Worthing's Grafton car park may remain shut amid safety concerns
In a note requested by WBC, HOP Consulting Civil and Structural Engineers said it supported the closure of the car park until further notice.
'Debris detachment'
It said: "Our note outlines that there are risks of failing/falling parts of the structure that threaten the safety of the public, users of the car park and is dangerous. "Hence, we agree it is appropriate to close the whole of the car park for urgent investigation and review."According to HOP, the monitoring approach used for several years to manage the "resulting overhead debris risk" is becoming "increasingly unreliable at pre-empting overhead debris detachment".The car park, which is over 60 years old, was closed because of am unstable High Alumina Cement beam.In November 2023, Worthing Borough Council announced plans to sell and demolish Grafton car park, a move which had first been mooted in 2007.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Auto Express
23 minutes ago
- Auto Express
Car Deal of the Day: flamboyant Alfa Romeo Junior hybrid for less than £250 per month
Stylish small SUV with sporty cabin Hybrid system offers nearly 60mpg £239 per month on a four-year lease The stylish Alfa Romeo Junior was available exclusively as an EV when it finally arrived last year, but if you're not ready to go electric there's now a hybrid version called the Junior Ibrida – which literally means 'Hybrid' in Italian – and it can be yours for less than £250 a month. This four-year lease deal for the Junior Ibrida is being offered by Carwow Leasey, through the Auto Express Find A Car service. It requires an initial outlay of £3,167, followed by monthly payments of £239, and includes a standard allowance of 5,000 miles per year. Advertisement - Article continues below Of course, plenty of people cover more than that, but increasing the annual limit to 8,000 miles costs only £13 extra each month. Better still, with the allowance pushed all the way up to 10,000 miles, the same Junior Ibrida can be yours for just £259 per month. Inside, the Junior Ibrida features the same interior as the more expensive electric versions. It looks impressive and features plenty of sporty flair, with the 10.25-inch touchscreen angled towards the driver and a raised centre console making the cabin feel more driver focused than is the case in other small SUVs. Admittedly, it's not particularly spacious in the back, but you do get 415 litres of boot capacity, which is more than a Volkswagen Golf can offer. Skip advert Advertisement - Article continues below There's just one specification for the Junior Ibrida, and it comes reasonably equipped with 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels, dual 10.25-inch screens, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, LED lights, rear parking sensors, keyless go and driver-assistance tech such as adaptive cruise control. The Alfa's hybrid system uses a 1.2-litre three-cylinder PureTech petrol engine and a 28bhp electric motor that's built into the car's six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. The e-motor is powered by a 0.9kWh 48-volt battery located underneath the driver's seat that's topped up by regenerative braking, meaning you don't have to worry about plugging it in anywhere to charge. The set-up produces 134bhp, 230Nm of torque and, according to the Italian firm, can return up to 58.9mpg. The Car Deal of the Day selections we make are taken from our own Auto Express Find A Car deals service, which includes the best current offers from car retailers and leasing companies around the UK. Terms and conditions apply, while prices and offers are subject to change and limited availability. If this deal expires, you can find more top Alfa Romeo Junior leasing offers from leading providers on our Alfa Romeo Junior deals hub page… Check out the Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida Deal of the Day or take a look at our previous Car Deal of the Day selection here… Find a car with the experts Fire risk prompts 72,000-car Stellantis UK recall Fire risk prompts 72,000-car Stellantis UK recall 28 models across Alfa Romeo, Citroen, DS, Fiat, Jeep, Lanica, Peugeot and Vauxhall are impacted by the recall Suzuki e-Vitara price plummets by almost £4k Suzuki e-Vitara price plummets by almost £4k Deliveries of the new e-Vitara haven't even started, but the discounts have already begun New Cupra Leon Shadow Edition is a new moody version of the sporty hatch New Cupra Leon Shadow Edition is a new moody version of the sporty hatch The Leon Shadow Edition will be offered on both the hatchback and estate
The Guardian
