A new inquest date has been set into the unsolved murder of a girl found dead in woodland 44 years ago.

Helen Bailey was found with her throat cut in August 1975. The eight-year-old disappeared while wearing blue clothes and was dubbed Little Girl Blue.

Image source, Family handout

A new inquest was ordered by the High Court in December with a pre-inquest review held at Birmingham Coroner's Court earlier.

Coroner Mrs Louise Hunt said the inquest would be held on Friday 5 July.

Jennie Aitken
Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

A nine-year-old boy's raised £400 for a wildlife centre devastated by a fire.

Alfie Talbot from Weston Heights, Stoke-on-Trent, told the BBC he wanted to help after several animals were killed at Gentleshaw sanctuary near Eccleshall, Staffordshire, in March.

Giant tortoises, a meerkat and a colony of fruit bats were all killed in the blaze, which was believed to have been started by faulty heating equipment for the tortoises.

Alfie's grandparents said he was very upset as they'd paid for him to be a keeper at the centre for a couple of hours last year.

He raised the money by going on a 10-mile bike ride with his dad through the Peak District, having only recently learnt to ride and presented the cheque this morning.

Two people have been arrested after a 19-year-old man was stabbed in Nuneaton.

Warwickshire Police said he was taken to hospital with a wound to his side that is not thought to be life-threatening, after an argument on The Long Shoot between 19:30 and 20:00 yesterday.

Image source, Google

A 17-year-old boy from Nuneaton was arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a knife, and the other man, who is 18 was been arrested on suspicion of committing a public order offence.

Police believe the men knew each other.

Graham McGarry
Crewe Alexandra commentator, BBC Radio Stoke

Crewe Alexandra manager David Artell says he doesn't know if player of the year, Perry Ng, will still be at the club next season.

Image source, Crewe Alexandra

Ng (pictured, right) made nearly 50 appearances last season and was named Supporters’ Player Of The Year and and got the Players’ Player award.

Hereford Times

Here are three of the headlines from the Hereford Times today:

• Crash shuts road in Hereford, external
• Bromyard mayor wins second term, external
• Steampunks in Hereford for third festival, external

BBC Midlands Today

A group of friends who drove three Mini Coopers from Staffordshire to Turkey to raise money for cancer treatment in Birmingham will return home to Cannock tonight.

Inspired by the film The Italian Job, the idea came about after a relative of one of the drivers had life-saving treatment at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

They said on their Facebook page, external they were hoping to raise £5,000, but have now raised almost double that amount.

BBC Radio Shropshire Sport

Sam Ricketts is looking to go with a smaller squad at Shrewsbury Town next season, saying he wants to build a tight-knit group.

He said at times last season he had "26 players training which was far too many", and on some match days he was forced to leave up to eight players out of his squad.

Image source, Getty Images

Ricketts accepts a smaller squad could be vulnerable to a run of injuries, but concluded "that's the kind of a risk that you're prepared to take because you want that real cohesive togetherness and you only get that by having a tight squad."

Malvern Hills District Council has a new leader, and a new group in charge.

Independent councillor Sarah Rouse will lead a coalition of Lib Dems, Independents and Greens, which has taken more than a week to form after the Conservatives lost their majority in the local elections.

The largest political party on the council, the Conservatives, are now in opposition, along with Labour.

Ms Rouse said the coalition parties shared similar views on the environment and economic development and were committed to working within their budget.

Birmingham Live

The Birmingham Live website's covering these stories today:

• Mum of shooting victim says 'we need answers' after senseless murder, external
• New hopes for city centre coffee shop marred by never ending Metro works, external
• Shocking schoolboy brawl brings Kings Heath traffic to a standstill, external

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

A faulty freezer's been blamed for a blaze that firefighters say started accidentally in a shed in and spread to two bungalows.

Image source, Staffordshire Fire Service

Crews were called to Wood Lane, Newcastle-under-Lyme yesterday afternoon, external and said the flames were spreading to the homes.

