Updates from Monday 24 June to Sunday 30 June
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BBC Shropshire
Thousands of people are expected to descend on Shrewsbury this weekend for the annual food festival.
Image source, Shrewsbury Food FestivalOrganisers say there'll be more than 200 exhibitors and a lot of live cooking demonstrations.
It's the seventh year the event's been held and it starts tomorrow in the Quarry Park, external.
We're forecast scorching temperatures of up to 30C (86F) in the West Midlands tomorrow, but today has been just been pleasantly sunny.
Here's a collection of the photos from the BBC Weather Watchers today:
A sunny day in the West Midlands
BBC Shropshire
A six-year-old boy is said to be making good progress after having a potentially life-saving stem cell transplant.
Image source, Race Against Blood CancerIhsan Khan, from Leegomery in Telford, suffers from the rare blood disorder aplastic anaemia and needed a bone marrow transplant.
Hundreds turned up at mosques in Wellington to see if they were a donor match.
In the end, his family said Ihsan's sister turned out to be the closest match for the operation.
Quote MessageI don't want to get too excited because they say it takes at least six weeks until you can get a little bit excited to see if the transplant is working, if the graft has been accepted by the body. We take each day as it is to be honest."
Imran Khan, Father
BBC News Travel
Train passengers are being warned there could be delays to services in the region this weekend due to the hot weather.
Network Rail's said the rails could reach 50C and trains may have to run at slower speeds to prevent the rails bending or buckling., external
A chair made from patches of human hair collected from barber shops has been created by a design student to get people thinking about what we throw away and how it can be re-used.
Image source, PA MediaPeople's reactions to Hair Chair have ranged from "wow" to "disgust" said Birmingham City University student Alice Evans, who is about to end her final year studying product design.
The hair, collected from five barbers in Birmingham and cleaned with soap and water, forms a bucket seat, supported by leather straps and hangs from a metal frame.
Image source, PA MediaThe 23-year-old from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire said: "I thought, if it is made from us, what relationship does that create?
"Why do people say 'Ugh, that's disgusting' when it is just part of every single human being?
"It's just hair and when it is on our head we're so attached to it, and then, when it's chopped off, it's disgusting. It's completely normal to use animal products, so cows' skin, leather - I am wearing leather shoes."
She said the only downside was that it was "a bit itchy", but she does not mind.
BBC News Scotland
A brain tumour survivor is helping to clean pollution from shorelines while cycling around the UK coast.
Image source, Kik-PlasticKiko Matthews, 36, who grew up in Herefordshire, was diagnosed with Cushing's disease in 2009.
She had a second tumour removed in 2017 while training for a row across the Atlantic, which she completed in a record time last year.
Ms Matthews has reached the Highlands in her Kik-Plastic cycle challenge which started in Margate in May.
Her cycle around the UK and part of Ireland is due to end in London next month.
Rebecca Wood
BBC Midlands Today
It will be a fine evening before a dry night with lows of 10C (50F).
On Saturday we can expect temperatures to rise to 32C (90F) in places before returning to cooler temperatures on Sunday.
Latest weather for the West Midlands
The Kidderminster Shuttle's headlines today include:
People caught swimming or even sunbathing at an abandoned quarry may face fines of up to £100 in the future.
Gullet Quarry in the Malvern Hills still battles to deter swimmers trying to gain access to the water, despite a number of deaths in recent years.
The district council is now considering bringing in a Public Space Protection Order to cover the site.
People who do not comply with such orders can be required to pay a £100 fixed penalty.
Quote MessageWe've seen unfortunately that some people seem absolutely hell bent to get into the water and scale the fence that currently exists there. On one occasion, there were as many as 40 young people either in the water or on the water's edge."
Tom Wells, Malvern Hills District Council
Vanessa Pearce
BBC News
Teams of workers across the West Midlands have been taking part in events to mark the Mayor's Giving Day - encouraging engagement between businesses and charities.
These workers from engineering and design company Arup have been raising donations for Women's Aid, as well as advising Moseley Road Baths on their plant and energy improvements, as a direct result of the initiative, it said.
Image source, ArupFirms have also been taking part in a city cycling challenge, as part of the day, pitching teams of five people against each other to compete in a 40-minute race.
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National Express workers all joined in, and have raised £8,000 so far this year for their chosen charities.
Image source, National ExpressAll it takes is some sunshine and our BBC Weather Watchers can't stop snapping photos across the West Midlands.
Here are three more from users Monomark in Edgmond, Shropshire, Punxsutawney Phil in Redditch, Worcestershire and Jeff in Hopton, Staffordshire:
Image source, Monomark
Image source, Punxsutawney Phil
Image source, Jeff
Local Democracy Reporting Service
Carl Jackson
Birmingham Repertory Theatre has unveiled £2.5m plans for a major facelift, saying the scheme is "necessary to remain financially sustainable".
Image source, APEC ArchitectsThe arts venue aims to capitalise on the soon-to-be-completed revamp of its home, Centenary Square, but also took a swipe at Birmingham City Council over "significant" funding cuts over the years.
The proposals include remodelling the entrance, installing a new restaurant on the first floor, creating new outdoor balconies, more non-traditional performance areas as well as featuring illuminated signs and digital screens.
It is hoped the scheme can be completed by 2021 in time to mark the 50th anniversary of The Rep at Centenary Square – but it will have to be approved by Birmingham City Council’s planning department first.
Maisy McAdam is registered blind following a brain tumour but the tech amplifies remaining vision.
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Allen Cook
BBC News
A man convicted of murdering a Hereford father in a revenge killing has admitted running a county lines drugs gang.
Image source, West Midlands PoliceArtaf Hussain, 33, was already serving a life sentence at HMP Hewell after being found guilty last year of the murder of Robert Eacock.
This week, he pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply Class A drugs and was given a nine-year sentence, to run concurrently with his life term.
West Midlands Police said he was the head of a county lines chain which supplied up to £300,000 of drugs in Hereford from the Black Country, external.
County lines drug dealing involves organised crime groups from larger cities setting up in smaller towns with local dealers
Birmingham Live
Some of the Birmingham Live headlines today are:
BBC Shropshire
Shrewsbury Town's Dave Edwards is ahead of schedule in his recovery from a serious ankle injury, his manager's said.
Image source, Getty ImagesThe midfielder ruptured two ligaments in his ankle , externalin a training session in April.
Shrewsbury are just over a month away from starting the new League One season.
Quote MessageHe's ahead of schedule, making really good progress but, like anything, I don't want to rush him. We want him back and we want him back in good shape."
Sam Ricketts, Shrewsbury Town manager
Edgbaston will turn blue on Sunday during England's Cricket World Cup group match with India in a collaboration between the ICC and children's charity Unicef.
Image source, ICCThe game will be branded "One Day for Children" with fundraising events throughout the day.
The money raised will support the charity's work for children in cricket-playing nations across the world, said organisers. , external
A military intelligence unit will be given the freedom of Dudley as part of Armed Forces Day this weekend.
Image source, Dudley CouncilEvents will take place tomorrow with many organisations already flying their official flag.
Dudley Council's said it'll grant freedom of the borough to 63 Military Intelligence Company which is based in Stourbridge., external
BBC News Travel
There are hour-long delays on the M6 in Warwickshire after a lorry fire.
Two lanes are now open past the scene, on the southbound carriageway between J3a and J3.
There's about six miles of queuing traffic, says Highways England.
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MPs want an inquiry into "missing" money intended to help feed the poorest children.
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