Piers Meyler

Tributes have been paid to a former Brentwood Lib Dem councillor hailed as a “driving force of energy” who has died at the age of 51.

The date has been set for a mass cycle event for tens of thousands of people to ride through some of Essex’s prettiest countryside from London and back next year.

Persistent disruptive behaviour was the most common reason for permanent exclusions at state-funded schools in Essex between 2016/2017 and 2020/21 – but the numbers expelled for that have almost halved in those four years.

Installing solar panels on the roof of a new Essex County Council-led development in Epping Forest has been branded “greenwashing” by councillors.

Essex County Council’s arms-length development company is set to build flats in Epping Forest despite the design being described as ‘out of keeping’ to the area.

A quarter of households in Harlow have less than £30 per month disposable income, Essex County Council data has concluded.

First pictures have been revealed of the rear of a property owned by former football boss Glenn Tamplin after as much as 15,000 tonnes of waste was dumped on it.

Essex’s new £2.4m plan for libraries across the county has been set out, alongside a promise to keep them all open.

Leaseholders say they are "depressed" and losing sleep over bills of up to £30,000 for repairs.

Work to regenerate Harlow town centre into an ‘urban forest’ could be underway 12 months, the local council has heard.