Ground was broken on the five-storey site in January, and it is expected to open in the first quarter of 2028.

Drone images released this week show how work is progressing with the concrete frame of the building emerging and a giant crane now dominating the Darlington skyline.

Once open, it will form part of the wider Darlington Economic Campus (DEC), consisting of three buildings, including Feethams House and Bishopsgate House.

Located on a former car park opposite St Cuthbert’s Church and next to the Darlington East End Club, the site is now dominated by a bright red tower crane and busy construction activity.

Tees Valley Mayor Lord Ben Houchen said: “Great to see real progress on the new Treasury building on Brunswick Street, with work moving at pace on site.

“When it opens, more than 1,600 civil servants will be based right in the town centre bringing good jobs, more footfall for local businesses and long-term investment into Darlington.

This is exactly the kind of project we fought to bring here – backing our town centres and putting Darlington right at the heart of government outside London.”

Site cabins, storage areas, and equipment are scattered across the compound.

The Treasury’s move to Darlington, first announced by the Conservative Party in 2021, was seen as a landmark decision to make central government decisions up north. 

The facility has been hailed as a “thriving hub” by council leaders, with 1,925 civil service roles currently based in the town across ten major government departments. 

This includes the Department for Education, HM Treasury, Office for National Statistics, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and the Competition and Markets Authority.

The Labour Government continued the project after receiving planning permission in 2024.

Francesco Farioli has tried to ease concerned Porto supporters after being linked with a move to Chelsea.

Chelsea are looking to appoint a permanent replacement for Liam Rosenior this summer, with Calum McFarlane taking charge on a temporary basis for the remainder of the season.

Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola and Xabi Alonso, who was sacked by Real Madrid in January, are among the candidates on Chelsea’s shortlist.

Reports have claimed that Farioli is also being considered by Chelsea, with Porto on course to win the Portuguese league title this weekend.

Farioli was greeted by Porto supporters after his press conference on Friday morning and one concerned fan urged the 37-year-old to reject Chelsea’s advances.

‘Don’t go to Chelsea… you’ll be sorely missed,’ the supporter told Farioli.

The Italian replied: ‘Too cold.’

When asked about the Chelsea links following Porto’s 2-0 win over Tondela last weekend, Farioli replied: ‘I’m the coach of Porto and I’m really happy to be here.’

Farioli, who did not have a professional career as a player, began his career as a manager at Turkish side Fatih Karagumruk.

He then moved to fellow Turkish club Alanyaspor before joining Nice for one season in 2023.

After his time in Ligue 1, Farioli signed a three-year contract with Ajax but left the club after one campaign having lost the league title to PSV on the final day of the season.

Farioli was appointed by Porto last July and the Italian is now set to guide the Portuguese club to their first league title in four years.

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Inspectors identified ‘significant shortfalls’ at the NHS hospital wards

Care inspectors have raised concerns about “significant shortfalls” in safety at two Cambridgeshire hospital wards. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) carried out an unannounced visit to the Denbigh and Willow wards at Fulbourn Hospital in Cambridge, as well as Maple one and Maple two wards at the Cavell Centre in Peterborough, on January 28 and 29.

The wards are overseen by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT). The CQC carried out an inspection due to the age rating of the wards, which care for people over 65 years old for various illnesses, as well as “concerns about risk”.

Inspectors rated the trust as requiring improvement overall. The trust was rated as requiring improvement for safe and well-led, but good for effective, caring and responsive.

Stuart Dunn, CQC deputy director of mental health in the East of England said inspectors found that leaders had “missed some concerning gaps in people’s safety”. Mr Dunn added: “The trust had a system for reporting safeguarding incidents but, without a centralised log, staff were not always able to provide these records. This limited leaders’ ability to review or learn from them to protect people in future.

“Additionally, many staff felt there weren’t enough of them to do their jobs properly, and we found they couldn’t provide people one-to-one care regularly. At one point, one of the experts by experience supporting our inspection spent nine minutes speaking to people on a ward without seeing any staff.

“When they sought out staff, they found the nursing office was also unattended.” Mr Dunn recognised that staffing levels resulted in people being able to access limited activities during the week.

He added: “People also told us they didn’t always feel involved in decisions about their own care, and we saw staff didn’t always take all practical steps to support people making their own decisions.

“Most staff were kind, skilled, and respectful. They communicated with people well. When people felt distressed, they de-escalated the situation compassionately.

“However, leaders need to ensure they’re aware of incidents and risks on their wards, so they can guarantee people a consistently safe and high-quality service.” CQC has shared its findings with the trust so they “know where improvements must be made and where there is good care to build on”, added Mr Dunn.

In the report, inspectors identified a number of shortfalls across the wards. In the care section, inspectors said the service didn’t always have a “proactive and positive culture of safety based on openness and honesty”.

The inspector added: “Lessons were not always learnt to continually identify and embed good practice.” The report also said staff “did not always investigate and report safety events”. It was recorded that in the last three months, 2,138 restraints were carried out on the Denbigh ward, as well as 22 restraints on the Maple one ward.

