BBC Local Live: Cumbria

The past few days of fine "back end" weather have been perfect for photography, and the benefits have been popping up on social networks.  

Here's a couple of examples.

We've more on what the Furness hospital campaigner James Titcombe told the Conservative Party conference this afternoon.

He said that since the Kirkup report on the failings that led to the deaths of 11 babies and one mother at the Furness General Hospital, improvements had started to come in.

"There's been a drive to improve culture and transparency. The regulatory system that missed opportunities to intervene at Morecambe Bay has fundamentally changed."

Quote Message: Information which in the old days might have been suppressed or ignored, is now not only acted on by the system, but also made available to the public." from James Titcombe, speaking at Conservative Party conference.

Information which in the old days might have been suppressed or ignored, is now not only acted on by the system, but also made available to the public."

 The A66 partially blocked and queuing traffic westbound between the B6542 junction in Crackenthorpe and the Piper Lane junction in Kirkby Thore, because of a broken down lorry.

The latest travel reports are here.

A drunken man who broke the jaw of a young rugby player with one punch in a late-night brawl in Penrith has been given a suspended sentence.

Andrew Hunter, 30, pleaded guilty to assaulting Jack Peet and causing him grievous bodily harm.  

Mr Peet, a former north of England under-18 rugby union player, underwent surgery after the attack to fit metal plates and screws into his jaw, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

Judge Tony Lancaster heard glowing references for Hunter, and suspended a 15-month jail term. 

He said Hunter, of South Road, Kirkby Stephen, must complete 240 hours of unpaid work and pay his victim £1,500 compensation.

The campaigner James Titcombe, whose search for the truth about the death of his baby son exposed the failings of the maternity unit at the Furness General Hospital, has been telling the Conservative party of his long campaign.

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He told the conference that as he investigated: "It quickly became clear to me that Joshua's death was not just a one off and that similar failings had affected many other families."

Mr Titcombe's campaign led to the Kirkup report, and major changes at the hospitals trust, but not until six other babies had died; he said this was a second tragedy.

Mr Titcombe told the conference he'd worked in the nuclear industry where mistakes were regarded as an opportunity to learn.

Quote Message: But the NHS I encountered at the time we lost Joshua felt like it was more interested in keeping bad news quiet, than in learning from what happened; more preoccupied with protecting its own institutions and staff than the families that depend on it." from James Titcombe

But the NHS I encountered at the time we lost Joshua felt like it was more interested in keeping bad news quiet, than in learning from what happened; more preoccupied with protecting its own institutions and staff than the families that depend on it."

James Titcombe, whose baby son Joshua's death at the Furness General Hospital exposed failings in the maternity unit there, has been telling the Conservative Party Conference about his campaign.

He was praised immediately afterwards by the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who said Mr Titcombe should not have had to write hundreds of letters and thousands of emails to find out what had happened to Joshua.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Quote Message: He shouldn't had to write one, let alone that many, but faced with a grieving father, instead of supporting him, the system pulled up the drawbridge." from Jeremy Hunt

He shouldn't had to write one, let alone that many, but faced with a grieving father, instead of supporting him, the system pulled up the drawbridge."

It should be dry through this evening and overnight with variable cloud and some clear spells. 

Not as cool as the previous night, with temperatures falling to between 9C (48F) and 14C (57F).

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You can find the latest forecast for where you are, here.

The Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon's told the Conservative Party conference he'll be seeing the first steel cut for the submarines that will succeed the Vanguard class that carries Britain's nuclear deterrent, when he visits the shipyard tomorrow.

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Sir Michael said it was "a £1bn investment programme that will benefit businesses from Barrow to Berkshire, from the north of Scotland to Tyneside".

MPs voted in July to renew Britain's ageing nuclear weapons system by 472 votes to 117, with the manufacture of four replacement submarines at a current estimated cost of £31bn.

Leaving the EU will mean farmers facing more competition and a faster loss of taxpayer subsidies, according to the former NFU president who's the main speaker of a big northern farming conference next month.

Peter Kendall says the challenge will be to minimise the risks and maximise the opportunities.

The conference at Hexham on 9 November will have Brexit as one of the hot topics, according to the organisers.

Workington and Matlock Town replay their FA Cup Third Qualifying Round tie at Borough Park tonight following Saturday's 1-1 draw.

Tonight's winners will be away to National North strugglers Altrincham for a place in the first round proper.

A Cumbrian college has been listed as among the best in the country for the training it offers to the next generation of nuclear workers.

Furness CollegeCopyright: Furness College

The Furness College in Barrow recently opened its new Advanced Manufacturing and Technology Centre, offering training up to degree level in engineering skills to the rigorous standards required in nuclear sites such as the Barrow shipyard or Sellafield.

It has now been recognised as a "high quality provider" by the National Skills Academy.

Bosses at the power firm National Grid have refused to confirm reports that they have ditched plans to erect huge pylons in the Lake District.

It should be a dry and a bright day with variable amounts of cloud and sunny spells.

It'll feel warm inland in shelter from the fresh easterly wind with temperatures up to 18C (64F),

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You can find the latest forecast for where you are, here.

The Friends of the Lake District say the group's next Fell Care Day, the 14th mass volunteering event it's organised, will be in the Rusland valley, between Coniston Water and Windermere.

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The volunteers will be undertaking archaeological surveys as well as dry-stone walling, coppicing, a litter pick, and a number of other activities.

Carlisle United say the club's whole allocation of 1,770 tickets for this Saturday's visit to Morecambe has now sold out.

United head for the Shrimps looking for a win or draw to stretch their unbeaten record.

Figures obtained by a South Cumbrian MP show the trust that runs hospitals in Kendal, Barrow and Lancaster brought in £833,000 in parking charges in the last financial year; up 40% in five years.

The trust charges £1.25 an hour, although there are weekly passes available to save money.

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Tim Farron, who's the Liberal Democrat leader and MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, said it showed the trust was "simply desperate to find the cash it needs". 

The trust's overall spending last year was nearly £325m. 

A spokesman said charging meant the parking could be kept for people on hospital business, and the money went back into patient care.

It's World Animal Day and BBC Radio Cumbria's Kevin Fernihough  programme posted some live footage of a fox called Dawson who lives at the Knoxwood Wildlife Rescue centre.  You're welcome.

Bridgegate Avenue in Barrow-In-Furness is closed in both directions between the Lesh Lane junction and the Risedale Road junction because of an earlier accident and emergency repairs. Diversion in operation.

The latest travel updates are here.

Ten months on from Storm Desmond, and we've still got a second flood recovery story in South Cumbria,  to add to the earlier report on Carlisle.

South Lakeland DCCopyright: South Lakeland DC

The way the oven's perched on concrete pillars in this Kendal cottage may look like a trendy design feature; but it's one of a number of adaptations, paid for with a £5,000 flood resilience grant, to make sure if the riverside property floods again, it can be swiftly dried out.

And Sinead McCann, who lives there, says that would mean moving out for weeks rather than most of the following year, as she has had to this time.

Quote Message: “I don’t want to go through all that again. I wanted to do what I could now, so that if it happens again it won’t be as awful or traumatic’’ from Sinead McCann

“I don’t want to go through all that again. I wanted to do what I could now, so that if it happens again it won’t be as awful or traumatic’’

Advice on flood precautions is being offered by South Lakeland council at a Flood Fair at K Village, Kendal, on Saturday, 8 October, 9.30am to 5.30pm.