Thief drags woman, 72, along pavement in Walsall
31 Dec 09 13:12 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
News
Thief drags woman, 72, along pavement in Walsall
BBC News 31 Dec 09
A 72-year-old woman was dragged along the pavement after she refused to allow a thief to take her handbag when she got off a bus in Wolverhampton Road on Tuesday...
Thief drags woman, 72, along pavement in Walsall
BBC News 31 Dec 09
A 72-year-old woman was dragged along the pavement after she refused to allow a thief to take her handbag when she got off a bus in Wolverhampton Road on Tuesday...
Great Barr tribute march for war heroes
Great Barr tribute march for war heroes
Express & Star 31 Dec 09
Young comrades from Great Barr braved the freezing weather and walked from The Cat and Fiddle pub in Beacon Road to Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham to raise cash for Help For Heroes. Private Luke Tuckey, of 3 Mercian Regiment, came up with the plan after a friend had his legs blown off in Afghanistan...
BBC 31 Dec Selly Oak army hospital matron honoured
Royal Centre for Defence Medicine Selly Oak
Help for Heroes Home
Vandals wreck Darlaston memorial to teenager
Vandals wreck Darlaston memorial
Express & Star 31 Dec 09
Thugs vandalised a memorial on Christmas Day at Darlaston's Kings Hill Park, set up for a teenager who took his own life...
Facebook RIP Jake Wilkes
New Wednesfield diner to bring 38 jobs
New Wednesfield diner to bring 38 jobs
Express & Star 31 Dec 09
Restaurant chain Cosmo has announced it will start fitting out a new branch at Bentley Bridge Retail Park in Wednesfield next month, creating 38 jobs. The Pan Asian restaurant firm, which operates 10 restaurants across England and Wales, is expected to open the diner in the spring...
Cosmo Home
More news in brief
More news in brief
These headline links are just for archive reference.
Main stories are published on the YamYam's front page
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News
BBC 31 Dec Norovirus shuts 4 Good Hope wards
Express & Star 31 Dec Lorry fire at West Brom hotel
B' Post 31 Dec Deer poacher arrested in Penkridge
Walsall Council 31 Dec Gritters gear-up for cold snap
Express & Star 31 Bilston estate work to start in days
BBC 31 Dec Irish cardinal Cahal Daley dies at 92
Telegraph 31 Dec PD James questions BBC salaries
Pink News 31 Dec BBC presenter Jane Hill comes out
E&S 30 Dec Man's body found in Darlaston canal
Express & Star 30 Dec Staffs cut mobile libraries
Express & Star 30 Dec British hostage freed in Iraq
Beacon Radio 30 Dec Drunk cooking fire warning
Walsall Council 29 Dec Bloxwich New Year cancelled
B'ham Post 29 Dec Huge Brierley Hill recycling fire
E&S 29 Dec Wolverhampton '5th worst' in world'
Beacon Radio 29 Dec Xmas swine flu advice
B'Mail 29 Dec Train hits man on Droitwich crossing
E&S 29 Dec Drug smuggling Briton executed
E&S 29 Dec Al-Qaeda 'responsible' for airliner plot
B' Post 29 Dec Security tight on Brum-USA flights
E&S 28 Dec Flights to US hit by tighter security
BBC News 28 Dec Police hunt Oldbury neck stabber
B' Post 28 Dec Police hunt Smethwick hit-and-run
Express & Star 28 Dec Cradley mosque arson attack
Beacon 28 Dec Mums say goodbye to new recruits
E&S 28 Dec Chasewater to be drained from 4 Jan
E&S 28 Dec Wolves M&S left unlocked over Xmas
E&S 28 Dec Plans for £24m Merry Hill expansion
E&S 28 Dec Shoppers in closed Wolves M&S store
Mercury 27 Dec Ex-primate condemns call to steal
Mercury 27 Dec Edgbaston MP £63k 2nd home profit
B'ham Post 27 Dec Bullring shop's 10 min sell out
BBC 27 Dec King of Tonga to visit Staffs memorial
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Business
Telegraph 31 Dec Shoppers rush to beat VAT rise
B'ham Post 31 Dec Alert on threat of oil price rise
B'ham Mail 31 Dec Takeover 'would kill Bournville'
E&S 30 Dec Cannock's U-Bar on market for £520k
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Sport
Mercury 28 Dec Cricket: England in driving seat
B'ham Mail 28 Dec Byfield's soft spot for Villa
B'ham Mail 28 Dec Graydon ready to be walked over
These headline links are just for archive reference.
Main stories are published on the YamYam's front page
.....................................................................
News
BBC 31 Dec Norovirus shuts 4 Good Hope wards
Express & Star 31 Dec Lorry fire at West Brom hotel
B' Post 31 Dec Deer poacher arrested in Penkridge
Walsall Council 31 Dec Gritters gear-up for cold snap
Express & Star 31 Bilston estate work to start in days
BBC 31 Dec Irish cardinal Cahal Daley dies at 92
Telegraph 31 Dec PD James questions BBC salaries
Pink News 31 Dec BBC presenter Jane Hill comes out
E&S 30 Dec Man's body found in Darlaston canal
Express & Star 30 Dec Staffs cut mobile libraries
Express & Star 30 Dec British hostage freed in Iraq
Beacon Radio 30 Dec Drunk cooking fire warning
Walsall Council 29 Dec Bloxwich New Year cancelled
B'ham Post 29 Dec Huge Brierley Hill recycling fire
E&S 29 Dec Wolverhampton '5th worst' in world'
Beacon Radio 29 Dec Xmas swine flu advice
B'Mail 29 Dec Train hits man on Droitwich crossing
E&S 29 Dec Drug smuggling Briton executed
E&S 29 Dec Al-Qaeda 'responsible' for airliner plot
B' Post 29 Dec Security tight on Brum-USA flights
E&S 28 Dec Flights to US hit by tighter security
BBC News 28 Dec Police hunt Oldbury neck stabber
B' Post 28 Dec Police hunt Smethwick hit-and-run
Express & Star 28 Dec Cradley mosque arson attack
Beacon 28 Dec Mums say goodbye to new recruits
E&S 28 Dec Chasewater to be drained from 4 Jan
E&S 28 Dec Wolves M&S left unlocked over Xmas
E&S 28 Dec Plans for £24m Merry Hill expansion
E&S 28 Dec Shoppers in closed Wolves M&S store
Mercury 27 Dec Ex-primate condemns call to steal
Mercury 27 Dec Edgbaston MP £63k 2nd home profit
B'ham Post 27 Dec Bullring shop's 10 min sell out
BBC 27 Dec King of Tonga to visit Staffs memorial
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Business
Telegraph 31 Dec Shoppers rush to beat VAT rise
B'ham Post 31 Dec Alert on threat of oil price rise
B'ham Mail 31 Dec Takeover 'would kill Bournville'
E&S 30 Dec Cannock's U-Bar on market for £520k
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Sport
Mercury 28 Dec Cricket: England in driving seat
B'ham Mail 28 Dec Byfield's soft spot for Villa
B'ham Mail 28 Dec Graydon ready to be walked over
MBE for Brownhills volunteer
MBE for Brownhills volunteer
Express & Star 31 Dec 09
Pat Davies, who has been instrumental in turning around the fortunes of Brownhills’ once-notorious Avenues Estate, has been recognised in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List with an MBE...
