The following are the latest results contributed by HM Courts Service, for cases sentenced by West Sussex Magistrates’ Court sitting at Worthing and South East Hampshire Magistrates’ Court sitting at Portsmouth from December 19 to 23, 2016.

Thomas Marsh, 25, of Kirdford Road, Arundel, was given a 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, with six-week curfew, electronically monitored, from 9pm to 7am, and Rehabilitation Activity Requirement after being found guilty of assault by beating in Arundel on July 23, 2016. He must carry out 80 hours’ unpaid work and pay £100 compensation, £115 victim surcharge and £400 costs.

Isheanesu Muzhanye, 22, of Heron Court, Victoria Road, Worthing, admitted breaching a community order by failing to attend a rehabilitation appointment and failing to attend unpaid work. The order was varied to include ten additional days’ unpaid work. He must pay £70 costs.

Glen Beevis, 41, of Ferry Road, Littlehampton, was fined £230 and must pay £30 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting making a threatening mobile phone call in Littlehampton on November 16, 2016.

Jacky Kwok, 53, of Rogate Road, Worthing, was fined £693 and must pay £69 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting drink-driving (42mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath) on the A283 Washington on December 1, 2016. She was disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Andrew Lee, 52, of Conway House, Beach Road, Littlehampton, was given a community order with two-month curfew, electronically monitored, from 7pm to 7am, after admitting producing 12 cannabis plants in Littlehampton on October 22, 2016. He must pay £85 victim surcharge and £85 costs.

Joshua Lee, 22, of Hatfield Walk, Durrington, was jailed for a total of 18 weeks. He admitted breaching a suspended sentence order and the suspended eight-week prison sentence was implemented for the original offence of stealing meat worth £80 from Tesco, Worthing, on February 18, 2016. He was given an eight-week consecutive prison sentence and must pay £39.96 compensation after admitting stealing four gift boxes worth £39.96 from Lloyds Pharmacy, New Road, Worthing, on October 29, 2016. He was given a 14-day consecutive prison sentence after admitting failing to comply with supervision requirements following release from prison. He also received five eight-week concurrent prison sentences and must pay a total of £177.50 compensation after admitting stealing three boxes of chocolate worth £18 from McColls, Wallace Parade, on November 16, 2016; stealing meat worth £50 from Sainsbury’s, Goring, on November 25, 2016; stealing seven boxes of chocolate from McColls, Wallace Parade, on November 23, 2016; stealing meat worth £50 from Sainsbury’s, Goring, on November 26, 2016; stealing food worth £9.50 from McColls, Wallace Parade, on November 30, 2016.

Zoe Rees, 32, of Pilgrims Walk, Worthing, was discharged conditionally for 12 months and must pay £20 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting possessing cannabis in Worthing on November 29, 2016; and resisting a police constable in Worthing on November 29, 2016.

Michael Stanley, 26, c/o Seabrook Court, Cecil Road, Lancing, was fined £120 and must pay £30 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting driving without insurance in Blenheim Avenue, Worthing, on September 23, 2016. His driving record was endorsed with six points.

Andrew Gillett, c/o Halewick Lane, Sompting, was fined £80 and must pay £30 victim surcharge, £50 costs, after admitting assaulting a police constable in Marine Parade, Worthing, on December 2, 2016.

Todd McDaid, 28, of Whitelot Way, Southwick, was given a community order with Rehabilitation Activity Requirement and fined £30 after admitting assault by beating in Shoreham on October 3, 2016. He must pay £85 victim surcharge and £85 costs.

Brian Knill, 65, of The Gilberts, Sea Road, Rustington, was given a 20-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, after admitting making two false declarations that he was not the driver at the time of a speeding offence in Rustington between June 18, 2016, and July 4, 2016. He must pay £115 victim surcharge and £85 costs.

Thomas Gritton, 30, of Eastleigh Court, Cumbrian Close, Worthing, was discharged conditionally for two years and must pay £1,000 compensation, £20 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting assault causing actual bodily harm in Goring on November 18, 2016.

Jody Haynes, 35, of Meadow Road, East Worthing, was discharged conditionally for two years and must pay £20 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting stealing candles worth £52.77 from Beales, Worthing, on December 3, 2016.

