Adults can now receive their second Covid-19 vaccine eight weeks after their first after the gap was shortened from 12 weeks by health chiefs.

Offering a helping hand and a friendly welcome, the volunteers of the vaccination programme at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall have been among the heroes of the pandemic.

Data from England, Scotland and Wales shows an ‘obvious surge’ in case numbers starting around 10 days after the first games, according to an expert.

Thomas Cook said web traffic doubled in the moments after the announcement, and has only grown since.

A mother from Stafford has praised a genetic testing service after it revealed she and her eight-year-old daughter have a potentially life-threatening heart condition.

A mobile coronavirus test centre has moved location after a petition was launched.

Hospital trusts across the Black Country and Staffordshire were caring for a total of 55 Covid patients ­– with the numbers increasing from the previous week as the country gets ready to lose all restrictions later this month.

England’s Euro date with destiny is set to boost pubs across the Black Country and Staffordshire as final-fever grips the region.

An England football supporter’s patriotic fandom has helped to light up a small part of the Black Country.

The former chairman of the company that owns Banks's Brewery has died aged 67 after a period of illness.

Slade legend Don Powell admits he had mixed emotions when England won their Euro 2020 semi-final crash.

Work is forging ahead on dismantling an historic Dudley library brick by brick before it is rebuilt at the Black Country Living Museum.

A mother-of-three who lost her sister to breast cancer has launched a petition calling on the Government to set up a national taskforce to identify effective cures and treatments.

A Black Country boy has enjoyed a new lease on life after being given a special tricycle by a city charity.

Wedding ring sales are booming for a chain of jewellers with stores in the West Midlands.

Businesses could face a wave of legal claims if they try to force employers back to the office after July 19, a West Midlands legal expert has warned

It will be a Split Sundae this weekend when an Italian ice cream man and his English girlfriend watch the Euros final.

The change in the rules will take place on July 19, when most Covid restrictions are lifted in England.

Police are desperately searching for a teenager who has gone missing from the Black Country.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has reclassified progesterone-only contraceptives Lovima and Hana.

Sajid Javid said there was lower natural immunity to flu than in previous years and a lack of confidence in this year’s influenza vaccine.

The peer rejected criticism the organisation had failed in its objectives.

Five-month-old Rocket must think it’s always like this as the British bulldog has seen England make their way to the final of a football tournament for the first time since 1966.

A game of ping pong and a chat with friends – it is the perfect way to spend your time.

A football fan who skipped the chance to go to England’s Euro 2020 semi-final win because he was donating stem cells is set to be at Wembley for the final after he was offered free tickets.

An undisclosed number of RAF Cosford staff have been self-isolating following a coronavirus outbreak at the base.

A paedophile from the Black Country has been locked up for five years after targeting teenage girls online.

A man killed in a Black Country crash which injured four others has been named as James Sheridan.

Two new coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in the region's hospitals – in the latest figures released by NHS England.

A Dudley man accused of murdering a three-year-old girl has “a bad temper” which “can flare very quickly” his trial has heard.

A council is appealing for help to catch a fly-tipper who dumped a large pile of tyres.

Since April 9, everyone in England has been eligible for rapid Covid-19 tests twice a week.

The family of Tom Kirwan have shared an open letter to his killer on the ninth anniversary of his murder – asking them 'how can you carry the weight of what you did that night?'.

Plans to expand Ikea’s Wednesbury store to meet increasing demand by online customers and creating dozens of jobs have been given the go-ahead.

The Ladder for the Black Country is proud of Halesown College apprentice Charlotte Cartwright's achievements.

Disruption to schooling during the pandemic may have led to a rise in the number of children falling prey to drugs gangs, a police chief today warned.

Car insurance premiums have risen in the Black Country this year, new research reveals.

The Black Country's council leaders are meeting with Government ministers to protest about housing targets.

An appeal for information has been launched to help locate a man wanted in connection with an armed robbery.

A second man has been charged with murder after the body of a father-of-five was found at a Black Country industrial estate.

Award-winning comedians, music icons, children's television favourites and Wolves legends are among the varied line-up for the first ever Relight Festival in Wolverhampton.

Outline plans for a major new mixed-use development for Sutton Coldfield town centre have been submitted to Birmingham City Council.

Airline and holidays group Jet2 made a pre-tax loss of £373.8 million for the year to the end of March with its aeroplanes grounded for more than half of the financial year.

Housebuilder Persimmon has seen revenue and completions rise in the first six months of 2020.

Football fans and other people have visited the home of West Bromwich Albion to get vaccinated against Covid-19 thorough a pop-up clinic.

A leading UK manufacturing collective is setting its sights on a £10 million sales boost after seven of its nine members reported being back to or above pre-covid levels.

Ecstatic fans celebrated long and loud in pubs around the West Midlands as England finally made it back to the final of a major tournament.

The third wave continues to rage as we prepare to open up society on July 19’s ‘Freedom Day’.

Delivering face-to-face policing and working with communities is at the heart of the new police commander of Walsall.

Tory seats in the Black Country could be at risk unless plans to cut Universal Credit are axed, Labour has claimed.

A road in Wolverhampton which has become notorious for collisions will be kept under review to see whether road safety measures are needed.

