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?
  • Stoke & Staffordshire

More on this

The video playlist

Watch our pick of standout clips from Stoke and Staffordshire

Weatherfor Stoke-on-Trent

Sport

BBC Sounds: From Stoke & Staffordshire

View more

Latest Updates

  1. A police officer stands outside a blue tent which is in a playground, behind blue tape.

  2. 'Potters have a lot of work to do this summer'

    Mark Elliott
    BBC Radio Stoke commentator

    Mark Robins issues instructions to Stoke City players on the touchline during a gameShutterstock

    Stoke City's 2-0 defeat at Bristol City was their 18th loss in their past 32 games.

    At the end of matchday 14, Stoke were second in the Championship with eight wins and 27 points.

    Over the remaining 70% of the season they failed to double that win tally, picked up just 28 more points and compiled a record second only to Sheffield Wednesday as the worst in the league over that period.

    Sadly, the first 14 games were the exception that kept the Potters away from relegation, but are Stoke in a better position now than they were this time last year when they'd just finished one place and four points worse off in 18th?

    The answer is complicated.

    The squad contains sellable assets, not least Sorba Thomas who indicated he'd be open to a move when answering my post match question about whether he'd be at the club in August with the words "no comment".

    Stoke could potentially generate income by moving on younger players like Bae Junho, Eric Bocat or Million Manhoef and may also look to jettison some of their older, comparatively highly-paid colleagues.

    To do so successfully, they'll need to find suitors willing to take those players and the right deal for all parties, but everyone at the club is probably available at the right price.

    They might then have a reasonable amount of money to spend, but the club's recent track record in recruitment is patchy to say the least.

    Stoke need more power, athleticism and physicality in their squad but, beyond that, those in coaching and recruitment must develop a clear idea of what they want a Stoke team to be, what they want it to represent, how they want it to play and how they're going to implement that.

    Currently, there are vacancies within the coaching staff and that culture, identity or DNA - choose your own cliche - isn't clearly visible.

    Manager Mark Robins and sporting director Jon Walters end the season under pressure and decisions will have to be made quickly on a structure and methodology for next season that everyone agrees on.

    They cannot afford to end up in a position where big changes once again become inevitable early in a new season.

    One major positive is that they now have a summer to spend getting everyone fit after a season badly affected by injuries to key players.

    There's a lot of work to be done as a fanbase worn down by bottom-half finishes looks for hope and inspiration.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

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

  6. '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."

  7. Delano Burgzorg of Bristol City celebrates

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

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

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

  12. 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.

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

  14. 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.

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

  16. 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.

  17. 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

  18. 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"

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

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

  21. 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.

  22. Jon Brady Port Vale manager smiles after a match

  23. 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

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