A man who previously admitted to the kidnap and sexual abuse of an 11-year-old girl in Newcastle has pleaded guilty to three further offences.

The former Anglican Dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence is sentenced to a maximum of eight years over the rape of a 15-year-old boy in 1991.

An inquest has heard that a New South Wales teen spent a week in agony after being diagnosed with gastroenteritis, rather than the ruptured appendix that led to his death.

People living with disabilities in regional Australia say having their own cars would make a huge difference to their lives but access to a vehicle is simply too expensive.

A man who denied knowing anything about $245 million worth of drugs onboard a catamaran he skippered from Tahiti faces life in jail after being found guilty of the crime.

Social media went into meltdown after images emerged of a power pole in the middle of a Newcastle street.

Generations of Australia's prime breeding cows are heading to slaughterhouses as a lack of water and feed sees more producers opt to "cash in and get out".

Ian Rowland finds nearly sinking the triumphant Australia II on a 1980s advertising shoot is a far cry from marketing organically grown garlic.

Snakes have been known to wrap their jaws around crocodiles, kangaroos and goats so why would one give up on a bird?

A food technology company has patented a process it claims can keep 100 per cent natural milk fresh for at least 60 days without additives or preservatives.

The forestry industry believes the Coalition's pledge of planting 1 billion trees by 2030 is unrealistic, unless it removes barriers preventing the sector's growth.

Robot in cabinet

The NSW regional electorate of Cowper has the largest number of voters in the country, the latest Australian Electoral Commission elector count reveals.

Jigna Chauhan offers free henna crowns to women who have lost their hair during chemotherapy treatments, helping them feel more positive and confident.

Cindi Cambray and Nicole Hood

Three women, inspired by the revelations in The Teacher's Pet podcast, have come forward with allegations of sexual abuse by teachers at a NSW high school.

The Country Women's Association is set to take on Wicked Campers after one of its members took direct action and painted over of slogans on one of its vans.

The reliability of roadside drug testing for cannabis is in question after new research reveals a "concerning" proportion of the tests are inaccurate, while a driver argues the 'passive smoking' defence and has charges dismissed.

MORNING BRIEFING: Former Newcastle Knights star Jarrod Mullen is charged over his alleged role in a cocaine ring in the Hunter region and Australia's country music industry is in shock after singer and producer Glen Hannah dies.

A coastal paradise town becomes a safe haven for refugees, despite being outside of a government-supported resettlement zone.

A French agriculture student wants her family to consider introducing buffalo on their Charolais operation after a stint on a NSW dairy.

A koala joey, only months old, is defying the odds after being rescued when her mother was hit by a car in Port Macquarie on the NSW mid-north coast. Pixie is now in home care and being carried in a makeshift pouch 24 hours a day.

A University of Melbourne academic and a little school in NSW are stressing the importance of students learning a second language as the school hosts the Indonesian Consul General.

The Cancer Council uses new digital technology to transport more regional cancer patients to treatment.

Chief the bison was killed with a high-powered rifle on a rural NSW property and it is believed the culprits can sell the animal's hide for thousands of dollars.

Bound by tradition but using honey from stingless bees and Australian botanicals proves to be more than just a silver lining for a NSW distiller.

MORNING BRIEFING: Police investigate what is believed to be a human bone discovered by passers-by at a Port Macquarie beach, while a Sydney northern beach road is closed after a pedestrian was killed by a car overnight.

An Australian man and his partner are murdered in Canada, backpackers have disappeared from NSW. This is how police will begin to solve the mystery of what happened, writes Wayne Petherick.

A failure to look upward when parking by the river at a favourite roost for local pelicans has left a Port Macquarie man red-faced and his car disgraced.

Pixie weighed less than 200 grams when she was rescued after her mother was hit by a car. Carers thought she was too tiny to survive, but they were wrong.

There are calls for better police training in mental health after a man was shot dead following a nine-hour stand-off at his home on the NSW Mid North coast.

A research project is underway to determine the impact of the controversial Lord Howe Island rodent eradication program on a threatened currawong species and wider ecosystem.

Toddler William Tyrrell, who vanished from his foster grandmother's home in the sleepy town of Kendall almost five years ago, was likely abducted by someone who chose to "act on their desires", an inquest into his disappearance hears.

As debate continues over the best way to teach children to read, parents and experts say dyslexic students are falling through the cracks and struggling academically and emotionally.

MORNING BRIEFING: A guest is taken to hospital after fire guts a backpacker hostel in Coogee, while Mert Ney is due back in court over the alleged murder of Michaela Dunn and stabbing of Linda Bo.

Experts say bushfires coupled with decreasing habitat in an urbanised landscape is taking its toll on wildlife and improved land management is crucial.

As the Coronial inquest into William Tyrrell's disappearance had a special sitting in Taree just 40 kilometres from where the toddler was last seen family members have been left frustrated by delays and disappointed by its failure so far to turn up any substantial new leads.

Police recapture prisoner Matthew Furner, who escaped from custody at Port Macquarie Base Hospital on the NSW Mid North Coast and fled into nearby bushland.

A prisoner recaptured after being on the run for nearly 12 hours on Sunday has been too injured to front court on the NSW mid-north coast.