Summary

  • Hospitals chief exec says A&E review will be back on track in weeks

  • Motorcyclist knocked off bike by Christmas lights stretched across road

  • Shrewsbury Town manager wants to improve disciplinary record

  • Updates from Thursday 15 December

Live Reporting

Andy Giddings

  1. Mum says its vital to maintain to smaller maternity units

    Tracey Higgins
    BBC Local Live

    A  mum from Bridgnorth, who gave birth at a petrol station in Much Wenlock says it's vital the county's smaller maternity units are maintained. 

    Bobbie Brown was on her way to Shrewsbury in an ambulance when it happened. 

    Ludlow Community hospitalGoogle

    She's worried about plans to make them available overnight on an on-call basis only.  

    You can't predict how long a lady's labour will be. What happens if there's more than one lady in labour. Research does show that ladies do tend to go into labour during the night. Again if the midwife on call lives more than 40 minutes away, what happens if the lady in labour gives birth before the midwife gets to her."

    Bobbie Brown

  2. Latest: Fairer funding deal for Shropshire schools due to be announced; GP says clinicians are struggling as health reorganisation stalls

    Tracey Higgins
    BBC Local Live

    The top stories in Shropshire this morning: 

    - A fairer funding formula for schools due to be announced later today 

    - Shropshire GP says clinicians are struggling as health reorganisation stalls 

    - Work of art discovered in bathroom in Church Stretton    

  3. Unemployment falls in West Midlands

    Allen Cook
    BBC Local Live

    Unemployment in the West Midlands fell by 25,000 to 151,000 in the three months to October, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). 

    Job Centre Plus signDANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images

    The unemployment rate was 5.3% for the same period. 

    Compared with the same three months in 2015, the ONS says unemployment in the region is down by 4,000. 

    Across the UK as a whole, unemployment stands at 1.62 million for the period, with a drop of 16,000 for the country.

  4. Sport: Shrewsbury Town out of the FA Cup

    James Bond
    Sports Producer, BBC Shropshire

    Shrewsbury Town went out of the FA Cup in dramatic fashion last night, losing their second round replay 3-2 at Fleetwood.

    Despite having their captain Adam el Abd sent off, they still led 2-0 with half an hour to go. 

    Adam el AbdGetty Images

    But Fleetwood scored twice to equalise, and then in injury time squeezed in a winner before Shrewsbury hit the post at the other end.

  6. Church Stretton man fed up with number of recycling bins

    Tracey Higgins
    BBC Local Live

    A man from Church Stretton says he's fed up with the number of bins he keeps getting from Shropshire Council.

    Geoff Wells now has 10 containers of different shapes and sizes, because of changes to waste and recycling systems over recent years. 

    RecyclingThinkstock

    Veolia, which runs the services on behalf of the council, says it's phasing in a new recycling programme, which means he should have five bins. But Mr Wells thinks just two are necessary.

  7. Concerns about the scale and pace of cuts to school budgets

    Tracey Higgins
    BBC Local Live

    There's concern about the scale and pace of cuts being made to school budgets.

    Schools in the Shropshire Council area could be slightly better off than they might otherwise have been, because a fairer funding formula is due to be announced later.

    School classroomiStock

    But the National Audit Office says head teachers across England will have to make savings of three billion pounds by the end of the decade, and the process will need close monitoring.

  8. Latest: Concern over cuts to school budgets; mum calls for rural maternity units to be kept

    Tracey Higgins
    BBC Local Live

    The top stories in Shropshire this morning:

    - Schools in Shropshire find out today whether they will be better off financially as concern is expressed at pace of cuts to school budgets

    - Mum who gave birth at a petrol station stresses importance of keeping smaller maternity units around the county

    - Complaints of too many bins for recycling from Shropshire Council   

  9. Watch: Latest Weather for the West Midlands

    Alex Hamilton
    BBC Weather

    A cloudy start to the day with some low cloud, but the cloud will gradually clear to reveal plenty of sunshine. Feeling mild with light winds.  

