BBC Local Live: Staffordshire & Cheshire

1. City of Culture 2021 shortlist expected soon
2. School minibus crash inquiry to take months
3. Nails on the road cost almost £8k to clear up
4. College brings in security after travellers move on to land
5. Updates on Friday 14 July 2017

Bony says lack of playing time is 'crazy'

Stoke striker Wilfried Bony says his exclusion from the team is a "crazy situation", after he turned down a lucrative move to China last month.

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Sexual grooming charge after 'altercation'

A man is charged following an altercation with several members of the public in Staffordshire.

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Sexual grooming arrest after 'altercation'

A man was arrested following an altercation between him and several members of the public, police say.

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The man was arrested following an "altercation", Staffordshire Police said.

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Race on to be UK's next City of Culture

Coventry, Paisley, Sunderland, Swansea and Stoke-on-Trent will compete for the title.

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Hughes reveals Bony's China sale clause

Stoke boss Mark Hughes says on-loan striker Wilfried Bony has a clause in his contract allowing him to be sold to Chinese Super League clubs in January.

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Our live coverage across the day

We'll be back with our usual mix of news, sport, travel and weather from 08:00 on Monday.

City of Culture 2021 announcement: Listen to our special radio show

Tonight I'm presenting a special show on BBC Radio Stoke from 22:00 ahead of the City of Culture 2021 announcement.

We find out if Stoke-on-Trent has been shortlisted to be the 2021 UK City of Culture. The city is one of 11 town and cities vying for the title.

Perth, Paisley, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Coventry, Hereford, Warrington, Portsmouth, Wells, Swansea and St Davids have been shortlisted but later we find out who makes the final five shortlist before an announcement later this year.

CHRISTOPHER FURLONG

Last year the BBC's Nick Higham looked at whether the city famous for its pottery could be a serious contender. Read more on BBC News.

This year Hull is enjoying the accolade after it was awarded the title in 2013.

PA

Pedestrian taken to hospital after being hit by bus

A teenager has been taken to hospital after being hit by a bus on a major city road.

Helicopter used to arrest three people on drugs offences

Three people have been arrested on suspicion of handling drugs in Blurton.

A 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs this afternoon.

A man, aged 42, and 39-year-old woman were also arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of class A and class B drugs, say Staffordshire Police.

Many people in the local area may have seen a police helicopter which was used as part of the operation.

Watch: Your 50-second weather forecast

After a bright and dry evening with sunny spells, the region will tend to cloud over during the night. Low cloud, rain and drizzle will reach the region by morning. Lows of 14C (57F).

Weather for the West Midlands.

Travel: M42 crash

An accident on the M42 southbound is causing problems heading out of Leicestershire.

Highways England

The crash, near Tamworth, has now been cleared but lengthy tailbacks are taking a while to clear.

Where is Barlaston? Residents angry over 'Stoke' sign

It's time to meet the village that doesn't want to be a part of Stoke-on-Trent.

The people of Barlaston, south of the city, have been frustrated with a street sign declaring "Welcome to Stoke-on-Trent".

They say, it's not in the right place and should say "Welcome to Stafford".

The sign has already been moved once and they're still not happy.

BBC

I know what the sign says, but you have to walk a mile up the road to be in Trentham. We don't understand. Why we have to have a sign saying welcome to Trentham when it is quite clearly in Barlaston, I don't know. It is a sign but it is wrong. It is nowhere near. We know where the boundary is.

Gareth JonesChairman of Barlaston Parish Council

So let's be clear - Barlaston is a borough of Stafford, not part of Stoke-on-Trent.

Mr Jones added: "We don't want those horrible bright blue bins. They are horrible."

Stoke-on-Trent City Council said "although the postal address may be Barlaston, some residents would need to travel into Stoke on Trent and along Stoke-on-Trent Roads to gain access to their property. This is important to distinguish these highway boundaries as to not confuse motorists when trying to report defects".

We can't turn the clock back, says son of Legionnaires' sufferer

The son of a man who was affected by a Legionnaires' disease outbreak at a Stoke-on-Trent warehouse says his family's compensation will never make up for what happened.

Derek Cull is now in a care home, after being hospitalised due to bacteria at the JTF Warehouse in Fenton in 2012.

JTF was fined £1m earlier this month after admitting a health and safety breach.

Google

I feel a small sense of closure, in the fact that the legal arguments are over and a financial settlement has been made but that doesn't change the lifestyle that dad now has. We can't turn the clock back. He is a frail and very disappointed man. He's alive but he doesn't have much quality of life."

David CullDerek's son

Revised local plan for Staffordshire Moorlands

Fewer homes will be built in the Staffordshire Moorlands Green Belt under a revised blueprint for development.

Steam railway society celebrates 50 years

Steam railway enthusiasts are celebrating 50 years of running passenger services along a line in north Staffordshire.

A gala's being held this weekend to mark the anniversary of the Foxfield railway which dates back to the 19th Century.

