Hopes are fading in parts of the West Midlands for areas to see their Covid restrictions loosened ahead of Christmas.

Image source, PA Media

Ministers are due to review the English tier system today with an announcement of any changes on Thursday.

Most of the West Midlands has been in tier three, the toughest restrictions, since lockdown ended on 2 December.

At that time, with infection rates falling, there were hopes from many local politicians of moving to a lower tier before Christmas.

However, places including Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Coventry and Solihull have seen their rates creeping up again.

Stoke-on-Trent's infection rate has fallen, but city council leader Abi Brown said she wasn't confident of a move to tier two as other factors were being considered, including pressure on the NHS.

"The hospital has done an amazing job over recent weeks but there is still quite considerable pressure on there. So, disappointingly, I think it is unlikely we will be moving down a tier," she said.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
George Makin

The disused Dudley Hippodrome building could soon be knocked down to make way for a £35m education centre.

Councillors are being asked to approve a deal with Dudley College which wants to build a health sciences building on the site in partnership with the University of Worcester.

If the government agrees, the new college site could attract up to 1,000 students to the town each year.

The theatre, used by acts such as Laurel and Hardy in the past, closed in 2009.

The cabinet will discuss the report at its meeting on Thursday.

Two secondary school pupils were filmed attacking another boy in November.

Kathryn Stanczyszyn
Political Reporter, BBC Radio WM

The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games could be the first major multi-sport event to go ahead as normal following the coronavirus pandemic, according to the chief executive of the event’s organising committee.

However, Ian Reid said it was also considering other eventualities.

Image source, Birmingham 2022

“Our current assumption is that come the summer of 2022 we will be able to get people back into stadiums and we’ll have the celebration that we all hope will happen here," he said.

"But it would of course be remiss of us if we weren’t looking at those different scenarios”.

At a site inspection of the Alexander Stadium, Perry Barr, Mr Reid told journalists building work was slightly ahead of schedule.

Since planning permission was granted in January, the demolition of three existing stands has been completed and the site remodelled with steel to form a brand new West Stand.

The £72.4m scheme to create a stadium with a capacity of 30,000 is due to be completed in spring 2022.

Relive all the action from Wednesday's Championship games as leaders Norwich beat Reading to go three points clear at the top.

Shropshire Star

The Shropshire Star has these headlines today:

• First patients have Covid jab as GP-led vaccine clinics get under way in Shropshire, external
• Pensioner murder case is adjourned, external
• New same day emergency care centre in Shrewsbury set to open ahead of schedule, external

Plans for dealing with another big winter flood are being "constantly reviewed" by the Environment Agency, because of the impact of coronavirus.

It said it had had to make contingency plans, to make sure there were enough people to cope in the event of sickness and the need to self isolate.

And it has had to make sure enough people are trained to step into key roles like flood risk analysis, if the regular staff are unavailable.

The Environment Agency will also look to give more notice of likely flooding, because response times are likely to be slower with the need for social distancing.

At the moment there are no plans to give staff priority access to the coronavirus vaccine, but it can call on other government departments, including the Department of Health for extra support.

A Telford-based academic who has carried out important research into the possibility of hypersonic flight has been given an award by Nato.

Hypersonic craft are those that fly faster than five times the speed of sound and they're being designed with the aim of allowing faster commercial air travel and faster military aircraft.

Image source, University of Wolverhampton

Dr Adriano Cerminara works for the University of Wolverhampton with a team of researchers at its Telford campus and has been looking at the effects of airflow on turbulence and heating.

Excessive heat is one of the big issues facing hypersonic flight, with temperatures likely to be higher than 1,000C, which could melt the surface of the aircraft.

Image source, Reaction

BBC Radio CWR

Children at a school in Coventry have delivered handmade cards and gifts to a care home to "do something nice" for the residents.

The pupils from Pearl Hyde were the first group of visitors to Fountain Lodge since March:

A hearing for a man accused of killing a pensioner whose body was found at a beauty spot has been adjourned.

