Azam Mangori, 24, tells the court "the only thing I have ever cut up in my life is chicken meat".

The BBC understands as many as 1,000 more midwives and 80 obstetrics consultants will be hired in England.

BBC Hereford and Worcester

The annual May fairs in Hereford and Leominster have been put back, because of coronavirus concerns.

Herefordshire Council has rescheduled the Leominster fair for 29, 30 and 31 July and the following week in Hereford.

This year will be the 900th anniversary of the first Hereford May fair and a series of events and activities have been lined up to celebrate the landmark.

BBC Midlands Today

Efforts are being stepped up in Redditch to try and bring the town's rate of Covid-19 infections down.

It has stayed stubbornly higher compared to the rest of Worcestershire with 156 cases per 100,000 for the week up to 20 March contrasting with about 64 per 100,000 for the whole county.

Director of Public Health, Dr Kathryn Cobain, said they think one of the issues in Redditch is the type of employment residents have.

"We know that many people need to leave home for essential work so we have more people working outside the home in Redditch and we also know we have more people working in manufacturing businesses," she said.

The county council said it is working with businesses on getting more testing done among workforces and making sure as many people get vaccinated as possible.

BBC Weather Watchers

Some of our BBC Weather Watchers have been enjoying the spring sunshine down by their local waterways and we have picked three of our favourites to share.

These are from users Step Counter in Hereford, Littleacorns in Southam, Warwickshire and Videoman in Leek, Staffordshire.

Image source, Step Counter

Image source, Littleacorns

Image source, Videoman

BBC Midlands Today

An independent grassroots music venue in Birmingham is putting on a new programme of experimental live music as it prepares to come out of lockdown.

Centrala, in Digbeth, will host a series of international live shows, installations and streamed performances.

Organisers said they will explore responses from artists to the global pandemic, to mark a welcoming back of audiences after 12 months of closure.

Founder and director Alicja Kaczmareck said: "People will finally have an opportunity to come into the space and experience art and music first-hand rather than from the screen of their computer."

Local Democracy Reporting Service

People working within Birmingham's Clean Air Zone (CAZ) will be able to scrap their old car and receive £2,000 credit towards a compliant vehicle.

Anyone working within the A4540 Middleway Ring Road and earning less than £30,000 a year, can put their non-compliant vehicle forward to be scrapped, in exchange for money off a car from Motorpoint, the city council says.

Alternatively, drivers can opt to receive £2,000 of credit for public transport in the form of a Swift Travel Card.

Drivers of high-polluting vehicles will be charged a daily fee of £8 for cars and £50 for buses and HGVs, with some exemptions.

Image source, Getty Images

The council has estimated the charges will apply to about 25% of vehicles on the city's roads.

Applications for the scrappage scheme will open prior to the CAZ launch on 1 June, the council said.

Stephen Arnold, Head of the Clean Air Zone, said the council was taking expressions of interest in the scheme through the Brum Breathes website and will accept full applications shortly.

"In the meantime, we are encouraging city centre workers who may qualify for this scheme to also apply for a temporary exemption permit so that their existing vehicle will not be subject to the charge when the zone launches on 1 June this year," he added.

Johnny Robbins went missing in 2018 and police say his death is linked to another murder in Coventry.

Shropshire Star

Here are some of the stories on the Shropshire Star website today:

• The Post Office ‘systematically misled’ the criminal courts about flaws with its computer system, a court hears, external
• Five people have been arrested on suspicion of murder following the death of a woman in Telford, external
• 'Before I was just surviving, now I am living my life to the full': New drug has changed James' life, external

BBC Radio Shropshire

Plans for the redevelopment of a Shrewsbury school are being redrawn, to protect a 150-year-old tree.

The oak, next to Harlescott Junior School on Featherbed Lane, was due to be removed as part of its expansion plans.

That was halted when a protestor scaled its branches and work was temporarily halted when a nest and eggs were found, which meant the tree couldn't legally be felled.

Shropshire Council said it is now "working on a revision to the scheme that would modify the school entrance in order to retain the tree."

But it said that to improve the health of the tree, some branches might have to be removed and that work will be carried out when the birds aren't nesting.

Santander is going to close five of its branches around the West Midlands by the end of August.

They're among 111 to go around the country, with the bank saying it's because fewer people are visiting them.

Image source, Getty Images

Santander said the 840 staff affected will be found other jobs.

These are the affected sites and their expected closure dates:

• Dudley Merryhill - 24 June
• Newcastle-under-Lyme - 15 July
• Halesowen - 22 July
• Birmingham Erdington - 29 July
• Harborne High Street - 5 August

Patients waiting for elective surgery should be prioritised for the coronavirus vaccine, researchers have suggested.

The study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research and led by experts at the University of Birmingham.

It found that patients who develop the infection are at an increased risk of death in the 30 days following surgery.

Pre-operation vaccinations for patients could prevent an additional 58,687 Covid-19 deaths globally in one year, the study concluded.

William Billingham was jailed in 2018 for murdering his eight-year-old daughter in a "revenge" attack.

Crewe chairman John Bowler resigns following the publication of the Sheldon report into historical sexual abuse in football.

Infection control, evacuation procedures and medicine handling all caused concern in reports.

The urgent treatment centre at Telford's Princess Royal Hospital will reopen on Monday after being moved to Bridgnorth during the pandemic.

It has been operating from the town's minor injuries unit for the past year. Staff said they had become part of the "family" there.

The decision has been taken because coronavirus cases at Shropshire's two acute hospitals have been falling.

Two mobile vaccination vans are returning to a mosque in Hall Green, Birmingham today.

More than 40 people were vaccinated at the Masjid Eesa Ibn Maryam on Wednesday, with about 50 booked in today, said organisers.

The vans, supported by the Birmingham and Solihull Covid-19 vaccination team, will be making their way to other faith and community centres, such as churches, mosques and gurdwaras over the coming weeks.

BBC Radio Stoke Sport

David Artell believes this summer will be busier than most with a number of changes expected to his Crewe squad.

Harry Pickering is due to move to Blackburn Rovers and other players will be out of contract, but Artell said: "It's not going to be the whole squad or anything like that."

Image source, Getty Images

Last summer Crewe made five signings and let seven players leave.

With young people under pressure for jobs, research shows career choices are shaped at a young age.

BBC Midlands Today

A school in Birmingham has been forced to close to all pupils today following an outbreak of coronavirus.

King Edward VI Five Ways School, in Bartley Green, says a "significant number" of staff and students tested positive for Covid-19.

Image source, Google

A number of pupils are having to isolate and online lessons are being provided.