BBC

Originally the line was built in 1893 - the original purpose of the line was to export coal from Foxhill Colliery down to the main line (Blythe Bridge).

It finished in 1965 and the Foxfield Railway group was born.

Over the weekend, various passenger trains, coaches from the 1960s and demonstration freight trains, as well as connecting bus services, will travel on the line to celebrate the special anniversary weekend.

BBC

Sport headlines: Is there a race to sign Bruno Martins?

Here are the top sport stories that we're looking at this afternoon on BBC Radio Stoke:

• It's being reported that Crystal Palace have joined Stoke City in the race to sign Bruno Martins Indi
• Port Vale's Adam Yates could make his long awaited comeback from injury in tomorrow's friendly away to Buxton
• Crewe's Callum Ainley will cope better with the game physically next season according to his manager David Artell

Pledge over restoration of listed building

The owner of a listed building at the gateway to Leek has vowed to restore its original features and bring it back to life.

City of Culture shortlist expected soon

The final shortlist of towns and cities to host the 2021 City of Culture is expected sometime soon.

Perth, Paisley, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Coventry, Hereford, Warrington, Portsmouth, Wells, Swansea and the smallest city in Britain, St Davids have all thrown their hats in the ring for the title.

Only five will be chosen from that list before the winner/final city is chosen later this year.

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Nails on the roads: Cost break down

A 5km stretch of road which closed last month after tens of thousands of nails fell on to it took more than 15 hours to clear up.

A Freedom of Information request by a member of the public says it "proved very difficult" to pick up and remove the nails after a lorry shed its load on the road between Etruria and Porthill.

BBC

Highways England who dealt with the clearing of the nails said they received 11 inquiries from members of the public.

Autistic children 'will not be offenders'

A farm house will become a care home for youngsters with autism and learning difficulties, after bosses assured neighbours residents would not be young offenders.

How do you find the smallest star?

Scientists in Staffordshire have discovered what is believed to be the smallest star.

But the question is - how do you find the smallest star?

Professor Hellier, from Keele University explains: "We were actually looking for planets and looking for planets around other stars.

"We do that by looking for tiny dips in the light of a star when a planet orbiting around it and goes in front of it and blocks out some of the light.

"Because this star was exactly the same size of a planet we found a star doing it. It was really exciting."

Science Photo Library

Missing man found dead in park

A man found dead in a park in Hanley this morning had been reported as missing, say police.

Staffordshire Police say the body of 31-year-old Joe Walker was discovered in Central Forest Park at about 19:00.

Police say the circumstances aren't suspicious.

bbc

Stone leisure centre plans passed

Plans for a £9.5m leisure centre to be built on Stone's Westbridge Park have finally been passed, dealing a blow for the town council.

Holly Brown: Inquiry to take months

The 14-year-old died when her school minibus collided with a bin lorry in Birmingham

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Sport headlines: Where does Bojan place in Mark Hughes's plans?

Our top sport stories for Staffordshire and Cheshire this morning include:

• Bojan is a big part of Stoke City's plans for the future, says manager Mark Hughes
• The Port Vale manager says no decision has been made on whether or not they'll sign defender Neal Eardley
• Crewe boss David Artell doesn't expect to add to the five new signings he's made over recent weeks

Minibus crash death: Investigations take months rather than weeks

The police investigation into a 14-year-old schoolgirl's death in a minibus crash will take months rather than weeks, an inquest has heard.

Holly Brown, a student at John Taylor High School in Barton-under-Needwood in Staffordshire, died in a crash involving a council bin lorry on the A38 Kingsbury Road, Birmingham, last Friday.

West Midlands Police

The teenager, who was on a school trip with teachers and other pupils, was pronounced dead at the scene.

At the opening of an inquest today, assistant coroner James Bennett said: "I've been provided with a report from West Midlands Police which confirms their investigation will take a matter of months rather than weeks."

Private security brought in at college after travellers camp on site

A college has drafted in 24-hour private security to prevent travellers returning to its car park after at least 20 caravans camped there.

Man found dead in park

A man has died after being discovered in a park in Hanley this morning.

Staffordshire Police say they received a call at about 07:00 after a man was found collapsed near the entrance of Central Forest Park but died at the scene.

The death is not being treated as suspicious and the victim is yet to be identified.

BBC

Nails on the road cost almost £8k to clear up

Almost £8,000 was spent clearing up tens-of-thousands of nails which spilled on a major road in Stoke-on-Trent.

The A500 northbound at Etruria was closed while the nails were cleared and assistance given to other vehicles that had punctured tyres on 13 June.

HIGHWAYS ENGLAND

The road was shut after a 5km stretch of road between the A53 Etruria Road and Basford roundabout and Porthill Bank.

A Freedom of Information request by a member of the public reveals that two magnets were used to quicken up the process which took over 15 hours to clear.

BBC

It took more than 170 man hours to clear-up the nails, costing more than £3,500.

Road closed after car overturns

The B5013 near Colton in Rugeley is closed after a vehicle overturned, says Staffordshire Fire Service who are at the scene.

Staffordshire Fire