A man accused of murdering his friend with a machete was “laughing and talking” with him just a few hours earlier, a court has heard.

Men in Wolverhampton who are without a home or in danger of becoming homeless have received a major boost with a community interest company launching a dedicated provision for them.

The West Midlands has been named in the top three places in England and Wales for animal cruelty after thousands of reports to the RSPCA.

It should have been a day to treasure. The sun was shining, and the nursery school garden reverberated to the sound of boisterous chatter as a group of three- and four-year-olds enjoyed a teddy bear's picnic to mark the end of term.

The Chancellor made a fleeting visit to the Black Country to launch the final round of a fund to help protect arts venues during the pandemic.

A trainee paramedic found a three-year-old girl lying dead next to a bed with unexplained marks on her torso, a murder trial heard.

Anyone aged 18 and over is urged to grab a jab as the Covid vaccine van returns to the Dudley borough this week.

The cocktails are ready for fans to sample as the Euro 2020 clash between England and Denmark draws nearer.

The Duchess of Cornwall told a student at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama that she is looking forward to not wearing a face covering.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said he did not support people removing the app.

Wolves fans have been urged to get their Covid-19 vaccine at Molineux and potentially get their hands on a shirt signed by the team.

Millions of people could be required to self-isolate because rules are not being eased at the same time as restrictions are being lifted in England.

The Labour leader challenged the PM to detail how many deaths, hospital admissions and long Covid cases will emerge when restrictions end.

The first phase of a multi-million-pound transformation of a city centre is set to start this month with the building of an outdoor food and entertainment area.

Pupils and staff at a Sutton primary school took a trip back to the 1960s to celebrate a landmark birthday.

The Oxford Vaccine Group and the Jenner Institute, both based at the University of Oxford, were honoured with the award for excellence in healthcare.

A man accused of shooting dead two best friends in a Range Rover has told a jury a mysterious "fourth man" murdered them before turning the gun on him and pulling the trigger, only for the gun to fail.

The team that saved Sutton’s longest-established independent school from closure say they are planning ‘significant investment’ to enable it to carry on educating local youngsters into its second century – including everything from new vehic...

A motorcyclist has been taken to hospital with "life-threatening" injuries after a crash in the Black Country.

More than £720,000 will be spent on making the roads in the Dudley borough safer for both pedestrians and drivers.

A man has been arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis after hundreds of plants worth more than £500,000 were seized in Bilston.

Senior Stafford councillors have given the go-ahead for almost £20 million to be spent on transforming the town centre.

Staffordshire County Council has hit the jackpot on its second bid for National Lottery funding to create a history centre in Stafford, scoring almost £4 million.

One new coronavirus death has been confirmed in the region's hospitals – in the latest figures released by NHS England.

All adults across the West Midlands who haven't had their Covid-19 jabs are set to receive a call or a text message from the NHS.

Two Boldmere friends put football rivalries aside to raise more than £3,000 for charity.

A Stafford town centre taxi rank is being axed after proving unpopular with cabbies and passengers alike.

The Prime Minister’s comments came just days after Sir Patrick Vallance said the link had been weakened but not ‘completely broken’.

A last ditch deal has saved a Wolverhampton pub accused of a number of Covid breaches from being stripped of its licence.

The number of positive Covid cases in Walsall rocketed by more than a double in a week, latest figures have revealed.

Relieved bosses at nightclubs, pubs and live music venues are looking forward to being able to plan for the future at last.

The minister told MPs that individual operators could amend their conditions of carriage to require passengers to keep wearing coverings.

Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi had criticised the Prime Minister’s handling of the outbreak.

Patients and families can now benefit from a newly refurbished 'home-from-home' at Stafford's County Hospital – thanks to hospital charity funding.

A Whittington family who feared they would never see their beloved dog again after they believe she was snatched in the village by thieves, have praised the community for helping to secure her safe return home.

Tickets are now on sale for the return of the popular Peaky Blinders Nights at the Black Country Living Museum.

Almost 68,000 people across the West Midlands have taken part in coronavirus research over the past year, new figures show.

The Cabinet minister told MPs that ‘people will need to meet’ and increased transport capacity will be required by future generations.

Crown courts in the region are facing their biggest backlog of cases on record, as the wait for justice for hundreds of victims of serious crime continues.

While the rules may be relaxed from July 19, not all pubs and restaurants will be doing away with Covid measures immediately.

The restrictions in Australia’s largest city will now extend through to July 16.

Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth is due to set sail with passengers later this month for the first time since cruises were halted in March 2020.

An electric motorbike rider has been jailed for dangerous driving after going through a red light on his vehicle before crashing into a people carrier at a busy junction.

The rules will be eased for the double-jabbed in England from August 16, four weeks after other restrictions are lifted.

Anticipation of England’s Euro 2020 semi-final clash with Denmark features on several of the front pages.

Their presence suggests someone has had the infection in the past or has been vaccinated.

Mandatory mask-wearing is set to be ditched on Freedom Day.

MPs today warned of the “huge catch-up job” ahead for pupils after rules on school bubbles were scrapped.

An Oldbury school has closed to all pupils after an outbreak of coronavirus.