Vicky Norton
BBC Radio Stoke

A cannabis farm with an estimated street value of £420,000 has been discovered inside a former nightclub., external

Image source, Staffordshire Police

Police say a raid on the old Heaven and Hell club on Waterloo Road, Burslem at 01:30 this morning followed reports of suspicious activity.

They say they found a "sophisticated" set-up across three floors of the building with more than 700 plants.

Shropshire Star

Here are three of the top stories from the Shropshire Star website today:

• Trees down and roads warnings as Storm Eleanor hits, external
• Chef resigns over vegan uproar, external
• Police get more time to question four men over stabbing, external

BBC Sport

England captain Joe Root is backing Worcestershire all-rounder Moeen Ali (pictured) to find his form in the fifth and final Ashes Test against Australia.

Image source, Getty Images

Moeen has struggled throughout the series, having taken only three wickets and averaging just 19 with the bat.

England go into the game 3-0 down in the series and with Mason Crane set to make his debut, as the visitors opt for two spinners with Moeen retaining his place.

Wolves players Connor Ronan and Sylvain Deslandes agree loan moves to Portsmouth until the end of the season.

Shefali Oza
BBC Midlands Today

With the high winds from Storm Eleanor easing, here's how tonight and tomorrow are looking in the West Midlands.

You can also get the latest updates for your part of the region from the BBC Weather website at any time.

James Bond
Sports Producer, BBC Shropshire

Shrewsbury Town's FA Cup match against West Ham is heading for a sell-out.

About 500 went on general sale to fans this morning.

The match, which be shown on BBC TV on Sunday 7 January, is expected to feature the return of ex-Shrewsbury Town goalie Joe Hart.

The M5 northbound remains closed between junctions 4 and 4a, with southbound traffic being taken over the top of the junction, Highways England said.

It added drivers were now facing delays of 90 minutes southbound, with the traffic having a knock-on effect on the M42, where there are queues back to junction two.

Attacks on police officers in Staffordshire were up 2% in 2017 and the Assistant Chief Constable of the force says he's seen a "definite decline" in respect for the police.

Over the 12 months, 498 attacks were recorded, up from 487 in the previous year.

Image source, Staffordshire Police

Attacks on West Midlands Police officers fell from 672 to 620 between 2016 and 2017.

Assistant Chief Constable of Staffordshire Police Nick Adderley said he thought attitudes towards authority in general had changed during his 26 years' service.

Martin Winch
BBC News

People in Coventry are being urged to start planning UK City of Culture events even though it's three years until it takes on the title.

Image source, PA

The honour was awarded in December with the bid team at the time saying they wanted to look at "changing the reputation of a city".

One of the building blocks for Coventry is the Great Place scheme,, external a project aimed at promoting heritage, arts and tourism in the city.

It will run from this year to 2020 as the area gears up for UK City of Culture 2021.

Highways England said motorists can expect delays of about an hour on the M5 around junction four, for Bromsgrove, at the moment.

It's because of the lorry fire there, which broke out shortly after 15:00.

Image source, @Northfieldfire

Image source, @Northfieldfire

Paul McCann is charged with six counts of indecent assault against a boy between 1987 and 1990.

A man in his 70s has been rescued from his car after it went 100ft (30m) down a hill in Shropshire's Carding Mill Valley.

Firefighters were called out just after 09:00 and climbed down the hillside and cut him free, before he was taken by ambulance to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

Image source, Mark Chadwick

Image source, Mark Chadwick

West Midlands Ambulance service said the man suffered no major injuries.

Six months after promising sprinklers in every tower block in Birmingham, the residents are still waiting for the city council to install them.

The promise was made in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster, but the local authority says it doesn't have enough money to cover the £31m cost of installing them.

It says it will be asking the government to borrow £21m to pay for the work.

Council tax is expected to rise by almost 6% for people living in the Shropshire Council area.

The Conservative leader of the authority, Peter Nutting, said the extra money would bring in up to £7m and would be used to meet the cost of adult social care.

The government has allowed authorities to increase council tax by 3%, without the need to hold a referendum and add an extra 3% to that, to fund social care.

The neighbouring Labour-run Telford and Wrekin Council has declined to make the same increase and its tax will be going up by 3.2%.

The driver of a lorry that overturned and caught fire on the M5 this afternoon has been taken to hospital, but suffered "relatively minor injuries" West Midlands Ambulance Service has said.

It said he was pulled from his cab by a passer-by, who was treated at the scene for the effects of breathing in smoke and also taken to hospital.

Image source, @OPUWorcs

West Mercia Police says the motorway is likely to remain shut at junction four for the foreseeable future.

Bob Hockenhull
BBC Midlands Today

A delivery driver had a lucky escape when he avoided being hit by falling roofing, which blew into a Birmingham car park.

Nobody was hurt when it came down near shops in the Shard End area of town.

Police cordoned off the area and shopkeeper Bilal Ahmed said it was a shock for everyone.

Birmingham Mail

These are three of the headlines on the Birmingham Mail website this afternoon:

• Chip shop roof ripped off in Storm Eleanor, external
• Six arrested on terrorism offences, external
• Car thefts soar as thieves bypass modern vehicle security systems, external

Highways England says traffic is now being diverted off at the exit slip-road at junction four of the M5, following a lorry fire.

It has also warned that delays are building up on the approach to the junction and is advising motorists to avoid the area if possible.

Image source, Highways England

Sarah Robertson
Journalist, BBC Radio Stoke

An 11-year-old girl from Cheshire who had a double lung transplant last year has died.

Elle Grace Morris from Wrenbury gained fame in her local community and online through a campaign by her family to make her birthday wishes come through.

Image source, Becky Whitfield

She drew up 10 for her 10th birthday in 2016, external including successfully meeting Olly Murs and Rita Ora and a holiday in Florida.

But, in a post on Facebook, her family says she passed away in the early hours this morning., external

The pair - including a British soldier - are also accused of being members of a banned neo-Nazi group.