A West Midlands Police force has spoken about some of the highlights of a busy week on social media.

Commuters hitting the rush hour in a city centre were left facing delays after the Midlands Metro was blocked.

Sales were up 2.1 per cent for retail chain The Works in the six months to the end of October.

Family favourite Top Trumps has launched a host of new titles ahead of Christmas Now.

Shoppers "will find everything they need" in the new mini supermarket, which is the first of its kind.

The Bank of England has said the UK could already be at the beginning of the longest recession since the 1920s.

A man is due in court charged with sending malicious communications about Covid vaccinations to the emergency services.

Major employers including Amazon and West Midlands Police will be among the attendees at a jobs fair run by a Sandwell MP.

What better way to brighten up a dark autumn's night than taking a stroll around the truly spectacular Lantern Festival at the West Midland Safari Park.

A half-mile section of motorway in the region has been named as the region's speeding hotspot.

A mother claims her family was hit by stray fireworks during a Bonfire Night event at a bar.

The winner of an unclaimed £7.44 million lottery win has finally come forward – almost five months after the win.

A councillor who wanted Jeremy Corbyn in Number 10 has quit Sandwell Labour amid claims he is planning to join the Conservatives.

A Tory MP has vowed to vote against the Government if Rishi Sunak scraps the pensions triple lock.

Singing fishmonger John Perry has his sights set on next year's Eurovision song contest ­– after teaming up with his long-lost cousin who has previous experience of the competition.

Transport bosses have vowed to improve bus services in the region with the launch of a 10-step action plan amid a crisis in staffing.

A great-grandmother who is a descendant of William Shakespeare's family is feeling all's well that ends well after her name was formally added to the bard's archives.

Police forces are being hindered in the fight against crime by the "woke mindset" of senior officials, the leader of rank and file officers in the region has said.

A town's councillors have condemned "appalling" anti-Semitic graffiti discovered in a public area.

An appeal has been launched after a man was assaulted at a pub in the Black Country last month.

A man has been jailed for over seven years after pleading guilty to the killing of a retired priest at a hospital.

A car dealer from the Black Country who specialised in camper-van conversions has pleaded guilty to fraud and selling a dangerous vehicle.

Aslef members in 12 train operators will walk out on November 26

A dealer has been jailed for more than 12 years after police swooped on an address in Tipton and seized a large stash of drugs and weapons.

The work goes on as a Commonwealth Games venue is transformed into a community and leisure hub for the whole of Sandwell.

A woman from the Black Country has been ordered to pay an NHS trust more than £26,000 after failing to disclose her criminal convictions when employed by them.

Concept images have been released of planned flood defences which will be set up in Bewdley.

A banqueting suite that was closed down after police found a secret £700,000 cannabis factory has applied for a new licence to trade again.

Patients face a postcode lottery when nurses go on strike later this year.

Poundland is taking on 1,200 temporary seasonal staff and is to keep its stores shut on both Boxing Day and New Year’s Day for the third successive year

Tributes have been paid to a much-loved, dedicated Wolverhampton clinical physiologist who died suddenly from multi-organ failure and septic shock.

Images have been released of a man police want to track over a burglary that saw a car and jewellery stolen.

Mrs Justice Hill approved an agreement at a High Court hearing in London after lawyers representing the boy made medical negligence claims.

Two men from Walsall have been told to pay over £600 each for breaking a public spaces protection order (PSPO) in Walsall in separate incidents.

Police have seized a car which was stolen from the Wyre Forest area following a pursuit.

Three people have been arrested after being caught in a car that had been used in a robbery just half an hour earlier.

Tributes have been paid to a much-loved, dedicated Wolverhampton clinical physiologist who died suddenly from multi-organ failure and septic shock.

Jess Phillips, the Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley, has been waiting for over 12 hours with her father in A&E.

More electric vehicles will be rolled out across West Midlands Police to ensure it becomes the "greenest" force in the country – and meets its net zero goal.

A family have been left "on edge" after waking up to find their car on fire in the middle of the night.

A total of 52 young people have joined Wolverhampton's Youth Council - the highest number to be recorded.

Sandwell Council is set to consider proposals to start charging £35 a year for garden waste collections from next year.

Some 401,537 people have been waiting more than a year to start hospital treatment.

Urgent calls have been made for financial chiefs in Wolverhampton to use £3.7m of ‘surplus’ funds that the council holds in reserves, and spend it on helping the city’s most vulnerable people during the cost of living crisis.

Dudley residents are being asked to prepare for diversions as some roads are expected to close for Remembrance Day services.

Students and young people in Wolverhampton who are interested in working for the city council are to receive a major boost when the local authority becomes part of a Black Country employment initiative.