Walsall Council 31 Dec Walsall children's chief awarded MBE
New Year Honours: Walsall MBEs
Mrs Patricia Ann Davies For voluntary service to Young People in Brownhills
Mrs Pauline Pilkington Director, Children's Services, Walsall Council. For services to Local Government
Mrs Maureen Woodcock Formerly Non-Exec Director, Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust. For services to Healthcare
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Mercury 31 Dec Midlands New Year Honours
BBC 31 Dec Selly Oak army hosp. matron honoured
Guardian 31 Dec No honours for MPs or bankers
Guardian 31 Dec Star Trek actor Stewart knighted
Telegraph 31 Dec OBEs for rock legends Status Quo
Guardian 31 Dec Knighthoods for Lions coach Ian McGeechan & F1 champ Jenson Button
Fears for Bloxwich surgery as doctors step down
Fears for Bloxwich surgery as doctors step down
Express & Star 31 Dec 09
More than 3,000 Walsall patients could be forced to switch GP surgeries as two doctors retire from the practice. Abbey Square surgery, on the Mossley estate in Bloxwich, is under threat of closure as the departure leaves only one GP working there...
Neighbourhood Professionals Doctors in Walsall
Walsall NHS GPs in Walsall pdf
New Year Honours: Walsall MBEs
31 Dec 09 11:47 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
New Year Honours: Walsall MBEs
Mrs Patricia Ann Davies For voluntary service to Young People in Brownhills
Mrs Pauline Pilkington Director, Children's Services, Walsall Council. For services to Local Government
Mrs Maureen Woodcock Formerly Non-Exec Director, Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust. For services to Healthcare
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Mercury 31 Dec Midlands New Year Honours
BBC 31 Dec Selly Oak army hosp. matron honoured
Guardian 31 Dec No honours for MPs or bankers
Guardian 31 Dec Star Trek actor Stewart knighted
Telegraph 31 Dec OBEs for rock legends Status Quo
Guardian 31 Dec Knighthoods for Lions coach Ian McGeechan & F1 champ Jenson Button
Mrs Patricia Ann Davies For voluntary service to Young People in Brownhills
Mrs Pauline Pilkington Director, Children's Services, Walsall Council. For services to Local Government
Mrs Maureen Woodcock Formerly Non-Exec Director, Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust. For services to Healthcare
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Mercury 31 Dec Midlands New Year Honours
BBC 31 Dec Selly Oak army hosp. matron honoured
Guardian 31 Dec No honours for MPs or bankers
Guardian 31 Dec Star Trek actor Stewart knighted
Telegraph 31 Dec OBEs for rock legends Status Quo
Guardian 31 Dec Knighthoods for Lions coach Ian McGeechan & F1 champ Jenson Button
Flood-hit Wednesbury school closed for extra week
News
Flood-hit Wednesbury school closed for extra week
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
A Wednesbury school that was flooded by half a million litres of water will be shut all next week, giving children an extra five days off. Pupils at Old Park Primary School will be on a forced holiday after the boiler room flooded...
Express & Star 29 Dec School’s heating flooded
Oak Park Primary School Home
Flood-hit Wednesbury school closed for extra week
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
A Wednesbury school that was flooded by half a million litres of water will be shut all next week, giving children an extra five days off. Pupils at Old Park Primary School will be on a forced holiday after the boiler room flooded...
Express & Star 29 Dec School’s heating flooded
Oak Park Primary School Home
All aboard the Quango gravy train
30 Dec 09 17:17 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
All aboard the gravy train
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
A quango set up to bring investment into the West Midlands has spent £75,000 of taxpayers’ money letting its staff fly business class, it was revealed today. Advantage West Midlands also spent £31,000 on first class rail travel but claimed today the costs were justified so that staff can “arrive fresh” for meetings...
B'ham Post 30 Dec WM Auto industry heads off to India for AutoExpo
Express & Star 4 Aug Outcry at ‘wasteful’ tax cash spending
Blog Bob Piper 6 Jul Ending the Quangocracies
B'ham Post 25 May Ken Clarke warns AWM over future Tory plans
B'ham Post 28 Apr Anger over cost of Advantage West Midlands conference
B'ham Post 30 Mar AWM chief receives CBE
Advantage West Midlands Home
Police release vice figures
Police release vice figures
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
About 200 arrests have been made by police for prostitution-related crimes in the Black Country during the past three years. Wolverhampton West recorded 84 arrests and Walsall 34 - which includes kerb crawlers and women plying for trade. The area with the fewest arrests listed was the Bloxwich operational command unit, which recorded three arrests during the past three years, all of which were in 2006-07...
Beacon Radio 29 Dec A route out of prostitution in the West Mids
B’ham Mail 12 Nov Walsall prostitutes battered rival
YamYam links 31 Oct Manor Women's project praised by Walsall police chief
Embrace Home for vulnerable women (Coventry)
Manor Women's Project Home (Walsall)
Music man Dread Lester dies at 54
Music man Dread Lester dies at 54
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
A leading Wolverhampton musician and youth worker who worked with artists including Beverley Knight and Goldie has died suddenly. Jamaica-born Lester Samuels, affectionately known as ‘Dread Lester’ due to his dreadlocks, died at his home in Newbridge on December 27...
Chatty Mouth Dread Lester tributes
Secret review launched over regional counter-terrorism hub
30 Dec 09 14:11 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Secret review launched over regional counter-terrorism hub
Alun Thorne B'ham Mail 30 Dec 09
Scotland Yard has launched a secret internal review into a Birmingham-based regional counter-terrorism hub which was set up to identify potentially dangerous radicals plotting atrocities. Fears have arisen of turf wars erupting between senior officers during fast-moving operations that straddle force boundaries...
Telegraph 30 Dec Terror concerns over mobile phones in prisons
Times 30 Dec US intelligence failed to act over 'Nigerian attacker'
BBC News 30 Dec Western counter-terrorism help 'not enough for Yemen'
Financial Times 30 Dec Terrorism: From 9/11 to Detroit
Gloucestershire Echo 29 Dec Tim Brain to lead terrorism review
Home Office Counter-terrorism strategy
NaCTSO National Counter Terrorism Security Office
CPNI Centre for the Protection of National Security
West Midlands Police Home
Express & Star 22 Dec £2m spent in Black Country fighting terrorism
Dept for Communities & Local Govt Prevent strategy
Dept for children schools and families The Prevent Strategy: Stopping people becoming or supporting terrorists and violent extremists pdf
B'ham Mail 16 Dec 'White' working class in Walsall to get extra cash
Advertiser 18 Dec Connecting with Birchills' communities frustrations
B'ham Post 16 Dec Unemployment falls in West Midlands but region still tops jobless league
B'ham Post 14 Dec Gov't cash to discourage far-right support
B'ham Mail 12 Dec WM anti-terror police insist they are ‘not spying’ on nurseries
Times 11 Dec Terror police to monitor nurseries for Islamic radicalisation
B'ham Mail 10 Dec Counter terrorists look for extremist toddlers
Express & Star 11 Dec Nursery alert on child terror brainwashing
Guardian 9 Dec Let's be honest about Prevent
Guardian 8 Dec Suspicion undermines anti-extremism project, says Denham
Telegraph 8 Dec Racism among white supremacists is getting worse
Institute of Race Relations 17 Oct Spooked: How not to prevent violent extremism
Times 8 Jun Mainstream dismay at BNP election breakthrough
Telegraph 8 Jun Far right gains across Europe
Times 8 Jun BNP wins its first Euro seats
BBC News 8 Jun Labour slumps to third in West Mids
YamYam 8 Jun West Mids and Walsall Euro election results
Great Barr teen pitches garden tent fundraiser
News
Great Barr teen pitches garden tent fundraiser
Kat Keogh B'ham Mail 30 Dec 09
Sixth form student Amy Welch is embarking on a rather chilly challenge next month to help fund a trip of a lifetime. The 16-year-old from Great Barr will be braving the elements and pitching a tent in her back garden every night during January...
