How would League One have ended without coronavirus? Experts at University of Reading predict the 'final table'.

Thanks for joining us to find out how the East of England is reacting to the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown.

Live updates have now finished for the day, but you can catch BBC Look East's creation of a "virtual" Suffolk Show at 18:30 tonight. Here's a sneak preview:

Join us again on Thursday when a live page will resume at 08:00.

Find it via your BBC News county index.

A starling that had become trapped in a drain in Norfolk and a young fox cub that had fallen down a well in Hertfordshire have been among the RSPCA, external's wildlife rescues.

The charity said the starling needed a hand to free itself from a drain after it got its head stuck in a hole in Downham Market.

An officer managed to safely free the animal by lifting up the drain cover and the bird was taken to the East Winch Wildlife Centre in Norfolk, external for a check-up, and was uninjured.

Elsewhere, the charity was called to rescue a fox cub after it had fallen 12ft (3.7m) down an unused well in a Hertfordshire village.

An officer safely retrieved the lost fox, which showed no sign of injury and could be instantly released back to the wild.

Katy Lewis
BBC News Online

A new granite pillar is to be engraved at the Milton Keynes Rose, external to commemorate the Covid-19 pandemic and particularly those who have lost their lives in the town.

Image source, Parks Trust

The Rose in Campbell Park, created by artist Gordon Young in 2014, was developed by The Parks Trust and the Cenotaph Trust, and has 106 granite pillars, some of which have already been engraved. They record dates of events which are significant in the lives of people or organisations associated with the town.

The new pillar will provide a "safe and comforting place for commemoration during this unsettling time, especially when other places can’t be visited", the Parks Trust said.

The Cenotaph Trust said it wanted to create a focus for remembrance in the city.

Chairwoman, Debbie Brock, said: "The Covid-19 pillar gives people a place to contemplate what has happened during the pandemic and eventually when it is safe to do so we will support our partners to hold a ceremony to commemorate and remember."

It is one of three new pillars to be engraved this week - the others will commemorate Volunteers’ Week and World Refugee Day.

Essex & Herts Air Ambulance, external (EHAAT) says an appeal to raise funds to buy personal protective equipment (PPE) for its crews has raised nearly £60,000 in four weeks.

Image source, Essex & Herts Air Ambulance

The money will help the charity cover the cost of providing PPE for its critical care teams for six months.

Clinical director Stuart Elms said: "Our crews are going the extra mile at the moment and they really appreciate the way people have stepped forward to support them.

"Due to the current government restrictions our communities have not been able to support us in the usual way by attending events, visiting our shops or taking part in some of our fundraising initiatives, but they have really got behind this appeal."

The cancellation of the Suffolk Show, external has seen scores of businesses lose a chance to exhibit to tens of thousands of people.

The BBC spoke to one business which is usually at the two-day event, which had been due to take place on the edge of Ipswich today and tomorrow.

Big machine manufacturer Claas, which has a UK base near Bury St Edmunds, says as well as sales, it uses the show to educate.

As part of BBC East's "virtual" Suffolk Show, we've made a film with the firm:

Community wardens have helped provide social distancing markings outside a Suffolk takeaway.

The orange and blue symbols have been painted to help people keep a two-metre distance while queuing outside Youngs Chinese in Sudbury for when it reopens.

Sudbury Town Council's Community Wardens , externalhave been providing the service for free.

They have also put markings outside First Friends Nursery in Great Waldringfield, Springfields Nursery in Great Cornard, and at Specsavers and Timpson in Sudbury.

Police in Luton say they have had to deal with lots of people "not adhering to social distancing guidelines" in the town centre.

They said those "congregating in big groups" and "being close with members not from their household" had "been informed and dealt with accordingly".

"Please be mindful of social distancing rules," they tweeted, external.

• More than £50m has been paid by North Norfolk District Council to support small businesses during the coronavirus outbreak, the EDP, external reports
• The Norwich Evening News, external reports that a DJ, who has been getting people to dance on their doorsteps to lift spirits, has been told he can keep doing it despite complaints
• While in Fakenham, people are having their mail delivered by posties dressed up as Scooby Doo, a chicken, banana or a jester to help cheer customers up and to raise money for charity, the Lynn News, external reports

Changes are being made to some road layouts and parking in Hertfordshire in order to help maintain social distancing and prepare for the safe reopening of town centres.

In St Albans, Market Place and High Street have been closed to vehicles to create additional space and parking. There are also on-street parking restrictions along London Road and Hatfield Road. George Street will be closed to traffic from Thursday.

Other towns affected are Bishop's Stortford, Borehamwood, Harpenden, Hertford, Hitchin, Knebworth, Radlett, Royston, Ware, Watford and Welwyn - maps on the county council's website , externalshow where restrictions are in place.

A Norwich head teacher says the prime minister’s defence of his aide Dominic Cummings will make school reopenings even more difficult as lockdown rules are relaxed.

Image source, Reuters

Boris Johnson's chief adviser admitted travelling from London to Durham during the height of lockdown.

Binks Neate-Evans, executive head of Angel Road Infant and Junior School and Bignold Primary School, said the PM’s handling of the crisis had heightened her fears over the "shoddy and badly timed guidance" of schools re-opening to more pupils.

In a letter to local MPs, Mrs Neate-Evans said: "My worries and that of my staff are escalated because we know the impact the debacle will have on sticking to lockdown."

Mr Lewis, Norwich South Labour MP, said scientists "have come out and said if you put schools re-opening back by two weeks, you halve deaths."

