That's it from us on Wednesday. Join us from 08:00 on Thursday for more news, sport, travel and weather.

Rebecca Wood
BBC Midlands Today

Any showers during the evening will gradually ease into the night. Strong winds will ease as the night progresses. Lows of 9C (48F).

Find outmore about the week ahead.

Satnam Rana
BBC Midlands Today

Don't hassle the Hoff - unless you were a huge Baywatch fan and managed to sneak backstage to meet your teenage crush when he was in Wolverhampton for Last Night a DJ Saved My Life.

Maria McRee, from Telford, met him during the interval.    

Tamworth Herald

Police searching for 15-year-old Kayleigh Haywood are now treating her disappearance as murder, external.

Image source, Tamworth Herald

Dominic Casciani
Home Affairs Correspondent

Two Birmingham men who went to Syria to join rebel fighters have launched appeals against their prison sentences, but the Court of Appeal has reserved judgement.  

Yusuf Sarwar and Mohammed Nahin Ahmed were each jailed last December for 12 years and eight months for engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts.

The eventual outcome of the appeal could have implications for many similar cases. 

Image source, West Midlands Police

BBC Travel

One lane is blocked and there is very slow traffic on the A456 in Quinton between Halesowen and Old Quinton Island because of a crash and recovery work, drivers are warned.

Nick Owen
Presenter, BBC Midlands Today

Storm Barney hit parts of the West Midlands with a vengeance. It left a trail of damage and destruction, as it swept from West to East across the region. We will take a look at the clear-up operation.

And the latest Department of Transport figures show the average speed for the morning commute in the West Midlands has dropped to 24.5mph - the lowest ever recorded. We'll be looking into some of the slowest roads across the region.

Join us for theMidlands Todayon BBC One at 18:30.

Express and Star

  "They are just the lowest of the low."  

Those are the words of a devastated father after items were stolen from his child's grave, external at Bushbury Cemetery.  

Image source, Express & Star

The RSPCA is appealing for information after three swans were found dead at a nature reserve.

The swans - which were all aged about two - were found by a member of the public at Fens Pool Nature Reserve, in Dudley, two weeks ago but had no obvious wounds on their bodies.

The charity said it was concerned a family of swans - two adults and seven cygnets - had also  disappeared from the nature reserve after living there for many years, with inspector Kelly Lake saying she did not know if this was connected to the three deaths.

Alex Homer
BBC Local Live

Here are the top stories in the BBC WM newsroom:

- Storm Barney left a trail of damage in the West Midlands, disrupting trains, bringing down trees and causing power cuts

- The RSPCA appeals for information after three swans were found dead at a Dudley nature reserve

- Two men arrested on suspicion of a murder in Tipton are released on police bail, external

Trees toppled, towers tipped over and power pulled - see the troubles Storm Barney brought with it.

Two murder suspects have been released on bail after being brought in for questioning as part of a probe into the death of a Tipton man from head injuries.

Indiga Daniel Wallace's body was found in a flat in Tipton, West Midlands, on 11 November.

A 30-year-old man from West Bromwich and a 34-year-old from Oldbury were arrested on suspicion of murder in Langley on Sunday. They have both been released on police bail pending further inquiries.

Officers have renewed their appeal for information.

Passengers face delays and disruption after trees fell through overhead wires in high winds overnight.

A tree fell onto the line at Coseley affecting services between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, disrupting several operators' services - which will last until the end of service, Network Rail said.

A tree also came down at Wylde Green affecting services between Lichfield, Sutton Coldfield and Birmingham New Street, meaning the line was closed until after 11:00 GMT with replacement buses running.

Passengers have been warned disruption may continue as the service returns to normal.

West Midlands Police says a "substantial security operation, external" is planned for the Queen's visit to Birmingham tomorrow in light of the Paris attacks.

The force said there was "no specific intelligence received relating to a threat" but it had reviewed its plans as a precaution.

The Queen will arrive by train into Birmingham New Street to officially open the revamped station before making visits to the new Metro stop in Bull Street and Birmingham Dental Hospital.  

Birmingham City manager Gary Rowett says that young winger Viv Solomon-Otabor could become "another Demarai Gray".

Image source, Empics

Alex Homer
BBC Local Live

Here is a quick recap of the stories we have been reporting on Wednesday:

- Passengers face delays and disruption aftertrees fell through overhead wires in high windsovernight

- Dutch drug smugglersmay have used a fleet of ambulances to smuggle cocaine and heroinwith a street value of up to £1.6bn into the UK, a court heard

- Almost 175,000 children are living in poverty across the West Midlands

Sutton Coldfield Local

The Sutton Coldfield Parish Council draft "reorganisation order" setting out electoral and transitional arrangements and precept (additional charge on top of current council tax) has been accepted by Birmingham City Council, external.

Image source, Sutton Coldfield Local

Rob Mayor
Black Country Political Reporter, BBC WM

Almost 175,000 children in the West Midlands are living in poverty and now councillors in Walsall are going to investigate what can be done to improve the standards of living for them.

In parts of Walsall, figures from Public Health England show more than two fifths of children are classed as being in poverty. 

At the moment, children are said to be in poverty if they live in a household with an income less than 60% of the national average.

Image source, Getty Images

This week the council backed a review into the issue. At that meeting councillor and mum-of-two Claire Clews spoke about her struggles putting food on the table.

Dudley News

A Dudley councillor says anti-social behaviour by yobs in Netherton is a huge problem which is driving people out of their homes, external.

The lamp-post which fell between J6 and J7 of the M6 northbound was down to a collision with a van at about 06:00 today and not the winds, Highways England has clarified.

It took until 09:50 for emergency repairs to be completed and the lanes to be reopened, a spokesperson said.