Great Barr teen pitches garden tent fundraiser
Kat Keogh B'ham Mail 30 Dec 09
Sixth form student Amy Welch is embarking on a rather chilly challenge next month to help fund a trip of a lifetime. The 16-year-old from Great Barr will be braving the elements and pitching a tent in her back garden every night during January...
West Midlands Ambulance Service make 999 plea to public
30 Dec 09 13:42 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
WM Ambulance Service make 999 plea to public
Mercury 30 Dec 09
People needing medical treatment in the West Midlands have been asked to think twice before dialling 999...
B'ham Mail 30 Dec Paramedics go live on hi-tech radio system
BBC News 24 Dec Ambulance call-outs for falls go up by 50%
BBC News 21 Dec Ambulance promote 999 appeal
B'ham Mail 9 Dec Patients wait for hours at A&Es across the region
Express & Star 1 Dec Third of WM ambulances fail to hit time targets
B'ham Post 1 Oct Ambulance service gets £10m boost
BBC News 30 Sep Ambulance staff abuse 'sickening'
B'ham Post 25 Sep One-third of WM paramedics assaulted while answering 999 calls
Express & Star 22 Sep Third of ambulances miss response target
B'ham Mail 2 Sep Aldridge ambulance pledge over Morrisons' plans
B'ham Post 11 Aug Virus blamed for WM paramedics reaching "crisis point"
Mercury 9 Aug Overstretched WM paramedics’ response times shock
WM Ambulance Service Home
Big freeze on way to region
30 Dec 09 13:36 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
News
Big freeze on way to region
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
The big freeze will keep the West Midlands in its grip over the New Year, with the region shivering with temperatures as low as -6C (21F)...
B'ham Mail 30 Dec Six hurt in M6 crash as snow fell
B'ham Mail 30 Dec M6 repair work set to cause 15 months chaos
Express & Star 30 Dec Snow and ice pictures around Walsall
BBC News 30 Dec More snow forecast in central Wales and England
Express & Star 30 Dec Call for Sandwell binmen to clear snow from drives
Mercury 30 Dec WM Ambulance Service make 999 plea to public
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The Met Office
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Walsall 16 day forecast
Netweather.tv
Netweather.tv WM long range (3 month) forecast
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Big freeze on way to region
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
The big freeze will keep the West Midlands in its grip over the New Year, with the region shivering with temperatures as low as -6C (21F)...
B'ham Mail 30 Dec Six hurt in M6 crash as snow fell
B'ham Mail 30 Dec M6 repair work set to cause 15 months chaos
Express & Star 30 Dec Snow and ice pictures around Walsall
BBC News 30 Dec More snow forecast in central Wales and England
Express & Star 30 Dec Call for Sandwell binmen to clear snow from drives
Mercury 30 Dec WM Ambulance Service make 999 plea to public
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Weather
The Met Office
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Netweather.tv
Netweather.tv WM long range (3 month) forecast
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Meteox.co.uk
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sat24.com
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Six hurt in M6 crash as snow fell
30 Dec 09 13:31 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Six hurt in M6 crash as snow fell
B'ham Mail 30 Dec 09
Six people including two young boys were taken to hospital following two separate crashes on the same stretch of the M6 as snow gripped Birmingham. Three ambulances were initially alerted to a two-car crash northbound between junctions 5 and 6, Castle Bromwich, at 7.40pm on Tuesday...
B'ham Mail 30 Dec M6 repair work set to cause 15 months chaos
BBC News 30 Dec More snow forecast in central Wales and England
Express & Star 30 Dec Big freeze on way to region
Express & Star 30 Dec Snow and ice pictures around Walsall
Express & Star 30 Dec Call for Sandwell binmen to clear snow from drives
Mercury 30 Dec WM Ambulance Service make 999 plea to public
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Walsall Wood pit-head sculpture ready to be unveiled
Walsall Wood pit-head sculpture ready to be unveiled
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
A controversial £45,000 public art project celebrating Walsall Wood's industrial heritage is set to be unveiled in February. The opening ceremony will be held at noon on February 6, at St John’s Church in Walsall Wood...
BrownhillsBob on Twitter 30 Dec 09 Meals on wheels are going up, your daycentre has closed, but it's OK: we're paying tribute to you with 18 tons of metal
B'ham Post 14 May Walsall Wood coal-mining sculpture approved
Blog Brownhills Bob 13 May Walsall Wood mining memorial
Brownhills Bob is not impressed... have your say!
Express & Star 23 May Sculptor's memorial far from the pits
Walsall Council PR 13 May Green light for colliery sculpture
Blog Cllr Mike Flower 17 April Seeking permission for memorial
Walsall Council 29 Jan Pit head to rise again
Walsall Council PR 19 Aug 08 Have your say on Walsall Wood scheme
Tributes paid after town crier dies
30 Dec 09 12:12 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Tributes paid after town crier dies
The Press Association 29 Dec 09
Tributes have been paid to London's town crier, Peter Moore, who died aged 70. Mr Moore, who was the capital's town crier for 31 years, died at his home in Wandsworth. Mr Moore was brought up by Barnardo's in Walsall and "ran away to seek his fortune in London"...
Express & Star 30 Dec Tributes paid to town crier
BBC News 30 Dec London town crier dies
YourTube BBC News 31 Mar 08 Crier's image used on BNP leaflet
London Town Crier Home
London Town Crier Peter Moore pictures
Barnardo's Home video 'The Teens' Speech'
Manor Hospital building will make way for car park
Manor Hospital building will make way for car park
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
The crumbling Block 55 outpatients building next to the Accident and Emergency department at Walsall Manor Hospital will be demolished and replaced with more than 40 parking spaces in a bid to ease traffic problems where neighbours have complained about vehicles left on residential streets. A new 300-space car park also opened nearby at the former Wilcox Motor Bodies site just weeks ago...
B'ham Mail 15 Sep Free Manor parking for cancer patients
Advertiser 7 Aug Manor Hospital makes £500k from parking
B'ham Post 7 Aug Hospitals blasted after raising £9m in car park charges
The YamYam 2 Oct Alumwell parking misery continues after crackdown
Advertiser 21 Sep Walsall parking crackdown hailed as big success
Advertiser 27 Aug Crackdown on illegal Walsall parking
B'ham Mail 24 Aug Safetynet launched to catch illegal Walsall parkers
BBC News 22 Aug Police target illegal car parking in Walsall
Express & Star 16 Jul Manor hospital parking fee doubles
Express & Star 15 May Ring road roadworks attacked as Wilcox jobs axed
Walsall NHS Trust Manor Hospital site plan
Walsall NHS Trust Home
Long queues to get rid of holiday rubbish
Long queues to get rid of holiday rubbish
Express & Star 30 Dec 09
Drivers were caught up in queues as they flocked to get rid of their Christmas rubbish at tips in the Black Country. Long queues of cars snaked along Anchor Lane, Coseley, on Tuesday and tips in Aldridge and Bloxwich were also packed...
Cllr Ian Shires 29 Dec Comment: Mixed message on recycling over Christmas
Walsall Council Holiday recycling arrangements pdf
Express & Star 21 Dec Last Willenhall bin collection for nearly a month
Beacon Radio 21 Dec Don't waste Xmas food
Walsall Council 18 Dec Joy as recycling hits all time high
Walsall Council 16 Dec Remember to recycle this Christmas
Walsall Council 14 Dec Christmas rubbish and recycling arrangements in Walsall
Recycle Now Home
Roadside memorials to be binned after 30 days
30 Dec 09 11:36 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Roadside memorials to be binned after 30 days
The YamYam 27 Dec 09
Walsall cabinet have agreed a new policy to allow grieving families to place roadside memorials close to the sites of fatal accidents for a maximum of 30 days. If the tributes are not removed after a month, the council will remove them and then dispose of them.
