Eight lodges are going to be built at West Midland Safari Park, to allow visitors to spend the night with the animals.

The park near Bewdley hopes to have them built by next summer and has also been given planning permission for upgraded habitats for the elephants and cheetahs.

Image source, West Midland Safari Park

Work on the developments is due to start next month and the park said the improvements to the elephant area would allow it to increase the size of its herd.

Dominic Sibley was left on 215 not out as Warwickshire were bowled out for 488 against Nottinghamshire.

It means they trail Nottinghamshire by just 10 runs and the two sides have gone off the field for their tea break.

Image source, Getty Images

The last four Warwickshire wickets fell for 51 runs with Nottinghamshire captain Seven Mullaney taking four wickets in the innings.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Here are three of the stories being covered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service in Coventry:

• Almost 800 people have signed a petition against major plans for up to 4,000 new homes on former green belt land between Coventry and Kenilworth.
• Plans for a £2m indoor bowls facility on Gaveston Road in Coventry have again been recommended for approval, but campaigners say they still have concerns about the location.
• Specialist first aid kits which could help save the lives of stabbing victims will be placed in locations around Coventry.

Shropshire Council has set up a private company to build and sell homes across the county.

Cornovii Developments has been funded by a multimillion-pound loan from the Conservative-run authority, which is due to be paid back.

The first 90 homes will be built at the former Ifton Heath Primary in St Martin's and in Crowmoor in Shrewsbury.

The local authority hasn't yet said exactly how much it is loaning the company, on the grounds it is "commercially sensitive" information.

Mavis Eccleston told jurors she and her terminally ill husband Dennis, 81, agreed to take their own lives.

Hannah Richardson
BBC News education and social affairs reporter

Graduates of 24 top UK universities are more likely to find work soon after graduating than those from other universities, research says.

Four-fifths of Russell Group graduates entered full-time work within weeks of leaving compared with two-thirds of those from other institutions, a survey for graduate recruiter Milkround found.

Image source, Getty Images

The Russells Group is made up of 24 leading universities, including Birmingham and Warwick.

Milkround said in some instances firms used a tick-box system to filter candidates via the league table position of their universities.

Read more.

Researchers at the University of Warwick are celebrating the UK's first baked bean harvests.

The team have spent seven years developing the right type of haricot bean which is the key ingredient for the beans.

Image source, Getty Images

Previously, these beans couldn't be grown in our climate and had to be imported.

Andrew Tock from the Warwick Crop Centre said he thought there could be "great demand" for a UK-grown baked bean.

Coventry Live

Here are three of the stories featured on the Coventry Live website today:

• Car collides with number of vehicles in police drama, external
• Part of Jimmy Hill Way to close for five days, external
• Police chase ends in huge cannabis haul, external

CCTV showed a man picking a cat up by its tail and throwing it 10ft in the air, the RSPCA said.

An 80-year-old woman sobbed in the dock after she was cleared today of the "mercy killing" of her terminally ill husband.

Image source, Family handout

Jurors took about four hours to reach not guilty verdicts on charges of murder and manslaughter, which Mavis Eccleston had faced.

She told Stafford Crown Court last week how her husband Dennis, 81, kissed her hand in thanks after she agreed to "go with his wishes" to die at their home in Raven Close, Huntington, near Cannock.

Prosecutors had alleged Mr Eccleston, who had bowel cancer, was unaware he was taking a potentially deadly overdose and his wife later made admissions to two mental health nurses.

But defence barrister Mark Heywood QC said Mrs Eccleston had immediately disputed what the nurses had alleged she said and added it was a "fantasy" to suggest her husband wouldn't have asked what medication he was taking.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Here are some of the stories being covered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service in Telford:

• Lorries could be allowed to leave a recycling site in Ketley, Telford, as early as 06:00 if plans are approved later this month.
• The mayor of Wellington's switched from the Conservative Party to the Liberal Democrats and said it was time to “nail his colours to the mast” over Brexit.
• Plans for 21 houses on the site of a former paper mill in Tibberton are going to be examined by councillors next week, nearly two months after they were deferred to allow investigations into ground contamination and pedestrian access.

BBC News Travel

An oil spillage has closed three of the four lanes on the roundabout at junction four of the M5, at Bromsgrove.

Highways England said it was trying to treat the spillage as soon as possible.

Gloucestershire beat Worcestershire inside three days at New Road to boost their Division Two promotion hopes.

Plans to store 10,000 tonnes of wine in Worcestershire's Drakelow Tunnels have been rejected by councillors.

The structures , near Wolverley, were originally built as an underground aircraft factory in World War Two, and over time have been home to a secret nuclear bunker, BBC studios and a rifle range.

Last night, a wine warehouse company failed to convince councillors their development, which would also involve a museum, would be sustainable.

The developers are now considering appealing.

A runner who entered the Worcester half-marathon at the weekend is to receive a medal and t-shirt - even though she ran it in the wrong country.

Sheila Pereira booked a place on Sunday's race, only to later realise it was taking place in England, and not in her home city of Worcester, Massachusetts.

Image source, Worcester City Half Marathon

Undeterred, she ran the distance near her home and sent details to the race organisers, who've added her to the list of finishers and sent her a race pack.

Former track star Steve Cram, whose company Events of the North organised the event alongside the local council, said the event would "love to welcome Sheila in person next year".

He said it was not uncommon for overseas runners to register for event as part of a visit to the UK and that's what organisers assumed Sheila was doing.

Dudley News

The Dudley News website's top stories today include:

• Brewery launches beer to fund repairs for animal sanctuary hit by arsonists, external
• Prolific Halesowen shoplifter sent to prison, external
• Belbroughton gets set for scarecrow weekend, external

Facebook

You've been having your say on how many free-to-use cash machine there are in your area.

Consumer association Which? is warning they are disappearing faster in deprived areas, such as Birmingham Ladywood, than in affluent ones.

Image source, PA Media

On the BBC Midlands Facebook page, Shakeel Mohammed posted, external: "Got plenty where I live. I’d say every other shop's got one and they're free to use. Roll back a few years ago and had to drive about half-a-mile to get to one, now there’s dozens of them in Sparkbrook."

Lee Millward wrote, external: "Burslem, the mother town of Stoke-on-Trent has one and it charges you."

Val Blunden typed, external: "The cash points are going because the local bank branches are going. As soon as the Halifax branch near me closed, the shop over the road started charging to use their cash point."

Araial Ilustre says his family's life has been changed "all of a sudden" after losing their home.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Here are some of the stories being covered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service in Staffordshire:

• Staffordshire health commissioners say they have planned for “all eventualities” over Brexit and don't expect any shortages in medical supplies.
• 'Steady decline' admitted by council officer over number of public toilets in Stafford over 35 years with just five currently open.
• Court action withdrawn over recounting Stafford Borough Council election result.

A Hereford man has been charged with possession of a firearm or imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

West Mercia Police said the 65-year-old was arrested after armed officers were called to Hinton Road on Monday morning.

He appeared before magistrates in Hereford yesterday and was remanded in custody, to appear before Worcester Crown Court on 15 October.