Eight men have been charged with abusing care home children in Coventry, West Midlands Police says.

The charges, including child cruelty and sexual offences, external, relate to 15 children allegedly targeted in the 1980s and 90s at former children's home Wisteria Lodge on Earlsdon Avenue South.

The eight accused all worked at the site and are due to appear before magistrates in Coventry later this month.

A female cyclist was killed when she was hit by a lorry in Birmingham yesterday.

West Midlands Police has appealed for information, external about the crash at the junction of Edgbaston Road and Pershore Road at about 16:00 yesterday.

Image source, Google

Officers say the 32-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.

BBC Midlands

Midlands Today's Satnam Rana who is filming a diary about living with breast cancer came out of surgery yesterday after a mastectomy.

The 40-year-old has started an online campaign urging women to #CheckThemOut, external.

Here's what she tweeted last night...

Here's the idea behind her campaign...

Police are investigating an attack on a man in Telford who claims he was stabbed for being Polish.

Bartek Milewski has been interviewed by BBC Panorama which says reports of race and religious hate crime are at their highest since records began in 2008.

Mr Milewski has lived in the UK for eight years and believes attacks of this nature are more common since the Brexit vote.

BBC Hereford and Worcester

A 28-year-old man continues to be questioned by police after armed officers were called to a library in Worcester yesterday.

They attended Fairfield Centre in Warndon just after 11:30 following reports of a man with a gun.

The West Mercia force said it seized a suspected imitation firearm.

Ben Godfrey
BBC Midlands Today

There's been a significant increase in the number of knife attacks attended by the Midlands Air Ambulance service, the BBC has learned.

In 2016, stabbings accounted for 1% of all call-outs. This year so far, the figure is 8%.

There was a spike in the summer when paramedics went to a record sixteen knife incidents in July.

Alex Hamilton
BBC Weather

A mainly dry and bright day and despite it being rather cloudy at times, sunny spells are likely to develop for many of us.

With light winds it will feel pleasant in the autumn sunshine - highs of 17C (63F).

Stephanie Barnard
BBC News

Good morning from the BBC Midlands newsroom.

We'll be bringing you the latest news, sport, travel and weather for the West Midlands and south Cheshire between now and 19:00.

You can get in touch with the team by visiting our BBC Midlands Facebook page, external, emailing us, or tweeting @BBCMTD, external.

Women are not being told all the options when deciding how to dispose of pregnancy remains.

Meet the life-size counterparts of the art that captures the final days of centuries-old market.

Dudley Group Foundation Trust did not properly look into "serious incidents" in its maternity unit, a report finds.

Domestic calendars and broadcast schedules help explain Wasps' short turnaround before their Champions Cup opener, say organisers.

We'll be back with more news, sport, travel and weather from 07:00 on Tuesday.

Keep an eye out here for more updates and breaking news before then.

Details of further closures of the Bridgnorth bypass have been announced by Shropshire Council., external

It will be closed to traffic all day on 25 October, as well as several more overnight shutdowns during the month.

It's part of a programme to repair and improve the bypass including crossings over the River Severn and Severn Valley Railway.

Shropshire Council has apologised for the disruption.

Telford and Wrekin Council has found a new way of encouraging people to clean up after their pets.

Volunteer wardens, armed with neon spray, have been recruited to highlight the problem of left-behind dog mess in the area.

Chris Addison from the council said he hopes the spray-painted poo will shame dog-owners into picking up after their animals.

Four men have appeared in court after stickers supporting a banned far-right group were put up at a university campus.

Three stickers bearing National Action branding were discovered by security staff at Aston University in July 2016.

Image source, N Chadwick

Two men aged 26, and two others aged 22 and 21, appeared at Birmingham Magistrates' Court earlier charged with displaying offensive material likely to stir up racial hatred.

They were told by magistrates they would next appear at the city's crown court in November to enter pleas.

Alex Hamilton
BBC Weather

A cloudy night ahead with the chance of a few showers and lows of 11C (52F).

There's also the chance of a few showers tomorrow, but some brighter weather in the afternoon.

Police are investigating treatment of Huntley Thawe who has been cleared of assaulting officers.

Coventry Observer

A divorced man who posed as a teenager to try to persuade two 14-year-old girls to send him naked pictures of themselves has been given a suspended prison sentence, external.

BBC reporter Satnam Rana who has breast cancer is behind a campaign targeting younger women to #checkthemout.

The arts and culture correspondent for BBC Midlands Today, is due to undergo a mastectomy today and has been reminding her Twitter followers to #checkthemout.