Local Democracy Reporting Service
Carl Jackson

Birmingham City Council has managed to underspend on its budget after a year of dire financial warnings.

Despite the achievement, critics accused the Labour administration of using savings in adult social care to prop up the waste service which exceeded its own budget by millions of pounds following two industrial disputes.

In 2018/19 the council underspent on its £855.2m net revenue budget by £5.9m, a report discussed by cabinet this morning revealed.

It also managed to reduce the amount of reserves used from an anticipated £30.5m to £20.6m.

Tom Alsop's second first-class hundred helps Hampshire end day one on 291-6 against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.

Charlie Morris takes 6-53 and Joe Leach 3-59 as Worcestershire dismiss Durham for 273 on day one at New Road.

Jim Lynskey's sister Grace says the family are so proud of what he achieved.

BBC Hereford and Worcester

There are proposals to merge four clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) in two counties into just one group to save the local NHS £2m.

Image source, Seb_Ra/Getty Images

The CCGs covering Herefordshire and Worcestershire said they had been set a target by the NHS to cut running costs by 20%. , external

They said creating one group for both counties would achieve the saving and they're launching a consultation programme next month.

It's the second proposed merger of CCGs in the West Midlands this month, following plans in Shropshire.

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

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

An £18m centre aimed at improving the time taken to diagnose children with autism, external has opened today in Staffordshire.

Image source, Caudwell Children

Local charity Caudwell Children is running the site which is based at Keele University.

It says it is dedicated to autism research, diagnosis and therapy, external and has been set up to address more demand from parents of autistic children for support.

Caudwell Children was started by the billionaire founder of Phones4U, John Caudwell, in 2000 to help provide specialist equipment, treatment and therapy for sick and disabled youngsters.

Bosses say creating one health body to cover the two counties would save almost £2m.

One of Coventry's oldest heritage sites could close for a second time after failing to attract adequate funding for the site, a group says.

The Priory visitor centre, which formed part of the city's £24m Millennium development, was closed in February 2016 after its grant was withdrawn by the city council.

A social enterprise group that reopened the centre now says it's at risk of closing later this month due to lack of funds.

The centre was designed to showcase the remains of the city's original 12th Century cathedral and priory.

Founding director Carole Donnelly, who's been in charge of the centre for three years, says the "stunning site" is currently run by volunteers after failing to be awarded National Lottery funding.

"We've got a great story to tell," she added, "but unfortunately can't keep doing it for nothing."

Matt Sandoz
Stoke City commentator, BBC Radio Stoke

Stoke City manager Nathan Jones says he's determined to make the team successful again and get promotion back to the Premier League next season.

Image source, Getty Images

Despite being among the favourites last August for an instant return to the top flight, the Potters ended up 16th in the Championship.

Jones took over the side in January after Gary Rowett was sacked and is preparing for his first full season in charge.

Shropshire Star

From the Shropshire Star:

• Man stabbed in Shrewsbury street, external
• Overnight closures to hit the M54, external
• Unemployment falls in Shropshire, external

Martin Emmerson
BBC Newcastle

The new cherry was 12 deliveries old when Ben Raine decided to throw his bat at a ball from Chris Morris and clipped him to the slip. It was an awful shot. Maybe a rush of blood. But in an instant it undid all of the good work Raine and Ned Eckerssley had done.

They’d battled hard for a partnership of 60, which took Durham from 177-6 to 237. That was a rescue job after they lost 3-14 in 5.1 overs with Cameron Bancroft (70) and Jack Burnham (76) departing eight balls apart after a fourth-wicket stand of 149.

Morris and Joe Leach, in his first game for a year, have taken three wickets each.

A ceremony takes place for Mathew Talbot of the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards at RAF Brize Norton.

Allen Cook
BBC News

Two arrests have been made after a teenager was stabbed this afternoon., external

Image source, Google

Staffordshire Police said the 18-year-old was found on Sandy Lane, Rugeley, Staffordshire, with a stab wound.

His injuries aren't thought to be life-threatening.

Officers said a 17-year-old boy and a 28-year-old man, both from Stafford, were arrested on suspicion of GBH with intent.

Rich Davis
BBC Weather presenter

It will be a dry night with mainly clear skies and lows of 3C (37F).

Ben Godfrey
BBC Midlands Today

Police in Wolverhampton have pledged to increase patrols throughout the summer to tackle gangs involved in so-called postcode wars over drugs.

It comes after shootings in Wolverhampton and Birmingham recently and a string of stabbings since January in the West Midlands area.

A 16-year-old boy remains in a critical condition after being shot in the head in the Pennfields area of the city last week.

Supt Tom Chisolm from West Midlands Police said officers would be operating in Wolverhampton's known gang areas, "interacting with people".

There will be some stop and search powers used, police say, as well as the use of technology to detect knives on people.

Omar Ashfaq left USB sticks containing terrorist propaganda in the shoes of Muslim worshippers.

BBC Shropshire

A sculpture of a mammoth's been built out of brushwood in Shropshire as the start of a new arts trail.

Local artists in Bishop's Castle, south of Shrewsbury, led by Bamber Hawes, have created the artwork at the Wintles.

They say they're planning to make other elephant art over the next two years from materials including stained glass and wool because of the town's connection with the mammals.

During World War Two, elephants were kept in the local Castle Hotel and also feature on the Powis crest in Old Market Square.

Reece Platt-May, whose two sons were killed by a speeding driver, was found dead in Greece.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
George Makin

Councillors have chosen a new leader of Sandwell Council in a tightly-fought contest where the margin of victory was just two votes.

Image source, Sandwell Council

Councillor Yvonne Davies beat Ann Shackleton by 35 to 33 at the Annual General Meeting of the Labour group on Monday.

She said her first step would be to take stock, talk to people and take advice, adding: “I hope that everyone recognises that we have spent past years on the wrong side of doing the right thing and actually we need to move forward with integrity, honesty, transparency and openness, and political infighting benefits no-one.”

A second meeting of the Labour group will take place before Ms Davies is formally selected as the political leader of the authority at the next full council meeting on 21 May.

Worcester News

The Worcester News' top stories today include:

• Van crashes into Pizza Express, external
• Parish stuck in 'Catch-22' over alcohol problem, say councillors, external
• Quaker Meeting House in Malvern listed Grade II by Historic England, external