The West Mercia and Warwickshire police forces say more than £1m of fraud has been prevented in the area since a new system was introduced, allowing bank staff to raise the alarm if they think their customers are being conned.

The forces said that since last September they have taken 210 of these calls, with £1m fraud stopped in the West Mercia area and another £227,000 in the Warwickshire area.

Image source, Getty Images

Police have warned that with all the extra spending at this time of year, scammers are likely to be particularly active.

Nationally, more than 360 people have been arrested through the scheme and £40m worth of fraud prevented.

A man who died in a crash in Worcestershire last Friday has been described as "intelligent, thoughtful and loving" by his family.

Luke Ruff, who was 37 and from Evesham, was killed when the car he was in collided with a lorry on the B4084 between Cropthorne and Wick. He leaves behind a partner and two children.

Image source, Family photo

His family also said he was an experienced builder who shared his father's passion for motorbikes and they thanked the emergency services for comforting him until he passed away.

Mint Ltd had previously admitted four charges related to breaches of food hygiene.

The crash between two lorries stopped train services on Tuesday night.

Worcester Warriors centre Will Butler signs a new two-year contract with the Premiership club.

Birmingham Live

The Birmingham Live website is covering these stories today:

• Mum banned from daughter's first nativity after playground row, external
• Birmingham's 'Queen of the Pickpockets' back behind bars, external
• Company gives staff 9.3% pay rise before Christmas, external

An Indian takeaway in Telford has been fined almost £3,000 after being found in breach of food safety rules.

Mint limited was given a food hygiene rating of zero when inspectors discovered a cat was left free to roam around the premises, the kitchens were unclean and the facilities for staff to wash their hands was inadequate.

Image source, Google

The judge at Shrewsbury Crown Court said that the fine of £2,800 was not fitting for the seriousness of the offence, but reflected the financial restraints on the company.

The three-course meal will be delivered on the concourse of Birmingham New Street station.

The Shropshire rose-grower David Austin has died at the age of 92, it has been announced.

A statement from his garden centre business said he passed away peacefully at his home in the county, surrounded by his family.

He started growing the flowers in the 1950s and David Austin Roses has gone on to become world-famous, winning 24 gold awards at the Chelsea Flower Show.

BBC News Travel

An incident on the railway line is going to cause disruption in and out of Nuneaton station until around 15:00, Network Rail has said.

Emergency services were called to the scene earlier and there is a warning trains could be delayed by up to 60 minutes or cancelled in some cases.

Allen Cook
BBC News

A man's been seriously hurt in a hit-and-run with a biker. , external

The 23-year-old was on Wistaston Road, Crewe, Cheshire, on Thursday police say, when he was struck by a motocross bike which didn't stop.

Image source, Google

Fruit pastilles have been causing problems for a Herefordshire soldier who is attempting a record-breaking trek across Antarctica.

Captain Lou Rudd is racing against an American rival to become the first person to cross the continent solo and unaided and said he's been experiencing pain in his mouth.

And after some experimenting he found the acid in the sweets was aggravating an injury caused by the cold, so he's thrown them away.

Image source, Lou Rudd

Capt Rudd is now three quarters of the way through his journey and earlier this week he unexpectedly bumped into a group headed for the South Pole, which included one of his friends from Facebook.

It's like going on holiday and meeting your neighbours...

Their families have paid tribute to the women who were students at Nottingham Trent University.

Jack Dowling
Journalist, BBC Radio Stoke

A man's been jailed for three years for setting fire to a house in Crewe.

Jacky Boy Woodward, 27, of Coronation Crescent, was found guilty of two counts of arson at Chester Crown Court.

The blaze on Stoneley Road in late August caused substantial damage to the property. , external

No one was injured.

The worker suffered serious injuries at GKN in Telford on Thursday night.

Solihull Moors boss Tim Flowers says Blackpool's extra-time penalty in their FA Cup replay loss "cost them a fortune".

Allen Cook
BBC News

The Labour MP and former justice minister Harriet Harman is calling for a review of the sentence of a multi-millionaire who left his injured and bleeding partner to die after "rough sex".

Image source, PA

On Monday, John Broadhurst, 40, was jailed for three years and eight months after admitting the manslaughter of Natalie Connolly at their home in Kinver, Staffordshire, in December 2016.

The jury at Birmingham Crown Court heard she had suffered more than 40 separate injuries.

Ms Harman said on Twitter that she had referred the case to the Attorney General, external for him to consider whether the sentence Broadhurst received was unduly lenient.

In response, the Attorney General's office says it is already looking at the case after it was referred to them by a member of the public.

They add that they have 28 days to examine the case and if they believe it to be unduly lenient, they will send it on to the Court of Appeal.

BBC Weather Watchers

Yesterday was grey, gloomy and wet, but the sun has come out today and we're seeing some brilliant blue skies from the BBC Weather Watchers.

These photos were taken near Doddenham in Worcestershire and Longnor in Shropshire.

Image source, Toppo

Image source, Peter Steggles

A worker at GKN Sankey in Telford has died following an accident at the Hadley Castle site last week.

Image source, Google

In a statement the company said a member of staff was involved in an accident during the night shift on 13 December and later died in hospital "from injuries suffered in that accident".

It added an investigation is currently underway and the company is providing full support to all those affected.

Nigel Clough says his father Brian would have been impressed by Burton's League Cup quarter-final win at Middlesbrough.