Nick Smith
BBC News Online

Police have been called to the A52 junction with the M1 heading towards Derby due to three or for cows on the road.

David Pittam
BBC News Online

Police believe two women stole a charity bucket from a Leicestershire town's Christmas lights switch-on.

The theft happened in Wigston at about 18.45 on 24 November and police are now appealing for information.

Image source, Oadby and Wigston Borough Council

The women are described as white with dark hair, wearing dark clothing and about 5ft 4in tall.

BBC Radio Derby

A former Derbyshire police officer is to face a misconduct hearing after he was caught drink-driving when turning up for work in Derby.

PC Neal Bird has now been banned from driving for 17 months at Nottingham Magistrates' Court after he admitted being just more than double the legal limit.

Image source, Google

The 48-year-old, from Derby, was caught when he turned up for a shift at Pear Tree police station in October.

Bird has since resigned from Derbyshire Constabulary after 16 years as an officer, but will still have to go through the misconduct process.

In a statement, the force said "officers more than anyone know the dangers of drink driving which makes this a particularly disappointing case".

Gavin Bevis
BBC News

Police say Macey Barham, who was reported missing from the Ilkeston area yesterday, has been found safe and well, external.

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

One person was treated for minor injuries at the scene of a crash between a car and a lorry on the A46 in Leicestershire this morning.

Image source, Google

The crash happened on the northbound carriageway, near Anstey, just before 11:00 and the road was reopened just after 12:00.

Highways England had initially reported that the closure was due to a vehicle fire.

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

Sir David Attenborough has warned that civilisation is at risk without urgent action against climate change.

Image source, EPA

At the United Nations climate talks in Katowice, Mr Attenborough, who grew up in Leicester, called it the "greatest threat to humanity in thousands of years" and a "man-made disaster of global scale".

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

Nottingham Forest's Joe Lolley could make it two PFA Player of the Month award wins in a row, after being nominated for the award for November.

Reigning player of the month, Lolley, did his credentials no harm in the 5-5 draw against Aston Villa on Wednesday, scoring the pick of the goals with a drilled strike from distance.

Image source, PA

He will be competing for the fan-voted award against Aston Villa's Tammy Abraham and Alan Hutton, Norwich's Teemu Pukki and Emi Buendia and Leeds United's Pablo Hernandez.

Eddie Bisknell
Local Democracy Reporter

Four health organisations in Derbyshire have been given approval to merge.

NHS England has given the go ahead to the North Derbyshire, Southern Derbyshire, Erewash and Hardwick Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCG) to combine with the aim to cut costs and improve services.

The new organisation will be called Derbyshire CCG and will officially form in April.

It's thought by merging, NHS bosses will be able to enforce £51m in savings by April.

Dr Chris Clayton, chief executive of the CCGs, also hopes it will end a duplication of services and inconsistencies in healthcare provision.

"This will help to tackle local health issues while at the same time making sure everyone has the same access to universal health care across the county," he said.

BBC News

An academic from the University of Nottingham has said that abandoned coal mines could be used as giant underground farms.

Mine shafts and tunnels are seen as "the perfect environment" for growing food such as vegetables and herbs.

Image source, University of Nottingham

Nottingham academic Prof Saffa Riffat, who is President of the World Society of Sustainable Energy Technology, believes the scheme would be a cost-effective way of meeting the growing need for food.

He said: "I'm very excited about the enormous potential. Rather than import so much food by air, rail and sea, we could grow a lot of it here and in huge quantities.

"I wish I had thought of this idea when they were making all the miners redundant. We may have been able to offer them an alternative job."

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

Former Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson has said his life is "all that much fuller" for having known Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, in a column for The Coaches' Voice, external.

He recalled how Mr Vichai once gifted him an expensive bottle of wine "to celebrate", but was unsure on when to save it for, until now.

Image source, Reuters

Pearson said: "We will toast the fact that we are all grateful that our paths have crossed with Khun Vichai, and our lives are all that much fuller for the experience."

Pearson said that he felt his departure from Leicester City in 2015 "didn't sit right" with either him or Mr Vichai and that he was grateful to have a second chance to work with him in his current role at OH Leuven in Belgium.

Sandish Shoker
BBC News

Nylacast in Thurmaston, Leicester has been sentenced in court today for health and safety breaches after employee, Tarsem Singh, died following an accident at the factory.

The plastics firm admitted exposing employees to health and safety risks by failing to produce a suitable and sufficient risk assessment for the machine.

Judge Tim Daber, at Northampton Magistrates' Court, said employees had been "exposed to risk for some time" and this was "an accident waiting to happen".

After the hearing, Mussa Mahomed from Nylacast said they no longer use that piece of machinery and safety is "number one priority".

He said: "We have very dedicated staff that look at everything sincerely in the best way possible and we will continue to work as hard as we can to make sure our people are looked after."

Mr Singh's family said they are now pursuing compensation.

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

A motorcyclist is in a serious condition in hospital following a crash involving a van in Seagrave on Friday.

The crash, involving a white Fiat Scudo panel van and a black Yamaha XV1100 motorbike, happened at around 15:00 at the junction of Paudy Lane and Big Lane.

Image source, Google

The motorcyclist was taken to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham where he remains in a serious condition.

Police are asking anyone who saw the crash to get in contact.

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Leicestershire Police have launched their Christmas drink and drug drive campaign that will run throughout December.

Drivers are being warned there will be 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week patrols challenging those suspected of breaking the law.

Image source, Leicestershire Police

In December last year there were 78 drink and 21 drug drive arrests. Of these arrests 37 were made in Leicester with the rest in the county.

BBC Nottingham Sport

Forest's City Ground has been confirmed as one of the host venues for the Women's Euro 2021 Championship after England won the bid to stage it.

Notts County's Meadow Lane was part of the original proposal document, but is no longer included.

Image source, Allsport/Getty Images

Nick Smith
BBC News Online

Nottingham Forest Ladies have been drawn at home against MK Dons Ladies in the third round of the FA Cup.

Image source, Allsport/Getty Images

Forest Ladies secured their name in the hat for today's draw following a 3-2 win away to Sheffield FC yesterday.

Meanwhile, Derby County Ladies will host Stoke City while Loughborough Foxes will travel to play Billericay Town.

Third round ties are scheduled to take place on Sunday 6 January, where a win could see East Midlands clubs facing off against some of the giants of the English game, who enter the competition in the fourth round.

Leicester interim boss Geordan Murphy says they are "trying to patch the boat up" after a third Premiership loss in a row.

Sandish Shoker
BBC News

Nottingham gymnast Becky Downie has shared on social media her progress after recent ankle surgery.

The 26-year-old competed at the World Championships in Doha earlier this month despite having her ankle heavily strapped up.

BBC Weather Watchers

It was a funny morning of weather - when the sunshine replaced the heavy rain across Leicestershire rainbows began to fill the sky.

These were taken in Breedon on the Hill, Leicester and Kegworth.

Image source, sky girl

Image source, Annie's patch

Image source, scrappy

David Pittam
BBC News Online

Some of Nottingham's Big Issue sellers are refusing to be left behind as customers stop using cash.

The city's sellers will be among the first 20 across the country to be able to take contactless payments.

Holly O'Connor is the Big Issue's midlands regional manager and said the technology is not going to be for everyone but for those that can use it, it will "definitely increase sales".

Image source, PA

Amy Woodfield
BBC News

Nottingham Forest, Leicester City and Derby County will discover who they'll face in the third round of the FA Cup this evening.

Image source, Getty Images

The draw is live , externalon BBC One at 19:30.

Notts County, Mansfield Town, Chesterfield and Alfreton Town have already gone out.