Bus services heading northbound on the Birmingham New Road have been disrupted due to a shed load.

A former Walsall pub, now converted into flats, will go under the hammer at auction.

Traffic was halted on the M42 due to a collision between a two lorries, a van and a car.

A dog has been seized by police after harrowing images emerged showing the animal being dragged along a road by a woman driving a mobility scooter.

Keepers are thanking the public for their help in tracking a bald eagle that went missing from a zoo.

Charity Help Harry Help Others has been revealed as the very deserving winner of £10,000 worth of services from printing and branding firm, Embello.

West Midlands Police officers have thanked staff at a pub and a dessert shop after vandals attacked their car while on duty.

A family-run cafe which opened in 2018 has been recognised with an award voted for by customers.

When father-of-two John Dixon started streaming DJ shows online from his Wolverhampton home during the first Covid lockdown, it was just a bit of fun.

Lord Austin has called for Iran to be kicked out of the World Cup and their place given to Ukraine.

A pub that closed earlier this week already has a new operator and will be reopening soon.

A popular 1980s hit song by a Midlands band is being used to raise awareness of keeping showers short to save money on utility bills.

Up to £1.8 billion of investment could be ploughed into the Sandwell borough if over 60 regeneration projects are completed over the next five years, chiefs say.

The former health secretary joined the cast of the ITV reality show on Wednesday.

A Wolverhampton family has launched an appeal to raise £25,000 for urgent treatment after a father-of-two was told he has just months to live.

The cost-of-living crisis is driving food banks to "breaking point" with almost 1.3 million emergency parcels given to people in hunger over just six months, a leading charity has said.

Nurses should be think long and hard before they strike. Thousands of NHS operations and appointments are likely to be cancelled if nurses take industrial action across the UK.

More than a dozen buildings across the region have been added to a list of those being potentially lost forever – with the same number being removed from it.

There will be parades, services and moments to reflect as cities and towns across the region remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

A poppy walk has been officially opened in Dudley ahead of the upcoming Remembrance Day events in a "sombre" display of solidarity.

"We're living a life sentence," says John McSherry.

There were 90-minute delays on the M6 due to a collision between a car and a lorry.

GP surgeries in the West Midlands will likely be unaffected by upcoming strike action by nurses across the country – due to how the NHS system works.

Harrowing accounts from female domestic abuse victims in the West Midlands during the cost of living crisis have been raised to a shadow minister in Parliament.

Police have named a man wanted in connection with the murder of a 16-year-old boy in Birmingham.

More than 130 arrests have been made as part of an eight-week community policing operation.

Industrial action is expected to begin before the end of this year

The beauty and culture of a classic set of ballets were played out at a town theatre.

A rare 'moonbow' was snapped in the Shropshire skies this week.

Emergency service crews were kept busy on a city street after a man was stabbed and another fell from a building, both within an hour of each other.

The world's most famous steam locomotive delighted railway enthusiasts as it passed through part of the Black Country and Staffordshire.

Work on a new school building which will "transform the education" offered to pupils in Wolverhampton will start next summer, it has been announced.

More than 300,000 members were urged by the Royal College of Nursing to vote for strike action.

Tapping into the “tremendous” Lichfield community to enhance opportunities for pupils is at the forefront of the thinking of Anna Seward Primary School’s new head.

The original flying fairytale hero Peter Pan and his pals have touched down at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre this week, courtesy of local am dram performers Bilston Operatic Company.

A charity that offers free legal advice to asylum seekers and people subject to immigration control in Birmingham and the West Midlands is set to close.

When he snuck into Number 10 by the side door, Rishi Sunak had more than enough problems to deal with.

Sir Gavin Williamson says he is focused on his constituency work after quitting the Government to clear his name over bullying allegations.

Investment zones which leaders in the Black Country and Staffordshire bid for are set to be axed by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt next week, reports suggest.

An appeal for information has been launched after a man had a machete held to his throat during a car-jacking.

Jaguar Land Rover saw an 11.8 per cent rise in car sales in the second quarter of its financial year.

A schoolboy from Wolverhampton who survived brain cancer and had to learn to walk and talk again has raised more than £2,300 for children’s wards.

It's now approaching 'the most wonderful time of the year' as people get into the festive mood.

A Black Country MP has backed a move to stop the Albion ground from being sold off to developers.

Sandwell Council has approved the appointment of its new permanent Chief Executive.

A healthcare recruitment company will celebrate 10 years of serving the healthcare community this weekend.

Spiralling energy costs have forced a landlord to close the doors of his pub for the last time.

Family restaurant Bella Italia is serving up pizzas for a budget price this month.