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BBC News
04-03-2025
- Business
- BBC News
'Huge interest' in Telford town centre eco-homes, council boss says
Work to build almost 200 new eco-homes in Telford, as part of a wider regeneration of the area, has attracted "huge interest from local people", a council leader has said.A six storey apartment block and 103 new town houses and maisonettes are being built between Telford's train station and the town and Wrekin Council leader Lee Carter said the the first phase of the Station Quarter development was on track to be completed by summer than half of the homes will be owned by the council's lettings company, Nuplace. Plans for Station Quarter were approved in 2023 and construction on the digital learning centre The Quad began later in the five-storey building was completed in September and will welcome students from Harper Adams University and Telford College this council has invested £66.5m in to the Station Quarter project, while a further £36.6m of funding has come from central government."We'll generate income from some of the business units here," said Carter."Aside from that, we'll be giving people educational opportunities, which will give them better skills and access to good jobs."It means those young people can learn in Telford, get a job in Telford and live in Telford and contribute to the economy, which will benefit us all," he added. The council said that sustainability was at the heart of its Station Quarter homes will be fully electric with no gas, and heating will be provided by a mixture of electric panel heaters and storage heaters."The state-of-the art apartment block is our first living accommodation to be built and it's already causing huge interest from local people," said Carter."People predominantly over the age of 55 want to live there and that will be completed soon."The council has said 117 properties, including all of the apartments in the block and 33 of the town houses and maisonettes will be owned and managed by Nuplace, which both builds and manages the homes they rent. An iconic red footbridge linking the train station with the shopping centre was demolished last year so the area around Station Quarter could be 48m bridge crossed over Lawn Central, which has been closed to traffic ever since.A new pedestrian crossing has been installed and ramps and steps have been built on the bank alongside the shopping centre by council hopes to have the road reopened on 21 March. Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
07-02-2025
- General
- BBC News
Norfolk charity rescues horses found in a lorry at a port
A charity has rescued "bewildered" horses and ponies that were being illegally smuggled out of the UK for suspected fattening and slaughter in animals, including racehorses, were found in "horrific conditions" in a lorry at the Port of Dover in December, seven months after the ban on live exports. World Horse Welfare (WHW), which is based in Snetterton, Norfolk, said it was caring for eight surviving horses, including a pregnant mare and foals. Five Irish Thoroughbreds had to be euthanised. "It was an incredibly sad sight to see this very mixed group of horses, some of which were fully clipped and shod, so previously well cared for, now looking bewildered, poor and depressed, with vacant expressions," said WHW field officer Rebecca Carter. 'Heartbreaking scene' Many of the horses were too sick and weak to travel and were crammed into an unsuitable lorry where one foal was on the floor and unable to get back on its feet, the charity officials - who have been praised by WHW for their vigilance - redirected the lorry to a holding yard for further checks."I was faced with a heartbreaking scene," explained Ms Carter."The equines were so still and quiet and appeared shell-shocked from their ordeal."A number of the horses were underweight and had strangles, a highly contagious bacterial and potentially fatal infection – with the infected horses suffering from painful abscesses and fever." Two of the animals had pneumonia, some were suffering from skin conditions and various health issues, and unhandled foals were matted with faeces, she added."They were completely terrified and when I approached them, they buried their heads into each other and huddled together in a corner of the stable."Two Irish Thoroughbreds are recovering and are expected to be rehomed and seven horses in better health were claimed by their owners. The discovery was made one year after WFW helped rescue 26 horses, including pregnant mares, which had been crammed into a transporter at Dover. WHW chief executive Roly Owers said: "We always knew that the passing of the Animal Welfare (Live Exports) Act 2024, whilst a huge step forward, was never going to work in isolation. "Nevertheless, it is shocking to have been involved in another high-profile rescue of equines at Dover, many of whom were very likely being exported for slaughter."He said the welfare of transported equines would "never be fully protected" without a digital identification and traceability system. An investigation into the transportation of the 20 horses, which originated in Ireland, is ongoing.A spokesperson from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs said that the government did not comment on individual cases, but added: "It is illegal to export horses for slaughter under the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024."We have put in place measures to ensure this law is enforced robustly." Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
