A five-year plan to help preserve 12th Century fishing ponds at Redditch’s Bordesley Abbey will start next week.

Image source, Redditch Borough Council

Unplanned trees and overgrowth will be cleared from the two fishing ponds at a rate of 20% a year over the next five years.

Redditch Borough Council, external said it asked Historic England for permission to clear the vegetation, after concerns were raised about overgrowth at the ponds.

The council said strict rules apply to the abbey, an ancient monument, and maintenance works were limited to 20% a year due to disruption they would cause at the protected site and must leave the substructure of the pools unaffected.

James Pearson
Political reporter, BBC Hereford & Worcester

Increased pressure on Worcestershire's troubled children's services has created a multi-million-pound black hole in the county council, external's budget, according to its latest finances.

After only four months of the new financial year, the council is already on course to overspend by £7.5m, with most of that cost coming from more vulnerable children being taken into the council's care.

The authority says it's working hard to achieve further efficiencies from other services.

Image source, Worcestershire County Council

Shefali Oza
BBC Midlands Today

It's going to be a largely dry night, but we could have some rain tomorrow morning. Overnight lows of 14C (57F).

BBC Hereford and Worcester

A Worcestershire mermaid may have found a new pool to swim in, after she was banned from swimming at her local leisure centre.

Image source, Leia Trigger

Leia Trigger, 18, from Bromsgrove, had been using the Dolphin centre in the town but was stopped because of health and safety concerns over her tail and flippers.

But she says she's now had a phone call from Perdiswell Leisure Centre.

Joe Leach's Worcestershire beat Durham by 137 runs at New Road to secure the County Championship Division Two title.

Worcester News

Roadworks on various routes in and around Worcester have created a perfect storm, external of traffic delays, leaving drivers fuming.

A motorist pointed a gun at another driver in the Midlands before he was shot near the M5 in Bristol, police have confirmed.

Officers fired shots at a car on the Portbury Hundred (A369) near junction 19 for Portishead at about 9.30am on Wednesday, an eyewitness told the BBC.

The report was made to West Mercia police.

"At 8.30am yesterday we received a report of a man in a vehicle pointing a gun at another motorist near to junction 8 [M50] of the M5," a force spokesman said.

Read more on this story.

Worcester News

A decision still hasn’t been made, external on installing a “lifesaving” crash barrier on a busy road – a year after a verdict was due.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, external says it is working to ensure every patient with an urgent cancer referral is treated within 62 days, the national standard.

Image source, PA

A backlog of cancer patients in the county waiting for their first treatment shows little sign of clearing, latest NHS figures show.

The trust previously apologised for a build-up of more than 170 patients still waiting longer than 62 days for treatment.

New statistics show there were still 166 waiting at the start of September, 58 of whom have been diagnosed with cancer.

The trust has now said it had faced challenges including difficulty in recruiting in certain specialist areas and more demand for services after the success of national cancer awareness campaigns.

But it said it was supported by "local and national health economy partners", it was part of a group of trusts being supported by NHS Improvement and it had had an additional £377,000 towards improving performance.

The competition to find Worcestershire's next Young Poet Laureate gets under way this week.

Young People wanting to enter the Word Up!, external competition are asked to send in two poems, one on the subject identified for National Poetry Day, which this year is freedom, and another on a subject of their choice.

The closing date for entries is 31 December and the winner will be chosen at a live final on 14 January at The Hive in Worcester.

To be eligible young people need to be aged between 13 and 19 and live in Worcestershire or attend a school, college, university or youth club in the county.

The winner will be awarded a commission of £150 to write and perform poems throughout the year.

Hereford Times

The official launch of a new app to tackle crime in the city centre is expected to take place next month, external.

A national campaign to ensure people living with motor neurone disease (MND) get the care they need has won the backing of Wyre Forest District Council, external.

It said members last night unanimously voted to back a motion put forward by the authority's cabinet member for housing, health and well-being, Chris Rogers, to adopt the MND Charter, which sets out the care and support that people living with MND and their carers deserve and should expect.

The charter is made up of five points, including the right to an early diagnosis and information, the right to be treated as individuals and with dignity and respect and the right to maximise their quality of life.

Mr Rogers said: "By adopting the MND Charter we agree to promote its principles to all councillors, council staff, partner organisations and health and social care professionals who deliver services for the council."

Saracens have revealed their side to play Worcester Warriors at Sixways tomorrow evening.

Warriors, external have made four changes, as Will Spencer, Jonny Arr, David Denton and Jamie Shillcock start.

James Pearson
Political reporter, BBC Hereford & Worcester

It's emerged Worcestershire's troubled child protection services have again been inspected by Ofsted, external.

A fortnight ago a government-appointed commissioner decided the county council, external's services weren't providing a safe service for vulnerable children, that there was slow progress towards improvement and that an external provider should be brought in to take over.

A fresh Ofsted report will now be published next Thursday.

The controversial Velo Birmingham event says targeting cyclists is "pretty appalling".

Worcester Warriors, external have made four changes for the home game against Saracens tomorrow evening.

Will Spencer and Jonny Arr both return from injury, while Jamie Shillcock and David Denton also start.

Spencer replaces Pierce Phillips, who drops to the bench, while Denton gets his first start for the club in place of Sam Lewis, who misses out with a neck injury.

Arr returns from concussion in place of Peter Stringer, while Shillcock replaces Ryan Mills, who is sidelined with a quad problem.

James Pearson
Political reporter, BBC Hereford & Worcester

A backlog of cancer patients in Worcestershire waiting for their first treatment shows little sign of clearing, according to the latest NHS figures.

Image source, PA

Earlier this year, the trust that runs the county's acute hospitals, external apologised for a build-up of more than 170 patients who were still waiting longer than 62 days for treatment.

New statistics now show there were still 166 patients waiting at the start of September, 58 of whom were diagnosed with cancer.

Thirty three patients have waited more than 104 days.

Hereford Times

Almost 2,000 professional actors applied for the four featured roles, external in the forthcoming Youth Theatre production of Pride and Prejudice at The courtyard.

Worcester News

A mother has come forward to share her story, external of how an optician saved her life.

BBC Hereford and Worcester

Worcester Warriors, external' director of rugby, Gary Gold, says their home game against Saracens tomorrow evening is going to be another stiff test.

Image source, Tony Marshall - Getty Images

Warriors picked up their first league point of the season in losing at Gloucester last weekend, but Gold knows they are going to have to be right at the top of their game if they are to win this one.