George O’Neill, 62, of Onslow Drive, Ferring, was fined £120 and must pay £30 victim surcharge, £85 costs, after admitting drink-driving (61mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath) on the A2032 at Broadwater Green on December 5, 2016. He was disqualified from driving for 17 months.

Jake Denyer, 23, of The Quadrant, Goring, was given a community order and must carry out 120 hours’ unpaid work after admitting assault by beating in Goring on August 5, 2016. He must pay £85 victim surcharge and £620 costs. He must also pay £100 compensation after admitting damaging a mobile phone and watch in Goring on August 5, 2016.

Joseph Harrington, 43, of Salvington Hill, High Salvington, was given a community order with three-month curfew, electronically monitored, from 9pm to 5.30am, after admitting drink-driving (128mg alcohol in 100ml breath) in Old Shoreham Road, Shoreham, on August 21, 2016. He was also fined £2,500, must pay £85 victim surcharge and £85 costs, and was disqualified from driving for 36 months.

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A gay couple have expressed their shock after they claimed a kiss in a supermarket led to a homophobic remark by a staff member.

Aidan Skinner from Littlehampton and his boyfriend Sean West went to the Tesco superstore in Broadpiece, Wick, on the afternoon of December 12 to buy a bottle of wine and a meal for a romantic film night.

The pair went to the checkout to pay, at which point Mr Skinner, 21, said he kissed Mr West, 20, from Worthing on the cheek.

According to Mr Skinner, the till operator then said ‘do you have to do that in here, especially two guys’.

After an argument with the staff member, who Mr Skinner described as a young woman, the couple left without buying their shopping.

Mr Skinner said they were ‘shocked’ by the incident, as they had never encountered homophobia in the 11 months they have been together.

“It made me feel really upset. I had never gone through something like that before; it’s the 21st century.

“We go to a lot of the nightclubs locally, and walk in the town centre holding hands and we have had nothing said to us at all, and then we go into a supermarket and this happens to us.”

Mr Skinner, who works night shifts at the Sainsbury’s store in Rustington, said customer service needed to be improved at the Tesco store.

“I get how hard the shifts can be and that they could be having a bad day, but you don’t take it out on someone you are serving.

“To be honest, everyone is the same and they should be treated the same – it just seems too good to be true.”

Mr Skinner said that the staff member would not apologise, and that a customer queuing behind them shook their head when she made her remarks. He has also called the store several times for an apology, but said he got little response.

A Tesco spokesperson said: “Everyone is welcome at Tesco and it is never our intention to cause any offence.

“We have apologised to Mr Skinner and invited him into the store to discuss his concerns with our store manager.”

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A contract to provide nursing to children and young people in West Sussex has been awarded to the Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT).

From April the NHS trust will provide the 0-19 Public Health Community Nursing Service for families in the county following a competitive procurement run by West Sussex County Council.

The new contract runs for five years with an option for another two and aims to create a more integrated service bringing together health visiting, school nurses, and early help and prevention services into a single model.

The service will be extended to cover children and young people up to the age of 19 and working in partnership with charity Barnardo’s will provide a new Skills for Life service for people with special educational needs and disabilities aged up to 25 years.

There will also be investment in digital technologies to improve communication and engagement between young people, parents, carers ,and professionals.

SCFT is the existing provider of the Healthy Child Programme, which includes health visiting, school nursing, and the family nurse partnership.

Siobhan Melia, chief executive of Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I am delighted that we have been awarded this contract and that the council has backed our vision for the future of this service.

“We are committed to ensuring that families and young people experience an extensive range of excellent, localised, seamless support and we look forward to working with the council to make this a reality for people in West Sussex.

“This decision shows the high-regard in which this service is held. It is a testament to the hard work, passion and dedication of our staff.”

Christine Field, the county council’s cabinet member for wellbeing, added: “We want our children, young people and their families to be healthy, happy, safe and ready for school and for life.

“Our vision is to have a joined up service, which all residents can access near to home.”

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Police are currently dealing with a road traffic collision in Newland Road, Worthing.

Adur and Worthing police confirmed on Twitter that the collision involved multiple vehicles.

