The role the West Midlands Combined Authority is playing in driving new apprenticeships has been welcomed by the Ladder for the Black Country.

Home repairs and emergency services group HomeServe has agreed a £4.1 billion takeover by a Canadian investment group.

The latest hygiene ratings have been revealed for a number of pubs, bars and restaurants.

Under-fives are being invited to a royal party at Dudley Zoo and Castle next month.

An innovative project to prevent collisions at an accident blackspot has won an award.

Countryside Partnerships has swung to a pre-tax loss in the first half of fiscal 2022, and revenue fell on a strong comparative period.

An historic hotel in Wolverhampton faces being bulldozed to make way for a new Lidl supermarket – sparking anger in the local area.

Airline easyJet hopes to be back to carrying nearly as many customers at the end of this financial year as it did before the pandemic.

People in the Black Country have described significant struggles as the cost of living continues to increase at its fastest rate for four decades.

"I think that young people across Wolverhampton will look and think 'well, Sandra dared to dream and if she can do it, so can I'."

A man has admitted attempting to stab his stepfather in his bed in West Bromwich.

More than 2,000 knives, machetes and guns have been dumped into weapon surrender bins in the region within just six months.

The University of Wolverhampton says it will not be disclosing the full list of courses which will be affected by its decision to suspend student recruitment.

A leading surgeon whose pioneering work is saving bowel cancer patients from invasive surgery is calling on people across the region to get on their bikes for a great cause.

Businesses across the region are facing tough choices on raising prices as they continue to be hit hard by increasing costs of energy, raw materials, transport and wages.

Labour has been accused of "marking its own homework" in Sandwell after Tory councillors claim they were denied key scrutiny positions.

Children's social care services in Wolverhampton have been rated Good by Ofsted.

Former Match of the Day 2 presenter Adrian Chiles will speak this afternoon at an online conference about alcohol addiction organised by a former mayor of Shrewsbury.

A popular nursing mentor has called time on her career at Wolverhampton's New Cross Hospital after 35 years with the NHS.

Thousands of commuters were stranded after a fight broke out on a train, with one man knocked unconscious.

A landmark deal will see Legal & General plough £4 billion into new homes and infrastructure across the West Midlands.

A mansion in Wolverhampton with a cinema, hot tub, swimming pool and detached cottage has gone up for sale.

A callous burglar has been found guilty of murdering Halesowen pensioner David Varlow in his own home to plunder his savings.

A taxi driver has described the terrifying moment his passenger was blasted with a shotgun and killed right behind him.

Fire crews are battling a fire at a yard in Coseley, Wolverhampton.

The Duke of Cambridge gave a short speech at the National Memorial Arboretum on Wednesday.

Businesses across the West Midlands are facing tough choice on raising prices as they are hit by rises in costs of energy, raw materials, transport and wages at the same time.

The LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Birmingham is honouring the Queen’s remarkable 70 years on the throne by throwing what it claims is the world’s smallest Platinum Jubilee celebration.

A £12 million expansion project at a Bilston poultry processing company is set to deliver more than 100 new jobs.

A "callous" murderer who tied his 78-year-old victim to a chair and left him to die at his Black Country home showed no remorse for his actions, a senior detective has said.

Statistics from data firm Experian Catalist show the average cost of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts on Tuesday was 167.6p.

Oldbury drive-by shooting murder suspect Michael Goodwin has admitted "doing bad things with cars" but said he was "definitely not a murderer".

Labour is calling for the Conservative whip to be suspended from the politician following his arrest.

The long-standing Conservative was accused of treating the case as a ‘laughing matter’ after the tweet including the ‘winking face with tongue emoji’.

A man has died and two people were injured, one of them seriously, after a two-car crash in Burntwood.

A drug dealer has been jailed after police found him with more than £150,000 cash in his car – plus cocaine valued at £90,000 in another vehicle - after officers smelled cannabis.

The move is one of the biggest geopolitical ramifications of the war and will rewrite Europe’s security map.

Frontline heroes in Dudley who risked their lives to save others during the coronavirus pandemic have been granted the Freedom of the Borough.

The Labour leader said a one-off tax would ‘raise billions of pounds, cutting energy bills across the country’.

The health trust which runs Shropshire's major hospitals has been fined £1.3 million after pleading guilty to failings in care that led to the deaths of two patients.

The health trust which runs Shropshire's major hospitals has pleaded guilty to failings in care that led to the deaths of two patients.

The Black Country and Staffordshire is set to light up to celebrate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

Mr Kipling cakes firm Premier Foods has said it is hiking prices in the face of soaring costs in the latest sign of mounting pressure on household food bills.

An intense four-day phase in the construction of two new permanent wards at Sutton Coldfield's Good Hope Hospital will start this week.

Pub group Marston's has swung to a pre-tax profit and posted a significant revenue increase as it recovered from the pandemic.

As food banks warn that the cost of living crisis is seeing their use become ‘normalised’, a number of organisations are helping those in need across the West Midlands.

Sutton Coldfield mayor Terry Wood, whose time in the role ended this week, says it has been an ‘absolute honour’ to serve a year in office.

Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said he welcomes the requests.

A man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted rape after a woman was attacked in a wooded area in Wordsley.