Environment cabinet member Councillor Mike Flower described the issue as being extremely sensitive and delicate and that the council was trying to be fair to mourners and residents who live near to the impromptu memorials. He said: “The natural instinct is to go where a person has passed on and lay tributes. But we also have people living in houses nearby and have to have a balance.”
Memorials to victims of road traffic accidents were at one time limited to flowers being tied to trees and lamp posts, but recently car number plates, beer cans, toys, football shirts and scarves and even bunting have been added to the shrines.
It is claimed that roadside memorials distract motorists and disrupt the work of highway agencies.
B'ham Mail 30 Dec Roadside memorials will be binned after 30 days
Walsall Council Transport and streets
Walsall Council Bereavement
Snow on way to Walsall threatens travel plans
29 Dec 09 14:26 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Snow on way to Walsall threatens travel
Express & Star 29 Dec 09
Snow was forecast to hit the West Midlands on Tuesday night with more due on Wednesday, with up to four inches expected in some areas. The region has so far avoided the worst of the wintry weather that has caused chaos across other parts of the country over Christmas, but people are being warned to expect further disruption...
B'ham Post 29 Dec More snow expected
BBC News 29 Dec Heavy snow warning for Wales and parts of England
Met Office 1:52pm, 29 Dec Heavy snow warning for Staffs from 16:00 Tue to 03:00 Wed
Photo Lee Jordan
B'ham Mail 28 Dec 10cm of snow expected in Walsall this week
Express & Stars 28 Dec Salt sales up as snow forecast
Express & Stars 26 Dec Here comes the snow to Walsall
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Weather
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Netweather.tv
Netweather.tv WM long range (3 month) forecast
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Meteox.co.uk
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Traffic England Walsall roads incident map
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89% of WM burglaries go unsolved
29 Dec 09 14:09 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
89% of WM burglaries go unsolved
Coliin Drury Express & Star 29 Dec 09
Almost 90 per cent of all burglaries committed in the West Midlands go unpunished with no suspect ever being caught, shock new figures show. Of 103,000 break-ins across the region in the last three years, only 10,941 have ended with people being charged...
Victim Support West Mids
Walsall Victim Support Phone 01922 644 000, 42 Upper Rushall St WS1 2HA
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Wednesbury school’s heating flooded
News
Wednesbury school’s heating flooded
Express & Star 29 Dec 09
Fire crews pumped half a million litres of water out of the boiler room at Old Park Primary School in Wednesbury after it flooded on Monday night...
Oak Park Primary School Home
Wednesbury school’s heating flooded
Express & Star 29 Dec 09
Fire crews pumped half a million litres of water out of the boiler room at Old Park Primary School in Wednesbury after it flooded on Monday night...
Oak Park Primary School Home
Christmas vandals wreck Walsall bus stops
29 Dec 09 13:10 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Christmas vandals wreck more Walsall bus stops
Express & Stars 29 Dec 09
Four bus shelters and a telephone box were smashed up by yobs in Walsall, causing hundreds of pounds worth of damage. Glass was left strewn on the pavement in Wednesbury Road near the town centre following the wrecking spree.
It is believed the vandals responsible attacked the shelters and the kiosk which are situated between Vicarage Road and Corporation Street junctions overnight on Christmas Day.
A clean up and repair operation is due to be carried out.
Express & Stars 26 Dec Yob gangs put a stop to 29 bus shelters
Express & Star 15 Dec Fears that bus shelter plans will attract yobs
Advertiser 23 Sep Historic Pelsall bus stops given shelter
B'ham Mail 31 Jul Half of Centro's CCTV bus shelters without cameras
Garrick Outdoor Bus shelter suppliers
YouTube The making of a bus shelter
Centre Bus stops & shelters
Walsall woman beats the car clampers
29 Dec 09 12:28 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Walsall woman beats the car clampers
Neil Elkes B'ham Mail 29 Dec 09
A 20-year-old student nurse from Walsall has taken on car clampers and won a £390 fine back following court action. Lydia Dykes was left stranded in Newtown after Midway Parks decided a £1 all-day pay and display parking ticket was only valid for 12 hours and towed her black Ford Ka away...
B'ham Mail 20 Aug Student clamped for ‘all day’ parking
B'ham Post 18 Aug 08 Midway Parks in TV spotlight
Express & Stars 28 Dec Big rise in number of legal wheel clampers
RAC 28 Dec No bargains for motorists clamped during the Christmas sales
Advertiser 24 Dec Pleck man's car 'damaged' during clamping fiasco
Express & Star 5 Dec Pleck man's victory in car clamping charges
Elite Parking Control Home
B'ham Mail 17 Sep Mum wins court case against car clamping firm
BBC 16 Sep Car clampers could face Asbo bans
Mail 13 Sep Curb the cowboy clampers
B'ham Post 2 Sep Illegal car clampers face having their assets seized
B'ham Mail 9 Sep Car clamping firm boss arrested
B'ham Mail 27 Aug Clampers released on bail
B'ham Mail 26 Aug Car clamping men arrested
Mercury 21 Aug Wheelclamping practices 'immoral'
Telegraph 17 Jul Birmingham clampers arrested
B'ham Mail 17 Jul Four bailed on rogue clamping
B'ham Mail 15 Jun Time to clamp down on parking menace
Bruce George Blog 7 Apr Campaign to ban rogue wheel clampers
Big rise in number of legal wheel clampers
28 Dec 09 15:26 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Big rise in number of legal wheel clampers
Express & Stars 28 Dec 09
Car clampers are on the rise as the number of people holding licences for the unpopular practice has soared this year. Figures released today by drivers group the RAC Foundation reveal that 2,100 individuals are now licensed to clamp. This is an increase from 1,200 in March 2008 and 1,900 in April 2009...
RAC 28 Dec No bargains for motorists clamped during the Christmas sales
Advertiser 24 Dec Pleck man's car 'damaged' during clamping fiasco
Express & Star 5 Dec Pleck man's victory in car clamping charges
Elite Parking Control Home
B'ham Mail 17 Sep Mum wins court case against car clamping firm
BBC 16 Sep Car clampers could face Asbo bans
Mail 13 Sep Curb the cowboy clampers
B'ham Post 2 Sep Illegal car clampers face having their assets seized
B'ham Mail 9 Sep Car clamping firm boss arrested
B'ham Mail 27 Aug Clampers released on bail
B'ham Mail 26 Aug Car clamping men arrested
B'ham Mail 20 Aug Walsall student clamped for ‘all day’ parking
Mercury 21 Aug Wheelclamping practices 'immoral'
Telegraph 17 Jul Birmingham clampers arrested
B'ham Mail 17 Jul Four bailed on rogue clamping
B'ham Mail 15 Jun Time to clamp down on parking menace
Bruce George Blog 7 Apr Campaign to ban rogue wheel clampers
10cm of snow expected in Walsall this week
28 Dec 09 14:20 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
10cm of snow expected in Walsall this week
Rebekah Oruye B'ham Mail 28 Dec 09
Snow is on its way to Walsall, weather forecasters warned today. It is likely to arrive on Tuesday and Wednesday, with snow showers lingering over both days. Chris Bulmer, at the MET office, said moderate weather warnings had been issued for most parts of the West Midlands, with snow likely to accumulate up to 10cm in some areas... Express & Stars 28 Dec Salt sales up as snow forecast
Flickr Photo Lee Jordan
Met Office 11.05 am, 28 Dec 60% heavy snow warning for WM from Tue morning to Wednesday evening
Express & Stars 26 Dec Here comes the snow to Walsall
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Councillor admits Staffs Hoard may have to be shared with Pope
Councillor admits Staffs Hoard may have to be shared with Pope
Adam Aspinall Mercury 27 Dec 09
A council chief has admitted Britain may have to share the Staffordshire Hoard with the Vatican. Councillor Martin Mullaney, Birmingham City Council’s Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport and Culture, said he was “honoured” that the Pope was interested in the amazing treasure...