Traffic is moving slowly in the surrounding area, according to police.

More to follow.

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A grandmother of six, who was awarded a British Empire Medal in the Queen’s New Year Honours list, is ‘always there for anyone in trouble and never ever thinks of herself’, said the friend who nominated her.

Sylvia Jarrett, 75, was awarded the honour for her services to charity and the community.

The former palliative care nurse, of Marine Crescent, Goring, was nominated by her friend of ten years Patricia Cross, who also volunteers at the Parish of Goring-By-Sea.

Mrs Cross said: “I’m always in awe of what she does.

“She is always there for anyone in trouble and never ever thinks of herself.”

She said her ‘closest friend’ takes elderly people to the weekly Berry Road Lunch Club, brings holy communion to the housebound and also collects leftover bread from shops for the homeless.

She raises money to educate orphans at a children’s charity in Uganda, the ‘Imara Uganda Fund’, visiting once or twice a year at her own expense. She also set up a hospice in Romania 25 years ago, living in the country for two years to get it running.

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Talks aimed at ending a dispute between Southern train drivers and management have ended for the day without a deal in place.

Train drivers union ASLEF has told its members not to work any overtime and held three days of strikes in mid-December, leading to the complete shutdown of the Southern network, with a week-long walkout planned to start next Monday (January 9).

The dispute is over rail operator Govia Thameslink Railway’s proposals to introduce driver-only operation on Southern services, meaning that drivers would be responsible for opening and closing train doors rather than conductors.

Both ASLEF and the RMT union, whose members are due to be made on-board supervisors, have objected to the changes on safety grounds.

In a bid to avert next week’s strikes both GTR and ASLEF met at talks hosted by mediation service ACAS.

A spokesman for ACAS said: “Talks took place at Acas today between ASLEF and Southern. No agreement was reached. The parties have indicated that they remain available for further talks.”

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A former RAF pilot who suffers from dementia was granted his Christmas wish to fly again with a ‘priceless’ gift from a fellow veteran.

Michael Hollings was only 17 when he joined the RAF at the outbreak of the Second World War, having lied about his age.

He flew Lancaster bombers during the conflict and was a captain of a Wellington bomber at age 19, according to his records at Green Willow Residential Care Home in East Preston.

Now 93, Mr Hollings’ Christmas wish was to fly a Lancaster again – so his carers at the home wrote it on a card and put it on the tree they decorated for the village Christmas tree festival.

Run by St Mary’s Church, the building was filled by 40 trees decorated by groups and organisations for the event.

But it was Mr Hollings’ wish that caught the eye of organiser James Douglas, who was an engineer officer in the RAF from 1968 until 1988.

The 67-year-old said: “The thing that hit me most about the note was that he missed the camaraderie, so I thought I could help him and perhaps bring back some memories.

“Although I spent 20 years in the RAF, my father was also a bomber pilot during the war, and if he had still been alive, he would certainly have liked to share experiences with Mike.”

Mr Douglas said that there are only two working Lancasters left in the world, so he got the next best thing: a video of one of them flying over the German dams that were damaged in the famous 1943 raids.

He visited Mr Hollings at the home and showed him the footage.

Mr Douglas said he enjoyed the footage, and commented ‘what lovely Merlins’, referring to the aircraft’s engines.

Care home manager Diane Denyer said the gesture was ‘utterly priceless’.

“He was animated – he knew what he was looking at – and he was listening to James when he was talking and responded with what he did during the war.

“It was fabulous because as he watched the video you knew he was remembering how happy he was when he was flying.

“If we speak about it now, sometimes he remembers and sometimes he doesn’t but at the time he was right there, and that’s all that matters. It was utterly priceless.”

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Sompting Village Morris will lead a torchlit procession along Tarring High Street on Thursday.

The annual Wassail is a medieval ritual to ensure a good cider apple harvest.

Co-ordinator Martin Frost explained: “The SVM Wassail was established in 1999 and is a public, torchlit march with music through Tarring High Street to an apple tree in a private garden and beating a tree awake with loud music noise, chanting and flares.

“Since its inception, the Wassail has been a successful and safely conducted event, and as part of the local folk calendar is very popular with the community.”

