BBC Sport

The West Brom boss Tony Pulis says "life is too short" to worry about what has gone on in the past with now-Stoke City striker Saido Berahino. 

The former Baggies player said the club offered him no support during an eight-week drugs ban, which came after  "his drink was spiked"  in a nightclub.  

Image source, Getty Images

But Pulis said there were no hard feelings towards the 23-year-old, who  joined Stoke in January .  

BBC Weather Watchers

Image source, Appy ippy girl

The sunshine's returned today in Staffordshire and our BBC Weather Watchers  have been grabbing photos of the flowers which are in bloom already.

These two are from users Appy ippy girl in Ipstones and Young Ted in Madeley.

Image source, Young ted

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

Two colleges in Cheshire have formally completed a merger today, external , aimed at securing their futures.

Image source, Google

The combined new organisation of South Cheshire College and West Cheshire College says it'll have an annual turnover of £40m and more than 11,000 students. 

The colleges say the move was first announced last summer and they've moved to assure students that it won't mean changes to their curriculum. , external

Stoke boss Mark Hughes with some team news regarding Xherdan Shaqiri, who has not featured for the Potters since January but played for Switzerland last weekend. 

"The only doubt for Saturday is Xherdan Shaqiri. He's had a bit of a setback with his calf tissue which we need to get to the bottom of," Hughes says. 

"We don't anticipate him being out for too long. Hopefully he'll be back for the Liverpool match."

Image source, Getty Images

Lichfield Mercury

Burntwood and Chasetown residents have the opportunity to voice any concerns they have about the towns' roads and infrastructure at a Labour councillors' surgery , external on Saturday 1 April.

Image source, Lichfield Mercury

BBC Derby Sport

Burton Albion continue their fight against relegation  with a visit to Huddersfield tomorrow.

The Brewers are just a point above the Championship relegation zone.

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

I've picked out these four pictures from the ones you've sent in of the area.

If you want to share a photo you've taken of Staffordshire or Cheshire, you can send them in on email or, if you use Instagram, put them there with the tag #bbcstoke , external to show you agree to share them.

Lee Blakeman
Port Vale commentator, BBC Radio Stoke

The former Port Vale midfielder Chris Birchall has described tomorrow's game against AFC Wimbledon as an absolute must-win, if the Vale want to stay up.

Image source, Harry Trump/Getty Images

Vale have been boosted going into the fixture by the news that defender Remie Streete is expected to be fit enough to play. 

Michael Brown's side are a point away from safety with eight games to go .

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

A Staffordshire MP says he's had assurances from NHS bosses that the future of the A&E department in Burton "is secure". 

Under plans revealed last year by health bosses to save £542m across five years , they said one of the three A&E units in Staffordshire could be downgraded.

Image source, Google

Officials said any specific areas would go out to public consultation with decisions not being taken until the end of 2017. 

Today the Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant says he's met with officials , external at Burton Hospitals NHS Trust and been told the future of both Burton A&E and Lichfield's Minor Injuries Unit is secure. 

He's called the news encouraging - Burton Hospitals NHS Trust has yet to comment on his statement.

Jack Dowling
Journalist, BBC Radio Stoke

We told you earlier that Facebook had removed a "treasured" photograph that a Stoke-on-Trent woman had put on the social media platform, after another user reported it for child nudity.

Samantha Potts has now shared with us an updated version of the picture, taken on holiday with her grandmother when she was six or seven years old.

Image source, Samantha Potts

She says she's now uploaded the picture again, but altered it with a computer programme to "cover up" the torso of her younger self. 

Facebook say they will not be reinstating the original photo as it "violated our Community Standards around nudity of a minor" - even though that minor is now 22 years old.

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

You've been having your say on the news that MPs are set to examine why Highways England shut the M6 in Staffordshire a week ago more than 12 hours due to an "unsafe" bridge. 

The closure was between junctions 14 and 15 so concrete panels could be urgently removed from the A51 bridge.

The Stoke South Labour MP Rob Flello told the BBC that a committee he's part of, the Transport Select Committee, will look at why it was shut for several hours.

In response to the news, Archie tweeted, external : "I was the third vehicle on the M6 when it opened. How it took 13 hours to remove the plates I'll never know, I was shocked." 

While Sharon McGreal commented on the BBC Radio Stoke Facebook page , external : "Was it best to be shut or face what could have happened? Lives could have been lost. Yes it is annoying if you are stuck in it."

BBC Inside Out

Hundreds of taxi drivers have been granted licences despite declaring criminal convictions for sex offences, burglary and assault, figures show. 

Six councils in north-west England, including Cheshire East Council, granted or renewed permits for more than 300 convicted drivers since 2012.

They include a Cheshire East driver convicted of indecent exposure.

Image source, Getty Images

MP Andrew Gwynne has called for current legislation to be tightened. 

Five of the six councils, again including Cheshire East Council, who granted licences to convicted drivers defended their procedures and said a wide range of checking systems were in place.

Inside Out North West is on Friday 31 March at 19.30 BST on BBC One in the North West and later on BBC iPlayer for 30 days

A two-vehicle crash has shut two lanes on the M6 in Cheshire this afternoon.

Highways England say it's between junctions 18 and 17 near Middlewich and Sandbach.

Image source, Highways England

You have been using Your Questions to ask about the West Midlands - here are some of our answers.

Chris King
Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

The mother of a man from Staffordshire who was found dead last year says she doesn't understand why he didn't get more support from mental health services.

Joshua Smith from Stone went missing last October and was found almost a month later in Meaford. 

Yesterday, a coroner ruled the 27-year-old's death was suicide. 

His mother Sarah Smith says he was suffering with depression. 

South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said Joshua's death was a tragedy and added that it "carefully consider risks to the individual and every effort is made to minimise these".

Burton Mail

A Burton resident has called for a "dangerous" pothole close to a hospital entrance to be refilled before, external "someone has an accident". 

Image source, Burton Mail

BBC Sport

The Stoke City manager Mark Hughes says he has "no reason to disbelieve Berahino" after the striker said an eight-week drug ban was down to his drink being spiked in a nightclub. 

Image source, Rex Features

He served the ban earlier this season and told the BBC's Football Focus programme that the levels of the drugs found was "really low".

Berahino says that proves there was no intent on his behalf but the former England Under-21 international said he held his hands up "for being irresponsible" at being in the club.

Russell Truran
Journalist, BBC Radio Stoke

Water firm Severn Trent has insisted overrunning roadworks in part of Staffordshire will end today, external . 

The firm's been carrying out works on Watlands View, Wolstanton for the past 13 months and the work was originally meant to finish before January.

Residents and businesses have told the BBC it's caused massive disruption to their lives.

In a statement, Severn Trent thanked residents and businesses for their patience and says the work will protect their properties from flooding for years to come.     

Chris King
Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

A brand new £1m unit to provide treatment for cancer and stroke patients is going to be opened at the Royal Stoke University Hospital today.

Bosses at the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust say they hope the new radiology unit will allow an extra 750 procedures to take place each year. 

They say the aim is to help free up beds on other wards.

Matt Lee
Breakfast Producer, BBC Radio Stoke

A Stoke-on-Trent woman has told BBC Radio Stoke she is "devastated" after a "treasured" photograph of herself with her grandmother was branded indecent by another user and removed by Facebook. 

Samantha Potts uploaded a holiday picture on to the website from when she was a young girl but she was topless in the photo.

Image source, JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images

She says she's been told it was reported for child nudity and removed by the social media firm. 

BBC Radio Stoke has contacted Facebook and it says the image was removed for violating its Community Standards around nudity of a minor and will not be reinstated.