Allen Cook
BBC News

A teenager's died after being stabbed in Birmingham this afternoon., external

Image source, Google

West Midlands Police says officers were called just after 14:00 to Norwood Road, Bordesley Green.

They say the boy's thought to be aged 17 and was found seriously injured, but died at the scene.

Officers say they are treating his death as murder and have sealed off the area.

He's the third teenager to be stabbed to death in the city in a fortnight.

About 2,627 homeless people died in England and Wales from 2013 to 2017.

Allen Cook
BBC News

A woman who died at a house in Stoke-on-Trent's been named by police as Ruth Greenhough., external

The force says the 57-year-old was found in cardiac arrest at a house in Sneyd Street, on Thursday and died a short time later.

Image source, Google

Police said the result of a post-mortem examination was "unascertained" and there would be further tests to understand the cause of death. They're still treating the death as unexplained.

A 61-year-old man was arrested in connection with the death and released under investigation.

Staffordshire Live

The Staffordshire Live website has these stories today:

• Trace of blood snared burglar after he stole £80k jewellery from woman's home, external
• Youth club volunteer jailed for nine years for raping young girl, external
• Mum's tearful message to man who saved her teenage son's life, external

More than 1,500 extra jobs are expected to go at Birmingham City Council over the next four years, budget documents have revealed, and more than 1,000 in the next financial year alone.

The 2019-2023 Financial Plan, external is set to be debated by councillors this week.

The Labour-run local authority has seen 12,000 posts go (48%) go since 2010.

Image source, PA

Some of the budget pressures the city council has faced are outlined in the latest documents, including cuts to central government funding and extra investment needed to modernise some services and underpin improvements in areas such as children's services.

The bin workers strikes, which have seen another resurgence in recent weeks, cost the Labour-run council £300,000 a week at one stage in clear-up bills.

Some equal pay claims against the local authority also remain outstanding almost a decade after a landmark tribunal ruling.

It has previously said the claims were likely to reach £1.2bn and the latest documents show £1bn of those had been settled by the end of the last financial year.

Despite the cuts in recent years, the report said the council had sought to prioritise "the most vulnerable in Birmingham".

Coventry City fans protested against the club's owners during a televised game at Luton Town.

Jack Smith from Wolverhampton says his old computer-generated voice was "posh and boring".

A woman has appeared in court charged with murdering a man who was found with stab wounds in a block of flats.

The victim, named as 29-year-old Gary Cunningham, was discovered on Saturday morning on Frensham Way in Harborne and pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow, 26, appeared at Birmingham Magistrates' Court earlier charged with murder.

The defendant, of Frensham Way, spoke only to give her name, date of birth and address.

Magistrates remanded her into custody to appear at Birmingham Crown Court on Wednesday.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
BBC News

Inquests for the 21 victims of the IRA Birmingham pub bombings have officially opened, after a long legal battle by families.

They began with coroner Sir Peter Thornton QC reading out the victims' names followed by a minute's silence.

Image source, Press Association

In his opening remarks to the 11 members of the jury, he described how they will hear evidence about warnings given ahead of the two massive explosions on the night of 21 November 1974, as well as experts on the bombs themselves.

Families who have fought to get more answers were in the packed public gallery. Many are disappointed that the naming of suspects has already been ruled out of this process.

Julie Hambleton (pictured above), whose sister Maxine Hambleton was a victim, said families were seeking "truth, justice and accountability".

The jury has been sent home for the day.

Matt Sandoz
Stoke City commentator, BBC Radio Stoke

Stoke City midfielder Joe Allen says he and his team-mates only have themselves to blame for their disappointing season so far.

Image source, Getty Images

Following their relegation from the Premier League last season, the Potters were favourites for promotion.

But they are currently 17th in the Championship and haven't won since 19 January.

Essex Police says because the row was in Spain the Crown has no authority to charge the passenger.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Joe Burn

Firefighters in Staffordshire could be set to get new clothing at a cost of £50,000 so they're "more comfortable" in hot weather fighting wildfires.

Image source, Alsager Fire Station

Staffordshire Fire Service is looking to make the move after a "hot weather debrief" last summer when crews battled dozens of huge grass fires.

They included one across 200 acres of moorland at the Roaches which lasted for more than a week, as well as 515 call-outs in just one day in July.

The service says it's trialling new black polo shirts to replace the red under-shirt and blue over-shirt combination firefighters currently wear.

The spending, which also includes specialist protective trousers, was approved at the latest budget meeting, but the service says it's waiting for the outcome of the trial scheme before possibly rolling out the new shirts.

Florin Ion, 31, has pleaded guilty to the murder of Julie Hunt, who died in April 2018.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Tom Davis

The number of exclusions from schools across Coventry have risen in the past three years.

New figures show there were 81 permanent school exclusions in the city last year, including 52 in secondary schools and 29 in primary schools.

It comes less than a week after West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson warned that exclusions were contributing to violence involving knife crime.

Image source, Google

Of the most serious cases, one primary school child was excluded for "threatening behaviour against a pupil" and "carrying an offensive weapon".

Two secondary school students were excluded for "sexual misconduct", six due to "alcohol and drug related" issues, and six for a physical assault against a pupil.

In secondary schools, there were 27 exclusions in 2015-16, 42 in 2016-17 and 52 last year.

Jack Smith, 21, says his new voice is "like a dream come true" after he lost his ability to talk.

Shropshire Star

The Shropshire Star's covering these stories today:

• Hundreds of hours wasted as missed GP slots in Shropshire cost NHS millions, external
• Budget boost to help repair Shropshire roads, external
• Biker caught doing 114mph on M54 faces ban, external

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

A man's been attacked during a break-in at his home in Stafford.

Image source, Google

Police say the victim needed hospital treatment after suffering minor injuries in the burglary on Marston Road last night.

A 30-year-old man from Stafford's been arrested on suspicion of aggravated burglary and is still in custody.

BBC Wales News

A mother-of-one who was killed in a car crash involving a horse saved the life a baby by being an organ donor, her family have revealed.

Image source, Family photo/North Wales Police

Tracey Pritchard, 48, was a passenger in a BMW X3 that crashed in Bronington, near Wrexham, on Tuesday.

As well as thanking the doctors and nurses who tried to save her life, her family said she was well known in her hometown of Whitchurch, Shropshire.

Hereford Times

The Hereford Times has these stories today:

• Call for residents' permits to stop problem parkers, external
• Man airlifted to major trauma centre following crash, external
• Firefighters called to burning car, external

A new study suggests "ubiquitous" smartphone gambling presents a greater danger to people with addiction problems than fixed-odds betting terminals.

Image source, Reuters

Recent public concern over fixed-odds betting terminals in bookmakers has prompted the government to cut the maximum stake on the machines from £100 to £2 from this April.

But researchers at Aston University said a new study, external, led by head of psychology Professor Richard Tunney, indicated smartphone gambling could be much more problematic for society, due to the ease with which people psychologically predisposed to addiction could access betting games on their mobile phones.

It said the research, published in the academic journal European Addiction Research, found that because users checked their phones frequently throughout the day, mobile gamblers tended to keep placing more bets even in the face of repeated losses.