Risk summit held to ensure hospital's 'patient safety maintained'
Man jailed for possessing an offensive weapon in a public place
Flood teams on standby for Storm Barbara
Facebook campaign for dog missing for a year
Updates on Friday 23 December
Charlie Slater
BBC Weather presenter
A mostly cloudy night, with outbreaks of rain and drizzle at times and mist and hill fog also developing. Although it will be chilly, most places should avoid a frost.
Lows of 6C (43F).
You can also find regularly updated weather forecasts here on the BBC Weather website.
Charlie Slater with your West Midlands weather forecast.
The director of the latest Star Wars film has paid tribute to a Hereford fan by including his voice in his latest film Rogue One.
Neil Hanvey, 36, had a surprise visit from the director Gareth Edwards at his bedside at St Michael's Hospice just two days before he died in the summer.
In a video message played before a screening of the new film in Hereford on Sunday, he revealed how to spot Neil's voice.
Quote MessageA character says 'We have not come here to make friends' and someone walks past behind him in a big mushroom helmet making a little alien voice and that's Neil's voice."
Gareth Edwards, Hollywood director
The RSPB says it can't catch the culprits behind the shooting of three buzzards in Herefordshire in recent weeks, without the help of the public.
The organisation has put up £1,000 reward after 10 buzzards were deliberately killed across Herefordshire and Worcesteshire in the last 12 months.
Head of investigations for the RSPB, Bob Elliott says he believes gamekeepers are targeting the birds in the mistaken belief that they take baby pheasants being reared on farms.
Image source, Herefordshire Wildlife RescueQuote MessageWe're not going to know who the perpetrator is unless someone comes forward."
Bob Elliott, Head of Investigations, RSPB
Could the 2019 Glastonbury Festival be held in Herefordshire or Worcestershire?
Festival founder Michael Eavis has told BBC News that he hopes to use a site 100 miles away from Worthy Farm, "towards the Midlands" to help protect the main site.
He said the plan was to use the new site every five years to help the land at his farm recover.
"I'm arranging to move the show [but] it would be a huge loss to Somerset if it went there forever," he said.
Glastonbury move plan to protect farm
A Hereford company that makes galvanised tanks has been fined more than £2m for price fixing, external.
Franklin Hodge Industries Limited was also found to have colluded with two other companies in sharing the market for the tanks, which are made to store water in big buildings such as schools and hospitals.
The Competition and Markets Authority, which today imposed the fine, says the three companies aimed to improve profit margins by preventing customers from being able to negotiate the best deal through "playing" the competitors off against each other.
Image source, GoogleQuote MessageStrong competition between businesses has clear benefits for customers, such as lower prices, better quality and more choice. Any weakening of competition that maintains or increases prices will ultimately be at the expense of consumers or tax payers."
Stephen Blake, Senior Director of the CMA’s Cartels and Criminal Group
Here are some of the main stories we are looking at this evening:
- A Hereford company, Franklin Hodge Industries Limited, that makes galvanised tanks has been fined more than £2m for price fixing
- The family of a man killed in Stourport after being knocked down by a car have paid tribute to him
- Chris Boardman's plans to develop a bike testing centre in Evesham could help boost cycling and tourism in the area
The family of a pedestrian who died following a collision in Stourport have been paying tribute to him.
His family have described him as larger than life with an individual sense of humour.
Quote MessageHe was a son, brother, dad, grandad, partner and a great mate to many. He was a lifelong Liverpool supporter and had a passion for cricket and horseracing. His laugh and sense of humour rubbed off on anyone in his company."
Steven's family
Image source, GoogleA 30-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving in connection with the incident and has been released on police bail until 23 January, police say.
West Mercia Police are continuing to appeal for witnesses, external.
In the new year a £19.4m project gets under way on the River Severn to make it easier for fish to reach their spawning grounds.
The work, to remove blockages is intended to help declining species like salmon and eels and to make the river a more attractive place to visit.
And the Severn Rivers Trust is asking for your thoughts about the river , externaland the way it is used at the moment.
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Journalists and photographers have today been taking a first glimpse inside Worcester's new swimming pool, three weeks before it opens to the public.
It's hoped the 25-metre pool, which is part of a £10.5m refurbishment of Perdiswell Leisure Centre, will play host to the next generation of Olympic and Paralympic medal winners, when they come to the city for regional competitions.
BBC Hereford and Worcester's Elliott Webb has been for a look round.
First glimpse of Worcester's new pool
The arrival of Boardman Bikes' new performance centre could mean a boost for cycle ways in Wychavon, according to the district council.
The firm says the new 18,000 square foot venue will be home to its head office, a physiology testing suite and other facilities when it opens next winter.
