Firefighters have been tackling a blaze at the Roaches in Staffordshire since Thursday.

Birmingham Live

Some of today's headlining stories on the Birmingham Live website include:

• Prisoners released by mistake from HMP Birmingham, external
• Mayor welcomes plans to tackle menace of Spice in city centres, external
• The parts of the West Midlands where you're most likely to be a victim of knife crime, external

BBC Radio Stoke Sport

Stoke City manager Gary Rowett is understood to have told four players, including record signing Giannelli Imbula and Charlie Adam, they are free to leave the Championship club.

Imbula, the £18.3m recruit from Porto, and former Scotland international Adam, plus Maxim Choupo-Moting and Geoff Cameron, are all surplus to requirements and available before the deadline at the end of the month.

Image source, Getty Images

Last week's transfer deadline day meant all English signings had to be made by 9 August, although Football League clubs can still sign loanees and free agents until 31 August.

The Potters have taken one point from their opening two games and were booed off the pitch on Saturday after their home draw with Brentford.

A pedestrian has been taken to hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a vehicle in Smethwick.

Image source, SnappersSK

An ambulance came across the crash at 13:40 on Hagley Road West, part of which remains closed off at the junction with Lordswood Road.

The road was completely closed for a time to allow the air ambulance to land.

The man was anaesthetised at the scene, and taken to hospital by land ambulance.

BBC News Travel

A crash is blocking two lanes of the M6 southbound, between J4 and J3 in Warwickshire.

Drivers are being warned of queuing traffic in the area.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Computer systems at two hospitals have crashed for a second time in three months, forcing staff to resort to hand writing patients' notes.

Image source, Google

Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust have declined to comment on how many patients were affected by the latest failure or if any emergency cases had been diverted to other A&E units.

The computer crash came to light when chief executive of the trust, Toby Lewis, congratulated A&E staff at both Sandwell and City hospitals on Twitter on the way they coped with the latest crisis last week.

Dudley News

Some of the headlining stories on the Dudley News website today include:

• Man charged with arson after Brierley Hill factory fire, external
• Council awards cash to community groups, external

• Scent sends Dudley Zoo's big cats wild, external

A man has been charged with arson following a severe fire at a factory in Dudley.

Image source, West Midlands Police

The 27-year-old is due before Dudley Magistrates' Court accused of deliberately starting the fire, on Navigation Drive, Brierley Hill on Friday.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
Political Reporter, BBC WM

Strong words from Labour MP for Perry Barr, Khalid Mahmood this morning, talking about the way the city council (run by his own party) has handled plans for charging vehicles in a clean air zone.

He’s not the first to criticise - but even the Conservative Mayor of the region praised the authority for its "brave" proposals.

Image source, Getty Images

Khalid Mahmood claims the figure of 900 premature deaths in the city down to pollution is "false", and nowhere near enough work has been done to determine what would really improve things.

A public consultation finishes this Friday, external and Mr Mahmood has also suggested that a six-week exercise in midsummer is not exactly comprehensive.

But Birmingham City Council says it has had a record number of responses in what had been a huge engagement exercise; and it stands by its statistics.

There are calls for a referendum on proposals for Birmingham's new Clean Air Zone.

Labour MP for Perry Barr, Khalid Mahmood - said the public should be given a greater say on the plans to charge all high-polluting vehicles travelling within the middle ring road.

The council proposes to charge up to £10 a day for cars and £100 for lorries.

Mr Mahmood said the council plan lacked "any real preparation".

A public consultation on the plans is open until 17 August, external - with the council asking people to contribute their views.

Birmingham City Council has already been given a final warning to clean up its air by 2020 and says the plan would address "one of its biggest challenges".

Daniel Moseley, 20, has defied doctors by being able to push himself in his wheelchair.

Traffic signals at the site of a crash between a tram and a car in Wolverhampton this morning were not faulty, said Wolverhampton City Council.

It said workers were at the scene, ahead of the crash, "investigating another issue at the junction relating to tram detection exiting the city”.

It had previously been reported that the traffic lights had been out of sync, on Bilston Road Island.

One woman was taken to hospital after the crash.

Ben Godfrey
BBC Midlands Today

A new centre could be built in Shropshire to treat injured veterans.

The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in Oswestry is planning to raise £1.5m, initially to offer limb and spinal surgery to servicemen and women.

It's hoped it will also provide respite care for retired veterans living in areas where on-going treatment has been harder to access.

Every year about 2,500 veterans are treated at the military clinic at the Oswestry Orthopaedic clinic and there is great demand for the service.

Now it wants to build a specialist centre which will offer more extensive surgery as demand grows.

In the West Midlands, there are 207,000 veterans - of them about 29% require treatment for on-going back or neck problems, and a further 30% with arm or hand injuries.

Hereford Times

Here's a selection of stories to feature on the Hereford Times website today:

• Bystanders tried to resuscitate man in Ross-on-Wye pub, external
• Schoolboy grows hair for Little Princess Trust, external
• Leader calls for return of remand cases to the county, external

The Oldbury viaduct between junctions 1 and 2 has been partly closed since April 2017.

Stephanie Barnard
BBC News

Fire crews remain at large wildfire in the Staffordshire Moorlands after flames engulfed more than 200 acres.

Staffordshire Fire Servive has renewed its calls for people to stay out of the area, including Roach Road.

The blaze on The Roaches, broke out on Thursday, and last week emergency services said walkers were still trying to access the nature reserve, despite the flames and smoke.

Officers are investigating two early morning robberies in Warwickshire today, in which cash and a car were stolen.

Image source, Google

Staff at the Co-op store on Chesterdon Drive in Nuneaton were threatened by three men armed with weapons at 06:45 today, before robbers made off with money and a Peugeot 208.

Cash was also stolen from a post office on Bridge Street Kenilworth, at about 08:00.

Warwickshire Police is appealing for any witnesses to come forward.

Faith Page
Reporter, BBC Shropshire

A suspicious fire at a house near Whitchurch this morning is being investigated by police.

A 73-year-old man was taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhilation.

Officers say initial enquiries suggest the fire may have been started deliberately after both floors of the property on Springhill in Alkington were damaged.

It's the second time in a month that fire crews have been called to the house.

Worcester News

Here are some of the top stories to feature on the Worcester News website today:

• Liam Ball: Friends pay tribute to 'life of the party' who died in crash, external
• Worcester Show 2018: Crowds flock to Gheluvelt Park for annual event, external
• Morale amongst area's police lowest in the country, new survey says, external

Organisers say 'The Three Degrees' statue will honour the footballers who inspired black players.