Royal Mail is beginning trials of fully electric vans for its parcel and letter deliveries.

Image source, PA Media

The vehicles have been produced by the London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC) and based on the iconic London taxi.

Coventry-based LEVC will be testing its new VN5 prototype electric van on the delivery rounds ahead of its official launch later this year.

The vans will be used over the next six months on delivery rounds in largely urban areas of Birmingham, Derby, Leeds, Edinburgh and Bristol.

A 15-year-old boy was stabbed in his thigh in an attack in Birmingham.

Police said it is understood he was attacked by a group of four or five teenagers near Grove Lane, in Handsworth, at about 19:30 last night.

Image source, Pav Dhande

He was taken to hospital where his condition is not thought to be life-threatening or life-changing.

Anyone with information should contact West Midlands Police.

BBC Weather

After a dry start rain will gradually move in, becoming heavy at times, with highs of 17C (63F).

It was a lovely start to the day in Crewe, where BBC Weather Watcher AlexG595 captured this image of sunrise.

Image source, BBC Weather Watchers/AlexG595

Vanessa Pearce
BBC News

Welcome to our live service for Tuesday.

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

Claire Cross says the masks with a clear panel are vital for people who rely on lip-reading.

Many of the independent businesses in a Birmingham suburb aren't sure when they will open again.

Vanessa Pearce
BBC News

Live updates have now ended for the West Midlands.

We'll be back with you tomorrow with all the latest news from 08:00.

A man was Tasered by police after the ambulance crew were stabbed in Wolverhampton.

Almost the entire roof collapsed through the building in Dudley at the weekend.

Peter Plisner
BBC Midlands Today

A new fleet of pure electric buses has taken to the roads of Birmingham and Coventry for the first time.

It's part of a major investment by bus company National Express, which has pledged to switch totally to zero-emission vehicles over the next decade.

A change in the law has also cleared the way for electric scooters to be legally ridden on the roads.

The West Midlands is one of several areas taking part in a year-long trial, which it's hoped will initially take the pressure off public transport while social distancing is still in place.

Twenty firefighters were sent to The Button Factory, a bar in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter.

Three people have been arrested after a car containing suspected stolen goods was intercepted and stopped by officers on the M40 in Warwickshire at the weekend.

Image source, Warwickshire Police

The vehicle was linked to high value Shop lifting offences in Rugby, said Warwickshire Police.

The car and property shown was recovered, the force added.

A neighbour has described hearing a "blood curdling scream" as two paramedics were attacked and stabbed by a man carrying two knives earlier.

Anita Millard, 65, who lives on Stephens Close, Wolverhampton, described how the paramedics, along with two police officers entered the property by removing a door panel after concern was raised for the welfare of the man by his elderly mother.

"It was like something off the TV," she added.

Ms Millard said the male paramedic came backwards out the house "and he shouted into his radio 'help, help, we've both been stabbed'."

"The guy was stood in the porch holding these knives. Then the police came in and shouted 'Taser' and then they tasered him," she added.

A stuck kitten has been rescued after climbing into the engine of a car in Warwickshire this morning.

Image source, Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service

Image source, Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service

Crews removed the wheel of the car and were able to rescue the cat unharmed, said Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service.

The incident happened on Common Lane, in Kenilworth just after 07:20.

Theatres in the West Midlands welcome the government's "generous" £1.57bn emergency support package.

Josh Onomah scores a late winner for Fulham against Birmingham as they reclaim fourth place in the Championship.

Simone Stewart
BBC News

Actress Beanie Feldstein came from Hollywood to Wolverhampton to learn how locals speak for her role in How to Build a Girl.

The star spent two weeks working in a craft shop in the city honing her Black Country dialect.

She was preparing for her star turn in the film, released this weekend, based on a semi-autobiographical novel by Caitlin Moran.

Pret A Manger stores in Shrewsbury, Worcester and Stratford-upon-Avon are among 30 outlets set to close amid a restructuring of the business.

Image source, Getty Images

The sandwich chain said it needed to reduce headcount across its UK shops to "reflect lower footfall, rental costs and new safety measures".

About 330 jobs will be lost with the closure of the 30 shops.

Pret said 339 of its 410 shops have so far reopened following the easing of lockdown restrictions.

The company is broadening its sales with a retail coffee initiative with Amazon and a delivery partnership with Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats.

Pret said sales across these digital channels had already grown 480% year-on-year, and now represented more than 8% of total UK sales.

A fire has broken through the roof of a motor workshop in Dudley, the fire service says.

About 20 firefighters are at the scene on Station Drive in Brierley Hill.

Brettell Lane is closed between Brythill Drive and Station Drive.

A man has died after his van left the M5 and hit a tree.

The crash happened shortly after 08:40 on the southbound carriageway, close to J8 in Stresham, Worcestershire, said the ambulance service.

It's understood the van hit the central reservation before leaving the carriageway.

He was confirmed dead at the scene.