Lichfield Blog 28 Dec Hoard newsletter set to go live
Mercury 20 Dec Staffs Hoard wanted by Pope and Vatican
Stirrer 14 Oct Pope wants to see Saxon Hoard
B'ham Post 24 Sep Pope 'to visit Birmingham' in 2010
Staffordshire Hoard Home
Express & Star 27 Nov Staffordshire Hoard’s worth closer to 10 million says expert
Stirrer 27 Nov Anyone got the million to spare?
BBC 27 Nov 'No tax cash' for treasure hoard
BBC 26 Nov Anglo-Saxon gold hoard is worth £3.285 million
Telegraph 26 Nov Staffordshire treasure hoard valued at £3.28m
Express & Star 23 Nov Hoard pair to get £3m
B’ham Mail 23 Nov Hoard to net £3m
Lichfield Blog 17 Nov Drinkers get early taste of Staffordshire Hoard ale
The Backyard Brewhouse Home
Express & Star 12 Nov Hoard pictures to be sold
B’ham Mail 12 Nov B’ham could hold permanent Hoard
Burton Mail 6 Nov Repton lays claim to Staffordshire Hoard
Repton Village Home
B’ham Post 11 Nov Gordon Brown: Tamworth “very stong case” for Staffs Hoard home
B'ham Post 10 Nov B’ham museum gets permission to use Hoard photos
B'ham Mail 4 Nov Staffordshire Hoard is heading back to Mildands
B’ham Mail 3 Nov Staffordshire Hoard goes on display at British Museum
British Museum The Staffordshire Hoard
Express & Star 2 Nov Hopes are raised on home for the Burntwood Hoard
B'ham Mail 2 Nov Crowds expected at London display
BBC 28 Oct Farmer's disbelief at gold find
B'ham Mail 24 Oct Midlands given four-month deadline to secure Hoard
BBC News 23 Oct Bid to keep treasure in Midlands
Express & Star 16 Oct Stafford Knot found in hoard jewels
BBC Staffs 9 Aug 05 Stafford Knot
Bagnall Village Stafford Knot
Wikipedia Stafford Knot
B'ham Post 15 Oct Missed chance fears to raise cash
B'ham Post 14 Oct Queues for last Hoard glimpse
Stirrer 14 Oct Pope wants to see Saxon Hoard
B'ham Post 24 Sep Pope 'to visit Birmingham' in 2010
B'ham Mail 9 Oct Visitors told to wrap up warm for last weekend of Hoard
Express & Star 10 Oct Final day of gold display pics
Guardian 8 Oct Unfair to label metal detectorists as mere treasure hunters
BBC News 7 Oct Minister backs region's gold call
Express & Star 7 Oct Hodge: Hoard should remain
Bloxidge Tallygraph 5 Oct Appeal launched to raise funds for the Staffordshire Hoard
BBC News 5 Oct Campaign to keep treasure hoard
B'ham Post 5 Oct Appeal to keep gold in Midlands
Mercury 3 Oct Finder wants a quite life
B'ham Mail 3 Oct But where should hoard be housed?
B'ham Post 2 Oct Staffordshire pledge to keep Hoard in county
Express & Star 2 Oct Shugborough lines up for Hoard home
Express & Star 30 Sep Lord Lieutenant claims Hoard for Staffs
The YamYam 29 Sep Comment: After the gold rush
Express & Star 29 Sep Four-way tussle over the Hoard
B'ham Mail 29 Sep Campaign to keep hoard in WM
Bloxidge Tallygraph 27 Sep Treasure was found by Bloxwich detector club member
Lichfield Blog 27 Sep Stoke-on-Trent want historic display
Lichfield Blog 25 Sep Hoard should be in Lichfield
BBC News 25 Sep What happens next to gold hoard?
B'ham Post 25 Sep Funds sought to keep hoard in B'ham
Lichfield Blog 24 Sep Lichfield vows to do find 'justice'
Telegraph 26 Sep Clean sweep for the metal detectives
Time 25 Sep Treasure seekers fell out over handling find
B'ham Post 25 Sep Finder may share £1m windfall
B'ham Post 24 Sep Finder has no legal claim to hoard
Express & Star 25 Sep Warning to treasure hunters
BBC News 30 Sep Museum Hoard ticketing apology
B'ham Post 28 Sep 10,000 visit Hoard @ B'ham Museum
B'ham Mail 26 Sep Thousands flock to B'ham Museum
BBC News 25 Sep Hordes visit Anglo-Saxon hoard
B'ham Mail 25 Sep Anglo Saxon gold goes on display
Express & Star 24 Sep Burntwood find rewrites history
BBC News 24 Sep Gold hoard found
Express & Star 24 Sep Gold treasure pictures
BBC News 24 Sep More treasure pictures
B'ham Mail 24 Sep Anglo Saxon gold find (pics)
B'ham Mail 24 Sep Find worth 7 figure sum
National Council for Metal Detecting Home
Wikipedia Sutton Hoo (largest previous find)
US National Park Service Klondike Gold Rush
BBC History The Anglo Saxons
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Chasewater being drained as New Year work starts
Chasewater being drained as New Year work starts
The YamYam 28 Dec 09
Chasewater dam is being drained as part of a £2.5 million restoration project to make the structure safe.
Vital repair work will get underway at the Staffordshire reservoir on 4th January.
Since 1998 around £500,000 has been spent keeping the eastern dam maintained but major improvement works are needed to meet health and safety requirements.
Chasewater Dam blog 23 Nov Dam works update
Chasewater Dam blog 23 Nov Keep yourself safe during the works
Lichfield Council Sep Securing Chasewater Reservoir's future pdf
Lichfield Blog 22 Dec Kids cut ribbon on new Chasewater boardwalk
Lichfield Blog 16 Nov Nature conservation lessons for Chasetown kids
Blog Brownhills Bob 19 Sep Odd things at Chasewater
Lichfield Blog 19 Aug Chasewater cows move on to pastures new
Express & Star 5 May Cows come home to Chasewater
Pig Blog 16 Aug A walk out to Chasewater
Lichfield Blog 7 Jul Investigations start ahead of dam
Lichfield Blog 6 Jun Code launched for dog walkers
Express & Star 6 June Chasewater dog warning
Blog Brownhills Bob 18 May Motorbikes at Chasewater
The Mercury 16 May Families at Chasewater 'Riviera'
Blog Brownhills Bob 10 May Turtle in Chasewater soup
The Mercury 9 May Dogs maul swans at Chasewater
Express & Star 5 May Cows come home to Chasewater
Lichfield Mercury 1 May Dam needs £2.5m repairs
BrownhillsBob on Panoramio Chasewater
Panoramio Chasetown
Flickr Chasewater
Chasewater Wildlife Group Home page
Firefighters cut rings from fingers of Wednesbury woman
Firefighters cut rings from fingers of Wednesbury woman
Express & Stars 28 Dec 09
Firefighters had to cut four rings from the swollen fingers of a 53-year-old woman in Wednesbury. Crew commander Danny Hinds said: “The rings were stuck on her finger – I don’t know whether she had knocked her hand and her fingers had swollen."
