Our live coverage across the daypublished at 19:01 BST 30 April 2020
Andy Giddings
BBC News
We'll be back with more updates for the West Midlands from 08:00 tomorrow.
Summary
The greedy gulls spooked by Clap for Carers
Care home tests 'should have started earlier'
The Captain Tom statue made from odds and ends
Sister of dead cleaner 'begged her not to work'
More military testing sites rolled out
Updates from Thursday 30 April
Our live coverage across the daypublished at 19:01 BST 30 April 2020
No refunds until staff return to theatrepublished at 18:54 BST 30 April 2020
People with tickets to shows at a Staffordshire theatre which have been suspended due to the pandemic won't be able to get refunds until staff return to work.
In a post on Facebook this afternoon,, external the Stafford Gatehouse said it was still closed due to the outbreak and all staff had been placed on furlough.
With the venue shut, a spokesperson said they couldn't provide refunds, credits or details on rearranged shows until the team was back at work.
Hundreds of new officers join region's police forcespublished at 18:44 BST 30 April 2020
Allen Cook
BBC NewsNearly 600 police officers have been recruited by the four forces in the West Midlands in the first six months of a national drive to bring in 20,000 within three years.
Image source, West Midlands PoliceWest Midlands Police - which has brought in 366 officers - is also one of two forces to trial new online assessment centres to allow recruitment to continue during lockdown, the College of Policing says.
The service, which takes candidates through tests of judgement, briefing exercises and interviews, is expected to be rolled out nationally in June.
Reversing cuts to police officer numbers was one of Boris Johnson's first policy pledges when he became prime minister in July last year.
Police rescue ducklings from manholepublished at 18:40 BST 30 April 2020
Police in Whitchurch have rounded up 15 ducklings after finding them stuck down a manhole.
They were saved with the help of some people living nearby and taken to a nearby pond with their mother.
Image source, West Mercia Police
Image source, West Mercia PoliceCounty's ironman triathlon postponed to 2021published at 18:36 BST 30 April 2020
Allen Cook
BBC NewsAnother sporting event has had to be postponed due to the pandemic, this time the Staffordshire Ironman triathlon.
Image source, Staffordshire County CouncilOrganiser Ironman England said, external the coronavirus outbreak meant it couldn't be held on 7 June and was being pushed back to 13 June 2021.
The group added all athletes due to take part should receive an email with more details.
Guest houses in tourist spot look for extra helppublished at 18:31 BST 30 April 2020
Guest houses and B&Bs around Stratford-upon-Avon are asking for extra help because they aren't eligible for the government's small business grants.
They fall through a gap because they pay council tax instead of business rates. Stratford District Council has agreed to lobby the government on their behalf.
Image source, GoogleThe deputy leader of the authority, Daren Pemberton, said the businesses played an important part in the town's economy. The local MP, Nadhim Zahawi, has also written to the government.
He received a reply which said the government was "continuing to look at where businesses are potentially falling through the cracks of support and will continue to assess such scenarios".
Lockdown drivers urged to avoid speeding 'temptation'published at 18:25 BST 30 April 2020
BBC Radio StokePolice are urging drivers not to speed in Staffordshire despite there being fewer cars on the roads due to lockdown.
Image source, Staffordshire PoliceCh Const Gareth Morgan told BBC Radio Stoke police were still seeing motorists speeding and it "is more obvious as there are more open roads".
He said: "I appreciate there might be a temptation but let's be clear, there's enough going on without people adding to it."
In one example today, police said they stopped a vehicle on the A500 , externalin Stoke-on-Trent which was recorded at 109mph.
City delivers 10,000th food parcelpublished at 18:14 BST 30 April 2020
BBC WMA milestone's been reached by Wolverhampton City Council under lockdown - it's delivered its 10,000th food parcel.
Image source, Wolverhampton City CouncilHundreds of the authority's staff have been packing the boxes at the WV Active Aldersley leisure centre which was turned into a distribution hub.
The council says it's delivering more than 3,000 of the parcels each week to vulnerable people, and demand for them is still growing.
Weather: More showers with a bit of sun to comepublished at 18:00 BST 30 April 2020
The scattered showers we've seen today are set to continue through tonight, mixed with a few clear, dry spells. Low: 5C/41F.
Image source, Peter StegglesTomorrow's set to be a day of sunshine and showers, and the rain could turn heavy by the afternoon with a few rumbles of thunder around. High: 14C/57F.
Get the latest forecast for your area from the BBC Weather website.
Impact on police force 'not as extreme as feared'published at 17:52 BST 30 April 2020
The demands on Staffordshire's police force "have not been as extreme as we expected", its chief constable has said.
Gareth Morgan thanked the public for adapting "remarkably quickly" to lockdown life, and said it had made the work of policing "an awful lot easier than it could have been".