23 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Campaigners criticise UK plans to reveal suspects' ethnicity and migration status
Anti-racism campaigners have criticised proposals to allow police to reveal the ethnicity and migration status of suspects, after a row triggered by claims police 'covered up' the backgrounds of two men charged in connection to the alleged rape of a child. The home secretary, Yvette Cooper, this week told the BBC she hoped the Law Commission would 'accelerate' a review of contempt of court and that 'guidance needs to change' about information released when a trial is pending. But the anti-racism group the Runnymede Trust – which this month claimed 'hostile language' from politicians and the media towards immigration was fuelling 'reactionary politics' – says the proposals risk framing violence against women and girls as an issue of ethnicity instead of misogyny. The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) said the proposals would 'undermine' justice. The debate was reignited after George Finch, the Reform UK leader of Warwickshire county council, accused police of a 'cover-up' over the migration status of two suspects charged after the alleged rape of the child, claiming they were asylum seekers. The force strongly denies a cover-up, saying it merely acted in line with national guidance. The details of suspects before trials are routinely limited to ensure the fairness and legal safety of proceedings. But Downing Street has called for 'transparency' to rebuild public trust after false rumours spread after 2024's Southport murders. However, campaigners warn that politicians and media are emboldening the far right by linking migration to crime. This month, the Runnymede Trust released a report that – after analysing more than 63m words from 52,990 news articles and 317 House of Commons debates on immigration between 2019 and July 2024 – found the word most strongly associated with migrants was 'illegal'. After Cooper's remarks that 'more information should be provided … including on some of those asylum issues', Dr Shabna Begum, the chief executive of the Runnymede Trust, said: 'These proposals do nothing to address the urgent issues of male sexual violence, divert attention away from women and girls and fixate on nationality and asylum status – as part of an increasingly aggressive far-right agenda. 'Instead of recycling age-old tropes about men of colour as inherently threatening to white British women, we should be centring victims and survivors of all backgrounds. 'We all deserve better than this pantomime politics that offers us easy villains but deals with none of the wider conditions where misogyny has increased.' Runnymede's recent report said there were 'many' examples of media 'stories about distressing crimes that emphasise the immigration status of the perpetrator', claiming they were used to frame asylum seekers as a potential threat to women and 'the British way of life'. The report also cited comments made by the former home secretary Suella Braverman, in the context of 2023's illegal migration bill, which linked people arriving on boats to 'heightened levels of criminality' and Robert Jenrick's X post this year that spoke of 'importing hundreds of thousands of people from alien cultures, who possess medieval attitudes towards women'. Runnymede's report said the 'long-term effects' of such claims would be to 'normalise' violence against women and girls by making it seem as if it is 'determined by ethnicity rather than the perpetuation of misogynist practices in society'. Cooper described the release of information about suspects as 'an operational decision for the police and Crown Prosecution Service on an individual case' to the BBC, stressing ministers had to take care to avoid legal prejudice. But Griff Ferris, the interim director of communications at JCWI, said prior release of ethnicity and migration status would 'undermine what's left of justice in this country' and make all communities 'less safe'. He added: 'This deeply irresponsible and dangerous proposal is guaranteed to fuel racist narratives and further embolden the far right. 'Policies like this send a chilling message: that some people are inherently more 'suspect'.' A Home Office spokesperson said: 'The home secretary has made clear that there is a strong public interest in maximum transparency wherever that is possible. 'That is why the Home Office and College of Policing are working together to strengthen and clarify the guidance around how and when information is released.' Ahmad Mulakhil has been charged with rape and Mohammad Kabir has been charged with kidnap and strangulation after an alleged attack on a 12-year-old girl in Nuneaton in July.
