Government plans to increase the minimum wage could lead to a rise in childcare costs for parents, a care provider in North Lincolnshire has warned.

Image source, Getty Images

Steve Foster, from Scunthorpe, runs a children's nursery and is worried the rise in the National Living Wage announced yesterday will have a detrimental effect on his business.

He says: "We run a children's nursery employing 30 staff. The wage bill is 75% of our turnover. A 6.6% increase in the wage bill means we will have to increase our fees by £15 per week.

"This may mean that parents may decide it is no longer worthwhile going to work.

"In addition, if the government do not increase the rate they pay us for free childcare we will not be able to provide the 30 hours' free childcare to many of our parents.

"I wonder if the government has considered the extra childcare costs for parents when increasing the minimum wage".

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the rise "ensures we're making work pay and keeps us on track to meet our target to end low pay by the end of this Parliament".

Campaign group the Living Wage Foundation welcomed the increases, but said there was still "a substantial gap" between the government-mandated minimum wage and its own calculations of a real living wage based on living costs.

The foundation's director, Graham Griffiths, called on employers to "commit to go beyond this new government minimum, do the right thing, and commit to pay a real living wage".

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Alcohol-related anti-social behaviour is still a “severe” problem in parts of Leeds with lots of licensed premises, despite attempts by the council to quell drink-related issues, a report has claimed.

Image source, markhanna/Getty

The document, written by Leeds City Council officers, claims bad behaviour related to street drinking in Harehills and Armley remains a major problem, while the same figures for the city centre, Headingley and Hyde Park are rising once again following the post-lockdown reopening of bars.

This is despite the council’s introduction of Cumulative Impact Policy (CIP) zones in these districts.

CIPs are areas in which it is more difficult to get a new permission to sell alcohol due to problems with drink-related anti-social behaviour.

A review into the CIP zones is carried out every three years, and members of Leeds City Council’s Licensing Committee will discuss the latest findings into the zones.

The report will be discussed by members of the committee on Tuesday 2 November.

Students in Leeds say they want venues to put better measures in place to prevent spiking.

The Hull events offer people the chance to speak to others and concentrate on a new hobby.

Police want to trace the person pictured below after a man spat twice in the face of a Lincoln pub worker.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

The incident took place outside The Shakespeare in the High Street at about 00:20 BST on Saturday 16 October.

The man, who is described as 5ft 5in with dark hair, is said to have spat at the staff member after he had been ejected from the premises.

Lincolnshire Police said: "We believe the man pictured can help us in our enquiries."

Stamford Welland Academy students use everyday objects in an experiment to combat climate change.

Harrogate’s high coronavirus infection rate has finally begun to fall as the number of patients needing hospital treatment for the virus remains steady.

After reaching record levels of 740 cases per 100,000 people earlier this month, the district’s weekly rate has now fallen to 612, saysthe Local Democracy Reporting Service, external.

That figure is still high and above the England average of 483. The seven day average of total case numbers for England and Wales is pictured above.

It was announced last week that schools in the Harrogate district were being encouraged to reintroduce face masks and postpone some activities after the high case rate was linked to young people.

See the latest case rates in your area here.

Police investigating the killing of a badger in East Yorkshire are trying to track down two men.

Image source, Getty Images

The badger is believed to have been attacked by dogs on farmland near Swinefleet at the weekend.

Humberside Police said officers wanted to speak to two men who were seen just after midnight on Saturday at Reading Gate in Swinefleet.

Wildlife officer Richard Fussey said: "The killing of a badger is an offence under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992.

"We treat all wildlife crime very seriously and will investigate this matter thoroughly to identify and prosecute those responsible."

Anyone who witnessed the incident taking place, or was in the area between midnight and 03:00 BST, should contact the police on their non-emergency number 101.

Ex-England and Catalans Dragons specialist coach Rich Hunwicks returns to Leeds Rhinos as the performance director.

Press Association

Scientists in Yorkshire have uncovered the precise way a type of antibiotic works to attack bugs, which could potentially pave the way for new treatments.

Image source, DNY59/Getty Images

Researchers at the University of Sheffield have found the mechanism which allows antibiotics like penicillin to kill bacteria.

