NEWS

Cullybackey Community Partnership (CCP) has been awarded £59,000 from The Gallaher Trust. Pictured are CCP Trustees, Elizabeth Boyd, Ruth Orr and Community Development Officer, Samantha Peden, alongside James Perry MBE, a Trustee at The Gallaher Trust.    A Cullybackey-based community organisation is set to significantly expand its reach after securing £59,000 in three-year funding from The Gallaher Trust, enabling hundreds more local residents to benefit from wellbeing, ski

Police have charged a man to court following a serious assault on a teenage boy in Ahoghill on Saturday night, 31 January. The man, aged 40, has been charged with grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of an offensive weapon with intent in connection with the incident. He is due to appear before Coleraine Magistrates’ Court today, Monday 2 February. The charges relate to an assault which took place in the village on Saturday evening and left the teenage victim requir

Wyse Byse on Church Street, Ballymena A much-loved Ballymena retailer that has been part of daily life for generations is preparing to close its doors after more than half a century in business. Wyse Byse, a familiar presence on Church Street – and before that Wellington Street – will cease trading in the coming weeks, bringing to an end 53 years of independent retailing that has left a lasting mark on Ballymena and beyond. For decades, families from Ballymena and further afi

A man has been arrested following a serious assault on a teenage boy in Ahoghill, which left the victim requiring hospital treatment and deeply shaken. Police said the incident occurred at around 8.50pm on Saturday, 31 January, in a car park in The Diamond area of the village. According to police, the teenager was attacked by a masked man wielding a blunt object, believed to be a crowbar, during what is being treated as a violent and unprovoked assault. Sergeant Edens said:

Mayor of Mid and East Antrim, Councillor Jackson Minford, has announced Creative Industries Week 2026 which will run from the 16 February with a programme of events taking place. Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has announced the return of its Creative Industries Week, a borough-wide celebration of creativity, innovation and opportunity, running from 16 February 2026. Designed to support people at every stage of their creative journey, the week will feature a diverse progr

Waterstone’s Ballymena has unveiled its latest Top 10 bestselling books, with literary fiction, psychological thrillers and popular non-fiction continuing to shape readers’ choices as the new year gathers pace. Northern Irish author Jan Carson tops this week’s chart, while bestselling writers Freida McFadden, Maggie O’Farrell and Mel Robbins all feature prominently. The list reflects a broad appetite for thought-provoking fiction, comforting cookery and titles focused on well

The home in Broughshane boarded up following the incident, and (inset) Braid UUP councillor Alan Barr An attack on the home of two Indian men living in Broughshane is being investigated as a racially motivated hate crime, prompting condemnation from political representatives and concern across the local community. Police were called to a property on Main Street in the village after all front windows were smashed and the front door was broken during an incident at around 11.45

Wellington Street in Ballymena town centre Mid and East Antrim councillors have agreed to double funding for the Town Centre Revamp Refresh initiative after almost 100 businesses across the borough applied for support. A report presented to the borough council’s Environment and Economy Committee at a meeting in The Braid, Ballymena, on Monday evening revealed there were 47 applications from Ballymena, 28 from Carrickfergus and 22 from Larne. The report stated that £40,000 wa

Inset: Victor Hamilton who was murdered in Ballymena in 2022 A man charged with the murder of a Ballymena resident has been arrested in Portugal, reigniting scrutiny of serious criminal justice and deportation failures highlighted by Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie. Victor Hamilton, a 63-year-old man who had only recently moved to Ballymena, was stabbed to death in July 2022. His body was discovered in the driveway outside his home on Orkney Drive in the Ballykeel area of th

A new free Digital Skills training programme aimed at people who are deaf or have hearing loss is being rolled out across Northern Ireland, with accessible sessions taking place in local libraries throughout February and March. The initiative, delivered by AdaptNI and supported by the Department of Finance, is designed to tackle digital exclusion by providing deaf-aware, visual and practical training tailored to the everyday needs of people who often face barriers when acces

