Users of the Hull and East Yorkshire helpline say they have sometimes been left on hold for hours.

A group of firefighters from Leeds is attempting the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge today while dressed in their full kit.

They set off on the 24-mile route between Pen-y-ghent and Ribblehead at about 06:30 this morning.

The walk route takes in Pen-y-Ghent at 2,277ft (pictured below), Whernside at 2,414ft and Ingleborough 2,372ft.

Image source, Phillip Halling/Geograph

The crew's attempting the challenge to raise awareness of motor neurone disease (MND).

One of the team is the brother-in-law of Leeds Rhinos legend Rob Burrow.

Mr Burrow was diagnosed with MND in December 2019, two years after ending his playing career by helping Leeds Rhinos to a record-extending eighth Super League Grand Final in autumn 2017.

A service to honour the life of the Duke of Edinburgh is due to be held later at York Minster.

Image source, Reuters/Andrew Boyers

The duke died at Windsor Castle on Friday 9 April, aged 99. He was married to the Queen for 73 years.

The service of commemoration is due to begin at 17:30 and will be led by the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell.

Places are limited due to coronavirus restrictions but the service will be live streamed on the Minster's website, it's been confirmed.

A statement from the Minster said: "Reservations will not be required but due to the coronavirus restrictions, capacity will be limited to 150 people. Please arrive early to ensure a seat."

An elderly King Charles spaniel was left to die in a street in North Lincolnshire after being discarded "like a piece of rubbish", the RSPCA has said.

Image source, RSPCA

The dog (pictured), which was emaciated and had a large tumour, was found by a member of the public in Epworth last week, the animal charity said.

RSPCA officers believe the female spaniel was dumped at the scene and have now launched an investigation.

The spaniel was later put to sleep to prevent further suffering, the charity said.

RSPCA inspector Vanessa Reid said: "It was heart-breaking to see this elderly and clearly underweight dog left helpless in the street in her hour of need.

The EDL founder is being sued by a Syrian teenager who was filmed being attacked at a school.

Kevin Larkin
Political reporter, BBC Radio Leeds

A West Yorkshire MP has raised concerns about the high level of coronavirus infections linked to workplaces in the region.

Image source, UK Parliament

Hemsworth Labour MP Jon Trickett has examined data which shows that despite having just 9% of the population, Yorkshire accounted for 36% of all coronavirus cases which could be traced back to a workplace.

Mr Trickett says he believes this is due to more workers being employed in manufacturing and logistics industries, which have required people to work during the pandemic.

The MP told the BBC: “Yorkshire’s got the highest rate of infections at places of work in the whole of the country. That has to be tackled, but I don’t think the government has really thought it through yet.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Protecting communities and saving lives is always our first priority.

"Workplaces across the country have been able to register for free, rapid Covid testing to break chains of transmission and protect those who cannot work from home.

"Our vaccination programme continues to make phenomenal progress – with over 43 million vaccines administered so far, reaching every part of the UK."

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A fire service safety inspection of high-rise buildings in South Yorkshire found 201 properties not included on an "inaccurate" government list.

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service inspected all high-rises in the county following the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire.

It found a total of 309 tower blocks in need of improvements, including 108 identified by the government.

A report to the county's fire and rescue authority said: "It was identified early on that the MHCLG list did not provide an accurate number of High Rise Residential Building within South Yorkshire, and that more work would need to be done by the team to identify a truer list of premises."

The service said it had carried out 179 building inspections on high-rise residential buildings, and found 69 had problems with cladding, insulation, fire break systems, or other external wall system issues.

Many tower blocks were found to be unsafe following the Grenfell fire, in which 72 people died.

The government announced in February it was providing an additional £3.5bn to replace unsafe cladding in residential buildings over 18m high "at no cost to residents".

The government spokesman added: "We continue to work with the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service to make sure all high-rise residential buildings over 18m in their area are reviewed or inspected by the end of this year.

"It's wrong to suggest these buildings are unsafe or dangerous. Instead, they will be part of our comprehensive review of high-rise, residential buildings to make them safer."

A judge warns Nzar Jabar Mohamad he could be jailed after admitting planned to smuggle migrants to the UK using small boats.

Six people, including one from Hull, have been arrested on suspicion of murdering a man whose body was found dumped in woodland in Middlesbrough.

Image source, Family Handout

Tomasz Dembler, 39, was found in woods near Flatts Lane Country Park on 12 April, with Cleveland Police saying he could have been killed weeks before.

Officers raided five homes in the Middlesbrough area and one in Hull, with five men and one woman arrested.

One man aged 46 was arrested in Hull, while a woman, 36, and four men aged 27, 36, 36 and 44 were arrested at homes in Middlesbrough, Grangetown and North Ormesby.

The force said all those arrested were Polish and they were currently in police custody.

Police have renewed their appeal for information.

An investigation's been launched into the cause of a large fire in Lincolnshire earlier today.

Crews were called Hemswell Cliff, near Gainsborough, at about 04:00 this morning.

The fire, on Learoyd Road, had spread between several trailers containing plastic, creating plumes of smoke.

At its height, nearby residents were warned to keep their doors and windows closed and drivers were warned to avoid the area due to poor visibility.

Crews are now damping down the remaining hotspots at the site, according to Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service.

Ahead of local elections on 6 May, we break down how South Yorkshire's councils spend your money.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A hairdresser in West Yorkshire who has failed to pay £17,000 in fines for breaking Covid rules is being taking to court.

Image source, Paul Smith/LDRS

Sinead Quinn (pictured), whose salon is in Oakenshaw, near Bradford, could face an unlimited fine if she is found guilty.

Kirklees Council said Ms Quinn had not paid anything towards multiple fixed penalty notices imposed last year for ignoring lockdown regulations.