Daily Mail
23 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Woman who claims she can 'connect with the dead' reveals terrifying reason why you should never have a mirror facing your bed
A woman who describes herself as a 'psychic medium' has warned that having a mirror facing the bed could bring 'unwanted spirits' into the home - but says there's a simple way for people to protect themselves. Leah, from the UK, who is known to her 51,500 TikTok followers as Psychic Leah, previously said that she has been able to 'see and connect with the dead' since she was 18 months old. In a stark warning, Leah told viewers: 'Do not have a mirror facing your bed.' She later added that this advice applies to all kinds of mirrors, including those that are found inside wardrobes. 'Mirrors are one of the main reasons why we have portals open in our home,' she said, explaining that they are the most common reason why she's called out to people's properties to 'cleanse their houses.' Leah does not doubt at all that a mirror facing the bed has the potential to wreak havoc in an otherwise happy home. She said: 'You will have unwanted spirits, you will have all types of spirits in your home - something low vibrational, typically an entity that isn't particularly nice.' The young woman, who also claims to be a 'paranormal investigator', added that universal nighttime complaints, such as 'restless sleep' and 'insomnia', could be the result of the position of a mirror in the bedroom. Leah claimed: 'If you're one of these who has a mirror facing your bed and since you've done that you've had restless sleep, [or] insomnia really bad, it's because of the energy that comes out of the mirror, especially if there's arguments within your home.' But it's not just those who have a mirror opposite the bed who are at risk, according to the self-described 'demonologist'. She said: 'Mirrors literally suck in energy and having a mirror facing a window is also another way of inviting unwanted spirits.' In a third warning, Leah advised against ever buying a second-hand mirror, stressing that, 'Whatever happened within that person's home - we don't know if it's negative, we don't know what's gone on there - that's coming into your home.' However, for those who are reluctant to start reconfiguring their bedroom, there is a simple solution, she claimed. Leah recommended covering the mirror with a cloth or a blanket as well as 'doing protection prayers' over it and 'saging it'. Covering it 'closes the mirror down, not allowing any spirits in or out,' she added in a comment beneath the clip. And, for those who have always had a mirror in one of these unfavourable positions but haven't suffered as a result, she had another message. Warning people not to be complacent, she said: 'Many people have a mirror in front of their bed for years and not have anything happen - but that's not to say it won't happen to you.' Viewers took to the comment section to share their thoughts on Leah's claims - and many were divided Leah's post attracted more than 2,000 comments, with a number of people identifying with her warnings. One person wrote: 'Don't get me started on this.... She's absolutely correct, I had a horrifying experience last year and it STILL keeps me awake at night, it's not a joke, remove mirrors from bedroom even near your bed. ' Another user added in the comment section: 'My nanny always said to NEVER have a mirror facing your bed!! 'If she ever went anywhere to stay for the night, she would take it down or cover it up! 'Also, you saying [that] about a second had mirror, I was given one that my dad got from an auction, the bad vibes and distortion that happened when you looked in it were wild! I got rid of it (safely) as soon as I could!' A third person appeared worried, writing: 'That has freaked me right out. How do I stop this please?' While a fourth shared a different approach, explaining: 'Having a mirror facing your bed is fine. Just do a cloaking blessing and you'll be fine.' Yet others seemed to have had no problems at all with the mirrors in their home, prompting one person to write: 'I don't know I've had a mirror facing my bed for literally years. Nothing weird has ever happened and I sleep great. Another user joked: 'I don't mind… No spirit could be as bad as any of my exes'. It comes after a seemingly normal photo of a group of friends on holiday was branded 'creepy' after people spotted a 'ghost ' hidden in the snap. A Reddit user who goes by the name CursedEmoji posted the snap online - saying their friend had sent them a picture of their trip to Chile. Upon first glance, it may seem as though there are a group of six people - four women and two men - posing for the snap while trekking in a forest. However, a less obvious, much darker looking face appeared to be lurking in the snap. After being shared online, people were quick to share how they were 'creeped out'. One wrote: 'Oof. That definitely made my heart jump when I finally found it.' Another penned: 'I thought it was about the top of a head behind the guy on the right. Oh yeah, I saw the witch too!' A third said: 'It was a completely normal picture before zooming in. It's a creepy picture with a very clear ghost face.' A fourth commented: 'Looks like someone's grandma is travelling with them,' while a fifth chimed in and added: 'Nah that actually scared me a bit.' However, others questioned whether the picture was real, with some theorising that it might've been a camera glitch or even Photoshop. One wrote: 'Creepy! Seems a little too good to be true, though.' Another penned: 'That's absolutely Reagan from the exorcist photoshopped in, things like this sadly dampen paranormal photography.' A third said: 'Looks photoshopped to me, just too obvious. I saw it pretty quickly.' A fourth commented: 'Looks like a digital error of some kind. Face looks similar to the dude on the left.'
