The family of a grandfather stabbed to death at a beauty spot say they have been shattered by the loss of a "brilliant" and "truly wonderful man".

Gurdeep Pandher went viral after he shared his joy at receiving his coronavirus jab.

Pest control and hygiene group Rentokil Initial enjoyed growth in revenue last year,

Medics on a special respiratory unit set up at the start of the pandemic have spoken of their mental exhaustion.

Government funding to repair damaged roads in the West Midlands has been slashed by around 40 per cent for the coming year.

The daughter of a great-grandmother who died at a Black Country hospital has told an inquest of her anger at learning that medics did not have equipment which she believes could have saved her life.

The family of a young man stabbed to death in a Stourbridge nightclub will apply for a "default judgement" against the man who was cleared of killing him after they launched civil proceedings last year.

A 22-year-old Stourbridge man has been found guilty of murdering a complete stranger in cold blood on a remote hilltop.

A new programme of cycling and walking schemes will be delivered after a council was awarded more than £1 million of funding from the Department for Transport.

A group of friends are getting ready to take on a massive fitness challenge to thank the staff of a hospital trust.

A couple celebrating their diamond wedding today put the secret to a happy married life down to “doing things together”.

A new art project by a Black Country migrant group will see six bird boxes created with images from different Eastern European countries.

Restart grants for businesses forced to close during the pandemic. Management and IT support for small businesses, an extension to the furlough scheme, but eventual increases in corporation tax, and a freezing of income tax allowances.

County bosses described a backdrop of staff shortages caused by other councils poaching its social workers in the run up to the deaths of four neglected children in a fire in Stafford.

A suspected head of an organised crime group was arrested in Birmingham as part of a UK-wide operation involving 100 officers.

Wolverhampton, Rowley Regis, West Bromwich and Smethwick are to receive around £25 million each from the Government's Towns Fund in measures announced in the Budget.

A jury has retired to consider its verdict on a killer from Stourbridge who denies murdering an elderly hillwalker in a random attack.

A knifeman from Stourbridge who stabbed a stranger to death on a hilltop had no clear symptoms of psychosis and was not "acting randomly or in a frenzy" on the day of the killing, a forensic psychiatrist has told a court.

A fundraiser for the family of a Tipton man killed in a hit-and-run has reached £3,000 - as the driver still remains on the loose.

A further 14 coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in hospitals in the Black Country, Birmingham and Staffordshire.

The trial of a West Mercia police officer accused of murdering former Aston Villa star Dalian Atkinson in Telford is due to start on April 26, a court has been told.

The Chancellor announced an extension to the furlough scheme, as well as an increase in corporation tax.

The Black Country Chamber of Commerce has welcomed the help for business announced in the 2021 Budget.

A Walsall social club where police were told to “f*** off” by drunken people barricaded inside has been stripped of its licence.

An otter has been spotted swimming in a Wolverhampton canal for the first time in more than 60 years.

A Black Country councillor has been nominated for a top award as part of a West Midlands radio station’s 50th birthday celebrations.

Staffordshire County Council is set to monitor the impact of HS2 as construction begins in the area.

The owner of an owl rescue sanctuary is appealing for information after a European eagle owl was found dumped in a box.

Police and health chiefs have urged people to stick to the ‘stay at home’ order when the first stage of the region’s exit from lockdown starts next week.

A resident has opposed a licence for a Sutton Coldfield music venue over fears people would be able to “peer” into their home at night.

Sainsbury’s flagship superstore in Wolverhampton city centre has been given the go-ahead to open a new barbershop outside its premises.

Members of staff at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust are walking 100 laps around their local park in an aim to raise £400 in memory of Captain Sir Tom Moore.

What to expect when Rishi Sunak delivers his Budget on Wednesday.

Children across the Black Country are being invited to provide the best side of their teachers in a competition.

Comedian Jimmy Fallon wryly observed that while 64 per cent of Americans owned a smartphone, 100 per cent of smartphones owned an American.

A woman was taken to hospital after a crash in Shenstone today.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has praised people in Dudley for the successful rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine.

A Birmingham man has been charged with 17 counts of indecent exposure.

A new mortgage initiative is in the wake of the 2013 Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme which reinvigorated the market after the financial crisis.

See the latest figures for coronavirus cases and deaths in your area.

Council tax in Dudley will increase by just under five per cent in April after councillors clashed over who should pay for the pandemic.

Plans to create a new shop and eight apartments in Willenhall have been thrown out over fears the development would be "cramped".

A police motorbike officer is in hospital after being injured in a crash in Great Barr.

Covid hospital admissions across the Black Country and Staffordshire have dropped by almost a quarter in a week, according to new figures.

A taxi driver said he thought a murder victim had been pushed by another man – only later realising he had been stabbed after seeing blood, a court heard.

A mother and daughter enterprise that runs play sessions for under-fives in Wolverhampton has created a new range of free activity packs for children to enjoy at home during lockdown.

Employers across the region are being invited to promote career opportunities in their industry through virtual work experience sessions for students at Wolverhampton College.