Former West Brom mayor, 90, dies in hospital
Former West Brom mayor, 90, dies in hospital
Express & Stars 28 Dec 09
A former mayor and Honorary Alderman of Sandwell has died aged 90. Jack Williams was also the British Legion Poppy Day Appeal Organiser for the area for 26 years from 1959, helping to raise many thousands of pounds for the cause. He died at Sandwell Hospital on 21 December...
B'ham Post 28 Dec Tributes to Jack Williams
Action plan for Bryntysilio
27 Dec 09 14:27 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Action plan for Bryntysilio
Adam Lumley The YamYam 27 Dec 09
After threatening to close Bryntysilio outdoor education centre in North Wales, Walsall cabinet have now backed an action plan to improve the fortunes of the Llangollen venue.
Costing the council an annual subsidy of £500,000, it was inevitable that Bryntysilio would become a target for savings as Walsall struggles to cut more than £11million from the budget. However, cabinet has endorsed the recommendations of the Community Services Scrutiny and Performance Panel to keep the centre open and put in place further investment. A working group of cross party councillors, set up to investigate the options available, has called for an increase in pupil accommodation and making the centre available for weekend commercial use.
Back in the summer, such a decision seemed unlikely. Speaking in early July, cabinet member for finance, Councillor Chris Towe, said the scrutiny panel would be asked to look at cheaper, more local facilities, including Laches Wood Outdoor Education Centre in Staffordshire and Chasewater Outdoor Education Centre.
“If something costs us half the price of Bryntysilio, we will be able to take more children,” he said.
“I understand people’s feelings about the place, but we have to be realistic and cannot make decisions based on sentiment.”
Speaking in late September, Councillor Barry Sanders, portfolio holder for Leisure and Culture told BBC Radio that Bryntysilio is an expensive facility.
"I think there are other options out there and I hope scrutiny come up with another option where we can keep it open”, he said. "I'm an accountant and have been looking at solutions all of my life and I can guarantee if there's a solution out there which is a reasonable cost it will be found.
“The money it costs would probably equate to running two leisure centres.”
His comments came before the announcement of the draft budget which proposes to close Willenhall Leisure Centre.
Every year, hundreds of Walsall children enjoy residential stays at Bryntysilio and many experience the spectacular Snowdonia landscape for the first time. Nearly 6,000 people including former pupils and teachers joined Facebook campaigns to object to the proposed closure.
Former St Francis of Assisi pupil and Facebook campaigner, Elaine McCourt visited the centre in 1990 and 1992:
"I had two wonderful weeks at Bryntysilio that I will never forget. There is no way the other options can compare to the experience in Wales.”
The working group visited Brynty and consulted with staff as well as Walsall Headteachers, former pupils and Facebook campaigners. Andrew Potts, Headteacher at St Francis of Assisi, told councillors that the centre and its staff provide a brilliant outdoor service and presented the opportunity for schoolchildren to see the countryside for the first time.
The action plan for Bryntysilio recommends doubling the pupil accommodation capacity by either building log cabins in the grounds or by converting the school house into student dormitories. This would allow two schools to use the centre in the same five day period. Weekend use of the facility would include activity holidays, corporate events and weddings. An increase in charges to Walsall schools using Brynty is also part of the action plan even though the cost to parents has risen from £135 to £185 during the last academic year. Negotiations with the trust that governs Bryntysilio to agree the action plan will take place in the near future.
Councillor Sanders said: “I will do anything I can to make this a success but the trustees need to be on board.”
Council leader Mike Bird said: “I sincerely hope we can build on this, take on board all the recommendations to move forward, and reduce the costs of Bryntysilio.”
Cabinet meets in January to approve the action plan.
Express & Star 11 Dec Bryntysilio centre may become wedding venue
The YamYam 25 Nov Working group recommends saving Bryntysilio
Cllr Ian Shires 21 Nov Council scrutiny panel to discuss Bryntysilio report
Cllr Ian Shires 21 Nov Community Services scrutiny agenda
Walsall Council 26 Nov Bryntysilio working group report pdf
Llangollen Leader 9 Nov Huge Facebook campaign to save Llangollen education centre
Advertiser 5 Nov 5,000 fight to keep Bryntysilio centre open
YamYam 30 Oct Walsall Council seek views on Bryntysilio axe
BBC Black Country 29 Sep Campaigners' plea over Bryntysilio
Express & Star 25 July Bryntysilio fight goes online
Cllr Ian Shires 15 Jul Bryntysilio: future uncertain
Cllr Ian Shires 14 Jul Meeting to scrutinise Bryntysilio
Cllr Ian Shires 12 Jul Bryntysilio: a Tory cut too far
Express & Star 8 Jul Bleak outlook for Bryntysilio threat
Cllr Ian Shires 7 Jul Plans long on words short on action
Express & Star 6 Jul Youth outdoor centre faces axe
Cllr Ian Shires 18 Jun WMBC Community Scrutiny panel
Walsall Council Children & Young people’s plan 2011-12
Walsall Council Bryntysilio outdoor education centre
Twitter @SaveBryntysilio
Facebook Save Bryntysilio
Facebook Friends of Bryntysilio
Facebook Save our Bryntysilio
More news in brief
More news in brief
These headline links are just for archive reference.
Main stories are published on the YamYam's front page
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News
Guardian 26 Dec Terror attack on US flight to Detroit
BBC 26 Dec Police search London flat of US bomber
Mercury 26 Dec Airlines impose new security rules
Times India 26 Dec Tsunami anniversary earthquake
PA News 26 Dec Thousands show hunting support
BBC 26 Dec Calls for 5th Irish RC bishop to resign
B' Mail 26 Dec River Tame nets haul of young fish
Guardian 26 Dec M6 J35-34 crash kills two
E&S 26 Dec Staffs woman charged with £165k fraud
BBC News 26 Dec Police advice over present boxes
BBC 26 Dec A51 ambulance crash victim named
Beacon 26 Dec 'Carry a condom' advice to revelers
Mercury 25 Dec Troops hold Christmas celebrations
B' Post 25 Dec Armed Wolves robbery details
BBC News 25 Dec 2 more Irish Catholic bishops go
E&S 25 Dec No show at Public's art gallery sale
Mercury 23 Dec Boy George in Big Brother eviction
E&S 23 Dec Police shoot escaped B'ham bullock
B' Mail 23 Dec Resident, 106 'homeless in New Year'
B' Mail 23 Dec M6 Toll crash man airlifted to hospital
Telegraph 23 Dec Universities facing £80m fines
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Business
Telegraph 26 Dec FTSE rides 'Santa Rally'
Telegraph 26 Dec VAT rise & months of stagflation
Guardian 23 Dec Barclays banker pay rises
B' Post 23 Dec Brum's German market record year
B' Post 23 Dec Boeing 787 hope's to take off
.....................................................................
Sport
Mercury 26 Dec Cricket: Late wickets help England
These headline links are just for archive reference.
Main stories are published on the YamYam's front page
....................................................................
News
Guardian 26 Dec Terror attack on US flight to Detroit
BBC 26 Dec Police search London flat of US bomber
Mercury 26 Dec Airlines impose new security rules
Times India 26 Dec Tsunami anniversary earthquake
PA News 26 Dec Thousands show hunting support
BBC 26 Dec Calls for 5th Irish RC bishop to resign
B' Mail 26 Dec River Tame nets haul of young fish
Guardian 26 Dec M6 J35-34 crash kills two
E&S 26 Dec Staffs woman charged with £165k fraud
BBC News 26 Dec Police advice over present boxes
BBC 26 Dec A51 ambulance crash victim named
Beacon 26 Dec 'Carry a condom' advice to revelers
Mercury 25 Dec Troops hold Christmas celebrations
B' Post 25 Dec Armed Wolves robbery details
BBC News 25 Dec 2 more Irish Catholic bishops go
E&S 25 Dec No show at Public's art gallery sale
Mercury 23 Dec Boy George in Big Brother eviction
E&S 23 Dec Police shoot escaped B'ham bullock
B' Mail 23 Dec Resident, 106 'homeless in New Year'
B' Mail 23 Dec M6 Toll crash man airlifted to hospital
Telegraph 23 Dec Universities facing £80m fines
....................................................................
