BBC Weather Watchers

The BBC Weather Watchers have been out and about before the day really heats up.

Dammo took this beautifully symmetrical snap in Tanworth, Warwickshire.

Image source, Dammo

This dreamy blue sky was captured by Step counter in Bodenham, Herefordshire.

Image source, Step counter

Snapper Simon lived up to his name by sharing this glorious pic from Church Stretton, Shropshire.

Image source, Snapper Simon

Share your weather photos with us by becoming a BBC Weather Watcher here.

Crews are still at the site of a large blaze at a recycling plant to make sure any small pockets of flame are out, the fire service says.

Image source, Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service

Dozens of firefighters were called to Pure Recycling Limited in Ettington, Warwickshire, on Monday and worked in "extreme heat" to get the blaze under control.

The service said the fire was burning out by 20:05 and two fire engines were still at the site this morning to keep an eye on the remnants., external

An engineer will also check whether the building is safe.

The West Midlands is baking in high temperatures, along with much of the UK.

Image source, Getty Images

The weather is so hot, the Met Office has issued an extreme heat warning which covers part of the region.

For many people, the difficulty of getting a good night's sleep will be on their mind.

But there are things you can do to beat the heat and BBC News has put together some tips. They include using thin sheets, staying hydrated and... chilling socks.

You can read the advice here.

Surrey's former England all-rounder Rikki Clarke will retire at the end of the season after a 21-year career.

BBC Midlands Today

About 500 people are being invited to open-air prayers at Edgbaston cricket ground's training pitches to celebrate the holy festival of Eid-al-Adha.

A major gathering which usually takes place in a park elsewhere in Birmingham is unable to go ahead this year.

But as Covid restrictions relax, Green Lane Mosque has been able to organise the event through its app.

BBC Sport

Shrewsbury Town manager Steve Cotterill has thanked the club's board and fans for the support he received while battling Covid.

Cotterill was seriously ill and spent time in intensive care at the start of the year.

He was later re-admitted with Covid-related pneumonia.

The 56-year-old is now back at the training ground.

Helicopter footage has been released showing a West Midlands Police dog tackling a suspect., external

The force said PD Pancho and handler PC Dan Benton were called to Gracewell Road, Birmingham, at 01:00 on Monday after a man bolted from a car which had earlier failed to stop for a traffic patrol unit.

According to the force, the vehicle was pursued for 10 minutes as it drove the wrong way down one-way streets and jumped red lights – but it ground to a halt when police stung its tyres.

The footage shows PD Pancho racing after a man before pouncing and pinning him down.

The 25-year-old was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving, failing to stop for police and driving under the influence of drugs.

The need for increasing numbers of staff to self-isolate is "a serious threat" to small businesses, according to the owner of an independent chain of coffee shops.

Craig Bunting is the co-founder of BEAR, a chain of five coffee shops across Staffordshire, Cheshire and Derbyshire - two of which were closed on Monday after staff members were told to isolate by the NHS Covid-19 app.

He described the coronavirus pandemic as "the most challenging thing since starting our business" and said the need to close stores once again has left them in a "dangerous situation".

Image source, PA Media

"With staff shortages, with people in isolation, we're battling to be able to trade," Mr Bunting, 36, said.

"We have to really, really look at our numbers and work out how we're going to survive this."

The Met Office has issued one of its new-style, extreme heat warnings for the first time.

The amber warning , externalcovers large parts of Wales, all of south-west England and parts of the West Midlands.

Image source, .

It will be in place until Thursday, when temperatures are expected to peak.

BBC Weather

We've got another hot day on the way, plenty of sunshine, and a high of 29C (84F).

BBC Weather Watcher Tippytoes was up early, taking this snap in Stonnall, Staffordshire.

Image source, Tippytoes

Find your local forecast here.

Good morning, welcome to Midlands Live on Tuesday.

We'll bring you all the latest news, sport, weather and travel until 18:00.

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The gig in August marks the "grand opening" of the HMV Empire which moved to a new site in Coventry.

That's all for our live posts today.

You can catch up on how the West Midlands responded to restrictions easing and what it means for you below.

The latest official statistics have shown a rise in Covid-19 cases in every local authority area in the West Midlands.

Solihull has now overtaken North Warwickshire to have the highest rate in the region.

It saw it climb 73% to 822 per 100,000 people in the seven days up to and including 15 July.

North Warwickshire, which has recently been among the worst-affected areas of England, saw its rate rise from 599 per 100,000 people to 809.