Falling Covid-19 transmission rates in the community have led to a reduction in staff sickness and inpatient numbers in Dudley, hospital chiefs said.

George Orwell’s classic tale Animal Farm plays at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre this week, presented by The Children’s Theatre Partnership in association with Birmingham Rep and adapted by Robert Icke.

A primary school in Tipton has been forced to close due to a power outage.

The average house price in the West Midlands jumped by around 10 per cent in the year to March, according to official figures.

Who wouldn't want a piece of the 'pursuit of happiness pie' in today's troubled times?

Police are failing to cope with knife crime in Sandwell, claims a councillor in the wake of the stabbing of a woman last week.

Students at the University of Wolverhampton have spoken of their shock and concern for the future after student recruitment was suspended on 138 courses.

Property company British Land saw profits grow in the year to the end of March driven by a strong performance by retail parks.

Red or orange rain could fall in some parts of the country amid downpours, lightning, strong winds and hail.

A Wolverhampton primary school has been downgraded by Ofsted – but its headteacher has promised to address the findings.

Trendy diner Burger & Sauce is set to launch a new branch in Walsall.

Developers are finally set to transform a derelict old Walsall factory site into new housing.

A farmer has said no laws have been broken after work to install 'polyhouses' on his land near Stafford started before planning permission was granted.

A cabinet reshuffle has taken place at Stafford Borough Council – and a new post has been created to oversee the authority’s work to tackle climate change.

Some photographs and interviews from the LGBTQ+ community and stunning mosaic art have been showcased at Wolverhampton Central Library.

Seven buses carrying an unknown number of Ukrainian soldiers evacuated from the Mariupol steel plant were seen on Tuesday.

Black Country councils have jointly decided to stop their legal action against the Home Office over its unfair allocation of asylum seekers.

International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan will set out plans to boost green technology to help wean countries off fossil fuels.

More than 2,000 visitors headed to Sutton Coldfield Fire Station’s open day on Saturday.

The Midlands Engine partnership today launches the Midlands Investment Portfolio to open up investment opportunities across the region.

A landmark deal for homes and infrastructure will help "bring communities back to life" and protect the green belt, the Mayor has said.

From the moment Andy Street took office as West Midlands Mayor five years ago, he was adamant that the region's recovery would be driven by the private sector.

The West Midlands can return to its position as a manufacturing powerhouse on the back of a landmark £4 billion deal, a business leader has said.

The wait was finally over for customers of a popular Black Country fish shop as it finally reopened its doors.

A man accused of beating to death a father-of-five at his Rowley Regis workshop during a late-night robbery told the jury he did not know he was living there.

Sir Gavin Williamson has urged people to take up pension credit after it emerged one quarter of those eligible in the West Midlands were not claiming support.

Staff at an arboretum near Bewdley are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the site being opened to the public after centuries of private ownership.

A former teacher is getting on his bike for a 230-mile trek in memory of his late wife.

Two sisters from Wolverhampton who used to work as barmaids at their local pub have returned to their old haunt to take over as managers.

A Staffordshire school has started a fundraising drive to give a group of pupils the trip of a lifetime.

Cathy Dobbs takes a look at life.

After months of lockdown a group of creative residents are sharing the fruits of their labours with the community.

Cat-inspired artwork by an unknown Second World War soldier could stun at auction after languishing in a loft for more than 70 years – and being dismissed as worthless.

Television chef Liam Dillon has launched a new garden restaurant at his gastropub in Staffordshire.

Residents living near a sinkhole in the middle of their street have asked for someone to take responsibility for repairing it.

Oldbury murder suspect Michael Goodwin has taken the stand in the trial into the killing of father-of-eight Anthony Sergeant.

A man accused of mooning at a speed camera has pleaded not guilty to public order offences.

Two fires near a Sandwell golf club are thought to have been started deliberately.

A heartless burglar broke into a children's soft play centre and stole their charity box - along with a packet of crisps and a drink.

Two men have been found guilty of snatching electronic toy cars from a store - but were cleared of threatening the owner with a gun.

Police are becoming increasingly concerned for the welfare of a man who has been reported missing from the Stafford area.

Hundreds of pupils from across Wolverhampton packed into Queen Square for a live singing spectacular.

The highest temperature was recorded at Heathrow in west London.

Science, adventure and knowledge were at the heart of a visit to the region by the daughter of one of the great names in theoretical physics and cosmology.

Police chiefs have said the use of stop and search must always be "lawful and proportionate" amid restrictions being lifted on powers nationally.

Wolverhampton Racecourse has revealed plans to create a huge new stable area with space for 100 horses.

Hundreds of bikers turned out in force to honour the memory of inspirational teenager Stephen Sutton.

This Morning's Alison Hammond, Disney's Princess Aurora, Marvel heroes, firefighters, dinosaurs and Stormtroopers all played a part in giving Piper Westwood and her family a day to cherish.

Roads in Wolverhampton and Wednesbury will be made safer for pedestrians, cyclists and wheelchair users.

Ukrainian officials said soldiers in the besieged steel plant in Mariupol had ‘completed heir mission’ but did not use the term ‘surrender’.

Retail chain Shoe Zone saw sales soar by 73 per cent for its latest half year.