Birmingham Mail

Troops in for Treat ; Appeal: Xmas Gift Boxes for Our Boys

WITH less than three months to go until Christmas Day, a Birmingham mum is rallying for support to give British troops fighting abroad a treat over the holiday season. Natalie Chambers, from Kings Norton, became the city's representative for the Support Our Soldiers (SOS) charity in May.

Rider Hurt As Horse Bolts

POLICE are appealing for witnesses after a horse and rider were injured. Staffordshire Police say a tractor and agricultural trailer frightened one of three horses as they were ridden at around 7.30pm on Monday in Ivetsey Road in Wheaton Aston.

Inquiry Looks Into Credit Crunch Help

A COMMONS inquiry is to hear evidence from West Midlands union representatives, community groups and business leaders, as it launches an investigation into the effects of the economic downturn on local people. The West Midlands select committee, chaired by Birmingham MP Richard Burden (Lab North-field), is examining the help available to people who are made redundant or struggle to pay their mortgage.

Woman Is Hurt As Car Overturns

A WOMAN was injured in a mystery crash in Staffordshire. West Midlands Ambulance Service was called to Wenlock Bank, Lapley, Stafford, shortly before 12.05pm on Tuesday after a car was reported to have overturned. A female driver, in her thirties, was taken to Stafford Hospital after complaining of neck pain. No other car is believed to have been involved but, at this stage, the cause of the crash remains a mystery.

Man Punished for Points Fraud

A THIRTY ONE-year-old Midland man who failed to reveal he had six points on his driving licence when he applied for an insurance policy has been ordered to carry out 150 hours Community Punishment. Judge Amjad Nawaz told Jahral Jacobs it was a serious offence as insurance companies relied on applicants always telling the truth.

Fury at Boy Shop Search ; Store: Lad Had Bag Checked 'for Looking Suspicious'

STORE bosses are investigating allegations a boy of 12 was searched by a shop security guard in view of other customers because he "looked suspicious". Adam Edwards, a pupil at Fairfax School in Sutton Cold-field, was allegedly followed by a female security guard before she searched his rucksack in view of shoppers at The Co-operative Food store in the town's Hollyfield Road.

Hunt On for City's Nicest Bus Driver

THE search is on for the Midlands' kindest bus driver. Bus company Arriva Midlands is asking commuters across Birmingham to nominate drivers who have gone the extra mile and shown greater levels of kindness. The winning driver will get High Street gift vouchers and commuters could win a four-week pass for taking part.

Tory Pension Plan Blasted ; Voxpop: Brummies Slam Idea to Work Longer

CITY centre workers have baulked at plans which would see them slogging away at their desks for an extra year. Tory leader David Cameron has outlined plans to increase the pension age for men by a year to 66 to slash the country's debts at the party's annual conference.

Biker Injured

Care Alert to Drivers

DRIVERS are being warned to take extra care on Staffordshire roads. The call from Staffordshire Police follows the onset of the autumn weather.

Pensioner's Home 'Left Full of Damp' ; Repairs: City Council Apologises and Pledges to Act After Mail Intervenes

COUNCIL officials today apologised to a Birmingham pensioner for failing to properly repair her home, despite a court order which demanded improvements be made. A string of surveyors' reports found the walls and floor at 66- yearold widow Margaret Weir's home in Lydget Grove, Erdington were completely saturated - and the damp means she cannot even take a bath.

Flowers Get Top Awards ; Bloom: City Trail Is a Winner

CRACKING blooms, Gromit! A collection of weird and wonderful flower features, which included family favourites Wallace and Gromit, has bagged a double award for Birmingham.

Jessica has Style Prize in the Bag

A BAG designed by a student from Birmingham Metropolitan College hung off the shoulders of thousands of fashion lovers at Brum's Style in the City event. Jessica Butcher's image of a female in an elegant dark pink and yellow dress was regarded by Style in the City Designer of the Future judges as the ideal design for the souvenir goody bag.

Campus Open Day

National Honour for Golf Ace Maxwell

PRIORY School sports scholar Maxwell Martin has been selected to play golf for the under 16 England team. This rounds off a fantastic year for the youngster from Bournville, who has won the European Junior Golf Championship and the Independent Schools Under 12 Championship.

Drop Back Into Higher Education

WHILE thousands of higher education students have successfully settled in at college or university, a number of their fellow students will have dropped out of their courses. Whether the student has been affected by high living costs, is feeling homesick or their course isn't suitable for them, it doesn't mean they should give up on pursuing their career aim of studying on a higher education course this year.

Motorist Hid Drugs in Car

A TWENTY EIGHT-year-old Walsall man studying to become an accountant has been ordered to carry out 80 hours Community Punishment after he was caught with ecstasy tablets and cannabis. Stephen Dixon was driving a car stopped by police in a routine check and a sniffer dog then discovered the cannabis hidden under the gearbox casing, said prosecutor Geoffrey Dann. He told Wolverhampton Crown Court that when Dixon was searched at the police station the officers found three ecstasy tablets in his ...

We'll Fight for Our Local Bank ; Bank: Community Association Starts Petition Calling for Service to Remain

"SAVE our bank" - that's the cry from Midland residents and traders fighting to save their Barclays branch from the axe. Warley Neighbourhood Watch secretary Les Morris is one of the many protestors campaigning to keep the Vicarage Road, Oldbury bank open. Barclays confirmed the branch was shutting, on November 27, but residents have refused to take the closure lying down.

Pupils' Big Day

SCHOOL children will be treated like stars tomorrow when they cut the ribbon at the opening of a superstore in Handsworth Wood. The former Somerfield is one of the first in the country to convert to a Co-operative following its acquisition of the chain.

Business As Usual with New Twist

BIRMINGHAM restaurateur Nick Crudgington is back in business, just months after the collapse of his landmark city centre venue. Nick called in the liquidators in June amid mounting losses at the Bucklemaker, a bar-restaurant in St Paul's Square and formerly bustling institution on the corporate lunch circuit.