Ms Quinn had previously said on social media that she did not consent to or accept the fines.

She had also displayed a sign on the salon door which refers to Magna Carta, and said the shop is "under the jurisdiction of common law".

Officers from Kirklees Council first issued a £1,000 fine on 9 November. It subsequently issued, fines of £2,000, £4,000 and £10,000 after finding the shop open in breach of lockdown laws.

In November, Bradford magistrates granted the council an injunction forcing the salon to close, which was extended in February.

A spokesperson for Kirklees Council said: "We make no apologies for putting the health and safety of residents first.

"We are currently awaiting a court date, after submitting a prosecution case against Quinn for non-payment of fines after she repeatedly breached Covid-19 restrictions by opening and trading during lockdown.

The hearing is listed for 13 August. Ms Quinn has been approached for a response.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Barnsley Council has denied breaching a 35-year-old covenant protecting a sports ground given to the public and miners for their use.

Image source, Greg Winnard

The council wants to move Rockingham Sports Ground to nearby Parkside Road to make way for housing, but campaigners say doing so breaches a covenant from when the council was given the land by the Earl of Wentworth in 1985 for use as a sports ground.

In November, the authority agreed a masterplan for Hoyland South - including up to 1,116 new homes, a new primary school, community hubs, active travel routes and the relocation of the sports centre.

A new Hermes delivery hub, the largest of its kind in Europe, was also approved as part of a separate masterplan for Hoyland West.

Mark Goodison, who founded the Save Hoyland group in response to the plans, says moving the sports ground to make way for the masterplan breaches the 1985 covenant, but the council denies this.

Mr Goodison says a 1990 planning application “shows clear lines around Rockingham and Parkside which cannot be used, as the land was gifted to local miners by the Earl of Wentworth".

He says residents have a "legal right" to use Rockingham but Barnsley Council says it is legal for the Fitzwilliam Trust Corporation to purchase the land where the sports ground sits and then seek planning permission to develop their adjoining land for warehouse and office accommodation.

The council adds: "Long-term, this will provide a much-improved facility and a better recreational offer for the community."

Part of the site would still be available for leisure and recreation, the authority adds.

Work to move the sports ground site could start by the end of April.

Police in North Yorkshire have warned motorhome and campervan owners to be vigilant after reports of suspicious activity in which cold-callers knock on doors asking to buy the vehicles parked on people's drives.

Image source, Getty Images

Incidents have happened in villages outside Selby, such as Barlby and Thorpe Willoughby, but also outside the area in Malton.

Police said they are worried it could be linked to criminality.

Insp Clive Turner said rogue traders often try to take advantage of householders by using high-pressure sales techniques or looking for opportunities to steal vehicles or property.

“It’s clear that a group of people are deliberately visiting homes in North Yorkshire with campervans parked outside," Mr Turner said.

"It’s extremely important that if you own one, you double-check your security measures."

Patrols have been increased and police said owners should check their security measures, listed here, external.

A passer-by who helped an elderly woman in Bradford who had fallen onto a road and suffered a head injury from which she later died is being asked to come forward.

Image source, West Yorkshire Police/family handout

Wendy Elliott, who was 84, died in hospital on 29 March after the fall on Allerton Road five days before, according to West Yorkshire Police.

Ms Elliot fell while crossing at the junction with Chapel Lane and Allerton Road - near Lady Hill Park - between 07:30 and 08:30 on Wednesday 24 March.

Officers are now conducting inquiries on behalf of the coroner and they say they'd like to talk to a woman who stopped to help Ms Elliott and who took her home after her fall.

At the time, Ms Elliott was wearing a black knee-length puffer-style jacket and a white beret-style hat, police said.

Anyone who saw Ms Elliott fall, or who might have CCTV, dash camera or phone footage, is being asked to contact police on 101.

Manslaughter charges could now be brought in the case of a Hull man who was unlawfully killed after public transport staff restrained him.

Image source, Family handout

Jack Barnes, 29, shouted "I can't breathe" as Metrolink workers held him in Manchester in 2016. He suffered a cardiac arrest and died weeks later.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) had previously ruled out manslaughter but has now ordered a review.

The review into the case comes after a coroner ruled his death was unlawful and protests from his family.

Mr Barnes' mother, Tricia Gerrard, said she would "never stop fighting" for a manslaughter charge.

Four men had previously been arrested but the CPS said there was not sufficient evidence to prosecute.

An inquest into his death heard four Metrolink workers gave a nine-minute chase to Mr Barnes after a row with him at Manchester Victoria station.

Bodycam footage from a camera worn by one of the four workers showed while being held down with his left cheek on the pavement, Mr Barnes asked for help, repeatedly shouting out: "I can't breathe."

A CPS spokesman said: "Upon consideration of the inquest material, together with representations from the family, we have expanded our review to include all options, including manslaughter offences.

"Any decision will be made in accordance with our legal tests."

Students in part of Lincolnshire whose education has been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic are being offered an extra year at college to help them catch up on learning.

Image source, Google

From September, students at Franklin College in Grimsby will be able to study for an extra year, allowing them to retake exams.

The move is aimed at helping students who may have been forced to study from home or who have faced other disruptions to "maximise their academic potential", the college said.

It means students who need to retake their GCSE in English or maths can do so alongside a level two course in their first year.

They would then go on to study for another two years, with students being able to progress to go to university or other higher level education including apprenticeships.

BBC Weather

This morning, patchy cloud will clear leaving settled conditions for the afternoon with plenty of sunshine.

It'll be a little cooler than yesterday, with gentle winds.

This evening any lingering cloud will disperse and it will turn cold with a sharp frost likely:

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