The morris dancers will muster at the north end of the High Street at 7.30pm. The procession down to The Parsonage at the southern end will begin at 8pm.

It will then return to The Vine pub, where a choir in the garden will be signing the procession in for the tree ceremony.

The Mummers play will follow, in the road, before the dancers retire to the pub for beer and music.

A crowd of around 150 spectators is expected for the Wassail and chant sheets will be handed out so that people can join in.

Wassail cake and cup will be offered and a collection will be made to cover expenses and for event funds.

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A sign supposed to direct families to a family centre both points in the wrong direction and misspells ‘Worthing’, a county councillor noticed.

Bob Smytherman helped secure the relocation of the Worthing Children and Family Centre in September.

The centre moved from Parkfield Road to Pelham Road – but the sign advertising the facility still points in the direction of the old building and misspells ‘Worthing’.

But rather than being a blunder, West Sussex County Council has blamed vandalism for the issues with the sign, positioned at the Terringes Avenue crossroads.

A spokesman said: “It would appear the sign has been vandalised, as opposed to an initial spelling error. As a result, the most economical solution is to provide a vinyl patch with the letter ‘g’ placed on the sign and to get it positioned to the correct location at the same time.

“We welcome feedback such as this from members of the public. The most effective and efficient way is via our website www.lovewestsussex.org or via the love West Sussex smartphone app.”

The pledge came after Mr Smytherman, county and borough councillor for Tarring, highlighted the issue on social media platform Twitter.

He said: “I welcome the new sign but it’s just disappointing this was not replaced when the children’s centre was relocated back in September.”

A Sussex charity has been praised by the Prime Minister as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.

Rockinghorse, the fundraising arm of the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital in Brighton, was founded by the late Dr Trevor Mann back in 1967, and the charity received a letter of best wishes from Theresa May to mark its Golden Jubilee year.

In the letter, The Prime Minister highlights the good work of the charity. She said: “I am always impressed by the amazing work of local charities and community groups who work tirelessly to support the needs of local people. Responding to the challenges of supporting some of the most vulnerable children and adults in our society is not something that the government can do alone.

“For a charity to have been supporting the children of Sussex for 50 years is a superb achievement and something of which the entire community should be incredibly proud. I would like to congratulate the Rockinghorse Children’s Charity on reaching its Golden Jubilee and I send my best wishes for the next 50 years.”

Ryan Heal, chief executive of Rockinghorse, said: “We are overwhelmed to receive such a wonderful letter of support from The Prime Minister herself, Theresa May. It is such an honour for the charity to be recognised in this way at such a prominent time in its history.

“I speak on behalf of the whole team at Rockinghorse when I say how excited we are to have launched our 50th year fundraising appeal – a time for celebration and continuing to make a real impact of the lives of local children right here in Sussex.”

The charity has launched its 50th year fundraising appeal; Sussex Giving for Sussex Children, aiming to provide £500,000 worth of funding to be split between 10 children’s centres and paediatric services in Sussex to help them improve, refurbish, and develop their environment for the young people benefiting from their work.

Those benefiting from the appeal are; The Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, the Trevor Mann Baby Unit (located within the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton), the Special Care Baby Unit (based within the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath), Bluefin Ward at Worthing Hospital, Chailey Heritage Foundation (in Lewes), Chalkhill Child and Adolescent Mental Health Unit (in Haywards Heath), Finches Short Breaks Centre (in Burgess Hill), The Bungalow (in Eastbourne), Tudor House (in Brighton) and The Connor Saunders Foundation (based in Brighton).

To find out more about the charity’s 50th year projects, and how you can get involved, visit: rockinghorse.org.uk

Sussex’s troubled ambulance service has appointed a new chief executive.

Daren Mochrie, who has nearly 30 years experience of working in the NHS in Scotland, has been appointed to the top job at South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SECAmb), which was placed in special measures after an ‘inadequate’ rating from health regulators late last year.

Mr Mochrie was the lead for ambulance provision for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and is currently the director of service delivery for the Scottish Ambulance Service.

In announcing the appointment, SECAmb chairman Sir Peter Dixon said: “I am delighted that we have been able to secure a new Chief Executive with Daren’s skills and experience and I’m confident he will provide the necessary leadership to support our recovery.”

