Stoke & Staffordshire

Local elections 2026
Local elections 2026

View from the number 38 bus as polling day nears

Voters will decide Newcastle-under-Lyme's council on 7 May. What is on the mind of bus passengers?
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  1. A suburban street lined by estate housing with trees either side and a pedestrian crossing visible

  2. The VJ Day service held near the central memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum. People are watching on as military personnel stand to attention. The Red Arrows, leaving red, white and blue smoke trails, can be seen rising up from behind the memorial.

  3. An artist's visualisation of a housing development. There are angular black buildings viewed from a road junction with give way markings. Features on the black buildings include two yellow-banded balconies either side and a number of windows. The structures have pointed roofs, and there is a further brick building in the distance.

  4. A close-up of the front of a duck which has an orange beak and grey feathers

  5. 'Lot of things up in the air' says Robins

    Robins: 'I thank the supporters for their backing'

    Stoke City manager Mark Robins has stated his uncertainty over what the future holds for the club after his side's season ended with a 2-0 defeat at Bristol City on Saturday.

    Newly re-signed goalkeeper Viktor Johansson's miskicked pass in the opening minute gave Delano Burgzorg and Bristol City a dream start to the match.

    The Potters' Junior Tchamadeu did hit the crossbar in the first half with an impressive half-volley effort, but that was the best Stoke got to equalising before Sam Bell consolidated the hosts' three points at Ashton Gate on the 88th minute.

    "I think we were the better team," said Robins to BBC Radio Stoke after the game. "I thought we played well. We gave a goal away, a real soft goal away, in minute one and then we ended up trying to chase the game for the rest of it because we had to try and make the run-in.

    "We're in next week, we'll have meetings no doubt, and we'll speak with the hierarchy and see what happens from there.

    "A lot of things are up in the air, not least the financial rules for the league and things like that. I think that will certainly have a bearing on what we eventually do or can do.

    "But in the meantime, we'll just get on and do what we can at this point."

  6. Delano Burgzorg of Bristol City celebrates

  7. Andy Reiss and Katie Leeming. Andy wears black-rimmed glasses, has short blonde hair and wears a white T-shirt. Katie has a pink baseball cap on and wears a beige jacketed over a white top. They sit in a room with blinds on the windows.

  8. A man wearing a black polo shirt, is leaning on a yellow piece of gym equipment. He has short dark hair and smiles showing his teeth while his left hand rests on his right forearm.

  9. A woman with brown hair is prominent in the photo. A wall is behind her and she is looking at the camera.

  10. Penkridge fast bowler Myles Davis is in his club training kit standing on a cricket field

  11. A man with long grey hair cut into a mullet style. He has black rimmed round glasses and is wearing a black Motorhead hoodie with a grey and purple Black Sabbath t-shirt underneath.

  12. Stoke goalkeeper Viktor Johansson smiles and stretches his arms out in celebration

  13. A large cream coloured square building reading "Sir William Stanier School" on the front. It is surrounded by grass and has small trees along a driveway outside. It has a white welcome sign at the front and metal fences.

  14. A brick building with the bottom painted white and a blue sign reading "Moorcroft" in gold text.

  15. People are walking along a footpath with a built-up wall of rocks on the right hand side of the image. There are people standing on a bridge which crosses the footpath. There is a train running parallel to the footpath with bushes alongside it.

  16. Pick of the stats: Bristol City v Stoke City

    The club badges of Bristol City and Stoke City side by side on a red background

    There is nothing riding on this game (12:30 BST) other than both teams trying to send their fans into the summer with something to smile about.

    Bristol City can no longer secure a top-10 finish while Stoke, having spent the first-half of the season challenging for a play-off place will end the campaign in the bottom half of the table.

    • Bristol City won this exact fixture last season 2-0, but have not won back-to-back home league games against Stoke since March 1959.

    • Stoke have won three of their past five league meetings with Bristol City (D1 L1), more than their previous nine beforehand (W2 D1 L6).

    • Bristol City have only won their final league game in one of the past 10 seasons (D3 L6), winning 2-0 at QPR in 2022-23.

    • Stoke City have only lost their final league game in one of the past 14 seasons (W8 D5), losing 2-0 at Watford in 2022-23.

    • Stoke are guaranteed to have a bottom-half finish in the Championship for an eighth consecutive season – since 2018-19, they are one of eight ever-present Championship teams and they have the fewest points of those eight (448).

    BBC How to follow your team on a black background

  17. Road workers wearing orange and yellow hi-vis jackets and trousers work in a road, with large vehicles to their left and a building behind them. There is a sign behind them reading "ramp ahead"

  18. Two images side by side of long traffic queues on a motorway, with cars, lorries, vans and trucks queuing in four lanes.

  19. A group of five Teenage boys in blue hoodies that have the green and yellow Endon high badge on.

  20. View is from the back of a bus, with the gangway down the middle. The seats either side have orange headrests and there are handle rails down either side. Windows fill each side of the bus and there are two women sat together on one set of seats, one brunette and one blonde and they have their backs to the camera.

  21. Jon Brady Port Vale manager smiles after a match

  22. A selfie of Mark Beech who is smiling and has grey hair and facial hair. He is wearing a bright teal blue shirt and is in a garden with trees in the background

  23. The yellow vehicle with lights on the cab can be seen by a pub in the city behind a small wall.

  24. The brown fabric of the tented marquee spans an outdoor area at the back or side of the pub. It is behind a medium-sized wall with the pub then behind the marquee. A car park can be seen on the right of the image.