Updated 1:44am 1 June 2012

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Streetly flood victims hit out at door-to-door insurance claims firms floocking to their homes

RESIDENTS have slammed insurance companies who were touting for business just hours after a devastating flood wrecked their homes.Read

How a blood test saved Sutton Coldfield man's life

JOE Dyke has a blood test to thank for the fact he is still here today.Read

Theatre: Christopher Timothy gets ready for Christmas

WHEN Christopher Timothy was a youngster, he loved playing with puppets.Read

Pub Review: The Green House, Lichfield Rd, Sutton Coldfield, B74 2UD

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LOOKING for a relaxing Saturday lunch, we had requested a quiet table for two at this trendy gastropub. So we were more than a little surprised to be sat next to a table with a dozen women celebrating a birthday bash.Read

Streetly fashion show aims to raise money for Erdington hospice

A FASHION show in Streetly is aiming to raise funds for John Taylor Hospice in Erdington and Kids in Wylde Green.Read

New service for women with mental difficulties in Sutton Coldfield

BIRMINGHAM Mind has launched For Women, a weekly service aiming to support women experiencing emotional and mental difficulties.Read

Special report: How a West Midlands charity is helping people with autism

DIMITRI Alexiou has Birmingham’s bus routes on the tip of his tongue. He knows the country’s rail lines and stations like most of us know our backyards.Read

Theatre: Tap the Table tests the character

SUTTON Coldfield theatre company Tap The Table is bringing Test Of Character to the Highbury Theatre.Read

Support for positive parenting in Kingstanding

PARENTS across Kingstanding, Perry Barr and Oscott are invited to join a lunch club aiming to promote positive families.Read

Gold bullion stolen from Great Barr house

THOUSANDS OF POUNDS worth of jewellery and two bars of gold bullion have been stolen during a burglary at a Great Barr house. Read

Revealed: How pre-arranged fight in Wolverhampton village led to 20-man gang brawl

POLICE have revealed how a pre-arranged fight between two youths in a quiet Midland village descended into a 20-man gang brawl, leaving one person with serious stab wounds.Read

Tamworth boxing club which helps keep teens out of trouble calls for help to expand

A BOXING club founded with the goal of turning troubled teenagers’ lives around is calling for help to find a bigger premises so it can reach out to more young men.Read

Noise inspectors to monitor Sainsbury's in Sutton Coldfield

NOISE inspectors will be monitoring a supermarket to ensure its extended operating hours do not affect its elderly neighbours.Read

'Light baby' from Sutton Coldfield heads off to university

HE IS the baby who was not expected to reach adulthood but tomorrow Chris Platt celebrates his 19th birthday and heads off to university.Read

Theatre: End of journey is war time drama

YOUNG Bridgnorth-born actor Graham Butler returns to the Midlands next month with the most dramatic role of his career so far – playing a raw teenage officer sampling the horrors of trench life in the First World War.Read

Coseley phone mast plan set to be approved

PLANNERS are set to approve a 15-metre mobile phone mast close to houses in Coseley despite protests from neighbours.Read

Wylde Green pub

Pub review: Wylde Green, Birmingham Road, Sutton Coldfield

WE DON’T have a television near the dining table at home so it was something of novelty for our youngsters to sit in a booth with its own screen showing cricket.Read

Theatre: EastEnders' Barry gets in line for Rhinestone Mondays at Wolverhampton

Shaun is best-known for playing the part of Barry in the television soap for a decade – but his first love has always been music and the stage.Read

Families battle for younger dementia sufferers

An estimated 750,000 people in the UK suffer from dementia, 62 per cent of whom have Alzheimer’s disease. Some 16,000 of them are under the age of 65. It is often said that the relatives of the victims suffer more emotionally than those struck down by it. Diane Parkes meets the families of two victims, ahead of a special fund-raising event in Birmingham.Read

Theatre: Stepping out for a line dance

A NEW line dancing musical is proving to be a mini-reunion for the pop band Steps with two of its former singers in the show.Read

Theatre: It's off to work for Sam and Linda

HEIGH-ho, heigh-ho it’s off to work they go.Read

Sutton Coldfield students out to Africa

A TEAM of more than 20 students and staff from Plantsbrook School in Sutton Coldfield are spending their summer holidays volunteering in Uganda. The group will be helping to build a classroom.Read

Theatre: Grand mystery and suspense during Summer Play Season

THERE is murder and suspense on stage at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre during the four-show Summer Play Season.Read

Families in Kingstanding at risk from budget cuts

THE rumble of children playing downstairs is more than evident in Janet Higgins’ office. But as a Home-Start scheme manager, there is no sound she enjoys more than that of happy families.Read

