TWO new studies have been commissioned in a bid to finally make progress on a long-running campaign to restore passenger train services to Northumberland's most heavily-populated area.

Regular commuter trains between Newcastle and Ashington have been an aspiration for local politicians and rail campaigners for almost 20 years.

The project involves reintroducing passenger services on the freight-only Ashington, Blyth and Tyne line, which was axed as part of the 1960s' Beeching cuts.

AN ageing leisure centre in one of Northumberland's biggest towns is to close - and a major exercise is being launched to decide what will replace it.

Cash-strapped council chiefs admitted yesterday that the closure of Ashington Leisure Centre is inevitable, amid warnings that the existing building and equipment is in serious danger of failure within the next 12 to 18 months.

County council bosses - faced with having to make budget savings of between £20m and £30m next year - say further investment in the centre cannot be justified because of its failing swimming pool plant, leaking roof and other expensive problems.

The timescale for closure is not yet clear, but officials will now carry out a detailed planning exercise using a Sport England model, and consult with user groups, to decide what facilities will replace the axed centre.

FAMILIES in a Northumberland town are enjoying a more peaceful Christmas after council watchdogs seized equipment from a noisy neighbour.

Six TVs, three DVD players and a surround sound system were among the items confiscated from the nuisance neighbour in Maple Street, Ashington.

County council environmental health officials took action to remove all equipment capable of producing amplified noise from the property following repeated complaints from fed-up residents about excessive noise.

A car was destroyed in a fire last night.

The incident happened on Newbiggin Road, in Ashington, Northumberland, at around 11.10pm.

The Vauxhall Corsa caught fire and the blaze affected a nearby garage.

A spokesman from Ashington fire station said: "There was no-one inside the garage and the people inside the adjoining house had left the property before we arrived.

"We were at the scene for around an hour. The car was written-off and the garage was badly damaged. The cause of the blaze is not known and investigations are under way."

Two North karate clubs put on a spectacular floor show at the Seahouses Junior Competition.

Ashington and Linton students competed superbly in team and Individual kata and kumite events, as entrants of all ages gained recognition for their achievements.

Ashington's biggest achievers were the trio of Kyle Duddridge, Alex Ralph and Dylan Gibson.

Police are appealing for witnesses after an attempted robbery in Ashington.

A 43-year-old woman was approached by two masked men as she walked along Milburn Road, at the junction with Sixth Avenue.

The men pushed her against the wall and demanded cash before running off in the direction of Beauman Square when the woman screamed.

The two attackers are described as being around 5ft 7in tall and were both wearing black woollen hats or balaclavas pulled over their faces and dark tracks suit bottoms.

Anyone who may have witnessed the incident, or who has any information is asked to contact Ashington CID on 0345 604 3043, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Family history buffs in Northumberland are turning to the web.

Northumberland County Council produced a video (below) to raise awareness of the facilities available to people wanting to know more about their ancestors.

It was uploaded onto internet video sharing site YouTube and has got more than 12,000 hits.

Waste bosses are urging Northumberland residents to think green this Christmas.

Northumberland County Council and SITA UK will recycle Christmas trees, cards, wrappings and drink containers.

Household waste recycling centres across the county will be open every day except Christmas Day and New Year's Day, and Christmas trees can be taken along at any time and recycled with other green waste.

Local charity WATBus Community Transport are to benefit from funding to provide cycling in Northumberland.

Manager Lynn McIntosh explained: ''The funding will allow us to provide 3 free trips into Northumberland from Blyth, Ashington and Newbiggin areas for 36 customers who want to cycle the beautiful coastline.

Transport will be provided free of charge so all names will go into a hat and winning groups drawn from each area."

Green activities and a focus on protecting the environment have won a coveted award for youngsters at a Northumberland school.

Pupils at Bothal Middle School Sports College in Ashington have been given a gold award by the Woodland Trust for getting involved in work such as tree planting, cutting carbon emissions and recycling.

The awards scheme launched this year offers schools the opportunity to bring the great outdoors, the world of wildlife and green issues into the classroom, with the help of a range of resources.