A proposal to introduce elected mayors for rural areas is 'not wanted', the leader of Telford and Wrekin Council has said.

The Ministry for Local Government has suggested those parts of the country could elect mayors to directly lobby Westminster for funding and more proposals are due to be outlined in the autumn.

Labour's Shaun Davies said: "I don't think anyone's asking for another layer of politicians in this country and what we do need is the councils to be trusted with our local areas, resourced by the government."

This is the first Indian rhino calf to be born at West Midland Safari Park.

He hasn't got a name yet, but he arrived on Tuesday and for the time being he is being kept in a private area to bond with his mother.

Image source, West Midland Safari Park

The park has been keeping this species of rhino for more than 10 years and deputy head keeper Shelley Tudor said: "We are absolutely delighted and have been waiting a long time for this moment."

Image source, West Midland Safari Park

Pizza Hut has confirmed the locations of 29 restaurants it will close as part of a major restructuring plan which will see about 450 jobs lost.

Image source, PA Media

Three are earmarked for closure in the West Midlands region:

• Newcastle-under-Lyme
• Stafford
• Worcester

The restaurant chain said it was part of a rescue deal "to mitigate the financial impact of Covid-19".

The firm added it was trying to offer other roles to staff at the restaurants.

Express and Star

The Express and Star's headlines include:

• Schools facing 'difficult' circumstances as pupils told to isolate amid rise in coronavirus cases, external
• More than 400 children homeless in Black Country and Staffordshire, external
• Dudley Council leader wants to improve 'dire' night-time economy, external

BBC Radio Stoke Sport

Stoke City need players to leave the club before they can make more signings, the manager has said.

Michael O'Neill has brought in five players so far, with winger Jacob Brown the latest, and said: "We're happy with what we've got".

Image source, Getty Images

O'Neill also said he had a number of players on the fringes of his squad who might be better off moving elsewhere and if they do it may open up space to bring in someone else.

But he said he wasn't actively looking for more players at the moment.

Big families react as they are told gatherings of more than six will be banned in England from Monday.

The Ludlow Food Festival starts today but this year it is online.

The annual event usually attracts about 20,000 visitors.

Image source, Ashleigh Cadet

Shropshire chefs Marcus Bean and Adam Purnell are hosting online cooking demonstrations, tastings and chatting to producers.

BBC News England

Amid rising rates of coronavirus, new measures to control Covid-19 in England come into force on Monday. BBC News has mapped some of the areas with the highest numbers of new infections.

Image source, Reuters

They include Birmingham, an area which has been given "enhanced support" by the government.

It now has the second highest rate in England, 85.4 per 100,000 people, as of 7 September.

Birmingham's director of public health, Dr Justin Varney, told BBC News he was concerned by the "significant" rise, while the city council said most new infections were in the 20-39 age group with a rise across all ethnic groups.

You can read more and see a map of the areas in the city with the highest number of new cases here on the BBC website.

BBC Weather

A cool start followed by some sunny spells before it turns cloudier although it should stay dry. High: 18C/64F.

Image source, BBC Weather Watcher NB Adagio

Some sunny spells this evening but it will be mainly cloudy tonight with the chance of some patchy drizzle or a shower. Low: 12C/54F.

You can stay up-to-date on your local forecast at any time by going to the BBC Weather website.

Fire crews from Shropshire remain at the scene of a barn fire which broke out overnight.

The blaze, at Middleton near Oswestry, involves wood chip and machinery.

Andy Giddings
BBC News

Welcome to our live service for Friday.

We'll be bringing you all the latest updates for the West Midlands.

You can let us know about stories in your area via email, Twitter , externaland Facebook., external

Localised data reveals the areas that saw the largest numbers of new cases in the past week.

Andy Giddings
BBC News

We'll be back with the news, sport, travel and weather from 08:00 tomorrow.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Shropshire Council could have to pay £11m to transform one of Shrewsbury's shopping centres, a report has revealed.

It plans to spend £16m on the Pride Hill centre, which it bought with two other centres for £51m in 2018, and has been given a grant of £5m by the government.

The authority said it was hoping to find more funding for the project and also had plans to improve the Darwin Centre and to demolish the Riverside Centre.

The value of the three shopping centres bought by the council has fallen to £17.5m in two years.

No-one came forward to take the Victor aircraft away, says RAF Marham.

Nearly 1,000 cases of coronavirus were recorded in Birmingham over the seven days leading up until 7 September.

Public Health England said the 975 cases raised the rate to 85.4 per 100,000 people - up from 32 the previous week.

Image source, Getty Images

The city now has the second highest seven-day rate, behind only Bolton.

Hereford Times

These are three of the stories from the Hereford Times website today:

• Well-known butcher killed while crossing road, external
• Firefighters called following funny smell, external
• Car crashes into ditch on A49, external

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Telford Steam Railway has been given permission to more than double the number of days it operates on, but it's unlikely to make any changes soon because of the coronavirus.

Its previous planning permission, which was granted in 1992, only allowed trips between 09:30 and 18:30 on 35 days a year.

It can now run on 75 days a year, until 21:30.

The steam railway has decided to cancel all services for the rest of 2020, including its lucrative Polar Express rides, and has invited people with tickets to rearrange their visits for next year.

Tariq Khan was filmed shaking hands at an event a week after his council warned about a rise in cases.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A Coventry councillor who was filmed breaking social distancing rules at an event broken up by the police has apologised for his actions and said it was an "error of judgment".

EarlierTariq Khan also resigned from his cabinet post and said he believed he was attending an “officially organised” event “with the appropriate risk assessments” when he joined more than 200 other people at Edgwick Park.

Image source, LDRS

The Labour councillor for Foleshill said: “I have been considering my position for some time, but this has been brought to a head by the circulation of the video that shows me shaking hands with people at an outdoor event on August 23."

And he added: "I did not mean to undermine the work of the council, as I know about the importance of following public health guidance in reducing the spread of Covid-19, and as a public figure I appreciate that I should lead by example."