Live updates from Monday 5 to Sunday 11 February 2018
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Here are some headlines from the Shropshire Star:
About 600,000 people used smaller stations between Telford and Birmingham in 2016-17, latest figures show.
That is despite many current services not stopping at the likes of Shifnal, Cosford, Albrighton, Codsall and Bilbrook
Over the same period, 1.2 million people used Telford Central station - about twice as many services a day currently stop at Telford, compared with Shifnal.
Lucy Allan, Conservative MP for Telford, is calling for new services to ignore smaller stations, in a bid to increase the speed of journeys between Telford and Birmingham.
Quote MessageWe need to drop some of the stops along the route to Birmingham. We are a business centre and we need to be able to go faster. This service is not a tourist stopping service to admire the attractions of Shropshire."
Lucy Allan, MP for Telford
Telford MP Lucy Allan says there is no demand at all for stations between Telford and Birmingham.
Read MoreA £2,000 reward is being offered in the search for a man who's been missing for two years.
Russell Blent, from Shrewsbury, disappeared on 9 April 2016.
Search teams with dogs will be carrying out searches today, close to the Rea Brook in the Meole Brace area of town.
Image source, West Mercia PoliceA number of searches have already taken place and the police are again urging people to check outbuildings and sheds, particularly those that have not been used for some time.
Anti-terrorism officer Marcus Beale has already been fined and is suspended from work.
Read More
Graham McGarry
Crewe Alexandra commentator, BBC Radio Stoke
Crewe loanee Jamie Sterry says there are still plenty of games left for his new club to climb away from the League Two relegation zone.
The team have lost their last four games in a row and are only two points off the bottom two.
Image source, Getty ImagesCrewe's reserves lost 2-1 to Nantwich Town in the Cheshire Senior Cup last night, but defender George Ray played the whole game, including extra time, as he continues his comeback from injury.
Quote MessageI see how good this team is and they shouldn't be where they are really. There's a lot of young lads who try to play football and keep the ball well, so hopefully we can get some goals."
Jamie Sterry, Crewe Alexandra defender
The Shropshire-based Hedgehog Preservation Society says numbers of the animals have halved since the year 2000.
The State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2018 , externalreport, published jointly by the British Hedgehog Preservation Society and the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, shows that hedgehogs in rural areas are in severe decline.
Image source, PAThe report points to a number of factors for the falling numbers, including loss of hedgerows and grasslands, increased field sizes, and the use of pesticides.
There's a better outlook for hedgehogs in urban areas - the report has found that although the species has declined by a third in urban areas since 2000, the rate of decline is slowing.
These are among the headlines on the Worcester News website:
James Bond
Sports Producer, BBC Shropshire
Shrewsbury Town will face Yeovil in the semi final of the Checkatrade Trophy.
The Somerset team saw off Fleetwood with a late goal last night, to win their quarter final 3-2.
The next round will be played in Shrewsbury 27 February and the winners will play Lincoln City at Wembley.
They beat Chelsea Under 21s 4-2 last night, after penalties.
Former patients of the jailed breast surgeon Ian Paterson are being asked to tell their stories to the independent inquiry into his work.
Paterson worked at private and NHS hospitals in the West Midlands and was jailed for 20 years after being found guilty of 17 counts of wounding with intent.
Image source, PAThe independent inquiry wants to find out what could change as a result of his malpractice.
People living near Heartlands Hospital have complained that staff and patients are routinely parking in their roads.
They say the hospital's parking charges are encouraging motorists to avoid the official car parks.
Image source, GoogleThe Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust says changes have been made to employee parking to provide enough spaces and to make parking fairer and more affordable, and that staff are reminded to be aware of local restrictions and be courteous to residents.
A recipe for gingerbread, believed to be 100 years old, has been discovered in Leek.
It was found while Lawtons Pie Shop was being redecorated.
Shop owner Steve Ball decided to get it laminated and now hopes to revive the town's gingerbread-making past.
A shopkeeper says the recipe could be 100 years old.
Worcestershire will take in another 50 Syrian refugees this year, doubling the previous number, the county council has announced.
The families will arrive in the autumn and will be rehomed across the county.
The local authority has said that this won't mean a reduction in the amount of housing available to local people in need.
BBC Sport
Birmingham City are out of the FA Cup after losing their replay against Huddersfield 4-1 after extra time.
Blues led until the 60th minute, when the visitors equalised through a Marc Roberts own goal.
Image source, Getty ImagesHuddersfield Town will host Manchester United on 17 February.
Quote MessageFor 90 minutes, we did well and kept it tight to half-time. We then opened up, had a different set-up in midfield and got the goal. But, after that, we were hanging on in there and it was always going to be tough for us in extra time. They were too much for us."
Steve Cotterill, Birmingham City manager
The MP for Telford says she wants more express services into the town and is suggesting they don't call at "those little Shropshire villages, for which there is no demand at all".
Lucy Allan went on to tell a Westminster Hall debate, external yesterday: "I never see anyone getting on and off at these little stops between Telford and Birmingham."
The stations between Telford and Birmingham include Shifnal, Cosford, Albrighton, Codsall and Bilbrook.
The MP raised the issue, saying the rail service in and out of Telford "does not meet the needs of a modern, thriving new town." and that more carriages are needed, to deal with overcrowding.
West Midlands Railway took over the franchise which was previously held by London Midland in December last year and has committed itself to more train services and more carriages.
These are three of the headlines from the Express and Star website this morning:
A man's in a critical condition in hospital after falling into the freezing canal in Stourport-on-Severn last night.
Emergency services were called to York Street just after 18:00.
Image source, GoogleThe man was rescued from the water and has been taken to hospital.
Sean Fogarty
Producer, BBC Shropshire
Ludlow's race meeting has been abandoned because of a frozen course., external
There were due to be seven races, with the first at 13:40, but after an inspection it was decided it couldn't go ahead.
The course tweeted to say temperatures weren't expected to rise above freezing until midday.
A man is taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries after an incident at a property in Stoke-on-Trent.
Read More
Phil Bowers
Journalist, BBC Radio Stoke
A 34-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder following a stabbing at a house in Stoke-on-Trent.
Police were called to Selwyn Street at about 17:00 yesterday, following reports that a man had received multiple stab wounds.
Image source, Staffordshire PoliceThe victim, a 46-year-old man, has been taken to the Royal Stoke University Hospital with what have been described as life-threatening injuries.