During the interview process, the interview panel were impressed with Daren’s breadth of knowledge and grasp of the challenges which the trust faces.

Daren will take over from Geraint Davies who is currently acting chief executive of the Ttust and will remain so until Daren joins. The trust is working to agree a start date.

Sir Peter added: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Geraint for the stability and focus that he has provided during this very difficult period for the trust.”

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A rail strike due to shutdown the entire Southern network next week has been cut from six days to three according to national reports.

Both train drivers’ union ASLEF along with the RMT union have been locked in a dispute with rail operator Govia Thameslink Railway over the introduction of driver-only operation on Southern services.

This would mean that drivers would open and close train doors, with conductors transferring to the role of on-board supervisor and both unions have raised safety concerns about the changes.

Members of ASLEF held three days of strike action in December, which led to no Southern services running, and were due to hold another walkout from Monday January 9 to Saturday January 14.

But this has been cut to three days on Tuesday January 10, Wednesday January 11, and Friday January 13 according to national reports.

A spokeman for Southern said: “This is a cynical ploy to minimise the impact on ASLEF’s drivers’ pay packets and maximises misery, disruption and hardship for passengers.

“ASLEF’s move shows pure contempt for the travelling public and it still causes massive disruption over next week.

“These strikes are pointless and they should call the whole thing off and let common sense prevail.”

But Mick Whelan, general secretary at ASLEF, said they were taking a ‘longer-term view of this trade dispute’.

He added: “The company has not been prepared to move – it is simply going through the motions, turning up at ACAS, as it did yesterday, and telling us that it intends to impose DOO [driver-only operation].

“We remain committed to a negotiated settlement, as was reached with ScotRail, but it is difficult to negotiate with people who are not prepared to be flexible.

“We still believe a deal can be done but we are, at the moment, a long way from that position. It is time for the company to come up with a genuine offer rather than carry on posturing.”

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Three dogs with a combined age of 217 are being overlooked at Dogs Trust Shoreham.

Staff would love to find homes for Prince, Kelsey and Solomon, so they have put out a special appeal.

Tracey Rae, rehoming centre manager, said: “As much as staff are enjoying the presence of these lovable elderly residents, we would love to see Kelsey, Solomon and Prince rehomed so they can enjoy the remainder of their days with a loving family.

“The Christmas period sees an influx of people handing over unwanted or abandoned dogs, with many people not fully factoring in the lifelong commitment of owning a dog.

“Unfortunately, mature dogs tend to get overlooked in kennels in favour of younger, sprightlier dogs, however these adorable canines still have a lot of love and life to give.

“Dogs Trust never puts a healthy dog to sleep so we will care for them for as long as it takes to find their perfect home. We sincerely hope they find a loving home to spend their twilight years.”

In stark contrast to the average stay of 36 days for Dogs Trust residents, the elderly canines have spent a total of 1,776 days in kennels at the Brighton Road centre. Longest-serving resident Prince has just spent a fifth Christmas with the charity.

Labrador cross Kelsey was handed over at the age of 13 due to her owner’s change in circumstances.

Crossbreeds Solomon and Prince, both aged nine, have proved you can teach an old dogs new tricks as they have responded well to training, with Solomon even learning how to bark on command.

Contact the team on 0300 3030292 or visit www.dogstrust.org.uk for more information.

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Our countryside is being defaced by an ‘ongoing issue’ with flytipping, according to one Worthing resident.

Lee Smith said he was out walking near Highdown Hill, in Ferring, at about 11am on Tuesday, December 20, when he spotted a man dumping a pile of rubbish containing bottles and empty packaging.

He reported the incident to Adur and Worthing councils which described the problem as an ‘ongoing issue’.

Mr Smith said: “I saw a man walking over Highdown Hill at about 11am. He had a white terrier with him and was carrying a large bag for life type of carrier bag and a compost bag.

“As I came back I heard glass bottles crashing.

“Shortly after, the same man appeared, minus his full bags. Once he was out of sight, I went to see what he had done and that is when I saw loads of rubbish tipped out in two places.”

