Northumbria University was praised this week for stumping up £5,000 to help restore a landmark church clock. The chiming clock at Christ Church, in the Shieldfield district of Newcastle, boasts a movement similar to that of Big Ben at the Houses of Parliament in London. It was blessed this week by the Rt Rev Martin Wharton, the Bishop of Newcastle. Kel Fidler, Northumbria's vice-chancellor, said that the university acted after forging links with the local vicar, the Rev Canon Chris Savage, during the university's consultation over a new campus in Shieldfield