Murder victim Victor Hamilton, and the scene of the incident in Orkney Drive, Ballymena. Ulster Unionist justice spokesperson Doug Beattie MC MLA has challenged serious failures in the deportation of foreign national offenders, citing the murder of a Ballymena resident as a stark example of systemic breakdowns within Northern Ireland’s Criminal Justice System. Speaking about the killing of Victor Hamilton in July 2022, Mr Beattie said the case exposed “yet another failing” i

Knockan Road Play Park in Broughshane on Tuesday, when Storm Chandra brought heavy rainfall leasing to the River Braid bursting its banks. Knockan Road Play Park in Broughshane has been temporarily closed after flooding caused by Storm Chandra damaged the site’s safety surface, Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has confirmed. Flood waters from the storm washed away the play-grade bark surfacing and left significant silt deposits across the park, raising safety concerns for

Ulster Unionist education spokesperson Jon Burrows MLA As Northern Ireland begins to recover from the widespread disruption caused by Storm Chandra, renewed criticism has been levelled at the Department of Education over its handling of school closures during severe weather events. The storm brought significant challenges across the region, including power cuts, flooding and travel disruption, with more than 346 schools forced to close in response to weather warnings. In the

North Antrim MP Jim Allister speaking in the House of Commons, and Wrightbus Ballymena-built Electroliners in service for Translink in Northern Ireland North Antrim MP Jim Allister has called on the UK Government to take decisive action to support the British bus manufacturing industry, warning that current procurement practices risk undermining one of the country’s most strategically important advanced manufacturing sectors. Speaking during a Westminster Hall debate on Tuesd

Onjali Q. Raúf at Slemish College (Images: Cindy Robinson Photography) Pupils at Slemish College in Ballymena have begun a special three-day programme with one of the UK’s most celebrated children’s authors, Onjali Q. Raúf , as her school visit got under way on Tuesday, 27 January. The award-winning writer and children’s rights activist is spending three days at the school, engaging pupils in conversations around storytelling, empathy and social change. During her visit, Onja

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for Northern Ireland, warning that spells of heavy rain could lead to flooding in places and disruption to transport networks. The warning, which follows the recent impact of Storm Chandra, is in effect across all six counties from 00:00 until 18:00 on Friday 30 January 2026. According to the Met Office , “spells of heavy rain will move over Northern Ireland during Thursday night and Friday” , raising concerns for communitie

The scene on Steeple Road, Antrim Road users across Northern Ireland are being urged to exercise caution as the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) continues to respond to the aftermath of Storm Chandra, which has brought widespread flooding, fallen trees and hazardous driving conditions. While weather warnings for heavy rain and strong winds have now ended, the impact on the road network remains significant, with difficult conditions reported in many areas due to surface wat

Buick Memorial Primary School, Cullybackey has received a £5,000 donation from Galgorm Collection. Pictured alongside pupils, Evie Speers, Phoebe Cangque, Kyle Chiyangwa, Zara Murray, Finlay Stewart and Jude Ferguson, are Colin Johnston, CEO Galgorm Collection and Principal Rikki Peters.  Two local primary schools in the Ballymena area are set to benefit from a £10,000 community donation from Galgorm Collection, reinforcing the hospitality group’s ongoing commitment to educat

Leading UK manufacturer Wrightbus is opening its doors to the next generation of engineering and manufacturing talent as part of Northern Ireland Apprenticeship Week and National Apprenticeship Week, with two dedicated careers events at its Ballymena headquarters. The bus maker will host an Apprenticeship Open Night and a dedicated Insight Day, offering up to 60 individuals the opportunity to explore careers in advanced manufacturing and engineering across a wide range of dis

Powerhouse Energy Group plc has taken a significant step towards establishing a major new clean energy facility in Ballymena after signing an agreement to lease land at Silverwood Business Park. The AIM-listed company, which specialises in converting non-recyclable waste into low-carbon energy, confirmed it has secured a 25-year lease for a 1.98-acre serviced site at the County Antrim business park, subject to planning approval. Under the agreement with Silverwood Business Pa