The Conservative MP for Norwich North, Chloe Smith, said: "As an MP, I will always represent my constituents’ views to Westminster," but added that she respected the prime minister’s decision to back Mr Cummings.

Violence among groups of young men appears to be continuing despite lockdown and social distancing regulations.

Five teenagers were arrested after another teenager suffered a knife wound to his neck and back during an armed fight involving "10 males" in Milton Keynes on Bank Holiday Monday.

Image source, Google

The group were seen to be fighting in Wadesmill Lane at about 15:45.

The injured 18-year-old was taken to hospital and has since been discharged.

Weapons recovered by Thames Valley Police included a hammer, knife and an imitation firearm.

An 18-year-old man, three 17-year-old boys and a 16-year-old boy, all from Milton Keynes, arrested on suspicion of assault and affray have been released on bail.

Police are appealing for witnesses.

Det Sgt Rachel Murray said: "Although we understand this will be a concerning incident for the community, action was taken quickly and this incident is believed to be isolated."

About 130 singers who had been due to perform at the Suffolk Show have instead recreated their performance on video conferencing app Zoom.

Suffolk's Pop Chorus, external, who hit the download chart with Always a couple of years ago, were due to appear at the event in Ipswich on Wednesday and Thursday.

Yula Andrews, one of the singers, said they were "really sad" not to be able to perform this year due to the show's lockdown cancellation.

"It's always a highlight of the Pop Chorus calendar. Members love the warm, relaxed and friendly atmosphere of this great event, which really showcases the best the county has to offer," she said.

• An independent school that has served Northampton for 40 years announces permanent closure, the Northampton Chronicle and Echo, external reports
• It also reports, external that Northampton's market traders will be back to business next week as part of the government's next step to ease the lockdown
• The Northamptonshire Telegraph, external reports that a car boot sale that was due to resume this week has been pushed back after police "strongly advised" the organiser not to stage it

Chesham household recycling centre will reopen on Friday.

It will be open from 09:00 to 18:00, but will be closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

You will need to have proof that you are a Bucks resident to be able to use the centre and should check the Buckinghamshire Council website, external for waiting times.

Image source, Google

Katy Lewis
BBC News Online

The West Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust, external is hosting Clap for the Club at the Vicarage Road stadium on Friday to thank Watford FC for its "kindness and generosity" in looking after NHS staff during the coronavirus pandemic.

Image source, West Herts Hospitals Trust

The Premier League club opened its doors to trust staff, many of whom are based at the neighbouring Watford General Hospital, and provided bedrooms, counselling and meeting rooms, and food and drink halls, with the club providing 1,000 free meals and washing 1,000 pairs of scrubs every day.

"We want to say thank you to our lovely neighbours and all the WFC staff who volunteered their time to look after our staff and help them relax and recuperate," the trust said.

It has asked any staff who can to head to the Rookery stand at 14:10 and be seated by 14:25.

Image source, West Herts Hospitals Trust

The hot food service ends on Friday but the club’s doors will remain open for NHS staff for the next few months.

The maternity service will also continue to run newborn hearing screening and antenatal clinics at the club until the end of August.

BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

The Cambs Parents and Carers Forum says schools in the county should not be reopening to more pupils at this stage of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

Image source, Getty Images

In an open letter, external to Cambridgeshire County Council it expressed fears over plans to get pupils from reception to year 6 to start returning to school from Monday.

"No-one more than parents wants to see schoolchildren happily reunited with teachers and classmates, but we believe the government’s guidance about how to do this is contradictory, impractical and compromises safety," the letter said.

"We call on Cambridgeshire County Council to be unequivocal in stepping back from the suggested timetable outlined by the government and to work closely with the education unions in creating the right conditions for a phased return as soon as it is safe."

A response from the council, posted on the Forum's Facebook page, external, says the authority "fully appreciates [their] concerns".

"We have been clear throughout this crisis that any opening date will be subject to receiving appropriate scientific evidence to support the reopening of schools from the Department for Education," it said.

BBC Breakfast

Norfolk is part of trials of the government's new test, track and trace system, the county council's director of public health said.

The scheme, which has been labelled a key component in the fight against coronavirus, is being rolled out in 11 counties across England from today.

Dr Louise Smith, director of health at Norfolk County Council, told BBC Breakfast that the pilot scheme "starts now".

She said they were working closely with the NHS to identify cases early and then test those who have been in contact with those confirmed patients.

Dr Smith said people who have been diagnosed would be asked to log details online of where they have been and who they had been in contact with from two days before they became unwell and up to seven days afterwards.

"When we've got those details, we would then contact people either through the website or from the call centres, get in touch with those people who have been in contact and arrange for them to have a test," she said.

A 22-year-old man from Buckinghamshire has died after being pulled from the sea off Devon on Tuesday night.

The man was riding a personal watercraft when he got into difficulty off Teignmouth, and was rescued by the RNLI.

Ambulance crews arrived and carried out CPR and the man was taken to Torbay District Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

The next of kin of the man, from High Wycombe, had been informed, police said, external.

Officers added that the death was not being treated as suspicious and a file was being prepared for the coroner.

It has not been reported if the man was breaking Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.

The University of Hertfordshire, external has outlined plans to reopen to students in September.

Image source, Geograph/David Hawgood

It will deliver a mix of online lectures and smaller face-to-face group teaching at their Hatfield campus - which has been adapted to ensure social distancing.

Secretary and registrar, Sharon Harrison-Barker, said: "The safety of our students and staff is our primary concern and we will be working hard to ensure there are enhanced hygiene measures in place and adaptations of space to ensure any necessary physical distancing can be complied with."