West Midlands Police has reiterated that it will push for strong prison sentences against anyone caught carrying knives − a warning that comes after two teenagers were locked-up for more than 20 years for a knife attack in Solihull. The pair, who were just 16 and 17 at the time, fled after leaving their 20…

Two people required treatment from ambulance staff before being taken to hospital following a collision between two cars and a lorry on the M42 last night (7th February). Emergency services were called to the incident between junctions five (Solihull) and six on the northbound carriageway at 7.30pm. A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman said: “Crews…

Four schoolboys were arrested over reports that a man was attacked and robbed on a local canal towpath. Police were called to Tiffield Road in Acocks Green, at around 2.40pm on Sunday after a hero passer-by rushed to help the alleged victim and dialled 999. Two boys aged 15 and two of 16 were arrested…

Acorns Children’s Hospice has unveiled its very first furniture shop at Becketts Farm in Wythall. Alan Beckett, Becketts Farm Chairman joined Acorns Chief Executive, Toby Porter in a ribbon cutting ceremony, officially opening the shop to customers. Cherry Bromhead, Retail Area Manager at Acorns, encouraged bargain hunters to pay the new store a visit: “We’re…

Flannels.com, one of the UK’s leading luxury retailers, is opening a new store in Solihull next week. Specialising in contemporary men’s and women’s designer clothing, footwear and accessories, the new store located in Shirley, will showcase a selection of the most coveted designer brands – including Stone Island, Moschino, C.P. Company, Vivienne Westwood, Giuseppe Zanotti,…

An ex-social services worker who abused a vulnerable boy in a Birmingham children’s home in the 1980s has been jailed for 12 years following a West Midlands Police investigation. Bill Cranston molested the boy at Harborne’s Oakhill Centre − a former reception for children seeking foster families or long-term care − during his night shift…

Police searching an area off the M6 for the driver of a car which crashed through a barrier have found the body of a man. The car is believed to have crashed on the southbound carriageway between junctions 4A and 5 near Coleshill, on 15th January. The vehicle was abandoned and enquiries revealed that the…

A shoplifter made her own ‘baby’ out of a soft-toy dog and a bra in a creative bid to smuggle stock from a Solihull discount store. Saffron Curtiss-McGinty hatched a plan to stash stolen goods under a child’s buggy – but the problem was she didn’t have a baby to justify pushing a pram. However,…

Criminals have driven off with an estimated £3 million in engines from Jaguar Land Rover’s Solihull plant in an astonishing film-style heist. A suspected stolen HGV lorry was used to steal the huge haul of expensive car parts in just a few minutes on Tuesday night (31st January). It is understood the heist took place…

Police have been called seven times to reports of passengers watching PORN on trains in Birmingham and Solihull. Across the country the number of train pornography incidents jumped from 17 in 2015 to 26 last year, with arrests trebling from two to six. British Transport Police was called to Dorridge last year and in 2015…