Adur and Worthing said the litter was removed once it was reported to them.

A spokesperson for the council said: “We were made aware of this incident and the rubbish has been cleaned up.

“Although this was reported by a member of the public, we have very little information to work on so no further action can be taken.

“We are aware this has been an ongoing issue and it continues to be monitored.”

Mr Smith confirmed that the rubbish had been removed from Highdown Hill but he is now worried that people will continue to ‘deface our countryside’ with litter.

He said: “Someone on the Worthing Watch Facebook page commented that they have seen a man doing exactly the same thing.

“I could not understand why anyone would carry all that rubbish over the hill just to dump it.

“I was absolutely gobsmacked.

“No one seems to care, not the police or the council. So people like him can carry on defacing our countryside.”

Residents of Worthing and Adur have been urged to report any incidents of littering or fly-tipping via the Adur and Worthing councils’ website where a report can be submitted.

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A free Christmas lunch for senior citizens who would have otherwise spent the day alone has been called a ‘huge success’ by organisers.

Held at the Shoreham Centre, almost 50 traditional Christmas lunches were prepared and served by a staff made up of around 28 volunteers, including families who brought their children along to help out.

Geoff Howitt, a trustee at the Shoreham Community Trust, said the day was ‘much enjoyed’ by everyone there.

Mr Howitt said that one of the young volunteers who gave up her time was moved to tears by the occasion and said: “I never realised so many people were on their own on Christmas Day.”

Food donations came from Bidviz and Brakes, suppliers of food at the Sir Robert Woodard Academy, Sainsburys at Lyons Farm, and from the Longshore, he said.

After the centre made an appeal for donations to the community, they received donations of £200 in cash, 20 bottles of wine, 60 gifts for the Christmas tree and sweets for the tables.

Entertainment was provided by James and Rossana Lelean along with guests from the Woodard Academy. Volunteers also offered transport for the diners.

The idea for the Christmas lunch came from Cheryl Bailey, catering manager at the Sir Robert Woodward Academy, who also 
works weekends in the Centre café.

She and Vicky Stitt were the chefs on the day, with the help of Duncan Walkman the cafe manager.

Janice Roberts, a trustee at the Shoreham Centre, organised the use of the centre, the volunteers, donations and communications with the community.

She said of the atmosphere at the lunch: “The chatting was amazing – no one really knew each other, but people were talking and making new friends, which was great.

“People went away saying what a wonderful day it had been.”

She thanked the public for their donations and for volunteering their time.

“The one thing that shocked me more than anything was how the community got on board,” she said.

“The community showed how much they cared.”

She added that she hopes Christmas lunch may become an annual event and hopes for more charities to get involved next year.

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A 27-year-old from Lancing, who was left heartbroken after her fostered dog from Romania – Button – died after just two weeks in her home, has set up a fundraising iniative in her pet’s honour.

Amanda Charlton inherited her love of animals from her mother Christine, and the two now share their home in King’s Close, Lancing, with four rescue dogs – Dylan and Liquorice from Serbia, Molly from Cyprus and Bonnie from Wadars.

They also foster rescued animals temporarily.

Button, who 27-year-old Amanda describes as ‘really sweet’ and an ‘absolute darling’, spent six years in chains in Romania before being fostered by Amanda.

But after just two weeks in Lancing, Button became seriously ill with an infection and died.

Amanda said it was ‘a hell of a shock’ and ‘absolutely heartbreaking’.

She decided to ‘do something positive’ and fundraise for dogs like Button in other countries – and so the Button Fund was born.

She and her mother, Christine, who run a cleaning business together, have sold homemade button-themed crafts to raise funds and have also organised collections of food, flea and tick treatment, blankets and dog jumpers.

All the funds and supplies go to charities Give a Dog a Home, which rehomes dogs in England, and Help Pozega Dogs, an organisation which helps abused and neglected dogs in Serbia.

Amanda said of these animals’ condition: “It’s so shocking. People don’t realise what’s going on.”

Money is also sent to 19-year-old Teodora Torja in Romania, a ‘lone rescuer’ who ‘commits her life to helping animals’, said Amanda.

Dogs ‘who need a loving home’ are also advertised through the fund.

