BBC Local Live: Herefordshire & Worcestershire Friday 6 January 2017

Summary

Investigation call after hospital corridor deaths
MP to raise hospital funding with health secretary
Save the Alex campaign group disbands
Man exposes himself to 11-year-old girl
Details emerge of a panto staged by munitions workers 100 years ago
Updates on Friday 6 January 2017

Live Reporting

Jerry Chester

Club to pioneer walking hockeypublished at 14:12 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Bromsgrove Hockey Club will be one of the first in the country to introduce a new form of the sport for people who are over 40.
Walking hockey is a five-a-side version of the game and can be played with mixed teams.
Image source, Getty Images
Quote Message
It's really new - I've managed to find only two incidences of it across the UK. I've been in touch with our national governing body, Hockey England, who say lots of people have talked about it but no-one has actually gone and done it."
Alan Gormley, Bromsgrove Hockey Club
Watch: Rain on the way during the afternoonpublished at 13:33 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Charlie Slater
BBC Weather presenter
Rain and hill fog will spread south-eastwards through the afternoon. Despite the cloud and rain, it will still feel cold for the time of year. Highs of 7C (45F).
Media caption,
Latest weather for the West Midlands
Watch: Wolves need to learn to close out a victorypublished at 13:16 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Trevor Owens
Sports Editor, BBC Hereford & Worcester
Media caption,
Wolves need to learn to close out a victory.
Worcester Wolves’ head coach Paul James says his side has to get over the psychological barrier that is preventing them closing out a victory in the closing minutes of matches.
A number of games have got away from the Wolves down the final stretch this season, including their latest BBL Championship match in which they lost 87-84 against Plymouth Raiders on Friday, 30 December.
The Wolves will host Sheffield Sharks in the last 16 of the BBL Trophy on Friday, 6 January when the tip-off will be at 19:30.
Search for family of Archie Thomas whose memorial bench washed up on North Devon beachpublished at 13:01 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Worcester News
A search is on for the family of Archie Thomas whose memorial bench washed up on the shores of a beach, external in North Devon.
Your pictures: Wildlife in Abbey Parkpublished at 12:44 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Jerry Chester
BBC News Online
These pictures were taken in Abbey Park, Redditch, by Paul Wilde, one of our regular contributors.
I'd love to feature your photos on this page - you can email, tweet us on @bbchw, external or message via Facebook, external.
Image source, Paul Wilde
Image source, Paul Wilde
Latest: Hospital deaths inquiry call: indecent exposure on street; Te'o out of M5 derbypublished at 12:28 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
BBC Hereford and Worcester
Here are some of the stories we are looking at this afternoon:
- Calls for an investigation from a patients watchdog body after two people die after waiting for treatment in a hospital corridor
- Man walking on a Worcester street exposes himself to 11-year-old girl
- Worcester Warriors will be without their England centre Ben Te'o for tomorrow's Aviva Premiership trip to Gloucester
Rugby: Warriors side for the M5 derbypublished at 12:12 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
There are three changes to the Warriors' side for the game against Gloucester - Jamie Shillcock is back at full-back, Wynand Oliver is in at centre and Phil Dowson captains the side.
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Watch: New swimming pool ready for grand openingpublished at 11:56 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Alistair Binney
Reporter, BBC Hereford & Worcester
Worcester's new £10.5m swimming pool is part of a bigger refurbishment at Perdiswell leisure centre.
I've watched some people try out the pool, and taken a tour of the facilities.
Media caption,
New swimming pool part of a bigger refurbishment
Slideshow: The panto staged by WW1 munitions workerspublished at 11:40 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Nicola Goodwin
Reporter, BBC Hereford & Worcester
Munitions workers producing shells at a factory in Hereford during World War One still found time to stage their own pantomime.
BBC Hereford & Worcester is campaigning for munitions workers to be given an official honour - MPs are to debate the issue.
After our campaign was launched I was contacted by Esther Roberts from Hereford, whose aunt Winnie Townsend worked at Rotherwas munitions factory.
This slideshow show the programme of the pantomime the workers staged at the Kemble Theatre in Hereford, in 1916.
Media caption,
The panto staged by WW1 munitions workers
Where the BBC films in the Midlands: Interactive mappublished at 11:22 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
The BBC doesn't just film its shows in London, you know.
The corporation has pinpointed where its regional productions are filmed.
Check it out below...
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If you spot a helicopter flying low across Worcesterpublished at 11:08 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
If you do, don't worry - it's from Western Power Distribution, and it's checking overhead power lines.
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Watch: Worcester's new swimming pool ready to openpublished at 10:52 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Elliott Webb
Breakfast presenter, BBC Hereford & Worcester
Worcester's new £10.5m swimming pool at the Perdiswell Leisure Centre will open to swimmers tomorrow.
I've been along to take get a sneak preview.
Media caption,
Worcester's new swimming pool ready to open
Travel: Delays due to burst water mainpublished at 10:35 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