Unusually, all 30 local authorities in the West Midlands experienced a rise in cases.

Despite having the lowest rate in the region, Herefordshire, saw it more than double to 228 - up from 101.

Hospital admissions in the region have also risen sharply.

There are currently 730 Covid-19 patients in hospitals in the region, up from 499 in the week up to 12 July.

University Hospitals Birmingham, one of the largest trusts of its kind in England, had 149 new Covid admissions in the week up to 11 July, more than any other in England.

Wolverhampton residents are being urged to be on their guard as Covid-19 restrictions are lifted, with more than 1,100 people in the city testing positive in the last week.

The council warns that away from recorded figures, the true number is likely higher.

Image source, Wolverhampton Council

Councillor Jasbir Jaspal, cabinet member for public health, said: "Our message is clear: Covid's not over.

"Well over 1,100 people in Wolverhampton tested positive for this potentially deadly virus in the last week alone, and all the indications are that, nationally, we are heading for the biggest wave of infections so far.

He said: "The life-saving vaccine is helping to keep hospitalisations down and preventing many more people from becoming seriously ill, but sadly the growth of infections means that more people will die with Covid-19 in the days, weeks and months ahead."

Mr Jaspal added these are "worrying times" and urged people to "act carefully and use common sense".

"If you are meeting up with others, please try to spend as much time outside as possible, and minimise social contacts as much as you can," he said.

BBC Radio Shropshire

A Shropshire hair and beauty salon owner says she will not yet be making any changes to regulations at the venue, despite most legal restrictions on social contact being lifted in England.

Image source, Helen Humphreys

Helen Humphreys, from Sophisticutz in Bings Heath near Shawbury, said the issue had been discussed as a team and "we just think it's best practice to keep the mask on".

Mrs Humphreys, 44, the fifth person down on the photo, stated there had been feedback from customers, adding "all our clients I know feel safer in a mask because we're so close to them".

She said: "We've got vulnerable people that come in and for some people we're the only place that they actually come from one month to the next.

"We're still doing track and trace, we're still cleaning down after every client, we're still washing every gown. There's certain things that I don't think we'll be changing for a long time.

"We can't fit as many people in, but we certainly won't be scrapping our social distancing."

Leigh Paton, who operates Mr Bumbles hot potato and food van in Birmingham city centre, says she is optimistic amid the lifting of most restrictions in England.

"I am just so glad it's finally arrived because it's been a horrible, horrible stressful time.

"The anxiety we've all felt for 18 months, it feels like [it's] going to go.

"I just can't wait to get back to normal.

"Everybody just needs to get out there, have fun, see their friends, see their families and enjoy life. That's what it's all about."

BBC Radio WM

The landlord at a pub in Wolverhampton says he is expecting to take "a cautious approach" as restrictions are eased today.

Terry Cole, 42, who runs The Royal Oak in Chapel Ash with his wife Emma said they would continue to lean heavily on its outside space.

"We're a very small pub, so we can only get about a hundred people in, but that's very cramped, so we're probably going to stay to half capacity and still use the outside," he said.

Image source, Terry Cole

Mr Cole said he hoped to increase the numbers of customers indoors as more people were vaccinated.

Asked about the impact on business in recent months, Mr Cole said the venue had done "quite well" and he said the pub had "tripled the size" of its outdoors space by expanding into the car park.

Image source, Terry Cole

BBC Midlands Today

Passengers numbers at Birmingham Airport could take until 2024 before they return to pre-pandemic levels, according to the airport's boss.

Chief Executive Nick Barton said Covid-19 had caused "significant issues", but he was confident they would bounce back.

He said when there had been previous setbacks "we have always, always recovered and we have no doubt we will do the same this time".

In June, he revealed the airport was losing an "eye-watering" amount of money with passenger levels at 5% of those before the pandemic., external

Ben Thompson
BBC Business correspondent

A patisserie shop worker says the Birmingham business has suffered as it has traditionally relied heavily on passing trade from office workers.

Helena Mitchell, from Miss Macaroon, said: "They [workers] haven't been in the office for the last year... the shop has definitely been a lot quieter, but you'd like to think they'll be coming back slowly."

Asked how confident she was that trade would start to come back, Ms Mitchell said: "I think it will be a lot slower than we would like.

"People have got quite comfortable with working from home, so unless you need to be back in the office, I do not feel like they will be rushing back, but there are obviously reasons why certain people need to be back in the office.

"I had seen it getting a bit busy in the last couple of weeks so that has been promising for us."