Randy Conteh, 62, is accused of raping a girl under 16 during the 1990s.

A blaze at a low-rise block of flats in Rubery is now out, says the fire service.

Image source, Hayley Chapman

Image source, @B31Voices

The block on Parkway was evacuated when flames broke out on Friday.

More than 30 firefighters were sent to tackle the blaze at its height.

Image source, Alex Cotterill-Drew

There were no casualties, said West Midlands Fire Service.

The road remains closed between Rubery Lane and Reaside Drive.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

People in Solihull are being urged to meet family and friends outdoors where possible amid a "grave" Covid situation.

While more restrictions are set to be lifted on Monday, Solihull Council has asked people to try and meet loved ones in the open air.

Councillors also repeated calls for people to continue to wear masks and for businesses to maintain Covid-secure measures.

Image source, Getty Images

Tony Dicicco, cabinet member for adult social care and health described the situation as quite grave and said the under 30s are being admitted to hospital with serious Covid symptoms.

Ruth Tennant, the town's director of public health, added the area's figures were now the "worst in the West Midlands" and rising rapidly.

She added the main age group affected were 18 to 24-year-olds, but that it was spreading to other age groups.

The borough’s current case rate of 558 per 100,000 over a seven-day period has been exceeded only once before – at the very start of January – and may not peak until next month, the Local Democacy Reporting Service said.

Chief Medical Officer Prof Chris Whitty has said people should act with caution as restrictions in England end on Monday.

They believe Robert Wieczorkowski may have information that can help them with inquiries.

Rail users are being warned there could be short notice cancellations in the coming weeks, with increasing numbers of staff being "pinged" by the track and trace app.

West Midlands Railway said it had seen the number of staff needing to isolate quadruple and although it has recruited over 100 extra drivers, their training has been held up by the pandemic.

The firm is also asking passengers to continue wearing face coverings "out of respect for others", unless they are exempt, after Covid restrictions are eased on Monday.

Bin collections in Redditch and Bromsgrove are being disrupted as staff are being told to self-isolate.

Image source, Redditch Borough Council

Garden waste collections are being suspended for the rest of the week in Redditch with the borough council saying it aims to catch up next week. , external

In Bromsgrove, the local authority says recycling collections are being delayed , externalwhile the bulky waste collection service is unavailable.

In both cases, the councils say bin workers are being told to self-isolate by the NHS due to a close contact being diagnosed with Covid.

Earlier in the week, Coventry City Council suspended garden rubbish collections for a fortnight for the same reason.

Almost 40 locations in the Black Country and west Birmingham are offering walk-in vaccines this weekend.

Image source, PA Media

With restrictions set to lift on Monday, all adults are being invited to get their Covid-19 vaccine and join the 839,434 people across the area already vaccinated, Black Country and West Birmingham Clinical Commissioning Group said.

People aged 18 and over can drop in to the vaccination sites, which will also be delivering jabs at supermarkets, shopping centres and community halls across the weekend.

The area's flagship vaccination services at The Saddlers Centre, Aldersley Leisure Village, City Hospital and Tipton Sports Academy will also be open for walk-ins, while vaccination buses will be visiting sites across the local area. All walk-in sites will be open to adults having their first dose of the vaccine, with second doses available for those who have had their first dose more than eight weeks ago.

Appointments are not required for the walk-in sessions, people need to bring ID and the list of walk-in sites available this weekend across the Black Country and West Birmingham is here, external.

Birmingham defender George Friend signs an extended deal that will keep him at the Championship club until June 2023 .

Thirty-seven stretches of road, totalling 184km (114 miles) in length, are to be resurfaced in the coming months.

Image source, Shropshire Council

The programme includes seven roads in central Shropshire, 14 in north Shropshire and 16 in south Shropshire, external.

To achieve value for money, roads "that are likely to need costly repairs in the future are prioritised", Shropshire Council said.

Its cabinet member with responsibility for highways, Steve Charmley, said: "I thank people for their patience and understanding while this important work is carried out."

Work will be carried out by Shropshire Council's contractor, Kier.

Midfielder Sam Clucas signs a new two-year contract with Championship side Stoke City.

BBC Sport

World and Olympic champion Adam Peaty has joined Radio 1's Reece Parkinson to create his perfect playlist for the Olympic Games - featuring tracks from Post Malone, 50 Cent and Metallica.

Image source, BBC Sport

Asked for a "wake-up song", the Staffordshire swimmer said: "You've got to be relaxed... so it's got to be Sunflower Post Malone. I know it's very cliche... I'm like I'm having a good day today.

"Also I think it's the memories you attach to that, so... Sunflower for me is dancing around the living room with my boy."

Residents have been evacuated from a block of flats after a fire broke out, the fire service has said.

More than 30 firefighters have been sent to the incident at a low-rise block on Parkway in Rubery.

It involves a fire in the roof space, said West Midlands Fire Service.

There are not believed to be any casualties, it added.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

The leader of Worcester City Council has backed the government's position on masks as almost all Covid-19 restrictions are due to end on 19 July.

The legal requirement to wear masks in shops, public transport and other enclosed public spaces will end on Monday, although the prime minister said he expected them to continue to be worn in crowded and enclosed spaces.

Image source, Google

Green councillor Neil Laurenson said the council had a duty of care to its staff and the rest of the city which meant face coverings should continue to be worn after 19 July.

"Given that vaccines are not 100% effective, especially for those with suppressed immune systems, would you agree that we owe these people a duty of care and where practical, we should consider maintaining the use of face coverings for those in a customer-facing role?" he asked.

To which council leader Marc Bayliss replied: "As a respected employer in the city, and as a service provider, we certainly should do what we can to help our customers and staff to work in a sensible and safe way.

"And I will be looking at the managing director and senior staff to continue to operate our organisation in that regard."

BBC Midlands Today

A way of growing crops without soil is being trialled.

Lettuce, kale and similar plants are having their roots bathed in a light mist of water and nutrients at Harper Adams University, near Newport.

Scientists at the university say the "aeroponics" system should allow vegetables to be grown in city centres in the future.

Laura Vickers, from Harper Adams, says the process uses less water, less expensive plant feed and nutrients and could end up in people's homes.

"I think we can see them in containers, that could be on car parks, on top of buildings and even potentially units that could sit in someone's kitchen where they can be growing their own salads and herbs for their own cooking," she says.

It will be a dry and mostly sunny day as high pressure remains in control over the weather.

Some patchy cloud may develop around the middle of the day and it will continue to be warm. Highs of 23C to 26C (73F to 79F).

The evening will continue to be dry with plenty of sunshine.

Overnight will continue to see clear skies, but a few patches of mist may develop in places towards dawn. Lows of 14C to 17C (57F to 63F).

Welcome to our live service for Friday.

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 , externaland Facebook, external.

A late equaliser by substitute Jamie McDonagh gives Glentoran a 1-1 draw at home to The New Saints in their opening Europa Conference League qualifier.

Wolves keeper Rui Patricio completes a move to Roma, with the Premier League club set to bring in Olympiakos' Jose Sa as a replacement.

Sunderland and Walsall's local authority areas faced the biggest cuts, with 83% and 81% respectively.

That's it for our live coverage today.

We will be back with updates on the latest news, sport, travel and weather for the West Midlands from 08:00 on Friday.