The company, which was founded by the retired Olympic champion and world record breaker Chris Boardman, has not revealed how many jobs are involved.
Image source, BBC SportQuote MessageIf we can start to get some cycle routes opened, so tourists can come and stay in the area, that brings work to the hotels, the restaurants and the high street and it's win-win really. We've had the Tour of Britain go through Evesham and Wychavon, so bring it on I say."
Linda Robinson, Leader, Wychavon District Council
A Worcestershire man is leading the trans-Atlantic rowing challenge he's doing in memory of his late brother.
Harry Wentworth-Stanley has already raised £400,000 for a new crisis centre to help prevent suicide, as he takes part in the Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge. , external
Harry's team are slightly ahead of the American team Latitude 35 as they race between La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua.
Image source, Talisker Whiskey Atlantic ChallengeTwo people have been treated by ambulance crews following a fire in a flat in Ross-on-Wye, external.
Some of the main stories we are looking at this afternoon:
- The voice of a Star Wars fan from Hereford, who died in the summer, has been included in the latest Star Wars epic
- Plans by Chris Boardman to build a bike development centre in Evesham have been welcomed by Wychavon District Council
- A Worcestershire cyclist's world championship victory has been voted as 2016's British Cycling Ride of the Year
A Worcestershire cyclist's world championship victory has been voted as 2016's British Cycling Ride of the Year.
Evie Richards, from Malvern, won the under 23 title at the 2016 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championship in Belgium, external at the start of the year.
Evie won almost 18% of the public vote - in her winning ride she destroyed the field by breaking away at the end of the first lap and embarking on a long, solo bid for victory.
Image source, Getty ImagesQuote MessageI’m really surprised, because everyone did so well at the Rio Olympics and Paralympics - so to actually win is pretty amazing. I watched them all and they are all role models to me. A big thank you to everyone that voted for me."
Evie Richards, Malvern cyclist
The voice of a Star Wars fan from Hereford, who died in the summer, has been included in the series' latest blockbuster.
Just two days before he died, Neil Hanvey, 36, was visited at St Michael's Hospice by the Hollywood director of Rogue One, Gareth Edwards.
His wife Andrea (pictured below left) and staff at St Michael's Hospice successfully campaigned for him to watch a special screening of Rogue One, despite it being unfinished at the time.
Image source, St Michael's HospiceQuote MessageIt was very touching to meet Neil. His background was graphic design and mine was too, so I feel like in some other world we would have been really good friends. Neil was 'scarily good' at alien impressions, so much so that I recorded him doing one and put it in the film."
Gareth Edwards, Hollywood director
The director used a video message, played before a screening of the new film in Hereford on Sunday, to reveal that he'd included Neil's voice.
In the audience was Andrea Hanvey, who met Gareth when he travelled to the hospice in August.
A pensioner has been injured after being knocked down by a car while walking in Ledbury, external, police say.
The man in his 90s suffered head and leg injuries in the collision in Hereford Road on Friday evening.
He was taken to Hereford County Hospital but was later transferred to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham for treatment.
West Mercia Police is appealing for witnesses to the accident which involved a green VW gold.
The first generation of the Bulmer family to make cider since the firm was sold 30 years ago is hoping he's inherited his ancestors' talent.
Theo Bulmer is making his own Champagne-style cider called King Offa - a name first used by his grandfather Bertram in the 1970s.
He's using fruit from orchards which were planted by his ancestors more than 80 years ago
Quote MessageThese orchards are still cropping, even though they've been left alone ever since. It seemed a fantastic opportunity to make use of this amazing fruit and create a cider that's very similar to the type of cider made at that time."
Theo Bulmer, Herefordshire cider maker
A keen footballer who is currently going through treatment for breast cancer is on a mission to get everyone to self examine, external regularly to ensure the earliest possible detection.
Hereford Goalball Club, based at the Royal National College for the blind will receive a substantial share of £1.3m of new funding from Sport England.
Goalball, which is a little like handball,, external is the only Paralympic sport specifically designed for the blind and visually impaired.
The Hereford club is considered to be one of the key centres for the sport in the UK because of the number of top players coming through the club.
Image source, Goalball UKQuote MessageHereford is an incredible talent pool for goalball and we expect the club will receive a significant share of the new funding. The facilities are relatively cheap to develop, so most of the money will go towards training, salaries for coaches, supporting up-and-coming players and paying travel costs to tournaments. The aim is to ensure that everyone who wants to play can."
Megan King, Goalball UK spokesperson
Australia all-rounder John Hastings could play in Worcestershire's season opener after knee surgery.
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