Business
Telegraph 26 Dec FTSE rides 'Santa Rally'
Telegraph 26 Dec VAT rise & months of stagflation
Guardian 23 Dec Barclays banker pay rises
B' Post 23 Dec Brum's German market record year
B' Post 23 Dec Boeing 787 hope's to take off
.....................................................................
Sport
Mercury 26 Dec Cricket: Late wickets help England
Road collapses to leave hole outside Birmingham shops
26 Dec 09 18:21 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Road collapses to leave hole outside Birmingham shops
Mercury 26 Dec 09
Boxing Day shoppers had a lucky escape in Birmingham after a 6ft hole appeared in a city centre road. The gaping crevice sparked a safety alert in Upper Temple Street, with a broken sewage pipe suspected of causing the drama...
Bishop of Lichfield talks of trust 'betrayals'
26 Dec 09 16:21 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Bishop of Lichfield talks of trust 'betrayals'
BBC News 26 Dec 09
High-profile breaches of trust could lead people to turn to the Church, the Bishop of Lichfield has said. The Right Reverend Jonathan Gledhill said there had been so many "shocking betrayals of trust" this year, which included the MPs' expenses scandal...
Telegraph MPs' Expenses
Mail 25 Dec 'Children are being robbed of their innocence' says Archbishop of Canterbury
BBC 26 Dec Calls for 5th Irish RC bishop to resign
Diocese of Lichfield Home
Pelsall drug raid pub reopens
Pelsall drug raid pub reopens
The YamYam 26 Dec 09
The Queens pub in Pelsall has been reopened despite objections from residents and the local councillor. The Norton Road boozer was raided on November 13 by over 40 police officers, some with dogs and some wearing riot gear. Class A and B drugs were seized and four men and two women were arrested.
The raid followed months of complaints from local residents concerned about drug taking and drug dealing at the pub. Two men have been charged and the police have now applied for the closure of the pub under anti-social behaviour legislation. The police application will go before a Walsall Council licensing hearing in the New Year. However, owners Marston's have brought in new temporary licensees and the pub is once again open for business.
Fear of reprisals within the close-knit community means that residents are unwilling to come forward and make a formal complaint. Pelsall councillor Garry Perry said: “It has reopened and a lot of people are worried they will have to put up with the same problems.
“The problem is that no-one has come forward to complain about the pub. Instead of this I put in a statement on the behalf of residents outlining their concerns which has been drinkers congregating at the front in the summer, fights, drugs allegations and other anti-social behaviour.
“But I have been told my statement will not be admissible at the licensing hearing under the Licensing Act because I live more than half a mile from the pub and it does not include names and addresses of residents. This is ridiculous, it means red tape and bureaucracy is getting in the way of common sense and probably the most we can hope for its more stringent conditions.”
Advertiser 15 Nov Pelsall pub drug raid leads to six arrests
Express & Star 14 Nov Riot police swoop on Pelsall pub
Aldridge quarry lorry misery continues
Aldridge quarry lorry misery continues
Adam Lumley The YamYam 26 Dec 09
Up to 200 heavy lorries a day will continue to rumble past homes in a residential area of Aldridge despite government planning permission to build a new road to divert trucks away from the houses.
Residents of Branton Hill Lane and Little Aston Road have fought a 30 year campaign to establish an alternative route for the lorries which thunder to and from an Aldridge quarry owned by Bliss Sand and Gravel Ltd. In October 2008, exasperated residents twice took to the streets to blockade the road against the trucks. Pensioners, children and parents waving placards stating “Enough is enough” were moved on by police to allow the lorries through.
Campaigners complain of dust in the summer, mud in the winter, intolerable air pollution and incessant noise and vibration which has even caused objects to be shaken from walls. The massive trucks have to negotiate tight 90 degree bends and cross a narrow bridge over a railway line leading to fears over road safety.
A planning application was submitted to Walsall Council in June 2007 that proposed a new access link between the quarry and the main A452 Chester Road. The new road would allow lorries to join the major trunk road which is about 200m east of the quarry instead of travelling about a mile along Branton Hill Lane before emerging onto Little Aston Road near Aldridge town centre.
The council initially supported the proposal but when the possible £1million cost was identified, planning chiefs began to raise objections. A report to the Development Control Committee in November 2007 stated that if the development went ahead, no fewer than 41 breeches of policy and protocols would occur. 11 council departments objected to the scheme and even Wolverhampton Council objected to the use of Green Belt land. To pay for the scheme, the site was considered as having the potential for the building of 102 “aspirational homes” designed to attract “entrepreneurs” to the borough. The number was later reduced to 24.
Planning permission was also granted for the building of 9 homes on Chester Road.
Since then, little has changed and lorries continue to make living on Branton Hill Lane a misery. In a survey conducted by the council in November 2006, over 200 daily lorry movements were logged during the working week. On Sunday, just 18 cars used the lane. A planned expansion of the quarry will only make matters worse.
The downturn in the housing market has been blamed for the lack of interest in the development. Steve Morgan, managing director at Bliss Sand and Gravel said: “It is due to the economic climate and the banks not lending builders any money. We want the new road built as much as the residents do.”
Councillor John Rochelle who represents Aldridge Central and South said: “What we don`t want is the extension of the quarry before the road is built. The money for the housing was going to pay for the road but obviously with the housing market in the state it is I don`t know whether the money is there.”
Express & Star 27 Mar Heavy lorries will stop near Aldridge
Walsall Council 29 May 08 Development Control Committee pdf
Walsall Council 20 Nov 07 Development Control Committee pdf
Bliss Aggregates Home
Yob gangs put a stop to 29 bus shelters
26 Dec 09 14:50 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Yob gangs put a stop to 29 bus shelters
Express & Stars 26 Dec 09
A total of 29 bus shelters have been removed in the West Midlands during the past three years after becoming magnets for anti-social behaviour. The figures include 12 shelters removed from towns in the Black Country including Walsall...
Express & Star 15 Dec Fears that bus shelter plans will attract yobs
Advertiser 23 Sep Historic Pelsall bus stops given shelter
B'ham Mail 31 Jul Half of Centro's CCTV bus shelters without cameras
Garrick Outdoor Bus shelter suppliers
YouTube The making of a bus shelter
Centre Bus stops & shelters
Christmas Day babies - a great gift
26 Dec 09 14:35 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Christmas Day babies - a great gift
Express & Stars 26 Dec 09
While families around the region celebrated Christmas, new mothers were welcoming their own little festive miracles including a lucky family from Clayhanger...
B'ham Mail 26 Dec Baby pics from Moseley's Sorento
Mumsnet discussion Christmas Day baby
Bargain hunters in early siege at shops
26 Dec 09 14:22 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Bargain hunters in early siege at shops
Express & Stars 26 Dec 09
Tens of thousands of bargain hunters queued from dawn today as shops across the West Midlands embarked on major post-Christmas cost-cutting. A combination of poor November sales figures and the 2.5 per cent increase in VAT, which comes into effect on New Year’s Day, means shops are offering the lowest prices while they still can...
