A woman has suffered "life-changing injuries" after being hit by a bus in Birmingham yesterday.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it was called to Bristol Road in Selly Oak at about 16:20 and found she was trapped underneath the bus, which had also struck a lamppost.

Several other vehicles were also damaged and the bus driver was taken to hospital for checks.

Disability Arts in Shropshire (DASH) has been granted £70,000 as part of the government's £1.57bn Cultural Recovery Fund.

The charity - which works with disabled artists - said it was "fantastic news" and the money would be used to employ more freelance mentors to better support its artists.

"Our team at DASH have barely stopped this year, responding to the challenges brought about by the pandemic and supporting disabled people who have been disproportionately affected," the charity's chair, Craig Ashley, said.

"This funding will enable us to reach more disabled artists.... [and] give us much needed breathing space to ensure our future."

BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester

Hereford Racecourse will stage its first meeting of the new winter jumps season, but no spectators will be allowed to attend.

Arena Racing, which operates the course, has made changes to the facilities to ensure they meet the Covid-19 rules introduced by the British Horseracing Authority.

Image source, Getty Images

The regional executive director at Hereford, Rebecca Davies, said the return of spectators should be possible eventually, with the right safety measures in place.

That is likely to mean all tickets being bought in advance and track and trace being introduced.

The Labour leader of Cheshire East Council, Sam Corcoran, believes pubs in the area could "have very few people going into them" as a result of stricter coronavirus restrictions in the county.

MPs will today vote on the government's new three-tier system of coronavirus restrictions, which comes into effect tomorrow and puts East Cheshire in tier two.

The restrictions will mean different households won't be able to mix indoors.

BBC Weather

We're likely to see some more showers today and temperatures reaching 11C (52F).

The rest of the week is forecast to be dry and cloudy.

Image source, Sutton Walker

Andy Giddings
BBC News

Good morning and welcome to our live service for Tuesday.

We’ll be bringing you the latest news, sport, weather and travel updates.

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Birmingham, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall, and Wolverhampton are in the "high category".

The owner turned off music and closed shutters to "deter" officers when they arrived, police said.

This chart paints a pretty clear picture why new measures are being introduced.

The prime minister said earlier that hospital admissions were higher now than when a national lockdown was introduced in march.

According to World Health Orgnisation (WHO) expert Dr Margaret Harris, the UK had the fourth highest number of coronavirus cases in the world last week - behind only India, USA and Brazil.

That's all for today's live coverage of the latest from the West Midlands.

We'll be back tomorrow from 08:00 for more but in the meantime you'll still be able to find breaking news and local updates on this page.

If you're in a tier two area - so Birmingham, Walsall, Solihull, Sandwell, Wolverhampton, or Cheshire East - the government is also calling on you to "reduce the number of journeys you make".

It also urged people to walk or cycle where possible, and particularly avoid busy times on public transport.

Echoing both the Conservative mayor of the West Midlands and Labour deputy leader of Birmingham Council Council, MP Andrew Mitchell spoke out in the House of Commons urging the prime minister to think again on his plans.

The Tory MP for Sutton Coldfield said the "medical evidence and the political consenus" in the West Midlands conurbation demonstrated that the area should stay in tier one, with the addition of the current local measures.

Image source, UK Parliament

Boris Johnson replied that the virus was continued to rise across the country and the government would be "sticking with" its latest plan.

Reality Check

The question about whether there is a scientific reason for the 10pm closing time for pubs, bars and restaurants in England was raised again in the House of Commons.

The prime minister was asked to confirm whether there was a scientific basis for “restrictions on economic activity”.

Boris Johnson said there was.

Evidence from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, , externalwhich reports to the government, has highlighted the general risk of venues serving alcohol.

"Smaller gatherings such as bars and nightclubs are higher risk as you can be in closer contact with others," a report in February warned.

But the Department for Health has not released the specific scientific advice on early closing – despite our requests.

It told us: "The 10pm closure allows people to continue to socialise while reducing the risk of failing to socially distance."

Read the analysis here.

Across the political divide, the deputy leader of the Labour-run Birmingham City Council is likewise not impressed by the details of the government's latest measures.

West Midlands Metropolitan Mayor Andy Street has said he is "very disappointed" with restrictions on different households meeting in pubs and restaurants in certain parts of the conurbation, which he says is not supported by the latest data.

The Conservative mayor said the bulk of transmission in the West Midlands is in "household settings.... and stricter measures for the hospitality sector will not solve that".

He said councils across the region were unanimous in their support for keeping the current restrictions - whereby visiting someone's house is banned, but you could meet them in a pub - and urged the government to reconsider.

Household mixing indoors will be banned in Birmingham, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton from Wednesday - residents in Dudley and Coventry will still be able to socialise outside of their homes.

Cheshire East is also in the "high" alert category.

It means people living in Crewe and Nantwich, like much of the West Midlands conurbation, won't be able to mix indoors - whether it's in private homes, or pubs and restaurants.

Image source, Reuters

However, two households will be able to socialise outdoors, up to a maximum of six people.

While Manchester saw rates of new infections peak at 448.8 per 100,000 people in week up to 9 October, Cheshire East recorded a rate of 145.5 - a total of 559 new cases in the week.

Drivers are being urged to avoid the Bristol Road in Selly Oak after a serious collision this afternoon.

Four cars and a bus were involved in the crash at the junction with Heeley Road at about 16:20, police said.

A female pedestrian has been taken to hospital with serious injuries.

The road is expected to be closed for a number of hours.

Tier one: Dudley, Coventry, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Shropshire

• Tier one, or "medium risk", areas follow the national guidance - there are no extra restrictions in these areas.
• The rule of six and the 22:00 curfew for pubs and restaurants remain in place

Tier two: Birmingham, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton

• In these areas, no household mixing is allowed indoors at all - that includes pubs and restaurants
• You're still allowed to meet in a group of up to six outside and you're now allowed to visit other people's gardens.

We are still awaiting confirmation about restrictions in Staffordshire.

Birmingham will be on the second tier of the government's new three-tier system for lockdown restrictions.

Image source, PA Media

Preet Gill, the Labour MP for Birmingham Edgbaston, said she had been told by health secretary Matt Hancock shortly before prime minister Boris Johnson addressed MPs at 15:30.

The second tier is for areas where there are more than 100 cases of coronavirus per 100,000 people and where the spread of the virus cannot be contained through local responses.

The latest statistics for Birmingham show there are 168 positive cases per 100,000 people - look up the cases in your area using our tool.

Boris Johnson explains a three-tiered system of rules to fight the coronavirus pandemic in England.