Student who suffered 36 per cent burns to legs in Aldridge barbecue accident will undergo a skin graft

A TEENAGE law student who suffered severe burns to her legs after her boyfriend tried to re-light a barbecue using petrol will have a skin graft today.Read

Theatre: Phill Jupitus takes on Monty Python

MONTY Python was a Friday night ritual in the home of Phill Jupitus when he was growing up – so it is no surprise that he was keen to take up an offer to be in the musical Spamalot.Read

Father of tragic Wolverhampton boy Damien Singh Khunkhuna pays for repairs at Punjab school in memory of his son

A POVERTY-stricken school in India bears the picture of a tragic Midland schoolboy above its gates – after his dad paid to have classrooms rebuilt.Read

Walsall car death duo 'were racing'

TWO brothers killed in a road crash had been “racing” another car, a witness told an inquest into their deaths.Read

Walsall town centre branch of Coral Bookmakers is closed over claims it was at the centre of a crack-dealing business

A MIDLAND betting shop was closed by police over allegations it was being used as a crack house.Read

Neighbours tell how they helped rescue two teenagers from Walsall fire

SHOCKED neighbours have told how they helped to rescue two teenage girls from a house fire which cost a man his life.Read

Mystery death of dad and son at their Brownhills home

MYSTERY surrounds the death of a father and son whose bodies were found at their Midland home.Read

Miracle cure for 31-year-old Tamworth stroke victim

MAIZETTA Trotman was just 31 when she collapsed with a stroke which was so severe doctors feared for her life.Read

Kingstanding mum has television makeover

A BIRMINGHAM mum who helps parents like Britain’s Got Talent judge Amanda Holden come to terms with losing their babies has won a glamorous TV makeover.Read

Pints 'n' puns in Sutton Coldfield

COMEDIANS and speakers are invited to take part in a Poems, Puns ‘n’ Pints night in Sutton Coldfield.Read

Sutton Coldfield nursery told to widen drive to fit parents four-by-four vehicles

A NURSERY owner has been told to widen his entrance drive to stop mums in 4x4 vehicles creating gridlock.Read

Four Oaks Tennis Club given go-ahead to install more floodlights

A SUBURBAN tennis club has been given the go-ahead to erect more floodlights – even though a trial of existing lights has four years to run.Read

Walmley housing development put on hold

A MAJOR housing development which villagers claim will ‘kill our community’ has been put on hold by city planners.Read

Call to finish five year work on Sutton Coldfield house

CITY planners have urged the owner of a rare and historic Sutton Coldfield home to complete repair work started following a fire five years ago.Read

The Haven's safe refuge for women escaping domestic violence

The Haven, in Wolverhampton, is one of a network of organisations across the UK providing women with a safe refuge from abusive partners.Read

Funeral of murdered Chasetown dad Richard Deakin takes place in Great Wyrley

FAMILY and friends of a Staffordshire dad of two shot dead in his own home said a sad final farewell at his funeral.Read

Sutton Coldfield runner to race in London Marathon for Amnesty International

RUNNER Matthew Lumley is hoping every step he takes in the London Marathon will be raising cash to protect human rights.Read

Birmingham designer Keman Allen shares his tips for the top with students at Perry Beeches School.

BIRMINGHAM clothing designer Keman Allen dropped into a Perry Barr school to share his tips for the top with students.Read

Sutton Coldfield revellers told to behave if you want late night chicken

REVELLERS in Sutton Coldfield have been told to behave themselves or they will force their late night fried chicken take-away will be forced to close early.Read

Third time lucky for housing plan in Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield

A CONTROVERSIAL backland development has been given the go-ahead at the third attempt despite protests from residents.Read

Black Country children reach for the stars with Stageworks drama club in Aldridge

YOUNGSTERS at a Black Country drama school are stagestruck as they reach for the stars.Read

Council sorry over drivers wrongly fined for parking in Lichfield

A COUNCIL has apologised after motorists were wrongly issued parking tickets on a city centre car park.Read

Sutton Coldfield nursery lands outstanding Ofsted inspection

CHILDREN in Sutton Coldfield spelt out what they think of their ‘outstanding’ nursery following a successful visit from Ofsted inspectors.Read

Horse found badly injured in Burntwood field

POLICE were today trying to solve a mystery which left a horse badly injured.Read

Fundraiser to help Great Barr teen train for paralympics

WHEN teenager Ryan Cockbill broke his neck three years ago in a swimming pool accident, his life was changed forever.Read

Warder hurt during 'riot' at Midlands young offenders' facility

A PRISON officer had boiling water hurled at him during violence at a Black Country young offenders’ institution, it emerged today.Read

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