B'ham Post 26 Dec Thousands hit the shops
BBC News 26 Dec Early Boxing Day Bullring queues
B'ham Mail 24 Dec WM Boxing Day sales guide
Express & Star 23 Dec Boxing Day confusion for parkers in Black Country but free in Walsall
Here comes the snow to Walsall
26 Dec 09 14:08 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Here comes the snow to Walsall
Express & Stars 26 Dec 09
Up to six inches of snow is predicted to fall on the West Midlands from Tuesday, bringing chaos to the region. Forecasters said temperatures were set to return to below freezing from tomorrow night but that Sunday and Monday would be bright. Andrew Sibley from the Met Office said: “On Tuesday, rain will turn to up to 15cm (6in) of snow. “On Wednesday we are expecting more snow, and icy conditions will keep it on the ground until Thursday.”
Met Office 5am, 26 Dec 60% chance of heavy snow for WM on Mon night for Tue
Met Office 5am, 26 Dec 80% chance of heavy snow for WM on Tue night for Wed
Traffic England 2pm, 26 Dec M6 Nouthbound, J12 & J13 heavy traffic
Traffic England 1pm, 26 Dec M6 Southbound, Staffordshire, heavy traffic
Traffic England 2pm, 26 Dec M5 J1 heavy traffic (football match)
Guardian 26 Dec M6 J35-34 crash kills two
Express & Stars 26 Dec Christmas Day power cuts hit SW Black Country
Express & Stars 26 Dec Walsall’s game at Rovers off
YamYam links 26 Dec Local Walsall area club fixtures
BBC News 25 Dec M1 reopens after eight-car pile-up
B'ham Post 24 Dec Christmas getaway continues with few problems in the West Midlands PM
B'ham Post 24 Dec Christmas travellers face more disruption as cold snap continues AM
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40 take part in Sutton Park Christmas Day swim
40 take part in Sutton Park Christmas Day swim
B'ham Post 26 Dec 09
While most of us spent Christmas Day wrapped up trying to stay warm, this barmy lot were plunging into icy cold water. Despite the freezing temperatures, more than 40 people brrrr-aced themselves and took part in the annual Christmas Day dip in Sutton Park...
Sky News 25 Dec Hyde Park Xmas day swim
Sky News 2 Dec The top 10 Christmas Day swims
Outdoor Swimming Society Home
Outdoor Lido Swimming in the UK Home
River and Lake Swimming Home
Wild Swimming Home
2009? Some years are best forgotten, says Queen
25 Dec 09 17:14 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
2009? Some years are best forgotten, says the Queen
The Times 25 Dec 09 video
The Queen's Christmas Message was a sombre one today at the end of a year dominated by the war in Afghanistan and deep economic gloom. "Each year that passes seems to have its own character," she said. "Some leave us with a feeling of satisfaction, others are best forgotten."
Mail 25 Dec 'Children are being robbed of their innocence' says Archbishop of Canterbury
Telegraph 25 Dec Pope delivers Christmas message hours after being attacked
M1 reopens after eight-car pile-up
25 Dec 09 16:50 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
M1 reopens after eight-car pile-up
BBC News 25 Dec 09
An eight-car pile-up closed a section of the M1 for more than three hours between junctions 24a and 25 northbound and left one person seriously injured requiring the air ambulance, Nottinghamshire Police have said...
Met Office 25 Dec 80% chance of heavy snow for WM on Mon night for Tue
B'ham Post 24 Dec Christmas getaway continues with few problems in the West Midlands PM
B'ham Post 24 Dec Christmas travellers face more disruption as cold snap continues AM
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Christmas getaway continues with few problems in the West Midlands
24 Dec 09 22:58 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Christmas getaway continues with few problems in the West Midlands
B'ham Post 24 Dec 09
Christmas travellers in the West Midlands continued to face disruption to their getaway journeys, as the cold weather moved northwards affecting roads and public transport. No major problems were reported on the M6 but the slowest part was near to Walsall where roadworks have forced speed limits of 50 mph...
B'ham Post 24 Dec Christmas travellers face more disruption as cold snap continues AM
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Aldridge quiz night for 2012 contender
News
Aldridge quiz night for 2012 contender
B'ham Mail 24 Dec 09
A paralympian hopeful is holding a quiz night in January to keep his 2012 dreams alive...
Aldridge quiz night for 2012 contender
B'ham Mail 24 Dec 09
A paralympian hopeful is holding a quiz night in January to keep his 2012 dreams alive...
WM hospital bug cases at all-time low
24 Dec 09 17:58 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
WM hospital bug cases at all-time low
Express & Stars 24 Dec 09
The number of people contracting MRSA-related infections in hospitals in the West Midlands hit an all-time low last month...
Express & Star 12 May Medics face blitz on sloppy hand-washing
Walsall Advertiser 5 May Hospital bid to beat infections
Garden grabbers are ruining WM green spaces
24 Dec 09 17:37 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
Garden grabbers are ruining green spaces
Jonathan Walker B'ham Post 24 Dec 09
The true extent of garden grabbing, where developers build homes on back gardens in the West Midlands, has been exposed...
WM Boxing Day sales guide
24 Dec 09 17:10 Filed in: News | News-Walsall
WM Boxing Day sales guide
B'ham Mail 24 Dec 09
The adverts are already on the television even though the shops haven't closed for Christmas Eve yet. Yes, the Boxing Day sales are upon us, and although many stores have already started their sales today (Christmas Eve), Boxing Day is expected to be a very busy day throughout the Midlands...
Express & Star 23 Dec Boxing Day confusion for parkers in Black Country but free in Walsall
Pensioners join fight for Willenhall Leisure Centre
Pensioners join fight for Willenhall Leisure Centre
Express & Star 17 Dec 09
Sequence dancers have joined the fight to save the leisure centre where they have been meeting for more than 20 years. Pensioners gathered at Willenhall Leisure Centre last night to hand over a petition bearing 3,500 names calling on Walsall Council to reprieve it...
B'ham Mail 24 Dec Willenhall Leisure Centre facing closure
Cllr Ian Shires 14 Dec Is there a glimmer of hope for Willenhall's Leisure Centre?
Cllr Ian Shires 11 Dec Scrutiny process reduced to farce
Cllr Ian Shires 10 Dec Concern expressed as plans to develop LNPs unveiled
The YamYam 8 Dec Council boss says “put up or shut up”
Cllr Ian Shires 8 Dec Community condemn plans to close Willenhall's leisure centre
Cllr Ian Shires 7 Dec Attempts to debate Leisure Centre closure rejected
Express & Star 2 Dec Council spent £200k on doomed Willenhall centre
Cllr Ian Shires 2 Dec The nonsense of scrutiny
The YamYam 30 Nov Walsall councillors scrutinise budget
Express & Star 30 Nov Campaigners step up Willenhall leisure centre fight
Cllr Ian Shires 30 Nov Comment: the theory and practice in health equalities
YamYam 23 Nov Willenhall closure “sheer vandalism” says MP
Cllr Ian Shires 19 Nov Cabinet votes down demands on closure of Willenhall Leisure Centre
Walsall Council Cabinet report 18 Nov Draft Corporate Revenue Budget for Consultation PDF
Express & Star 13 Nov Willenhall leisure centre users’ fury at closure plans
Walsall Council 13 Nov Have your say on leisure facilities online questionnaire
Express & Star 12 Nov Willenhall leisure centre axe plan
Express & Star 12 Nov Battle vow on plans to shut down centre
Cllr Ian Shires 12 Nov Willenhall Leisure Centre singled out
Express & Star 13 Oct Major review brings fears for Willenhall swimming pool
BrownhillsBob 19 Sep Comment: And so it begins
YamYam 19 Sep Walsall leisure centres under threat
YamYam links 9 Sep Cash crisis at Walsall Council
Walsall Council Willenhall Local Neighbourhood Partnership (LNP)