Updates from Monday 3 February to Sunday 9 February
It's forecast to be a cold, clear night for most of us and in some places the temperature will drop below freezing.
Temperatures tomorrow will remain cold, and further ahead there's some stormy weather expected at the weekend.
Image source, Postman LesRachel Maclean says she now has "doubts about the procedure and my health years later".
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Stoke-on-Trent Live
Here are three of the stories you can find on the Stoke Sentinel's website today:
BBC WM Sport
Birmingham City goalkeeper Lee Camp has said the key to their penalty success last night was staying focused.
It was the first time he's faced a penalty shootout in almost 600 senior appearances, and he managed to make two saves to help his side through their FA Cup replay.
Image source, Getty ImagesQuote MessageYou can get carried away and I see some goalkeepers jumping about and whatever works for them, but I try to stay in and not go cold, but kind of switch off to everything and focus on the job in hand."
Lee Camp, Goalkeeper
A man has been arrested in connection with a house fire in the Meir area of Stoke-on-Trent.
Staffordshire Police said they were called to Seddon Road at 01:15 this morning and the 50-year-old is being held on suspicion of arson.
No-one was injured in the fire.
Shoppers have been sharing their views after Ikea announced it was closing a big store in Coventry.
Read MorePlans for a road linking the M54 and M6 have been submitted to the planning inspectorate.
Highways England is putting the proposals forward and said it's needed because there is too much traffic passing down the current link, the A460, which passes through Featherstone and Shareshill.
It said this caused air quality issues and meant high accident rates.
Image source, Highways EnglandHighways England consulted on the plans last year and said the road would also help businesses in Shropshire.
It is now seeking a Development Consent Order and it has published plans and a video online., external
Three cars were set alight in Newport, Shropshire, in the early hours.
Image source, GoogleShropshire Fire and Rescue service was called to the blaze in Victoria Park road at 01:35 GMT and has confirmed it believes the fire was started deliberately.
"The fire was initially started at the site of one car which then spread to two others nearby," the fire service said.
It urged anyone with information to contact the police.
Residents have told the BBC about "scary" floodwater which damaged their homes after water was directed away from the road and towards their properties.
Seven of the 21 homes in Walford, near Leintwardine, were damaged when the River Teme burst its banks late last year.
One couple estimate it will cost them £50,000 to repair the damage to their home.
Villagers assess damage after flooding in Walford
The Meir area of Stoke-on-Trent has got its post office back, 15 months after the last one closed.
It's moved from its old home at Uttoxeter Road and will now be based inside the Nisa store in Weston Road.
Image source, GoogleA decision on whether to build up to 3,000 homes on green-belt land near Tong has been put back until May.
Shropshire councillors had been due to discuss the principle of developing the land, just off junction three of the M54, on 12 February.
The council said it was "in light of further recent evidence published by the Black Country authorities regarding their ability to meet their own housing and employment needs".
Image source, GoogleShropshire Council previously said the development was being considered with the needs of neighbouring authorities in mind.
But the idea appeared to be dead in December last year after those authorities failed to follow up their interest.
At that time, Shropshire Council Conservative leader Peter Nutting said the development was "very unlikely" to go ahead.
Here are three of the stories from the Hereford Times today:
Trams are not running between Bull Street and the Library in Birmingham following a "medical emergency", operators said.
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West Midlands Ambulance Service said it had been called to Grand Central in the city centre at 14:26 GMT following reports of a patient having fallen over.
An ambulance was on the scene, a spokesperson said, but the service said it was unable to comment on the patient's condition.
BBC Radio Stoke Sport
The Port Vale manager John Askey believes his players are getting used to the pressure of chasing a League Two playoff spot.
They're three points off the top seven at the moment and play two of the teams above them, Northampton and Forest Green Rovers in the coming weeks.
Image source, Getty ImagesAskey said: "It seems as though every game that we go into is an important one."
And he added: "It's nice to be competing at the top end of the table and we're still in with a great chance of reaching the playoffs."
It's chilly out and temperatures are forecast to drop below freezing in some places tonight, but it's also been a beautiful clear day for a walk.
And the BBC Weather Watchers in Shropshire have been sharing their photos.
These ones were taken near Rushbury, Shrewsbury and Lydbury North.
Image source, Peter Steggles
Image source, STFC Goose
Image source, Ken MThe water main burst that flooded streets in Tipton on Tuesday morning appears to have been in a different spot to the one last October, South Staffs Water has said.
The company has been carrying out investigations to find out what caused the leak, to prevent it happening again, and said it had been limited in how close it could get.
It is also replacing a 300m section of pipe and has apologised to people living in the area and for the effect the work was having on traffic.
Quote MessageWe have today been able to get a first look at the burst area. We believe the burst is a separate burst to the one we experienced last year
Pete Aspley, South Staffs Water
Local Democracy Reporting Service
Walsall councillors have been told by the Conservative leader of the authority they have to prove their worth and show the public they haven't all got their "snouts in the trough”.
And Mike Bird's deputy Garry Perry said: “We have elected members, and I’m not saying who they are, who do not always pull their weight."
Image source, LDRSMike Bird
Mr Bird and Mr Perry made the comments as councillors discussed a programme designed to make the council more efficient and cut the budget by £78m over the next 10 years.
And Mr Perry added: "This is probably going to be unpopular, we have to start making elected members accountable as well."
Here are three of the stories from the Shropshire Star today:
Local Democracy Reporting Service
A developer has dismissed claims medical waste was dumped at a former brick works in Birmingham and accused opponents of "scaremongering" to stop homes being built there.
Birmingham City Council has given Persimmon Homes permission to build 187 homes on the site off Holly Lane, in Erdington, and council planning officers said it was probably the "most tested site in Birmingham".
Image source, GooglePart of the 15-acre site was once a former quarry and it is estimated the base extends 98ft (30m) down from the surface.
Persimmon is due to take 12 months making the land safe, starting this autumn, and will then create a 13ft (4m) deep ‘platform’ to build houses on by removing soil to process and re-compact it.
Construction work on the new homes is unlikely to begin before the summer of 2021.
Quote MessageWe are aware that the former clay pit was used for the tipping of household waste until its cessation in the 1970s. Since then the site has been subject to a number of investigations including both stability and gas monitoring. No evidence of any medical waste has been found on the site and there is no record of the site having ever been used for the tipping of medical waste
Persimmon Homes
The Bishop of Lichfield is trying to strengthen links with fellow Christians in Europe, following Brexit.
The Rt Revd Dr Michael Ipgrave recently visited the Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross and has also been in touch with the Nordkirche Lutheran Church in northern Germany.
Image source, Diocese of LichfieldIn a joint statement, Bishop Michael and the Bishop of Cork, the Rt Revd Dr Paul Colton said: "In these days following Brexit and as the relationships between peoples on these islands unfolds anew, we believe it is important to think not only of commerce and trade, but also of what it means, in the broadest sense, to be good neighbours in this part of the world."