The body of 70-year-old Richard Hall from Staffordshire was found on August 14 near the summit of Brown Clee Hill in Shropshire.

Image source, West Mercia Police

Moses Christensen, 22, from Oldswinford in Stourbridge, who is charged with murdering Mr Hall, was remanded in custody at Stafford Crown Court on Wednesday, when his case was put back until 8 January.

The court heard he was currently remanded to a secure psychiatric hospital on Merseyside.

Mr Christensen, of Corser Street, also faces a charge of possessing a combat-style knife in a public place on 13 August.

A provisional date for his trial has been set as 23 February.

Worcester News

The Worcester News is covering these stories today:

• Fifth arrest on suspicion of attempted murder as wrong-way truck probe continues, external
• Worcester woman: Time running out to save my husband's life, external
• 'Mouldy pudding from Worcester shop made 93-year-old ill', external

BBC Weather Watchers

We've had more rain today in the West Midlands and you can see from these photos from our local BBC Weather Watchers why there are warnings about possible flooding soon., external

These three are from users Shaun in Stafford, Ken M in Lydbury North, Shropshire and Step Counter in Bodenham, Herefordshire:

Image source, Shaun

Image source, Ken M

Image source, Step Counter

People in Wolverhampton are being urged not to meet up with friends and relatives from other households over Christmas.

Image source, City of Wolverhampton Council

The four UK nations are expected to issue sterner warnings about the dangers of mixing over the festive period but sources say the rules allowing three households to mix are "unlikely to change".

However the leader of the City of Wolverhampton Council, Ian Brookfield, urged people not to mix with any other households, external.

"It is becoming increasingly evident that this will be an incredibly risky thing to do," he said.

"I'm really sorry to say that we now need to double down and make what will probably seem like the toughest sacrifice of them all.

“For the sake of yourselves and your loved ones, please don't mix with others this Christmas unless it’s absolutely necessary."

The infection rate in Wolverhampton has risen to 276.4 per 100,000 people in the seven days up to 11 December compared to 238.1 for the week before.

Three men were struck and were taken to hospital with leg injuries, police say.

A man has been arrested after a stabbing in Coventry.

West Midlands Police said, external the victim, in his 30s, was stabbed in the chest in Smithford Way.

His condition in hospital is described as not being life-threatening.

The 23-year-old man has been arrested and is in custody. A knife has been seized.

BBC Sport

West Brom manager Slaven Bilic has been sacked after 18 months in charge, with the club 19th in the Premier League.

Image source, Getty Images

The Baggies have gathered seven points from 13 league games, with eight defeats, though they earned a surprise 1-1 draw at Manchester City on Tuesday.

Assistant coaches Dean Racunica and Danilo Butorovic also depart, as does first-team coach Julian Dicks.

A club statement thanked Bilic and his coaching staff "for their efforts in achieving promotion last season".

The theatre says the show will go online if Staffordshire remains in tier three after Wednesday.

The leader of Tamworth Borough Council said he will step down from the role next year,after 11 years in the job, to spend more time with his family and a new baby., external

Image source, Tamworth Council

Councillor Daniel Cook made the announcement at Tuesday's full council meeting and said he would resign from the post at the end of February.

He told councillors 11 years was "long enough for anyone" and he and his wife, fellow councillor Michelle Cook, were expecting a baby next year.

Mr Cook will stay on as a councillor.

The council aims to elect a new leader on 23 February to take up the office from 1 March.

The blaze happened in a changing block in the Thomas Land area of the theme park.

Thousands of cannabis plants have been seized by police in two locations in the West Midlands.

Image source, Warwickshire Police

Plants with an estimated street value of about £80,000 were found on Celandine Way, Bedworth, on Tuesday morning, Warwickshire Police said., external

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis.

Image source, West Midlands Police

While in Kingswinford, Dudley, police said, external they found a large cannabis factory with more than 1,000 plants at different stages of growth on Tuesday evening.

They added they also found dangerous weapons.