BBC News Travel

Rail services are returning to normal following a broken down train between Worcester Shrub Hill and Cheltenham Spa earlier, the National Rail Enquiries website reports., external

However, trains running between these stations may still be cancelled, delayed or revised.

Disruption to Great Western Railway services are expected until 08:00.

Allen Cook
BBC News

Welcome to our live service for Thursday.

We'll be bringing you all the news, sport, travel and weather for the West Midlands.

You can get in touch via email, Twitter, external and Facebook, external.

Meet the identical twins whose autism helped forge a passion that led to a career in farming.

Stoke boss Nathan Jones says "something must be on the mind" of goalkeeper Jack Butland after the Potters' defeat by Preston.

Kenneth Zohore scores a late penalty as West Bromwich Albion come from behind to seal a point against Reading.

Lucas Briscoe was on holiday with his mother in the Costa del Sol when he fell from a balcony.

Ben Te'o's England career is over after he signed a short-term deal with French Top 14 side Toulon.

Andy Giddings
BBC News

We'll be back with the news, sport, travel and weather from 07:00 tomorrow.

BBC Midlands Today

Stoke-on-Trent City Council has been forced to revise its estimates for the number of jobs at risk as the result of cuts, and it's blaming "an administrative error".

Trade unions have now been informed that 953 staff have been told their jobs are at risk, which is higher than previously announced.

It's expecting the equivalent of 248 full time jobs will go, but the council has now revealed 138 new jobs will be created in the children's services department, bringing the net loss to 110.

The trade unions have accused the local authority of having "chaotic and ill-thought out plans".

The council said it was being forced to make the cuts because it needed to redirect £5.5m to children's services, which is facing "unprecedented demand".

Council leader Abi Brown said a "huge amount of effort" had gone into supporting staff at risk.

The news came on the same day the Association of Directors of Children's Services said there was "not enough funding in the system to meet the level of need in our communities" and called for more money from the treasury.

It was responding to a Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee report on local government finance.

A Shropshire village post office looks likely to close next month, because the sub postmaster is retiring and no-one has come forward to take over the business.

Bruce Bill is in his 70s and said he was not well enough to keep the Minsterley Post office going, but admitted "I feel really quite sorry that I've had to go like this".

Image source, Google

Mr Bill said he'd been trying to sell the shop for more than a year, without success and added, "unfortunately there comes a point in your life where if you're not well enough really to carry on, you've got to give it up."

But a farmer who has lost land to the project says he feels the scheme will not go ahead in full.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
Political Reporter, BBC WM

Any government U-turn on HS2 would be "disastrous", the leader of Birmingham City Council has warned.

"Far too many people in the Midlands and the North feel left behind and investment in infrastructure is key to addressing that," Councillor Ian Ward said.

Following the announcement of a government review into continuing with HS2, Mr Ward said he planned to meet the chair of the review, Douglas Oakervee, where he would "be strongly making the case for Birmingham and the West Midlands".

"HS2 is about so much more than fast trains to and from London," he said. "It's about jobs, homes and life chances. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity to rebalance the UK economy."

Alexandra Hamilton
BBC weather presenter

We've got some warm weather on the way for the bank holiday weekend and the next few days are looking cloudy, but dry.

Two more homeless shelters will be opened in Worcestershire this winter, bringing the total to five.

The county council had cut its funding for the shelters, but district councils stepped in to plug the gap.

The local authorities are providing an extra £60,000 to the charity CCP, which has had the contract since 2016.

It'll be taking care of homeless prevention services in the county for another two years.

Police say a man who was involved in a head-on crash in Shropshire a week ago remains in a serious condition in hospital.

The car he was in overturned and ended up in a field near Knockin Heath and two other people in the vehicle also needed hospital treatment.

A pregnant woman in the other car was also taken to hospital, along with her partner, where her baby was delivered four weeks early.

West Mercia Police says it's investigating the cause of the crash.

A judo club in Wolverhampton has donated almost £4,000 to the city's New Cross Hospital raised through a 12-hour "throw-a-thon".

Image source, Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust

Members of the club completed 15,792 throws - breaking last year's record of 14,558.

The money raised will go towards a new scanner orthopaedic patients, the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust said, which will reduce waiting times for patients.

A Shropshire dairy farmer has said women shouldn't be put off the industry by the physical labour involved.

Liz Haines studied English at Oxford University and had started a career in publishing before she and her husband decided to take up farming instead.

Image source, David Bagnal/Alamy Stock Photo

Liz said: "I'm a bookworm, so it's been a massive shift for me. I've surprised myself by what I'm able to do."

She has combined milking cows with bringing up two small children and carried them around the farm in a sling when they were small.

She said: "I don't know if I could have done that with an office job."

It will look at the costs and benefits, with a “go or no-go" decision by the end of the year.

Louise Hancock
Newsreader, BBC WM

More than 80 drain covers were stolen in Walsall over the weekend, the council has said.

A total of 83 have been reported missing - one road, Aldridge Road in Aldridge, is missing no fewer than 11.

Image source, Getty Images

The local authority says road side drains can be more than a metre deep and missing covers present a potential risk to the safety of road users and pedestrians, particularly at night when they are harder to see.

It said it had received reports of people in a white van removing covers over the weekend and is liaising with West Midlands Police.

Trading Standards is also contacting scrap metal merchants in case attempts are made to sell the covers on, the council said.

It added that replacement covers would be fitted with hinges to prevent such thefts in the future.

Robert Lockhart says land he has lost to HS2 has been wasted with too many people involved in plans.