Crematorium. 
The service is not private.
Friends and former colleagues are welcome to attend the service followed by refreshments at The British Legion, MacMillan Road, Newton Aycliffe.
Family flowers only by request please.  Donations in lieu of flowers, if so desired, can be made to Macmillan Nurses – a plate will be available in church.
Our thoughts are with the family at this sad time.

Death of a retired Police Officer : PC 1123 Arnold Walker

It is with regret that we have to announce the death of a retired Police Officer : PC 1123 Arnold Walker, who died on the 17^th April 2015, aged 81 years.
Mr Walker retired from Durham Constabulary on the 1^st January 1984. It is believed that he served at Durham City and retired from Durham Comms
Mr Walker leaves a widow Maureen.
The funeral service will be taking place on the 30^th April 2015 at St. Magdalene Church, Belmont at 2.30pm this will then be followed by the cremation service, afterwards friends can gather for refreshments at the Parish Hall in Belmont. The funeral service is not private.
The family have requested family flowers only but donations can be made in lieu of flowers to Alzheimers Research (Dementia Cafe, Belmont)
Our thoughts are with the family at this sad time.

Cadet Reunion

If you were a Police Cadet (or Junior Fireman) with Northumberland/Northumbria, Durham, Cleveland or North Yorkshire and resident at Durham (Sedgefield/Aykley Heads) anytime between 1969 – 1975, you are invited to a Reunion Evening on Friday 9^th October 2015, 6pm – 10pm at Ramside Hall Golf Club, Durham.

Food will be available.

Please see Durham Police Cadets Facebook Group for regular updates and more information. We are trying to contact as many former cadets or perhaps staff as possible, so please pass this on to anyone you are in contact with and anyone you have been meaning to contact for years.

We would appreciate contact to let the venue know numbers.

Please contact Carol Moore (nee Potts)  at carol.moore56@icloud.com

Driving Licence changes on the 8th June

The DVLA says that from June 8, drivers with a photocard driving licence should destroy their paper counterpart and only keep the photocard, remembering to renew it when necessary (gov.uk/renew-driving-licence). Motorists could face a £1,000 fine if they are caught with an invalid licence.

Old style paper driving licences issued before the photocard was introduced in 1998 will still be valid and should not be destroyed.

The DVLA confirmed that there would be no charge for changing an old style paper licence to a photocard licence with a change of details. However, once the motorist has the photocard licence, they will have to pay £20 each time it is renewed (every 10 years).

Anyone over the age of 70 will need to renew their licence every three years, updating it with any medical conditions. This is free of charge. "If a driver updated their licence with a change of address, name or notified a medical conditions then the updated licence issued will be a photocard licence," the DVLA said.

This change means that all licences, including the old style pre-1998 paper licences, will no longer be annotated with new driving convictions and penalty points. Instead, drivers will be able to share their licence details with third parties via a new digital service called "View Driving Licence". Motorists can go online to view their own driving record at gov.uk/view-driving-licence.

This service allows drivers to see how many penalty points they have and what vehicles they can drive.

The DVLA said it was developing another service for those who need to check the driving record of an employee or customer.

A spokesman for the DVLA said: “We want to make it as easy as possible for motorists to access government services.

“Getting rid of needless bits of paper, making changes to free up drivers' time, while saving money for the taxpayer, is all part of our commitment to cut unnecessary red tape. That is why we are introducing new and easy to use digital services that will allow drivers and businesses to check driving entitlement and endorsements. This means there will no longer be a need for the paper counterpart of the driving licence which will save drivers over £5m every year."

Death of a retired Police Officer : Sgt 151 Thomas Henry WHITE

It is with regret that we have to announce the death of a retired Police Officer : Sgt 151 Thomas Henry WHITE, who died on Sunday 29^th March 2015, aged 90 years.
He retired from Durham Constabulary on 31^st March 1973.
Tom's wife Margret has sadly also died on the 4th April.
There funeral will take place at 2:30 pm on Thursday 9^th April 2015 at Hartlepool Crematorium.  The service is not private.  Friends and former colleagues are welcome to attend the service.
No flowers please by request.  Donations in lieu of flowers can be made to the Durham Constabulary Benevolent Fund.
Our thoughts are with the White family and friends at this sad time.