Allen Cook
BBC News

Here are some of the headlines in local newspapers and news blogs from across Staffordshire and Cheshire:

• Burton Mail - Tributes paid to 'big softie' ex-soldier after he loses brave battle with cancer, external
• Crewe Chronicle - Council warn of road closures as roundabout work continues, external
• Nantwich News - Sealed Knot unveils plaque in Nantwich to mark 46-year association, external

Phil McCann
Cheshire Political Reporter, BBC News

The investigation into allegations against Cheshire's chief constable has been “littered with irregularities”, a misconduct panel has been told today.

Image source, PA

Simon Byrne (pictured) denies all the claims of bullying and rule breaches against him and his legal team say it would be grossly unfair to proceed with the hearing.

Cheshire's Police and Crime Commissioner David Keane, who was responsible for the investigation, says he relied on proper legal advice.

The hearing continues.

An inquiry into current and historical child sexual abuse in Telford will "provide answers to survivors", the council's said today., external

A Sunday Mirror article last month claimed 1,000 children may have been abused , externalin the town since the 1980s.

Last week, Labour councillors backed a motion by the authority's Conservative group to set up an independent, council-led inquiry.

Today, they've been outlining how such an inquiry will happen and plan to put an initial sum of £350,000 towards paying for it.

The council says it's backing a proposal that anyone who's been a council leader or led on children's services be excluded from advising the inquiry as "they will likely be called to give evidence".

Alex Hamilton
BBC Weather

It should remain dry throughout tonight with some clear periods, but cloudy at times, with lows of 10C (50F).

Promotion-winning Wolves captain Conor Coady says the Championship leaders are an example of how any club should be run.

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

A man's been taken to hospital after a lorry overturned and jack-knifed on a main road.

Image source, West Midlands Ambulance Service

The emergency services were called to Reginald Mitchell Way, Stoke-on-Trent just before 14:30.

They closed a lane because diesel had been spilt and paramedics took the man to hospital for more treatment., external

Kirpal Singh Panesar from Birmingham is a leading Dilruba performer.

Allen Cook
BBC News

Warwickshire reached the tea interval trailing by 30 in their Division Two match with Sussex at Edgbaston.

They were 45-1 at the break, having finally bowled the visitors out for 374, following the Bears' first innings of 299.

Olly Stone took a career best 8-80 for Warwickshire while David Wiese made his highest score for Sussex of 106.

You can keep following the match on local radio commentary and via the BBC Sport website here.

Vicky Breakwell
BBC Hereford and Worcester

Work is being done on a brook in Bromsgrove to make it more water vole-friendly.

Battlefield Brook, Sanders Park is being naturalised by the district council,, external Severn Trent Water and contractors with the aim of improving the habitat for the small mammal.

Image source, PA

It comes as the People’s Trust for Endangered Species is calling for volunteers to help monitor water vole numbers across the Midlands, amid concern about a large decline in numbers.

The mammal is one of the UK's most endangered species - its numbers dropping by more than 90% over 30 years, blamed in part on a loss of its natural habitat.

It's the last chance to register to vote in next month's local elections.

Fifteen councils in the West Midlands face elections on 3 May and tomorrow marks the deadline for new registrations.

Birmingham City Council is the biggest local authority to face voters, while in most other areas only a third of seats may be up for grabs.

To register, visit the government website, external.

If you've already registered, you should be sent a postal ballot or voting card if a seat in your area is affected.

Jodie Looker
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

Nearly £11m is going to be spent on road repairs and improvements in Stoke-on-Trent in the next 12 months, external including fixing more than 1,000 defects such as potholes.

The city council says work's starting tomorrow night on resurfacing certain roads and there's another £3.4m in the pipeline for repairs.

As well as pothole repairs, it'll be re-allocating bus lanes and upgrading traffic lights.

Birmingham Live

Some of the top stories on the Birmimgham Live website today include:

• Drugs gang smashed after ringleader hid loaded revolver inside child's Wendy house, external
• Massage parlour stripped of its licence wins legal battle to clear its name, external
• Drug dealer caught out by picture message in pioneering police investigation, external

Scaffolding is being stripped from Shrewsbury Abbey today after part of a £300,000 conservation project ends.

Some of the work has involved hand-carving roses, lilies and foxes heads in stone after the original features were damaged by air pollution.

The 11th Century abbey, formerly a Benedictine monastery provided the backdrop to Edith Pargeter's Brother Cadfael crime novels, which were turned into an ITV TV series.

Matt Sandoz
Stoke City commentator, BBC Radio Stoke

Stoke City face a massive game this evening as they battle to avoid being relegated from the Premier League.

After the weekend's games, the Potters are six points off safety with just five games remaining of their season and head to West Ham tonight.

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke will again be without forward Maxim Choupo-Moting, who is not yet ready to return from a groin injury.

Manager Paul Lambert (pictured) has no further injury concerns to contend with for the trip to the London Stadium.

Friends of 14-year-old Nell Jones, from Holmes Chapel, talk about how they remember her, as their school opens a "Garden of Memories".

The union Unite said it gives its "full support" to Jaguar Land Rover workers after, it said, the car maker confirmed plans to lay-off more than 1,000 workers in the region.

Image source, Getty Images

"Faltering consumer confidence" over Brexit combined with the "government's aggressive approach to diesel" were harming Britain's car industry, it warned ministers.

National officer Des Quinn described the decision as a "blow for a top class workforce" that has worked hard to turn the company's fortunes around in recent years.

"It should be a wake-up call for minsters and have alarm bells ringing in the highest levels of government," he said.

Hereford Times

These are some of the main stories from the Hereford Times today:

• Artist donates work to Hereford hospital, external
• Neighbours fight plan for sports pitch, external
• County boxers impress at charity evening, external

Staff at Jaguar Land Rover are being told about plans to shed 1,000 jobs as it cuts production at two sites in the West Midlands.

Image source, Getty Images

As we reported on Friday, the company is expected to lay off some of its agency workers at its Solihull site and move just over 360 people to the location from its nearby Castle Bromwich plant.

The Coventry-based company employs 40,000 people in the UK, 10,000 at the Solihull factory.

Jaguar sales are down 26% so far this year, compared with last year, while demand for Land Rovers in the UK is down 20%.

The official receiver handling the collapse of Carillion is calling on anyone who came into contact with the Wolverhampton firm to take part in a survey.

The construction company went into liquidation in January amid £1.5bn of debt and more than 1,800 staff have lost their jobs.

Image source, PA

Among other projects, it was involved in the building of the £350m Midland Metropolitan Hospital in Sandwell and dealt with hundreds of subcontractors, many based in the West Midlands.

You have until 9 May 2018 to respond to the survey, external.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
George Makin

A health boss has spoken of his "frustration" and "disappointment" over the delays to the badly needed Midland Metropolitan Hospital which has been at standstill since its main contractor, Carillion, went bust in January.

The delays and uncertainty over the new acute service, which was set to replace Birmingham’s City Road and Sandwell General hospitals, have left health chiefs unable to say when work on the half-built project can resume.

The new building, based in Smethwick, was forecast to cost £558m but the collapse of the construction giant Carillion has not only thrown back the completion date of January 2019 but has also seen fears that costs could soar by as much as extra £75m.

Toby Lewis, Chief Executive of Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, has written to both Birmingham and Sandwell councillors saying the project has the personal backing of the Prime Minister Theresa May and will be completed.