Allen Cook
BBC News

Three children and a woman have been hurt after a suspected stolen car crashed into their vehicle while being chased by police., external

Image source, Google

Staffordshire Police says the Ford Fiesta didn't stop when officers approached it yesterday afternoon and then collided with the Citroen Picasso on the A5 near Cannock.

The force says the children and the woman, who was driving the Citroen, suffered minor injuries., external

The driver of the Ford Fiesta's in custody after being arrested and officers say they have informed the Independent Office for Police Conduct about what happened.

BBC Politics

Members of Parliament have benefitted from more than £2m worth of free overseas trips in the last two years.

More than half of that was paid for by foreign governments, BBC analysis of Parliament's expenses register , externalreveals.

A total of 810 visits were recorded by 340 MPs in the years either side of the 2017 general election.

Not all of the invitations were on behalf of governments. The single most expensive trip over the two-year period was taken by former Conservative cabinet minister Andrew Mitchell.

The MP for Sutton Coldfield charged £21,157 for a two-day visit to Washington DC with his wife in April 2017 to attend meetings about international development. He was sponsored by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

You can see how many trips your MP has accepted in the year since the election by searching here on the BBC website.

Elizabeth Joyce
BBC News

A woman from the West Midlands says she's struggling to find alternatives to underwired bras and wants manufacturers to produce more underwear for plus-size women.

Kirsty Bosley, 31, says women have had enough of painful underwired styles.

Image source, Kirsty Bosley

It comes as retailers have reported a rise in sales of bralets, crop tops and sportswear over the past two years.

BBC News has been looking into why women seem to be falling out of love with lingerie with in-built scaffolding.

Kirsty says: "Having big boobs is painful. Everyone should be comfortable and happy in what they wear, I just wish that was easier for plus-size girls to achieve."

Express and Star

From the Express and Star:

• Cabbies urge rethink over Wolverhampton Railway Station taxi rank, external
• Addict thief threatened to give Sainsbury’s security guards Aids, external
• Thousands pour in for stab victim Richard Helm's family, external

BBC Midlands Today

Thieves who strip parts worth hundreds of pounds from the front of Vauxhall Corsa cars are being hunted by police.

The force says four of the vehicles were targeted in east Birmingham in a single night this week.

The bonnet, headlights and bumper were taken from this pictured car, belonging to the niece of a community activist.

Vauxhall told the BBC that there's no design or security problems and it's just vandalism.

BBC Hereford and Worcester

A new village and a major housing development are two of the main proposals to find sites for more than 5,500 new homes in part of Worcestershire., external

Wyre Forest District Council has revised its local plan, schemes drawn up by every local authority to identify enough land to meet local housing needs.

Image source, Google

In Wyre Forest, the latest stage of the proposals will see a new village at Lea Castle and an extension of Kidderminster to the east of the town.

But plans to build on the green belt at Spennells and Offmore have been dropped after heavy opposition from people who already live there.

The council's scrutiny committee will now examine the latest version of the local plan next Thursday, before a new consultation.

Swimmers and rugby players should still be able to use a leisure centre when work starts on revamping it and building a new pool, it's claimed., external

Image source, Congleton Town Council

Congleton Town Council says the scheme to revamp the site on Worrall Street is about to go out for consultation after the final design's refined.

The project will see a new pool hall built with a six-lane, 25m swimming pool and a larger learner pool than the current one.

If permission's given, work would start in the spring and the council says the aim is to maintain swimming during the construction and let rugby players keep using the Hankinson's Field pitch.

BBC Midlands Today

A women's charity says it's worried about funding in the future as it sees a big increase in referrals for domestic abuse.

Black Country Women’s Aid says figures are up 15% year-on-year and it’s dealing with 140 victims a week.

While the charity says it welcomes a rise in reporting, it's concerned about how well it will be funded from April.

Rich Davis
BBC Weather presenter

We're in for a bright and chilly start to the day in the West Midlands, here's how the rest of Friday is looking:

You can keep up-to-date with a latest forecast for your part of the West Midlands by heading to the BBC Weather website.

BBC News Travel

A lane's been shut on the M5 northbound near Worcester after a lorry overturned on the exit slip road at J6.

Highways England says it's shut one lane on the slip road to the A449, external but has also closed one on the motorway to help staff remove the HGV., external

Allen Cook
BBC News

Welcome to our live service for Friday.

We'll be bringing you all the news, sport, travel and weather for the West Midlands.

We love to hear from you so share your news, thoughts and photos of the area with us via email, Twitter, external and Facebook, external.

Chronic under-staffing and long waits for treatment have been witnessed by inspectors.

We'll be back with our usual mix of news, sport, travel and weather from 07:00 tomorrow, but keep an eye out here for more updates this evening and into the morning.

Halesowen News

Here are some of the stories to feature on the Halesowen News website this afternoon:

• Man set to face murder trial for Christopher Harm killing, external
• Cemetery plan fails as green space defended, external
• Pensioner demands school acts on dangerous overhanging trees, external

Sophie Calvert
Political Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

A derelict shopping centre is going to be bought by Stoke-on-Trent City Council which is then planning to tear it down.

The East-West precinct in Hanley was previously bought up by Realis Estates which then decided not to pursue its development plans in the city.

Today, a meeting of the full council agreed to spend £5m buying the buildings, knocking them down and setting up a temporary car park.

Teenage Worcester flanker Ted Hill is surprised by his call-up to England's training squad after just one Premiership start.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Carl Jackson

Child safety failings at a major Birmingham NHS body, external have been exposed by inspectors who witnessed under-staffing and long waits for treatment.

Image source, CQC

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has issued a warning to Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, which serves more than six million patients across the West Midlands, and rated the organisation as "requires improvement" overall.

The biggest shortcomings were found in community health services for children and young people which was handed an individual rating of "inadequate".

Chief executive Richard Kirby acknowledged the failings in child services and vowed that staff would be better supported.

Crewe Chronicle

Here are some of the stories making the headlines on the Crewe Chronicle website:

• Robbery in Crewe sees shop worker threatened with large knife, external
• Jail for 'aggressive' beggar who breached court order and stole from teenager, external
• Train bodycams 'halve assaults' on front-line staff, external

Ex-Aston Villa striker Dalian Atkinson died in August 2016 after being Tasered by police.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Tom Davis

Residents in Tile Hill are calling on the council to name a square in honour of well-known community champion who died in August.

Image source, Google

Terry Harvey, known by many as "Mr Tile Hill", was a popular figure in the area, helping neighbours and updating a local notice board since the 1950s.

His contributions to the community and local charities led him to receive a Coventry Good Citizen Award from the Mayor in 2012.

Residents are requesting, via a petition, an anonymous square on Jardine Crescent is renamed the Terry Harvey Square in tribute.