Four homes were evacuated after a suspected Second World War grenade was found in a drawer.

Police have stepped up patrols in a Black Country village amid a spate of anti-social behaviour and criminal damage.

As the nation marks the anniversary of the first lockdown due to coronavirus, we want to know your thoughts about the ongoing situation.

Tributes have been paid to a 16-year-old who died after falling off a moped during an incident involving a car which left the scene.

A man has been jailed for 10-and-a-half years for assaulting a man in a Dudley alleyway and leaving him with serious head injuries.

People who don't get vaccinated in the next week could wait until May for their first dose of the jab, health chiefs today warned.

Coronavirus patients at hospitals in the Black Country and Staffordshire spent an average of 13 days in hospital at points last year, figures suggest.

It sounds like script from the Last of the Summer Wine. Three silver-haired gentlemen, with bushy eyebrows and lived-in faces are at the bar, waiting to get served.

A new £12,000 visitor pod has opened at a care home to enable residents to safely see their families.

A Black Country council has been awarded £250,000 from the Government to boost leisure activities.

A new restaurant and live events venue aims to bring a touch of the wild west to the Black Country.

Council bosses say they are open to improving areas for pedestrians in Black Country town centres.

A young Wednesfield woman is set to use her huge social media following to raise awareness of autism.

A kind-hearted teenager who carries out lots of charity work has received two awards.

A man is running 100km during March for Breast Cancer Now after his wife fought the disease almost five years ago.

A report has revealed people working from home have been paying an extra £45 a month in energy costs during lockdown, raising concerns that fuel poor households in the West Midlands – including those that are oil-heated – are being pushed into f...

Work on refurbishing a bar at a distillery that opened in the Black Country earlier this year has now been completed.

A plethora of sports memorabilia including rare Wolves, Duncan Edwards and Baggies keepsakes will be for auction this weekend.

Police are appealing for help in tracing a missing Black Country man.

Three people have been arrested over drugs offences in Cannock.

A former Walsall nightclub could be transformed into a new steakhouse restaurant if plans are given the go-ahead.

The figures came in an analysis of experimental figures from NHS Digital.

Lockdown restrictions in England will be eased next week with the end of the ‘stay at home’ rule.

A man is planning to take on a trek in the Sahara Desert to help raise vital funds for Macmillan and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

NHS workers in Scotland will get a 4% pay rise, much higher than the 1% recommended for England.

Out of 55,725 cases at the end of 2020, 9,421 had been waiting one to two years to be dealt with.

A new code of conduct for Sandwell councillors to follow has been met with scepticism by a former leader of the authority.

Over 50s are being urged to book their Covid jabs before Monday with a shortage of vaccines expected during April.

People aged 50 and above can now get vaccinated without an appointment as the region faces a shortage of the jab next month.

A former nightclub is set to be demolished as part of plans for a £20 million luxury retirement village that will create up to 80 jobs once open.

The Anglo-German firm announced it is offering 75% of its pre-pandemic capacity in the peak travel months, down from a planned 80%.

The 2021 Cuprinol Shed of the Year competition features a lockdown category.

Publicans raised concerns over the use of coronavirus health certificates.

Tax experts have said the legal change on appeals would be a ‘catastrophic blow’ for many firms impacted by the property tax.

The NHS is set to spend £95 million to improve maternity care in England following a damning report at scandal-hit Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust.

Wolverhampton Grand Theatre is set to launch a new video podcast hosted by Wolves legend Steve Bull and Sky TV presenter Johnny Phillips.

South Staffordshire community leaders have called for improvements to cycling routes in the district as part of county council plans to encourage more people to get on their bikes.

Researchers say the findings could help explain some of the oral symptoms experienced by Covid-19 patients.

The First Minister said the SNP will ‘build a country fit for the heroes’ of the coronavirus pandemic.

Burglars ripped the garage door off at a Cannock property before stealig a motocross bike and two mountain bikes.

See the latest figures for coronavirus cases and deaths in your area.

Four more coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in the Black Country and Staffordshire.

Chancellor Angela Merkel called the idea a mistake and apologised to German citizens.

Covid-19 deaths have dropped below 1,000 a day for the first time since November.

Despite the spread of vaccinations around the world, a recent spike in deaths has put Brazil’s hospital system under extreme pressure.

At least nine city and town mayors are suspected of getting their jabs ahead of schedule.

He said a dispute could cause major reputational damage to the bloc.

Personalised child health records will be digitised under new Government proposals.

Boris Johnson will lead the first Government press conference hosted in the No 9 suite next week.

The Black Country Chamber of Commerce is reaching out to Walsall businesses – and their employees – to help it understand and shape a regional response to diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Children’s minister Vicky Ford suggested the campaign by Marcus Rashford was not behind the free school meals U-turn.

Secondary school pupils are being advised to wear face coverings wherever social distancing cannot be maintained, including in class.

