New workers hired by supermarkets amid the Covid-19 pandemic share their surprising back stories.

Grand Central stops its London-to-Yorkshire and north-east services because of the lockdown.

Jack Bingley is charged with assaulting the police officer in Dronfield and saying he had coronavirus.

Free buses are being put on in South Yorkshire solely for NHS staff to help get them home after working in hospitals across the county.

Image source, Google

The buses, operated by First, will ferry staff to and from Doncaster Royal Infirmary, Rotherham General Hospital, Sheffield Northern General Hospital and Sheffield Royal Hallamshire Hospital.

People can only board these buses at the stops within the hospital grounds, and the route is alighting only, the firm said.

A full list of times and routes can be found here, external.

Almost £19.5m has been paid out to small businesses in the East Riding on the first day coronavirus grants were made available.

Image source, PA Media

In total, 1,942 firms got a share of the funds through East Riding of Yorkshire Council, with more than 7,000 applications expected to be processed over the next few days.

Grants of £10,000 and £25,000 were made available to help small businesses from central government, that will then be distributed by the Yorkshire council.

Due to the coronavirus outbreak it's been announced that all retail, leisure and tourism businesses will pay no business rates in the next financial year.

Council leader Richard Burton said: "Our finance and businesses rates teams are working flat out to make sure businesses and residents get the financial support they need during this very difficult period.

"So we are asking businesses to please bear with us, we are working hard to make payments as soon as humanly possible. You will get them soon."

A Sheffield man who had been arrested by police in Derbyshire coughed at officers telling them he had coronavirus.

The 30-year-old had been arrested on suspicion of assault following an incident in Dronfield yesterday afternoon.

He was then arrested for assaulting an emergency worker after he allegedly coughed at police officers.

He has been charged on both counts, Derbyshire Constabulary said.

The officer went to hospital but was advised by doctors he did not have to self-isolate.

North Yorkshire Police is warning parents about a rise in young people being found with drug-infused sweets.

Image source, Getty Images

"Edibles" as the force is calling them look like ordinary sweets.

However, it says they can be laced with drugs such as cannabis and MDMA.

The issue was flagged up to officers from a national taskforce which found a slight increase in young people using the sweets.

PC Lauren Green, from North Yorkshire Police, said: "Unregulated sweets like these are dangerous as we don’t know what levels of drugs they contain.

"They are available to buy on the internet and so could easily be obtained by young people, especially at this time when they are using the internet more than ever due to the coronavirus restrictions."

Police "will not tolerate North Yorkshire being used as a race track", even with less traffic about.

A teacher from a school in York has turned his classroom into a mini production line, making visors to protect staff working at the York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

Image source, St Peter's York

Paul Cooper, Head of Design and Technology at St Peter’s School, says after hearing about the shortage of face masks for health professionals he realised his department has the machinery to manufacture visors.

He initially made five samples and was given the go-ahead to produce 60 more visors, which were collected from the school yesterday.

Dr Nigel Durham, Consultant Cardiologist at York NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I can’t thank Paul enough.

"It's an amazing effort and his visors are much needed to help us work safely among covid-19 patients."

Mr Cooper said: “At this time we all want to use our skills and resources to support each other, especially those on the frontline dealing with this difficult situation."

Paul's scheme follows on from the school's donation to the NHS last week of four infection protection kits, 626 surgical face masks, 5,500 latex free gloves and 350 disposable aprons.

The items were taken from the school's on-site medical centre, its science, design and technology departments, and donations from pupils.

The Queen will speak to the nation on Sunday about the coronavirus outbreak - only her fourth special address at a time of crisis during her 68-year reign.

Image source, PA Media

Buckingham Palace said the message, recorded at Windsor Castle, will be broadcast on TV and radio at 20:00 BST.

The Queen records annual Christmas messages but other addresses are rare.

It comes as the number of people who died with coronavirus in the UK rose by 684 in 24 hours, latest figures show., external

The Department of Health said that as of 17:00 BST on 2 April, the total number of deaths is now 3,605, up from 2,921. There are 38,168 confirmed cases.

Yorkshire Air Ambulance has announced it is grounding both its aircraft as on-board doctors are redeployed to frontline ambulances.