It was also recorded that “two patients on Denbigh ward had sustained broken bones during the night time due to unwitnessed injuries” and these weren’t reported.

The trust’s safeguarding on these wards was rated a lower score of one, with inspectors identifying “significant shortfalls” in this. The report said: “The service did not work well with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and how to achieve that.

“They did not concentrate on improving people’s lives or protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect.”

Staff were also said to “not always treat people with kindness, empathy and compassion” and they didn’t always “respect their privacy and dignity”.

Other concerns found by inspectors were:

• Leaders need to address some alarms going off in error on Willow ward, Fulbourn Hospital, which could wake people up and make them feel unsettled
• Leaders didn’t ensure all staff had enough training in medicines management and weren’t always recording or storing medicines safely
• Inspectors found some breaches of food safety guidelines and staff at the Cavell Centre weren’t always washing cups with soap, which was an infection risk
• Leaders had poor oversight of some risks, including safeguarding, potential ligatures, areas staff could not see, and the use of portable heaters.

While a number of concerns were raised, people in the wards and relatives said staff were helpful and supportive. Staff also told inspectors they felt “supported and respected” and inspectors praised the trust’s work to “deliver high quality care within the budgets available”.

A spokesperson for the CPFT said the trust has taken the findings “seriously” and “immediate actions” have been taken to address concerns. These actions include enhancing safeguarding oversight at a team level, addressing areas of safety and reviewing medicine governance arrangements.

The spokesperson added: “We welcome the CQC’s recognition of the compassionate care delivered by our staff, the positive feedback from relatives and carers, and the services continuing to be rated good for being caring, effective, and responsive.”

The Denbigh ward at Fulbourn Hospital is a 14-bed mixed sex ward for people over 65 years old with cognitive impairment, while the Willow ward is an 18-bed ward for people over 65 years with acute functional illness.

Maple one at the Cavell Centre is an eight-bed mixed sex ward and Maple two is a 14-bed mixed sex ward. Both these wards provide care for people over 65 with cognitive impairment.

The RSPCA has launched an appeal to raise money to treat 12 of the “adorable” dogs which are being looked after at the charity’s branch in Landing Lane, York.

They were found locked in kennels at a property in Whitby last month after the RSPCA said it was called to the home by police.

One of the 14 dogs was cared for by a veterinary nurse but has since died. Another dog is being cared for by another RSPCA branch.

Fleet before and after being treated by the RSPCA (Image: RSPCA)

Four of the dogs – including a Cocker Spaniel mum and son, Shelties, Collies, a lurcher and a Labrador cross – had to be hospitalised overnight and needed intravenous fluids for 24 hours.

Several of the dogs were also “severely matted in faeces and urine and had to be clipped”, the RSPCA said.

Seventeen birds – a mix of finches, parrots and budgerigars – were also found at the house where conditions were described by rescuers as “extremely challenging”.

The birds are now being looked after at a private boarding facility on behalf of the RSPCA where they are doing well, the charity said.

Patch who was rescued from the Whitby home (Image: RSPCA)

Jerry who was rescued from the Whitby home (Image: RSPCA)

RSPCA animal rescue officer Mollie Masters, one of four officers from the charity who spent hours on the scene, said: “The dogs were found in the house and in various kennels and crates outside.

“The conditions on site were squalid and extremely challenging and many of the dogs were understandably nervous, so we had to work slowly and patiently with them.

“It was a very sad set of circumstances but we’re really pleased we’ve been able to help these animals and the team at York are doing a fantastic job getting the dogs back to good health so they can go on to find loving new homes.”

She said it was an “upsetting incident for us to deal with”, adding: “I’d like to thank the police and the vet who assisted us.”

Snowy who was rescued from the Whitby home (Image: RSPCA)

Jock who was rescued from the Whitby home (Image: RSPCA)

Animal welfare supervisor Marie Sandall, from the RSPCA’s York Branch, said the animals are “very special dogs who have stolen our hearts already”.

“They are all making great progress and putting on weight nicely. Initially they were placed on five tiny meals a day and to see them gobble their food in seconds broke our hearts.

“There are a couple of older ones who, despite everything, are also doing well, and we’re hopeful we’ll be able to put them up for adoption very soon.

“They were all very thin, matted and covered in faeces and urine and had to have a lot of veterinary treatment, including blood tests and dental work. Some of them will also need to be neutered prior to being rehomed.”

Paul who was rescued from the Whitby home (Image: RSPCA)

Marie said that as a self-funded charity, the costs of caring for the dogs are “beginning to mount up for us”.

“We’re appealing to our supporters, who are always so wonderful in these situations, to donate to our fundraising appeal to help us cover the significant veterinary costs and the dogs’ ongoing care.

“They are all absolutely adorable and we can honestly not believe how loving they are considering what they have been through. 

“One thing is certain, they can now look forward to a brighter future and we can’t wait to see them in their new homes.” 

To donate to the appeal, visit the Friends of RSPCA York Animals Home Facebook page.