The temporary traffic light on the A44 at Wood Norton, near Evesham, should be gone by Saturday.
More from BBC Travel.
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Hospital services campaign group to foldpublished at 10:19 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Members of a group who have been fighting to maintain services at the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch have decided to end their campaign.
The Save the Alex group was formed four years ago to try to prevent the downgrading of services at the site.
Despite holding two huge rallies and getting 55,000 people to sign a petition to save maternity and A&E services, Save the Alex said that was not enough.
Maternity was temporarily closed at the Alexandra Hospital in November 2015 before the arrangement became permanent, while children's inpatient services at the A&E department at the site were also moved to Worcestershire Royal Hospital.
Supporters say they feel they have exhausted their options to bring about change.
Latest: Hospital death investigation call; MP to ask for more funding for hospital; indecent exposurepublished at 10:03 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
BBC Hereford and Worcester
Here are some of the stories we are looking at this morning:
- Patients watchdog calls for investigation after two people die after waiting for treatment in a hospital corridor
- MP to have "urgent meeting" with health secretary to ask for more funding for hospital
- Man exposes himself to 11-year-old girl walking along a street in Worcester
Worcester News front page: Bus crash shockpublished at 09:50 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Worcester News
Today's Worcester News reports on a car and bus crashing in Foregate Street, external.
Image source, Worcester News
Man exposes himself to 11-year-old girlpublished at 09:33 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
A man has exposed himself to an 11-year-old gild as she walked down a street in Worcester, external, police say.
West Mercia Police say the girl was walking on Threshfield Drive in the direction of White Hill on Wednesday when a man walking on the opposite side of the road whistled at her and then exposed himself.
The man was about 5ft8in (1.72m) tall, in his 30s, with brown hair in a "spiked" style.
Hospital A&E pressure: Your commentspublished at 09:22 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
Here are some of the comments you've been making on BBC Hereford & Worcester's Facebook page, external about the long waits patients are facing at the Worcestershire Royal Hospital.
The patients watchdog for Worcestershire is calling for an investigation after two people died while waiting for treatment in a hospital corridor - although there's nothing to connect these deaths with winter pressures.
Image source, Google
Quote Message
My dad was in the corridor Tuesday evening through to yesterday afternoon... The staff, from cleaner, hca's, porters, nursing staff, ambulance staff and doctors were all amazing. They were clearly overworked and in need of more staff and space."
Lynn Brookes
Quote Message
One hospital cannot serve a county the size of Worcestershire its ridiculous, reopen all closed hospital services and spend time and money on the infrastructure simple. Less high earning managers/pen pushers more people on the ground doing the job."
Debi Christian
Quote Message
Cut back after cut back, can't blame the staff who work there, it's the people in charge of the budgets & money who squeeze the NHS harder and harder. They are humans and can only do so much, it's a wonder people still want to work there with the hours & pay they receive.
Chris Rootes
MP to ask health secretary for additional funding for hospitalpublished at 09:01 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
BBC Hereford and Worcester
The MP for Worcester, Robin Walker, is seeking an urgent meeting with the health secretary after the deaths of two people who were waiting for treatment in a hospital corridor.
One patient died from a cardiac arrest after 35 hours waiting in a corridor at Worcestershire Royal Hospital. One patient who had an aneurysm was taken into the resuscitation area but died.
Quote Message
[The health secretary] has said he'll meet with me in the week so I want to get as much information as I can about the current situation because I will be pushing for the earliest possible decision on additional funding for our hospital, but it's worth bearing in mind that we've already had extra support from NHS Improvement over the last few weeks."
Robin Walker, MP for Worcester
The trust running the hospital has apologised for the long waits and says it is doing its best to treat the most serious cases first.
Patients watchdog calls for an investigation after hospital corridor deathspublished at 08:46 Greenwich Mean Time 6 January 2017
The body that represents patients in Worcestershire is calling for an investigation into how two people died after waiting for treatment in hospital corridors in Worcester.
One patient at Worcestershire Royal Hospital died from a cardiac arrest after 35 hours waiting in a corridor. One patient who had an aneurysm was taken into the resuscitation area but died.
Image source, PA
The chairman of Healthwatch, Peter Pinfield, said the situation over Christmas and new year at the hospital was "a mess" and not what the watchdog wanted to happen.
Quote Message
I thinks it needs a thorough investigation to find out what happened. I'm certain the relatives of those involved need some answers - from those answers I hope that we can learn some lessons so that this does not happen again."
Peter Pinfield, Chairman of Healthwtach
The trust running the hospital says it can't say anything about the deaths at this stage due to patient confidentiality. It has apologised for the long waits and says it is doing its best to treat the most serious cases first.