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said they managed to limit damage to the bungalows and no-one was hurt.

BBC Sport profiles Aston Villa goalkeeper Jed Steer, who has gone from third choice to play-off semi-final shootout saviour.

Police have released a CCTV image of a man, external they want to trace after a teenager was stabbed in Birmingham city centre.

Image source, West Midlands Police

West Midlands Police said the 19-year-old man was found with a deep cut in his shoulder on Holloway Circus, Queensway, on 14 April.

The force said officers wanted to speak to the man in the image in connection with disorder which led to the stabbing.

A traffic collision has closed the road leading to the St Martin's Street swimming pool in Hereford.

Herefordshire Council said the street was closed between the A49 and the leisure pool entrance.

Coventry City owner Sisu has taken its legal fight over the Ricoh Arena to the European Commission.

It's asking the European body to investigate whether Wasps Rugby Club unlawfully benefited from council aid and it could mean Wasps being forced to pay more for the stadium.

Image source, Getty Images

Last month, Sisu lost a Supreme Court case, failing to secure a public inquiry into the sale of the stadium to the rugby club in 2014.

BBC Weather Watchers

It's looking like a beautiful day across the West Midlands, with temperatures again forecast to reach 19C (66F).

These pictures were taken by BBC Weather Watchers in Bridgnorth, Worcester and Yoxall.

Image source, Sharon1R

Image source, Montydog

Image source, Wendles

Stoke-on-Trent Live

The Stoke-on-Trent Live website's covering these stories today:

• Pedestrian hurled bricks at car with dad and two daughters inside, external
• Thugs battered cabbie, smashed up vehicles and squirted petrol in car enthusiast's face, external
• Masked men 'tied up woman' before demanding cash in terrifying raid, external

A makeshift ‘spear’ made from a kitchen knife taped to a broom handle has been found during a drugs raid in Coventry.

Police officers smashed through two doors, one of them made of reinforced metal to get into a flat in Jenner Street, Foleshill, at 10:00 yesterday.

Image source, West Midlands Police

Other weapons and suspected drugs were also found at the property.

Two men, aged 18 and 19, were arrested in a rear garden having jumped from a window, while women, aged 19 and 34, a 46-year-old man and a 14-year-old boy were detained inside.

All six were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.

A car flipped on to its side, external after hitting a house in Walsall this morning.

Image source, West Midlands Fire Service

West Midlands Fire Service said firefighters were called to Fordbrook Lane, Shefield, at 00:45.

It said no-one in the car or the house were seriously hurt and the building wasn't badly damaged.

Police said a 21-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving and released while investigations continue.

BBC Shropshire

The second of Shropshire's clinical commissioning groups (CCG) has backed a plan for the merger of the two groups in the county.

Image source, Getty Images

Telford and Wrekin's CCG has followed Shropshire CCG in agreeing the proposal which they said would help them meet an NHS England target to cut running costs by 20%.

The chair of the Telford group, Jo Leahy, told a board meeting that they could either merge now or "wait and be pushed into it" although they didn't reveal when it would happen.

Telford and Wrekin Council is against the move and told the meeting the plans were vague and the potential impact on residents wasn't known.

It said the plans had been "railroaded through without any opportunity for the public to have their say".

CCGs , externalreplaced Primary Care Trusts in April 2013 as the NHS bodies responsible for the planning and commissioning of healthcare services locally.

BBC Sport

Wolves plan to install rail seats at Molineux this summer so that fans who refuse to sit can stay safe.

Image source, Getty Images

Standing at grounds in the top two tiers of English football is illegal but new guidance from safety chiefs allows clubs to install seats with barriers if strict conditions are met.

Now Wolves hope to take advantage of the new guidelines in their bid to tackle persistent standing.

"This is not about safe standing," said managing director Laurie Dalrymple.

He told BBC Sport he was not expecting a change in legislation "any time in the near future" but added: "This is a very strong middle ground."