The chief constable was off work for two weeks himself because of coronavirus and said while he only had a mild case, the effects were "very debilitating".
He said in Staffordshire, the NHS hadn't been overwhelmed and added: "We're in a much better place than it could have been".
But he also warned "this is not going to finish even with the lifting of restrictions" and it could be some time before things returned to normal.
Closed zoo 'losing £50k every week'published at 17:40 BST 30 April 2020
BBC WMA zoo says it's losing about £50,000 a week during its lockdown closure.
Image source, GoogleDudley Zoo director Derek Grove told BBC WM they still had to feed their 1,600 animals and give them care, adding they'd only been able to place their retail staff on furlough.
"I'd like to assure everybody that the animals are healthy, they're well," he said.
The zoo, which operates as a charitable organisation, is running a fundraising page and more than £9,500 has been donated to support its work while the gates are shut.
Around the web: Coronavirus outbreaks at 17 care homespublished at 17:30 BST 30 April 2020
From the Shropshire Star:
- Coronavirus outbreaks at 17 care homes, external
- Cash help is on way to Shropshire schools, external
- Let's Rock Shrewsbury postponed, external
Hundreds back petition for CCTV at fly-tipping hotspotspublished at 17:21 BST 30 April 2020
Allen Cook
BBC NewsMore than 250 people have signed a petition in two days urging a council to install CCTV cameras at fly-tipping hotspots in Dudley.
Image source, Simon LucockThe petition said cases in the Cradley and Wollescote area, especially around Foxcote Lane and Wassell Grove, have risen in two years "to the point it is now a daily occurrence".
Dudley Borough Council says it's currently upgrading all its CCTV cameras and "the best course of action is to report people who do fly-tip".
Captain Tom inspires painterpublished at 16:44 BST 30 April 2020
Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio StokeThe tributes keep on coming for Captain Tom Moore, the war veteran who raised millions for the NHS by walking laps of his garden.
In Nantwich, Cheshire, painter Tony Denton said he was inspired to create a portrait of Capt Tom.
He added doing the work helped him combat his depression, saying: "If [Captain Tom] can get up in the morning and march up and down his yard, doing his bit for the NHS, surely I can do a little bit."
The painting was at the town's cenotaph but is now on display in a local bookshop.
PM to update UK on 'steps to defeat' coronaviruspublished at 16:33 BST 30 April 2020
Boris Johnson will lead the Downing Street briefing for the first time since his return to work.
Read MoreMake a Difference: Fancy dress walk for NHSpublished at 16:28 BST 30 April 2020
Gary Fear from Gnosall, Staffordshire, is aiming to walk 100 miles in six days to raise money for the NHS - and he's doing it in fancy dress.
As you can see, he's been changing his costume, and after three days has raised £1,200.
He is aiming to raise about £2,000 in all.
Image source, Gary FearAnother 45 coronavirus deaths reported by hospitalspublished at 15:56 BST 30 April 2020
Another 45 coronavirus deaths have been reported by hospitals in the West Midlands today.
The Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust reported the greatest number, with nine.
Eight trusts reported no new deaths.
The total figure for the region is now approaching 2,800.
Artist presents Captain Tom with portraitpublished at 15:40 BST 30 April 2020
An artist has presented Captain Tom Moore with a portrait - resulting in a smile "as warm as his heart".
Darren Baker, who lives in Coventry, created the image in pastel, and shows the NHS fundraiser - 100 years old today - giving the thumbs up.
Image source, Janice English/PA WireMr Baker also presented Capt Tom with a sketch of Keighley, where the former soldier grew up.
The artist said: "He was over the moon - his smile is as warm as his heart."
Image source, Janice English/PA WireThe greedy gulls spooked by Clap for Carerspublished at 15:18 BST 30 April 2020
While most of us are staying at home, the gulls in Worcester are being persuaded to leave theirs - with a regular feature of lockdown life having a surprise impact on the "nuisance" birds.
The council says the gulls can be aggressive and make mess through scavenging in bins for food, sometimes stealing it from people.
One tactic to scare them off during this peak nesting season has been to send up hawks and falcons, twice a day, around Britannia Square. But according to the local authority, "there are still three nesting pairs from last year which stubbornly remain".
But could the council be about to give Clap for Carers its own round of applause?
Image source, Getty ImagesResidents in the town have reported the regular Thursday night clapping for NHS workers is forcing the birds to take to the air in fright - something the council was hoping to do via gull distress calls over loudspeakers.
Quote MessageI’d encourage Worcester residents to keep on clapping and cheering in support of key workers. Not only is it helping to raise morale, but it appears to be helping to keep our gull population at bay too.”
Councillor Joy Squires, Worcester City Council
Around the web: Teen daughter makes coronavirus recoverypublished at 14:47 BST 30 April 2020
Stoke-on-Trent LiveFrom Stoke-on-Trent Live:
