Allen Cook
BBC News

Fraudsters have reportedly scammed people out of hundreds of pounds to pay for kittens and puppies which don't exist.

The scammers are targeting residents who want a new pet to help them through the coronavirus lockdown.

Image source, West Midlands Police

The animals are advertised for sale online but the sellers claim people can't see them in person due to the outbreak.

The force said people are persuaded - with the use of a cute picture - into transferring up to £400 to the fraudsters but never get the pets.

Their advice is to always research the seller and their history. Find more security tips here, external.

Police are trying to trace four more men over the trouble during a Leeds v Birmingham game.

Sophie Madden
BBC News

Following our story about the problems some self-employed people have had in getting support from the government, many of you have been getting in contact to share your experiences.

Some of you have said, although you have been able to apply for government support, there is some delay in receiving the much-needed help.

Image source, Getty Images

Derek Ball, who runs a car repair business in Great Barr said he has been waiting almost four weeks.

"I'm at breaking point, no income for five weeks how am suppose to survive?

"I am in total limbo."

The Federation of Small Businesses has previously called the delays 'inexcusable'.

Express and Star

From the Express and Star's website:

• West Midlands Police braced for summer crime wave from 'jobless young men', external
• Fund launched in Wolverhampton to help vulnerable people amid coronavirus outbreak, external
• Mobile apps the best hope for ending lock down, says Staffordshire virus expert, external

A man and his children are using their daily exercise to clean gravestones in local cemeteries in Cheshire.

Image source, Ryan van Emmenis/PA

Ryan van Emmenis, 37, from Winsford, has cleaned more than 20 headstones with help from his children, since the lockdown started.

He responded after a friend posted a picture on social media of his sister's grave and, noticing it had weathered, Mr van Emmenis offered to clean it.

His three children, Brooke, 12, Lana, four, and Larsson, three, all help.

Mr van Emmenis, who runs a cleaning company, said that after the initial clean, he felt he could do more.

Encouraged by his wife Hayley, he has now started to clean other gravestones in two local cemeteries, St Chad's and Swanlow Park.

Should you fancy doing some art work during lockdown then take a look at this gallery's online Self Portrait Challenge.

Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum is calling for people of all ages to submit their drawings, paintings and mixed-media pieces.

Image source, Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum

There's no prize though, it's all just for fun.

Your self-portraits should be submitted to the gallery's accounts on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter and pictures are expected to be shared on social media from 4 May.

Shropshire Museums hopes to acquire both pieces of jewellery to display in the county.

BBC News Education
BBC News Family & Education

A catch-up premium of £700 for every pupil on free school meals should be given to secondary schools when they reopen, say northern MPs and peers.

Image source, Getty Images

They believe such a premium would help prevent poorer children in England falling behind their classmates because of school closures due to Covid-19.

It would fund up to two-and-a-half hours of tuition for six to 12 weeks.

Fifty MPs from the North have written to Education Secretary Gavin Williamson to make the case for £300m of funding.

Mr Williamson is due to appear before the Education Select Committee later, to face questions about the Department for Education's response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Two MPs who sit on the committee have signed the letter - Ian Mearns, Labour MP for Gateshead, and Christian Wakeford, Conservative MP for Bury South - and will raise the issue at the hearing.

BBC Make A Difference

Volunteers in Warwickshire are to receive "badge of honour" car stickers to display while they're out and about carrying out their duties, the county council has said.

The county has more than 500 volunteers at work during the lockdown and hopes the stickers will show they are "on a mission to help those most in need during the Covid-19 pandemic".

Image source, Warwickshire County Council

Council chief executive, Monica Fogarty, said: "As they go about their work collecting groceries and delivering medication and supplies to our most vulnerable residents, we hope these stickers will identify them as the heroes they are.”

BBC Make A Difference

A specially designed drawing for VE Day has been designed.

The VE Day window decoration is free to download so it can be coloured in to help turn windows "red, white and blue in celebration".

It has been designed by Rugby Art Gallery and Museum, which hopes people will share their colourful creations on social media.

For more information and to download the design, visit the gallery's Facebook page, external.

Image source, Rugby Art Gallery and Museum

VE Day, which stands for Victory in Europe, is 8 May and marks 75 years since fighting against Nazi Germany came to an end in Europe.

John Bray
BBC News

Flower lovers locked out of a huge garden due to the coronavirus pandemic can see the colourful blooms online instead.

Each April, the Trentham Estate, in Stoke-on-Trent, normally receives about 80,000 visitors to its gardens.

Annually, visitor numbers top three million, but for now the garden gates are locked.

That also meant the 12 members of staff who planted 200,000 bulbs for the Spring Bulb Festival were unable to see the end result.

So the Trentham Estate commissioned a series of videos and photographs to post on its website.

The 725-acre estate was owned for more than 400 years by the Dukes of Sutherland, and has undergone a major regeneration programme since 2003.

BBC Weather

Mainly cloudy to start today with bands of rain expected later this morning.

They should clear by the middle of the afternoon with sunny skies afterwards. High: 12C (54F).

Image source, KinverSteve

Then turning cloudy again this evening with further bands of rain due to appear after sunset before turning drier towards dawn. Low: 6C (43F).

Get a latest forecast for your area at any other time from the BBC Weather website.

Significant changes to our lives are coming, and coming at us fast.

Follow the latest developments on the pandemic from across the region.

Trentham Estate puts its blooms online after the garden gates were forced to close.

Nigel and Jane Chaloner sold 550,000 tickets at £2 each in a charity prize draw to win their home.

BBC News Health

Dr Radha Modgil shares tips on staying mentally and emotionally well during the coronavirus lockdown.

BBC Make A Difference

Tuck shop proceeds have been used by police to deliver support parcels to local care homes and schools during the lockdown.

Officers posted about their socially-distanced visits on social media, external:

Image source, Rugby Police