Summary

  • Updates from Monday 26 May to Sunday 31 May

  1. Festival pulled over 'lack of government support'published at 15:52 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Bluedot's organisers say having no "government-backed insurance scheme" means the risks are "too high".

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  2. Vue admits cinema seat crush death chargespublished at 15:39 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Ateeq Rafiq died after getting his head stuck under a motorised footrest while searching for keys.

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  3. Dogs killed mother after row with daughterpublished at 15:32 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Elayne Stanley was mauled by two American bulldogs following an argument at her home, an inquest hears.

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  4. County-by-county commentators guidepublished at 15:30 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    BBC local radio cricket commentators give their thoughts on how the season might pan out for their county.

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  5. Inspector demoted after mocking teenage detaineepublished at 15:23 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Matthew Downs admitted shouting at the teenager, mocking him and using unnecessary force.

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  6. What to look out for in the County Championshippublished at 15:22 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    With the County Championship making an eagerly anticipated return on Thursday, here's a look at who and what to watch out for.

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  7. Still unclear how man collapsed in street diedpublished at 13:23 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Police say post-mortem tests have so far proved inconclusive after the death in Birmingham.

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  8. City of Culture gets funding for Covid-safe eventspublished at 13:08 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    The government gives the festival £3.5m for "enhanced Covid-19 safety and hygiene methods".

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  9. 'Of course a woman can coach men'published at 09:41 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Mark Robinson, the former England women's coach, on returning to men's county cricket with Warwickshire.

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  10. Funding for 'nature recovery' in three countiespublished at 08:35 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    The Wildlife Trusts coalition has revealed 10 locations in England and Wales they are hoping bring back nature.

    Sites in Shropshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire are included in the £8m project.

    The trusts have begun a campaign, backed by Sir David Attenborough, to drive the recovery of nature across 30% of land by 2030.

    Stiperstones ridge in ShropshireImage source, Getty Images

    In Shropshire, 12 acres of unsprayed fields around the Stiperstones ridge (pictured), above Tankerville, will be restored to allow harebells, yellow mountain pansies, stonechats and skylarks to thrive.

    Meanwhile in Herefordshire, £200,000 will be spent restoring the 14-acre Ail Meadow, increasing wildflowers to boost numbers of the wood white butterfly, providing a home for species such as bog pimpernel.

    Ninety-five acres of arable fields will be restored back to heathland in Worcestershire to connect four surrounding nature reserves and provide home to wildlife, including the hornet robberfly and minotaur bee.

    "Just protecting the nature we have left is not enough; we need to put nature into recovery and to do so at scale and with urgency," Wildlife Trusts chief executive Craig Bennett said.

    "We need to transform nature-poor areas into new nature-rich places - and change the way we think about land, looking for opportunities to help nature outside traditional nature reserves."

  11. Today's weather forecastpublished at 08:25 British Summer Time 7 April 2021

    Today will begin dry and bright but it will feel cold. The cloud will build through the afternoon and it will turn overcast, but should remain dry. Gentle winds. Highs of 4C to 7C (39F to 45F).

    This evening and tonight will be largely cloudy, but there should be a few clear spells. It will continue to stay dry. Winds will be lighter and it will not be as cold as the past couple of nights. Lows of 1C to 4C (34F to 39F).

  12. Birmingham City situation 'unacceptable'published at 18:31 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    England goalkeeper Ellie Roebuck says the situation at Birmingham City is "unacceptable" following player complaints about conditions.

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  13. NHS trust charged over patients' deathspublished at 18:02 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    The patients at Dudley's Russells Hall Hospital were allegedly exposed to "avoidable harm".

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  14. Malan to miss start of Bears' seasonpublished at 18:01 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    Warwickshire's South Africa Test batsman Pieter Malan is to miss Thursday's start of the season as he is on the Covid 'red list'.

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  15. Officer 'mocked detainee' and 'pushed him around'published at 17:27 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    Insp Matthew Downs admits using unnecessary force on a youth in a custody block.

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  16. Trust to work with safety team over maternity servicespublished at 17:25 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    A Shropshire hospital trust is to work with the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) around how it deals with women and families after criticism of its maternity services.

    Last year a report into the maternity care of more than 1,800 families by Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) found that poor care over nearly two decades had harmed dozens of women and their babies.

    The agreement to work the HSIB represented a "key milestone" for the trust as it implemented changes from the report, led by Donna Ockenden, a former senior midwife.

    Diane Ockenden

    The trust said it will be working to "communicate openly and receive feedback from women and families".

    It has also held its first monthly public meeting to "drive forward actions in maternity services arising from the first Ockenden Report".

  17. Powell to take over at Warrington in 2022published at 16:17 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    Castleford Tigers head coach Daryl Powell is to succeed Steve Price at Warrington Wolves at the end of the 2021 season.

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  18. Vaccine passports ridiculous, pub owners saypublished at 16:11 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    Publicans say the use of vaccine passports for the hospitality industry will be a "nightmare".

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  19. More mental health help for new mothers unveiledpublished at 15:50 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    The 26 clinics, providing treatment for 6,000 new parents, will open by April 2022, NHS England says.

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  20. It’s Not Always Black and White podcastpublished at 15:49 British Summer Time 6 April 2021

    BBC Radio Stoke

    A new podcast of intimate and hilarious conversations about race, love and the grey spaces in between has launched on Tuesday on BBC Radio Stoke and BBC Sounds.

    Bongi Msimanga and Matt Hodson

    Each episode features married couple Matt Hodson, 39, born and bred in Solihull and a commercial manager for a railway company, and Bongi Msimanga, 34, born in southern Africa, now living in Shropshire and a journalist with the BBC for seven years.

    The questions are demanding, sometimes brutal, and the answers always raw and often comical.

    Like many interracial couples during the growth of the Black Lives Matter movement, they found themselves talking about race in a different way.

    They'd never really talked about racism as an institution or what it meant for their marriage. They'd fallen in love with each other's differences. But those differences were now creating fault lines through their relationship and between friends and family.

    New episodes of It's Not Always Black and White will be updated weekly on all podcast platforms.