An employee fell 2.5m (8ft) out of a delivery hatch while working at a fishmongers in Birmingham, a court has heard.

The man suffered back and head injuries when he fell against a hatch door which then opened.

Image source, Google

J Vickerstaff and Co Ltd were ordered to pay £13,255 at Birmingham Magistrates Court yesterday after pleading guilty to health and safety offences.

The court heard the accident happened in June last year at the wholesale markets in Pershore Street.

Birmingham City Council, which brought the prosecution said the company had co-operated with the investigation, replacing the doors with suitable locks and safe system of work for their use.

BBC Sport

Worcester Warriors centre Ben Te'o could be out of action for at least a month.

The England international picked up an ankle injury early in the win over Brive on Saturday and is due to undergo a scan to establish the full extent of the injury.

Image source, Getty Images

Plans to have a giant inflatable duck on display were abandoned because of the high winds.

The team behind Stoke-on-Trent's City of Culture bid had hoped to have the 30ft (9m) high duck on display outside the train station and the Spode works, to impress the visiting judges.

Image source, @SOT2021

The inflatable duck will go on display tomorrow instead, weather permitting.

And for non-Stokies, the significance is in the greeting - 'ay up duck'.

A woman fell through a skylight during a rooftop photo shoot in Birmingham, a court has heard.

Image source, google

The accident happened on the flat roof of HTF Media's offices as the woman walked over one of three large roof skylights, falling 3.6 metres, (12 ft), suffering bruising.

Her employer, HTF Media Ltd, and the building's owners, Boxxed Ltd, both based in Floodgate Street, Digbeth, were fined at Birmingham Magistrates Court yesterday.

HTF Media were ordered to pay a total of £9,088 and Boxxed Ltd a total of £7,116.

The court heard that both defendants co-operated with the investigation and they both pleaded guilty to health and safety charges.

Drugs and samurai swords have been seized by the police, after early morning raids in Stoke-on-Trent.

A 31-year-old man and 26-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply class B drugs after officers broke into a house on Haywood Street in Shelton at 07:00.

Image source, Staffordshire Police

The swords were found at an address on Maryfield Walk in Penkhull.

After 33 years of appeals and reconstructions, BBC's Crimewatch is shutting down its phone lines.

Amongst the high profile cases the programme tackled was that of the kidnapping of Birmingham estate agent Stephanie Slater.

Image source, PA

The 25-year-old was held captive for eight days in 1992 after showing someone around a house in Great Barr.

Crimewatch broadcast a recording of the kidnapper's voice, which was heard by his ex-wife. She came forward.

As a result, Michael Sams was arrested and convicted for both the kidnapping and the murder of Leeds teenager Julie Dart.

An approach to Nuneaton Town manager, Tommy Wright by rivals Darlington has been turned down, said the club.

Image source, Nuneaton Town FC

Darlington contacted Boro's chairman last night about their vacant manager position but, opted against entering in to any discussions, it said.

In a statement the club said it was "delighted" that Tommy had shown his "commitment to the club" by staying on his two-year rolling contract.

BBC News Travel

A broken down lorry is blocking one lane of the A426 Leicester Road northbound, between the A426 Newbold Road and the B4112.

Traffic is moving but slow, police say.

Image source, Warwickshire Police

Coventry Telegraph

Today's top stories from the Coventry Telegraph include:

• Face of Sunday League football thug , externalwho headbutted referee who sent him off

• The ridiculous reason drug dealer gave when cops found cocaine and heroin on him, external

• Kenilworth to move into Coventry and Binley Woods to Nuneaton , externalunder boundary change plans

A dog beaten on a bus in Walsall has led to an RSPCA appeal for witnesses.

Image source, Google

The attack on the brindle-coloured Staffordshire bull terrior-type happened last Thursday afternoon on the 10A service from Walsall to Brownhills.

The man who carried out the attack, during which the dog was hit a number of times, got on the bus outside the Walsall Wood factory shop, the animal charity said.

A worried member of the public, who witnessed the beating, reported it to the organisation.

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

City of Culture judges are on their tour of the six towns that make up Stoke-on-Trent.

Toy ducks are being handed out at locations around the city - a reference to the Stoke greeting "ay up duck".

Image source, SOT2021

The six-person panel has been meeting the bid team at the Spode Works on Elenora Street.

Image source, SOT2021/BBC

Stoke-on-Trent is vying with Paisley, Coventry, Sunderland and Swansea for the title, with the winning bid announced in December.

Coventry City defender Jordan Willis signs a one-year contract extension with the League Two side.

There should be a statutory policy to make all councils provide shelters for people escaping domestic violence, a Birmingham MP says.

Jess Philips, Labour MP for Yardley and chairman of the all party parliamentary group on domestic violence, says it said it should be a legal requirement for councils "like bins and children's services".

New research suggests that more than 1,000 women and children have been turned away from accommodation over the last six months in England.

The government says it's providing £40m between now and 2020 for services.

The Stoke Sentinel

Headlines on the Stoke Sentinel website include:

• Plans lodged for 277 city centre apartments, external
• Police drugs raids in Shelton and Penkhull , external
• Killer punched a man who complained about snowballs, external

A cash machine has been stolen from Hollowell Way, Rugby.

A glass door was broken by the raiders as they forced their way in to the Polskie Delikatesy shop where the cash machine. was situated.

Police were called to the scene at around 2:20am.

Image source, Google

Eloise Parry died aged 21 after taking slimming tablets containing controversial DNP drug.

One man was left seriously injured and had to be cut free from a car after a two-vehicle crash in Wombourne, Wolverhampton last night, the ambulance service said., external

One car overturned during the incident, on the A449 Southbridge Road, at around 23:20, but the two occupants of that vehicle escaped with minor injuries.

A man in his 50s sustained neck and arm injuries and taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham for further trauma care.

A BBC investigation has revealed house prices are actually lower now in half of all English council wards than they were ten years ago.

In the West Midlands Newcastle-under-Lyme showed the biggest decrease with properties down 57%, followed by Wrockwardine in Telford and Wrekin, down 38%.

You can check how house prices have changed where you are by using our online tool.

A young swimmer is back in training after his success at a national competition this summer.

Image source, Coventry Sports Foundation

Luqman Abdi was named Young Sportsman of the Year at the National Dwarf Games, as well as winning gold in the under eight's category.

The eight-year-old, who was born with dwarfism, only started to learn to swim three years ago at the Xcel leisure centre in Coventry and works with coaches at the pool once a week.

Coach Ravi Nakra said Luqman's transformation from a non-swimmer to medal winner has been "truly phenomenal".

"When I heard about his award and gold medal I honestly could have cried, it was a real ‘this is why you do it’ moment," he said.

The ghost apparently held visitors' hands at the castle, dubbed the "spookiest" by English Heritage.