Father found in fire-damaged car after fatal house fire
Man jailed after fatal Stoke-on-Trent crash
Missing Stone man: Canals and waterways being searched
Man still in hospital a fortnight after being attacked by burglars
Updates from Friday 28 October
BBC Travel
The A513 Beaconside in Stafford is partially blocked southbound at the Gladstone Way junction because of an accident involving two vehicles.
Police discovered hundreds of cannabis plants in a former pot bank, external - after a keen-nosed passer-by smelt the aroma of the drugs coming from the building.
Image source, Staffordshire Police
Chris King
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke
Our headlines this morning include:
- Just short of £670,000 has been spent on police informants by Staffordshire and Cheshire's police forces over the past five years
- Don't try and tackle fires yourself - that's the plea from firefighters in Stoke-on-Trent after an elderly woman was burnt in a severe house blaze, external
- There's doubt over the future of 1,000 payphones in the north west of England as BT says it's consulting with local councils over removing them
BBC Business News
Telecoms operator Vodafone has been fined £4.6m by Ofcom for "serious and sustained breaches of consumer protection rules".
It follows an earlier investigation that found Vodafone had misled pay-as-you-go customers over top-up payments.
The company has a contact centre in Stoke-on-Trent in Etruria which it says employs 900 people, of which "650 are customer-facing".
Image source, Getty ImagesThe regulator also said Vodafone had broken the rules on handling customer complaints.
Vodafone offered its "profound apologies" for the failures.
Nearly £2m has been spent by police forces across the West Midlands over the past five years on police informants.
"Covert human intelligence sources," as informants are officially termed, provide information on criminal activity.
Image source, APIndividual police forces have refused to go into specific detail of how the money was spent, but say it was vital in tackling a whole range of criminal activity.
West Midlands Police spent £1m over five years which is more than double the amount spent by the Staffordshire and West Mercia forces.
Quote MessageInformants are a cost efficent for the police to detect but also prevent crime. These latest figures really don't surprise me because the police have been using informants for some time. I do emphasise this use of informants is highly regulated and it can save the tax payer money in the long run
Nick Howe, Former Ch Supt, Staffordshire Police
Alexandra Hamilton
BBC Weather
It's looking like a cloudy start, but let's see if that's going to continue through the morning.
Keep up-to-date with the latest forecasts on the BBC Weather website.
Alex Hamilton
There are delays this morning on trains between Crewe and Liverpool Lime Street stations, due to a signalling fault.
Get the latest from the BBC Travel website.
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Allen Cook
BBC Local Live
Welcome everyone, the sky was just getting light as I got into Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent this morning and there looks to be some breaks in the cloud.
We'll have a look at the weather forecast for the morning shortly and there'll be plenty of news, sport, travel and other updates through the day.
I'll also feature a few more of your pictures of Staffordshire and Cheshire - to share them, send them in on email or put them on Instagram (with the tag #bbcstoke if you agree to share), external.
Birmingham Repertory Theatre to make a drama out of Enoch Powell crisis
Read MoreWe'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.
Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke
The family of a woman who died after being hit by a van on a main road outside Congleton say her death has left a "huge void" and she will be "deeply missed".
Cheshire Police say Marion Fernyhough, 69, from Rushton Spencer died following the collision on 2 October on the A34 near the Davenport Arms in Marton.
Image source, Cheshire PoliceIn a statement her family say she was "full of life" and showed "an enormous amount of energy and enthusiasm in everything she did".
Patrick Burns
Political editor, Midlands
On Midlands Today from 18:30 we'll look at the future of Birmingham Airport following the government's decision to back a third runway at Heathrow.
There's been no mention in today's announcement of regional airports but it could turn out that the region's international airport is needed to fill the gap before Heathrow is expanded.
I'll have more as I've been following today's events and will have reaction from our region's MPs and business leaders from 18:30 on BBC One.
Lee Blakeman
Port Vale commentator, BBC Radio Stoke
Port Vale defender Nathan Smith has told BBC Radio Stoke he thinks goalkeeper Jak Alnwick has played a huge part in Vale's good start to the season.
Image source, Getty ImagesBruno Ribeiro's side are currently seventh in League One after the first 15 matches.
Quote MessageHe's kept us in games, he's been playing well and to have him behind me talking to me throughout the whole game and I trust him, passing him the ball back to him, his distribution has been great. He definitely fills you full of confidence when you can hear him shouting behind you."
Nathan Smith, Port Vale defender
Lucy King
News Editor, BBC Radio Stoke
Here's today's purrrrfect ending - a cat which got stuck today inside a roof cavity of a home in Cheshire's been rescued by firefighters. , external
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service say the elderly pet was released this morning from the house in Elm Tree Court, Eaton, Tarporley and then reunited with its owners.
Allen Cook
BBC Local Live
This autumnal view was taken in Audley, Staffordshire by Duncan Richardson.
Image source, Duncan RichardsonWhile Jenny Pritchard shared this on the BBC Radio Stoke Facebook page, external of a Halloween trail at Biddulph Grange Garden.
You can share your pictures of Staffordshire or Cheshire by sending them in on email, tweet @BBCRadioStoke, external or put on Instagram (with the tag #bbcstoke if you agree to share), external.
Image source, Jenny PritchardLeek Post and Times
Charges to cover the cost of recycling 'non-household' waste are being introduced, external at Staffordshire's public tips.
Matt Sandoz
Stoke City commentator, BBC Radio Stoke
Stoke City chairman Peter Coates says he's been impressed with the partnership formed by defenders Ryan Shawcross and Bruno Martins Indi.
Image source, Nathan Stirk/Getty ImagesThe pair have played a key role in the team's return to form, which has seen them go unbeaten in their last four matches.
Quote MessageWe've had a settled back four for a little while, which we haven't had. Our bad run has coincided with a big injury to Jack Butland, a huge blow to us, and never having a settled back-four and now we've started to get that."
Peter Coates, Stoke City chairman
Perry Spiller
Presenter, BBC Radio Stoke
A Stafford councillor is calling for inmates with a violent past to be banned from using knives in prison kitchens.
It comes after Ann Edgeller's adoptive son Alex Cusworth was killed at Dartmoor Prison last year by a fellow inmate.
Image source, Devon and Cornwall PoliceConvicted killer William Tolcher, 51, stabbed him in the kitchen with a knife he had been given to chop vegetables.
Mrs Edgeller says she is hoping to meet with the new prison minister to discuss the idea.
BBC Radio Stoke has asked the Ministry of Justice for a comment and are waiting for their response.
Quote MessageI don't want Alex to have died in vain. I want Alex's life and what's happened to him out there to help other people, so people don't have to go through what I've been through and his daughter's been through."
Ann Edgeller, Stafford councillor and adoptive mother of Alex Cusworth
Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke
This evening's top stories include the following:
- An elderly man and woman are in hospital after a house fire this afternoon in Stoke-on-Trent, external
- A pet crematorium owner has been given a 12-week suspended sentence for claiming to have a cremated a horse when he hadn't,, external the county council says
- An unusual lizard has been discovered in a Cheshire warehouse after travelling thousands of miles inside a shipping container
Chris King
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke
A fire in Stoke-on-Trent at a derelict social club was started deliberately, external, the fire service says.
Image source, GoogleCrews from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service were called at around 21:15 last night to the Meir Sport and Social Club.
This morning the service said their investigation into the blaze "has established the fire was caused deliberately."
