BBC News Travel

A crash involving two cars has closed one lane of the M42 in Warwickshire.

There's queuing traffic in the area up to the crash site on the southbound carriageway between J3A and J3.

Congestion is building on the northbound side as traffic slows down past the crash site.

Merit in Stoke-on-Trent helps children who truant often because of struggles with their mental health.

Express and Star

Some of the Express and Star headlines this morning include:

• Traveller site planned behind Wolverhampton homes, external
• Son jailed after stealing £60k savings from parents with dementia, external
• Shop wins cake award after being finalist four times, external

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Staff at Dudley Council whose children are born prematurely could get more paid leave under plans being considered by councillors.

Image source, Getty Images

Councillor Ruth Buttery, the Conservative cabinet member for children and young people, is asking colleagues to back a move to extend maternity leave on compassionate grounds.

The motion will go before full council on Monday.

A run-down shopping centre in Shrewsbury could get a major redevelopment under plans put forward by Shropshire Council.

The unitary authority is courting designs for the nine-acre Riverside precinct, eight years after the previous owners pledged a £150m revamp that ultimately fell flat.

Shropshire Council is looking to redevelop the area which includes the Riverside Shopping Centre, the nearby medical practice, multi-storey car park and bus station.

The local authority is hoping to appoint consultants by early December, with phased demolition due to start by the end of next year.

A woman is due in court later charged with the murder of a man who died following a street robbery.

Image source, West Midlands Police

Mark Lloyd, 39, was assaulted on Aldridge Road, Perry Barr, Birmingham on 21 September and died in hospital on Sunday.

Shannon Cronin, 23, of Clyde Street, Cradley Heath, West Midlands, is set to appear before Birmingham Magistrates' Court.

Earlier this week, police said a 26-year-old man remanded in custody and accused of robbery in connection with the incident would now be questioned in relation to murder.

Alex Hamilton
BBC Weather

After a dry, bright start it will be a cloudy day with some rain later and highs of 13C (55F).

Vanessa Pearce
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.

We love to hear from you so share your news, thoughts and photos of the area with us via email, Twitter, external and Facebook., external

The groundsman, who cut the pitch at Wembley, says his vehicle has been damaged and tools stolen.

Police say more tests are needed to establish causes of death of Kirils Nemcevs and Lana Nemceva.

The plane was damaged over Nazi-occupied France and hit a tree in Worcestershire, killing four crew.

A 23-year-old woman is charged after Mark Lloyd was assaulted and later died.

Andy Giddings
BBC News

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

A bridge at Worcester's Shrub Hill train station is going to be lifted out by crane and then restored.

Network Rail said a new roof and windows would be fitted to the Grade II listed luggage bridge, which has fallen into disrepair, with work due to start on Saturday.

Image source, Network Rail

The restored structure will be lowered back into place next March and Network Rail said that if funding can be found to fix the lifts, passengers might be able to use it again one day.

A number of parking spaces will be lost while the crane is in use, but trains won't be disrupted.

A memorial service is to be held in Wolverhampton for a Deputy Sheriff shot and killed on duty in Texas, USA.

Singh Dhaliwal, who was the brother of Wolverhampton city councillor Rupinderjit Kaur, died after being shot from behind during a traffic stop on 27 September.

A memorial service will be held at the Guru Nanak Gurdwara, on Sedgeley Street, at 15:00 on Saturday.

Alex Hamilton
BBC Weather

Enjoy this dry spell while you can, because the rain clouds are returning tomorrow afternoon.

Here's the forecast:

The government has confirmed work to clear woodlands to make way for HS2 has been deferred for at least three months.

Last month, the government said the clearing of ancient woodland to make way for the high-speed rail line was to be delayed while the project was reviewed amid delays and mounting costs.

A decision on that is expected before the end of the year.

Image source, SIEMENS/ PA

The government said it had now assessed 11 ancient woodlands, in Staffordshire and Warwickshire, which were due to be affected by preparations this autumn.

Work will now be deferred to "early 2020" on six of the sites and autumn or winter 2020, external on the remaining five.

Director of conservation and external affairs at the Woodland Trust Abi Bunker said: "This is the right decision but it has come very late in the day and only after much pressure from the Woodland Trust and many other organisations and individuals.

"We remain concerned about the fact that HS2 will still be carrying out some work at these sites."

Gill Cocks collected over 5,000 items of Cadbury memorabilia, some dating back to the 1800s.

Birmingham MP Jess Philips has said she's been reassured the Domestic Abuse bill that was debated in Parliament today will continue its progress after the Queen's Speech.

She had been concerned it would be shelved when Boris Johnson announced Parliament would be suspended again.

The bill, which proposes the first government definition of domestic abuse, has been supported by a number of MPs, including the former prime minister, Theresa May.

Highways England is warning motorists about a series of road closures which are due to take place overnight.

The four closures will all be in place from 20:00 to 06:00, it said.