Louise Hancock
Newsreader, BBC WM

A footballer from Tamworth says his dreams of playing professionally have come true thanks to an academy run by the Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy.

Image source, Tamworth FC

Vardy launched the V9 Academy in 2015 to discover hidden talent and stop players drifting away from the game.

This week Danny Newton, who scored 29 goals for Tamworth last season, joined Stevenage on a professional deal.

The US high school star was accused of stealing a sign and jailed in North Korea.

Emma Thomas
BBC Radio Stoke

A memorial is planned at the school attended by a girl from Cheshire who was killed in the Manchester Arena terror attack .

Hundreds of mourners paid their last respects yesterday to 14-year-old Nell Jones at her funeral in Middlewich.

Image source, PA

The service, described as a celebration for her life, took place exactly a month after the terror attack.

Speaking after the funeral, Dennis Oliver, head teacher at her school, Holmes Chapel High School, told BBC Radio Stoke that they won't forget Nell.

BBC Sport

A Staffordshire boxer will attempt to reach a gold medal final at the European Championships today.

Super heavyweight Frazer Clarke, from Burton, is part of the GB boxing team which has made history this week.

Image source, Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

They are guaranteed more medals than ever before in the competition's 90-year history.

Super-heavyweight Clarke reached today's semi-finals in Ukraine and is aiming to reach Sunday's finals.

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

No high-rise tower blocks in the east of Cheshire have the same cladding as used on the Grenfell Tower, according to the council.

Cheshire East Council says it's been checking its own properties and those of housing associations in light of last week's fatal fire in London.

Image source, Reuters

The authority says it's also been working closely with the fire service to visit the borough's high-rise blocks and says, so far, none have given cause for concern.

Across the country so far, 11 residential high-rise buildings in eight local authority areas have been found to be covered in combustible cladding following safety tests.

Lucy Martin
BBC Weather

A cloudy and breezy day with some bright intervals but the possibility of some showers too with top temperatures of 19C (66F).

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

There are clouds covering the sky over Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent today and a hint of rain in the air - quite a contrast to the start of this week.

We'll have a look at whether there will be any rain shortly in our full weather forecast and there'll then be news, sport, travel and other updates through the day.

I'll also showcase some more of your pictures of Staffordshire and Cheshire - send those on email or put them on Instagram (see how here), external.

Stoke City striker Peter Crouch, who turns 37 in January, wants to carry on playing football as long as he can.

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.

Sarah Bishop
BBC Midlands Today

On Midlands Today this evening, we'll have reaction to the news that all council-owned high rise blocks in Stoke-on-Trent are to be fitted with sprinkler systems, in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy in London.

A multimillion-pound refurbishment of the city's tower blocks, announced in January, made no specific commitment to sprinklers.

But now, with hundreds of worried residents signing a petition calling for them, the council's promised to act quickly.

I'll have more from 18:30 on BBC One.

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

Flowers have been laid today at the site of a crane collapse in Crewe in which two men died.

As investigations continue into how it happened on Dunwoody Way, councillors from Cheshire East and Crewe laid flowers alongside other tributes.

Image source, Cheshire East Council

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

The union Unite is calling for a fast investigation into how a crane collapsed in Crewe.

Two men died after the incident on Dunwoody Way last night with a third airlifted to hospital with serious injuries.

Image source, Peter Byrne/PA Wire

Unite says it wants the Health and Safety Executive, which is investigating, to get urgent advice and reassurance for construction workers on other sites around the country.

It says they will now be concerned about the safety of similar cranes and the union wants to know similar incidents won't happen again.

Peter Sherlock
BBC Data unit

Music festivals fail to reflect the diversity of the UK music scene, with headline slots being dominated by a small band of male rock acts over the decades, a study suggests.

Some eight out of 10 top slots were occupied by all-male acts, analysis of more than 600 headline appearances across 14 major festivals found.

The V Festival at Weston Park is an honourable exception. Born in the midst of Britpop, it's re-positioned itself as a festival for pop connoisseurs, booking acts like Calvin Harris, Beyonce, Rudimental, Olly Murs and Pink as headliners.

It's proof that audiences will embrace diversity - in gender, in genre and in the race of their artists - if they're given the chance.

Allen Cook
BBC Local Live

The rescue bees we told you about earlier, who've produced enough honey for charity to buy a defibrillator, are part of thousands rehomed from problem areas.

Stafford Borough Council started to manage bee swarms in 2015, external before they turned into a significant issue.

The authority says its Pest Control Officers have been trained to capture the swarms and manage the hives.

The council made the move because it says it gets dozens of calls every year to remove unwanted urban bee swarms and nests from homes, hospitals, external and schools.

It says they've turned them into a productive source of honey which is sold for charity.

Rebecca Wood
BBC Midlands Today

It's felt much fresher today, with highs of 22C (72F).

And it's going to stay that way for the next few days.

A blind veteran is appealing for the return of four World War Two medals lost at a motorway service station.

Alfred Barlow, 95, of Stockport, Greater Manchester, was returning from a pilgrimage to Normandy, France, on 8 June when he noticed they were missing.

He was at Norton Canes Services on the M6 Toll.

Image source, BLIND VETERANS UK/PA

Mr Barlow said their loss was "very distressing" and he wanted to pass them on to his grandson "which makes it even more upsetting".

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

A fire investigation is under way at a cereal manufacturer in Crewe after a blaze early this morning.

Cheshire Fire Service says a dust unit at Mornflake's factory was well alight when they arrived at the site on Gresty Road early this morning.

They say the fire had travelled up three floors of a four-storey building, external and had six crews on the scene for around seven hours.

The Environment Agency was also called in to check for any pollution leaks, the fire service said.

Tim Wedgwood
BBC Local Live

The 27th Stafford Shakespeare Festival, external gets under way tonight.

Over the last four weeks, a pop-up theatre has appeared in the grounds of Stafford Castle and tonight's curtain up.

They're doing The Tempest, thought to be the last play Shakespeare wrote alone, and the festival runs until 8 July.

Caroline Gall
BBC News Online

All council tower blocks in Stoke-on-Trent are compliant with current fire and safety regulations, the local authority says.

It comes as, today, the city council says all of the 16 blocks that it owns are going to be fitted with sprinklers.

A 30-year plan has been announced to ensure all properties are "fully safety compliant, exceed fire regulations and provide quality accommodation for residents".

League One side Walsall sign Crewe Alexandra defender Jon Guthrie on a two-year contract.