Leven Bridge update

Divers have confirmed that the Leven river bed under the bridge has been eroded following the heavy rainfall of the past few weeks. As a result it seems that the bridge has moved slightly, not enough to cause collapse but enough to damage the road surface and to need a remedy sooner rather than later. As a result the bridge will be closed for at least 8 weeks. Meetings are being arranged to discuss the long term problems for the bus services which usually run over the bridge. The children who make the daily commute from Ingleby Barwick to Conyers and Egglescliffe schools are putting up with even longer days and hundreds of adults are finding their daily journey to and from work has lengthened. The silver lining is that no-one was killed or injured, thanks to swift action to close the bridge.
This morning I had a trip down memory lane to St Cuthbert's primary school for a Fairtrade coffee morning. A good number of parents and grandparents of the children were there and the helpers were enthusiastically encouraging people to change to Fairtrade goodies. There was tea and coffee on sale to help them make the switch as well as chocolate to taste. There were old acquaintances to renew too, and I look forward to seeing them all again when the school declares its Fairtrade status which can't be too far off now. In the near future, I'm going back tomorrow to see a penalty shoot out with Fairtrade footballs.