    Top temperatures of 10C (50F).

    Alex Hamilton with the West Midlands weather forecast.

  10. Travel: Roadworks may slow your journey

    BBC Travel

    No major incidents to report on the county's roads this morning, but one or two roadworks may delay your journey. 

    There's slow traffic on the A5191 St Michael's Street in Shrewsbury at the Derfald street junction in the roadworks. 

    For more information visit the BBC Travel page.   

  11. Good morning from the BBC Shropshire newsroom

    Tracey Higgins
    BBC Local Live

    I'm here with all of your news, sport, travel and weather updates. 

    Do get in touch if you have a story or pictures you'd like to share with the rest of the county. 

    You can email, tweet or get in touch via the Facebook page. 

  12. Highlights: Fleetwood 3-2 Shrewsbury

    Devante Cole scores twice as Fleetwood come from behind to beat Shrewsbury 3-2 in the FA Cup second-round replay.

    Read More

  13. Fleetwood Town 3-2 Shrewsbury Town

    Fleetwood score twice in the last 13 minutes to beat Shrewsbury to book an FA Cup third-round tie at Bristol City.

    Read More

  14. Our live coverage across the day

    We'll be back with our usual mix of news, sport, travel and weather from 08:00 tomorrow, but keep an eye out here for more updates this evening and into the morning.

  15. Weather: Some rain this evening followed by a cloudy night

    Kay Crewdson
    BBC weather presenter

    There will be some rain about this evening, followed by a cloudy night for most of the county.

    Weather for the West Midlands.

  16. Search to find 'meticulous' Weather Watcher

    Rebecca Wood
    BBC Midlands Today

    It's been a fairly mild start to winter so far, but 70 years ago it was a very different picture. 

    The winter of 1946 was one of the most severe in living memory and one Midlands schoolboy recorded it in meticulous detail. 

    Now his former school is trying to track him down. 

    Weather log in Halesowen

    The search is on to find Ron Hadley who attended Earls High School in Halesowen between 1943 and 1950.

  17. Your photos: Moon over Shropshire

    BBC Weather Watchers

    One of our BBC Weather Watchers shared this photo with us today, saying he took it while on an evening out in Shrewsbury.

    If you'd like to sign up to be a weather watcher, there's all the information you need on the BBC website.

    MoonDavid Mark

  18. Shropshire health chief suggests political pressure influenced hospital vote

    The chair of Shropshire's Clinical Commissioning Group has suggested political pressure convinced some of his colleagues to vote against plans for a hospital reorganisation last night.

    Dr Julian Povey was speaking after all six members of Telford's Clinical Commissioning Group voted against going to public consultation with plans to set up a super A&E in Shrewsbury and downgrade the A&E department at the Princess Royal Hospital.

    A&E wardSaTH

    Telford and Wrekin Council has spoken out against the proposals and threatened to take legal action, saying the Future Fit review which led to the recommendations was flawed and biased.

    Dr Povey also warned the resulting delay following the "no" vote increased the risk to services which he said were "barely sustainable" at the moment.

    Obviously it's political, it always was political. I had hoped that as clinicians we could, I hesitate to say, rise above the politics, but be above the politics and make decisions based on clinical need and patient need."

    Dr Julian Povey, Chair of Shropshire CCG

  19. Return of cardboard recycling proves popular in Shrewsbury

    Shrewsbury Chronicle

    Council bosses say they are delighted with the response received by a new-look recycling scheme.

  20. Firearm recovered following death near Church Stretton

    Investigators looking into the death of a man near Church Stretton on Saturday have revealed police had been called out to reports of a man with a firearm and that a trained negotiator attended.

    The reports were of concerns for the welfare of the 35-year-old, who was later treated for serious injuries at the property and was pronounced dead at the scene.

    A firearm was later recovered and the Independent Police Complaints Commission was asked to investigate.