Waste management company Biffa has upgraded its annual outlook as second-half performance continued to track above expectations amid a less severe than expected impacted from the third lockdown on earnings.

DS Smith said that the boost from the holiday season to its packaging business had continued into 2021, with more people shopping online, and there were signs of recovery in demand from its industrial customers.

A record store has made the best of lockdown by turning its sales online – selling as far afield as the US and Mexico.

Persimmon has kicked off 2021 on a better footing than last year as Government and Bank of England policies helped boost the housebuilder.

New aerial footage shows how a multi-million-pound road project is progressing in Stafford.

BritAsia Fund has announced a new creative collaboration with Moving Pictures Media and Checklist Films to produce and finance film and TV projects.

A Black Country charity is offering one lucky person the chance to win a signed football shirt as part of a fundraising initiative.

Fire chiefs in Staffordshire have welcomed a decrease in the number of recorded fires in the last year.

A fitness instructor and a chef who work as on-call firefighters are urging members of the public to join them as part of a recruitment campaign.

Foodbank heroes who have helped keep shelves stocked for those in need during the pandemic have been praised.

Around 700 oil-filled heaters are going into homes – as part of an ongoing project to keep the most vulnerable warm throughout winter months.

A couple who met at a Christmas dance were today celebrating their sapphire wedding anniversary.

Car parking in Lichfield City centre is being put under the microscope to determine how things can be improved for visitors, residents and local businesses.

Rishi Sunak will also announce further support for newly self-employed workers.

A pharmacist who diverted more than £1 million of prescription drugs onto the black market has been jailed for 12 months.

A 46-year-old woman who was hit by a car in Birmingham has died.

A series of new deployable CCTV cameras are to be installed across fly-tipping hot spots across Dudley.

The latest crime and emergency updates.

A burst water main has led to delays on a busy Black Country road.

A further 20 coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in hospitals in the Black Country, Birmingham and Staffordshire as well as 17 further deaths in care homes.

Construction work is underway on the Sprint bus route linking Walsall, Birmingham and Solihull.

A driver has been taken to hospital after a crash between her car and a lorry on the M6 near Stafford.

A council is training up an "army of volunteers" to spread awareness of Covid vaccines - as the number of infections have dropped sharply since January.

Repairs have been completed at a leisure centre after five months of work.

A new B&M store and a Tim Hortons drive-thru are to be built on the site of a former Toys R Us branch in the Black Country.

Residents of a quiet Staffordshire street have had their lives "turned upside down" by walkers using their street to park when visiting a nearby green, a villager has claimed.

A Wolverhampton primary school rated inadequate by education chiefs is now taking “effective action” to avoid going into special measures, a recent monitoring review has found.

A murder investigation has been launched after a man was stabbed to death this morning.

Council bosses are drawing up plans to help Black Country pubs and restaurants partially reopen next month.

The former HM Revenue and Customs building in Wolverhampton city centre will be turned into 95 new flats, city council planners decided this week.

An urgent call has been issued for people to stop breaching coronavirus rules after police were called to groups congregating in the sun.

A plan to convert an old kitchen shop into bedsits has been given the green light – six months after it was first refused.

A group of creepy dolls that were mysteriously tied to trees in Cannock Chase were removed by police, it has been confirmed.

Distraught members of the traveller community say they would not be wanted anywhere after a row over a proposed transit site in the Black Country.

A taxi driver who made racist and intimidating remarks to a passenger before threatening to throw her out of his car has lost his licence.

A second teenager has been charged over the stabbing of a 16-year-old boy who was left seriously injured in Walsall.

A 31-year-old man was fatally stabbed by a teenager as he waited for pizza at a Black Country shopping parade, a trial heard.

HMP Birmingham has been described as a “difficult setting” to reduce Covid transmission by a health chief following news of an outbreak.

A leisure centre in Wolverhampton has begun to support local GPs to deliver the Covid-19 vaccination programme.

An 11-year-old girl was threatened and had her school bag stolen in Wolverhampton.

Wolverhampton City Council is urging employers to ensure staff can access regular Covid-19 testing.

During five decades of marriage Christopher and Patricia Clinton have seen a lot.

A team set up to disrupt local crime and focus on early intervention is hiring more officers.

The story of love and national service lives on through a collection of letters owned by a Staffordshire man.

Despite the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic the Tipton and Coseley Building Society has reported another set of strong results for 2020.

A Facebook group aimed at encouraging anyone who enjoys wild camping to collect litter when they are out and about has been launched.

A new end of life support service for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) patients and their families has been launched – thanks to charity funding.

Pupils at a catholic school are using the Lent period to help those most in need.

Residents living in a quiet Sandwell street were evacuated from their homes after a potentially explosive discovery.

West Midlands small and medium-sized firms are calling on the Chancellor to announce an extension to the furlough scheme when he delivers his Budget tomorrow, according to the latest data from Lloyds Bank’s business barometer research.

Dudley Council has appointed a new deputy chief executive.

People aged 60 to 63 years old in the region are now being invited for their coronavirus vaccination.