The Government has supported more than 11 million jobs with £58 billion in furlough money since last year.

Boris Johnson has said it ‘may be up to individual publicans’ to decide whether to require jab certification.

The HEAL-COVID trial will also aim to lower the readmission rate for patients who later develop new or long-term complications.

The large fall in pollution in 2020 was down to reductions in transport and business activity as the pandemic struck, the data show.

The Transport Secretary said he wants smart motorways to be ‘the safest roads in Britain’ amid concerns over their design.

William Billingham was found dead in his cell at HMP Birmingham last Friday.

Sandwell Council’s mobile testing team are going door to door offering tests in areas affected by the South African variant of Covid-19.

Efforts are being stepped up across the Black Country to provide fresh employment with one new employer set to bring more than 500 jobs to Wolverhampton.

Footage has been released showing the moment police dogs sniffed out two Black Country burglars after a high-speed chase.

A retrospective planning application seeks to limit the hours HGVs can use a narrow country lane on the Shropshire/Staffordshire border, developers have said.

Schoolboy Finley Stevens has completed a charity walk along the canal towpath near his home and raised £460 for the Alzheimer's Society.

Plans to turn Wolverhampton’s historic Beatties building and car park into more than 300 apartments lack imagination, a councillor has said.

A Black Country man serving a life sentence for the “cowardly and brutal” murder of his eight-year-old daughter has died in custody at HMP Birmingham.

Council bosses in Wolverhampton are holding talks this week over where a new government headquarters in the city will be based.

MPs will be asked to approve the regulations for route out of lockdown on Thursday.

Suzi Perry has encouraged people to get their Covid-19 vaccinations.

Spanish bank Santander is shutting its branches in the Merry Hill shopping centre and Hagley Street in Halesowen.

Ryanair is set to run around 80% of its normal summer schedule in 2022.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned against ‘blockades’ as the European Union moved to tighten its vaccine export controls.

The Prime Minister told MPs that the ‘concept of vaccine certification should not be totally alien to us’.

Boris Johnson also suggested it was likely holidaymakers would need a so-called vaccine passport in order to embark on international travel.

The lending giant will close three small offices in Swindon as it trims the network in response to the shift to remote working.

The front pages feature talks to resolve a dispute over Covid-19 vaccine supplies and vaccination passports for drinkers in pubs.

The Defence Select Committee praised the change in ‘mindset’ the armed forces brought to the response but said pandemic plans had been found wanting.

The Midlands has become the first NHS region in England to have delivered five million coronavirus vaccine doses.

The Post Office ‘systematically misled’ the criminal courts about flaws with its computer system, leading to the wrongful jailing of its own staff, a court heard.

The boom in cycling during the pandemic boosted a Birmingham group specialising in sports and leisure products.

The online fashion firm published a list of 78 approved suppliers across 100 factories, down from around 500 previously.

The Government has announced a new organisation is being established to fight the largest potential health threats.

The NHS is expecting a slowdown in vaccine supply for the whole of April.

The company is preparing to seek emergency approval for use of the shot in the US.

Lilly Hanrahan was in the sole care of Sean Sadler when she suffered a fatal collapse on the afternoon of November 19 2017.

Schools could be thrown into chaos with whole year groups sent home if parents do not consent to coronavirus testing, it has been warned.

Care home staff could be legally required to have a Covid vaccination under plans being considered by Ministers – as figures reveal more than a quarter of workers in parts of the West Midlands have not had their first dose.

Secondary school pupils and their families are being urged to play their part by consenting to Covid-19 testing to prevent further outbreaks.

The RSPCA has dealt with almost 9,000 incidents across the West Midlands and Staffordshire since the first lockdown, figures show.

Staffordshire County Council is spending £5,000,000 to fix an estimated 11,000 potholes.

House price growth in the West Midlands has been lower than in any other region of England, new figures show.

Bob, a four-year-old tom cat, has been placed on "permanent lockdown" by owner Kate Turner after going missing for six weeks.

A youth club saved after the public donated £12,000 in three days could be vital in helping young people overcome the effects of the pandemic, it has been claimed.

A company specialising in the production of cardboard packaging is investing in apprentices.

The Home Secretary said she is introducing a ‘comprehensive, fair but firm’ plan which would address those entering the UK ‘illegally’.

A Staffordshire woman was treated for smoke inhalation after a house fire.

The European Commission said it may not approve exports to nations with more advanced vaccine rollouts.

A man has been found guilty of murdering 21-month-old Lilly Hanrahan.

Ofqual is urging teachers to question whether any of their judgments may be affected by ‘unconscious beliefs or types of bias’.

Simon Hart said some decision-making in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland has ’caused confusion’ for the public.

Six more coronavirus deaths have been confirmed in the Black Country, Staffordshire and Birmingham.