Image source, Yorkshire Air Ambulance

The charity said the move comes as the critical care paramedics are needed at hospitals helping with the coronavirus outbreak.

With the new Nightingale Hospital being announced for Harrogate, there is expected to be an increase in patients needing to be taken there by ambulance.

By moving staff from the air ambulance to land ambulances, their skills can be "utilised to provide as much support as possible during this crisis period", the charity said.

The pilots however will continue to work and train, with them possibly using the aircraft to move essential equipment or personnel across the region, it added.

Nick Smith, Executive Director of Operations at Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust said: "This has been the most difficult of decisions, but we are currently operating in unprecedented times and we need to ensure that valuable clinical resources are in place where they can be of most benefit to patients

"It is times like these when, as a nation, we must all pull together to support one and other, and in particular the NHS and our key workers."

An man in his 90s has died in a shed blaze in Sheffield this morning, the fire service has said.

Image source, SYFR

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said they were called to Roe Lane at about 10:45 this morning.

Upon arrival firefighters found the shed "well alight" with the man inside.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The cause of the fire is thought to be accidental.

Public litter bins in Calderdale are, for the time being, no longer going to be emptied due to the coronavirus outbreak, the council says.

Image source, Claire Duffield

Councillor Susan Press, said: “Due to staff shortages, we’re currently limiting our street cleaning activity, including the emptying of public litter bins.

“During this time we’re asking people to please take their litter home.

"Our teams will continue to monitor our public spaces for any littering problems and will respond accordingly."

The council says it apologises for any inconvenience the measures might cause.

Police believe the bones found at Chop Gate may have lain undiscovered for several decades.

The Sheffield hospital trust apologises after 67 nursing associates trainees faced a £1,700 pay cut.

Colourful murals thanking the NHS and key workers for their efforts have appeared on the walls of pubs in Pontefract.

Image source, PA Media

The artworks, by Rachel List, have been painted on the gates of the Hope & Anchor (above), in Baileygate, and on the side of the Horse Vaults (below), in Horse Fair.

She told the PA news agency she hand-painted the murals early in the morning so people would get a surprise.

The 29-year-old said: "It's lovely, I didn't expect it to blow up like this."

Image source, PA Media

The Chief Constable of Humberside Police is asking people not to become complacent and to stick to the strict rules put in place amid the coronavirus crisis:

Image source, Getty Images

Lee Freeman said the majority of people have been "fantastic" and thanked them for "doing the right thing".

But, with warmer weather forecast for this weekend, he asked people not to "become complacent".

He said: "These rules are in place to save lives and protect the NHS and we must all ensure that we continue to play our part in this.

"My officers and staff have been out, as always, in communities across the whole force area and I’m pleased to say that overall, people have responded really well and we have seen a huge difference in people’s actions since the regulations came into force."

He added that officers used enforcement once after a person "persistently flouted the regulations or refused to co-operate with requests to comply".

Police are trying to find a woman who was seen being "forced into a car" in Huddersfield this morning.

The woman was seen by a member of the public at about 01:40 being in an argument with a man, before she was forced into a car which drove off.

The couple are thought to be in their 30s or 40s.

The incident happened Bulay Road area of Thornton Lodge and involved a white car, which police are keen to trace.

Any witnesses to the incident or those who may know the identity of the man or woman are asked to get in touch with police.

People across the UK have taken part in a second "Clap for Carers" tribute, saluting NHS staff and other key workers dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

Other emergency workers also joined in the applause, like these firefighters in Scarborough.

Members of the town's Blue Watch said they were "proud to join in with the local community" to show their support. If you listen carefully you can hear seagulls getting in on the action too.

The event is now expected to happen every Thursday at 20:00., external

Wainhouse Tower in Halifax is being lit up every night to thank NHS staff and other key workers during the coronavirus outbreak.

The council say the the lights at the top of the 77m (253ft) landmark chimney will remain blue until further notice, as a sign of the area's support for front line workers.

Calderdale Council leader Tim Swift said staff in the borough were helping the community despite the threat of Covid-19.

He added: “Their kind and selfless efforts are truly commendable – they are real heroes. I’d like to thank every single health and care worker, every key worker and all the other people who are tirelessly doing everything they can to keep people safe and well."