Amanda said rescue dogs can adapt quickly once adopted, adding: “Our dogs are absolutely brilliant and are so loving, considering what they’ve been through.”

While giving up fostered dogs was hard, she said it was ‘lovely to see the dogs so happy’ in a new home. See @thebuttonfund on Facebook.

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Southern train drivers are set to strike for three days in late January.

This morning it was announced that union ASLEF was halving a walkout due to start on Monday (January 9) from six days to three in its dispute with rail operator Govia Thameslink Railway over plans to introduce driver-only operation on Southern services.

These strikes are due to take place on Tuesday January 10, Wednesday January 11 and Friday January 13.

But now it has also announced walkouts on Tuesday January 24; Wednesday January 25 and Friday January 27.

No Southern services are expected to run on days that strikes occur, similar to three days in December when ASLEF members went on strike.

Mick Whelan, general secretary at ASLEF, said they were taking a ‘longer-term view of this trade dispute’.

He added: “The company has not been prepared to move – it is simply going through the motions, turning up at ACAS, as it did yesterday, and telling us that it intends to impose DOO [driver-only operation].

“We remain committed to a negotiated settlement, as was reached with ScotRail, but it is difficult to negotiate with people who are not prepared to be flexible.

“We still believe a deal can be done but we are, at the moment, a long way from that position. It is time for the company to come up with a genuine offer rather than carry on posturing.”

But a spokesman for Southern said: “This is a cynical ploy to minimise the impact on ASLEF’s drivers’ pay packets and maximises misery, disruption and hardship for passengers.

“ASLEF’s move shows pure contempt for the travelling public and it still causes massive disruption over next week.

“These strikes are pointless and they should call the whole thing off and let common sense prevail.”

Both ASLEF and the RMT union, which represents conductors due to be moved to the role of on-board supervisors, have objected to the changes on safety grounds, raising concerns about the loss of a second safety critical member of staff on trains.

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It is described as the ‘world’s best beach party’ and thousands of revellers make their way to the popular tropical destination to see in the New Year at the country’s famous Full Moon Party.

But revellers in Thailand on December 31 instead found themselves in chaos after fireworks struck them just after the midnight countdown.

Sophie Thomson, 24, from Littlehampton was caught up among the crowd and she said she made a ‘lucky escape’ after almost being pulled under the crowd when sparks hit her.

She said: “It was like a sudden wave of heat then everyone started screaming and running either towards to sea or further in ground. It was actually awful, I lost my flip flops within seconds and nearly got pulled under the crowd, luckily I was with a group of Irish boys who pulled me out as I had lost my friends at this point.

“I woke up the next morning thinking I only had a small burn on my arm and leg, a bit like if someone puts a cigarette out on you.

“I took a shower and found loads of burns on my back where I’d turned away from the fire.

“Apparently one guy drowned when he ran into the sea and people broke bones and bruised themselves coming out the crowd.”

The 24-year-old, of Fastnet Way, Littlehampton, is currently travelling with her friend, Hebe Haw, 23, from Hove and the pair made their first stop in Thailand on December 12.

She added: “I remember the Happy New Year sign being lit up which caused fire to blow in the wind and sparks into the crowd. A massive fire sprinkler was also set off, I was closer to this then the sign and it blew all over me.

“I think usually they put the sign away from the crowd and the fireworks but this year everyone was right underneath it all – it was an absolute nightmare.”

Around 10,000 to 30,000 people were estimated to have gathered at the Haad Rin beach in Koh Phangan.

One person died and dozens were injured after the horror struck.

Both Sophie and Hebe escaped with burns.

Sophie said: “Luckily it was nothing bad, at the time I couldn’t really process it, it was only really the next day I realised what had happened.

“We both have these weird little burns in random places, I’ve got a few on my face and clumps of my hair have fallen out too.

“To be honest we are lucky we didn’t get sucked under the crowd or pulled in the sea – it was all a bit surreal.”

The pair are now in Cambodia and are set to travel to Vietnam, Singapore, Sydney and Melbourne – where Sophie will live for a year.

Sophie, who describes herself as a ‘tough cookie’ said ‘having her wits’ got her back in one piece, but after the chaos she said she would ‘tell everyone not to go’.