It was previously known that a certain type of antibiotic, which includes penicillin, worked by preventing growth of a cell wall.

But exactly how the cell was killed was previously unknown, despite antibiotics being a central part of healthcare around the globe.

Now an international team of researchers, led by experts in Sheffield, discovered that these types of antibiotics kill the superbug MRSA by creating holes in the cell wall which enlarge as the cell grows, eventually killing the bacteria, according to an article published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Scientists now plan to use this knowledge to create new drugs to tackle bacteria which is resistant to common antibiotics.

ProfSimon Foster, from the University of Sheffield's School of Biosciences, said: "Our findings get to the heart of understanding how existing antibiotics work and give us new avenues for further treatment developments in the face of the global pandemic of antimicrobial resistance."

BBC Weather

This morning, it will be breezy and cloudy with a band of heavy rain moving eastwards across the region. Drier and brighter in the afternoon with some sunny spells. Fresh south-westerlies.

Tonight, it will be largely dry with a mix of clear spells and variable amounts of cloud. There is the chance of an odd spot of rain at times, but most areas will remain dry.

Police in Hull say they are investigating two reported spiking incidents said to have taken place over the weekend.

Image source, Getty Images

The force said there had been one confirmed case while the second is being assessed to establish the circumstances.

Both incidents are being treated extremely seriously, a spokesperson said.

It follows a number of reports across the country of women reporting being spiked by needles in nightclubs.

More than 100,000 people have already signed a petition calling for compulsory searches at nightclubs, with groups from more than 30 universities around the UK joining an online campaign calling for the boycott of nightclubs.

The club says "really disappointing behaviour" from some fans was reported at Saturday's match.

A cat-lover who used her £12,000 house deposit to bring two strays back to the UK after a holiday has said it was "100% worth it".

Image source, Kelly Walker

Kelly Walker, 43, of Mapplewell, Barnsley, fell in love with Harriet and Delilah when she was holidaying in Turkey in November 2020.

The salon owner then started putting plans in place to bring them home with her, using the money she was going to spend on buying a house.

She said the 11-month journey had been "emotional".

You can find out more here.

Planning officers at Lincolnshire Council have recommended the application is given the go ahead.

Leroy Wenham moved from the Caribbean to Yorkshire in the 1960s when he was just 10 years old.

Jhangir Ahmed
BBC Radio Leeds

More than 12,000 people have been vaccinated against Covid-19 at a Bradford shopping centre clinic since a walk-in centre opened in mid-July.

The Broadway clinic was only supposed to be there for a few days, but organisers say it has been so successful, it will remain in the centre until the end of the year.

It is a joint project between Bradford council and the NHS, and aims to make it easier for people to get jabbed.

Ishaq Shafiq from the council says: "We had lots of discussions and we thought, we need to offer vaccinations that are convenient to people, and the shopping centre was perfect perfect place."

The extra visitors are also being welcomed by Ian Ward, general manager at The Broadway. He says: "I've got to be honest, I was surprised by the numbers. From our point of view, it's very much a community project and it can show what Bradford has to offer."

The Grab a Jab walk-in clinic is open until 31 December.

The prized remains of a prehistoric sea reptile kept at Leeds Museum were discovered by a schoolgirl while fossil hunting on holiday, it has emerged.

Image source, Leeds Museum

Pauline Hoggard was 16 when she found the limb of an ichthyosaur embedded in a cliff in Whitby in 1949.

Recalling the chance discovery, the 88-year-old, from Leicester, said it was a moment she had "never forgotten".

The fossil, which was passed to Leeds Museum, is one of their most impressive prehistoric specimens, experts said.

Dunelm is set to open shortly before Christmas in Beverley's Flemingate shopping centre.

Flowers have been left at the scene of a crash where three teenagers died on Sunday evening.

Emergency services were called to Kiveton Lane, Kiveton Park near Rotherham, at about 18:10 yesterday to reports of a crash.

A white Ford Fiesta had crashed into a tree, killing two 19-year-old men and an 18-year-old man.

This morning, flowers were left at the site of the crash.