She said: “It is a waste of time, you lose everyone, you can’t take anything of value cause it will more than likely get stolen.

“However, in hindsight the night could have been a lot worse. I enjoyed most of my time in Thailand, there were good days and bad days but I’d like to think I’m a tough cookie and you have just got to get on with it.

“I mean, my friends had no idea where I was or who I was with or if I was ok, but I managed to get myself back in one piece by myself – sometimes you have just got to have your wits about you and be an adult.”

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A limited number of buses are set to replace Southern trains on some routes during next week’s strike dates.

Train drivers’ union ASLEF is due to hold walkouts on Tuesday January 10, Wednesday January 11, and Friday January 13 in its dispute with Govia Thameslink Railway over plans to introduce driver-only operation on Southern services.

No Southern trains ran at all on three ASLEF strike days in December and during next week’s walkouts GTR is advising people to work from home or remotely if they can, stagger journeys if possible, to only travel if it is essential, and allow plenty of extra time for journeys.

Replacement buses will link: Uckfield with Tunbridge Wells via Crowborough, Eastbourne with Hastings, Bexhill to Hastings, Horsham to Dorking, Hastings to Ashford, Chichester to Havant, East Grinstead to Gatwick, and Seaford to Lewes calling at all stations.

Thameslink and Gatwick Express services will continue to operate and coach operator National Express is laying on extra services between London and Brighton.

Angie Doll, Southern’s passenger service director, said: “There will be significant disruption and hardship next week caused by these pointless and unnecessary strikes. With this package of measures, we are putting in place a very limited number of alternative options to help people with essential travel needs get where they need to be.

“Unfortunately, there is no practical way we could replace 2,000-plus trains we run each day with buses, but what we are doing is providing transport to link some passengers into other operators’ stations where services are running normally.

“These buses will run from a small number of stations and space will be very limited, so we are asking those who don’t need to travel, or who have a viable alternative, to leave the space for those who have no other option. Anyone who does travel should expect to queue, plan for longer journeys and realise the service they join will be exceptionally busy.

“We are massively grateful to all the operators who are helping us in our efforts to keep passengers moving.

“This strike is futile – drivers are now operating the doors on over 75 per cent of our trains and our on-board supervisors have moved into their new roles. It is now time the union move on too, and join us in delivering a modern railway for everyone.”

Earlier today it was announced that ASLEF was halving next week’s walkout from six days to three, but it is now also due to strike on Tuesday January 24; Wednesday January 25 and Friday January 27.

Mick Whelan, general secretary at ASLEF, said they were taking a ‘longer-term view of this trade dispute’.

He added: “The company has not been prepared to move – it is simply going through the motions, turning up at ACAS, as it did yesterday, and telling us that it intends to impose DOO [driver-only operation].

“We remain committed to a negotiated settlement, as was reached with ScotRail, but it is difficult to negotiate with people who are not prepared to be flexible.

“We still believe a deal can be done but we are, at the moment, a long way from that position. It is time for the company to come up with a genuine offer rather than carry on posturing.”

A spokesman for Southern said: “This is a cynical ploy to minimise the impact on ASLEF’s drivers’ pay packets and maximises misery, disruption and hardship for passengers.

“ASLEF’s move shows pure contempt for the travelling public and it still causes massive disruption over next week.

“These strikes are pointless and they should call the whole thing off and let common sense prevail.”

Both ASLEF and the RMT union, which represents conductors due to be moved to the role of on-board supervisors, have objected to the changes on safety grounds, raising concerns about the loss of a second safety critical member of staff on trains.

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A high street retailer has recalled a range of food processors over fears that parts of the devices’ blades could detach.

John Lewis has issued a recall notice for food processors DFP14BCNJLU and DLC2009, as it has been found that in some rare instances cracks may be found in riveted blades which could lead to a portion of the blade to detach.

The company is conducting a voluntary replacement scheme for the items, which carry stock numbers 855 47802 and 855 41904 respectively, and which could have been purchased between 2007 and 2013.

A company statement advised: “If you own one of these models and it has a riveted blade, please contact the supplier, using the free phone number 0800 9888 104 to arrange for a free replacement blade.”