The Mayor of Dudley has praised a group of school crossing patrols who have clocked up more than 200 years’ service between them.

Sir Gavin Williamson has called out the "reckless" use of hotels to house asylum seekers after two sites in his constituency were taken over by the Home Office.

A toddler has been reunited with his teddy bear, after losing it while watching his father turn on the Christmas lights in Wolverhampton.

A three-bedroom property in Wolverhampton can be yours for £39,000 if you want to put the work in – and there is a lot that needs to be done.

A pair of Black Country manufacturers played a crucial role in helping Atkinson Vos win component of the year in the UK Cast Metals Industry Awards 2022.

Is our love affair with online shopping on the way out?

Lichfield Cathedral is putting on a light show with a difference.

A volunteer who provides food for the hungry is throwing a Christmas dinner for up to 100 people.

A serving British Transport Police officer was over the drink and drive limit when he was caught travelling the wrong way down a one-way street.

Nearly 2,000 abandoned chickens have been reported to the RSPCA already this year and the charity fears bird flu could make the problem worse.

Our love affair with online shopping may have peaked.

Police have been urged to "keep a close eye" on a trouble-plagued Wednesbury pub when it reopens for the first time in six months this weekend.

Financial experts have warned there is a "risk of significant weakness" in Wolverhampton Council’s bid to achieve value for money in the £48 million Civic Halls refurbishment project.

A Wolverhampton councillor said she is "gobsmacked" after being deselected from standing in her ward at next year's local elections.

An amateur handyman and Army veteran has started creating homemade disability rehabilitation equipment to help those who need them – all from his Wolverhampton shed workshop.

Residents could be placed on scrutiny panels to explain their "horrific" experiences in dealing with Sandwell Council.

A dentist has had a November to remember, after picking up a double scoop of ‘Best Young Dentist’ awards.

An Army officer cadet from Dudley found dead in her room at Sandhurst was failed by the service when she took her own life months after she was reprimanded for self-harming, an inquiry found.

Fruit trees have been planted at seven schools in Stafford as part of the national Orchard campaign.

Motorbike riding thugs smashed the doors of a community centre in the latest anti-social behaviour incident to plague a Walsall estate.

The Dean of Lichfield, the Very Revd Adrian Dorber, is retiring in the Spring.

A woman who was arrested after a man was stabbed in Bloxwich has been released on police bail.

The inquests into the deaths of Liberty Charris and Ben Corfield, the Dudley teenagers who died when a car crashed into a group of people in Oldbury last month, have opened.

The hike in prices disproportionately hit poorer people, who tend to spend a greater share of their pay on food.

The alleged victim of Met Special Constable Paul Hoile said the 40-year-old subjected her to aggressive questioning and instructed her not to drive.

"Ow am ya?" said the three wise men! A Black Country Nativity Play is being performed for charity this festive season.

The owner of a popular Black Country hair salon has retired after 46 years of ownership.

A criminal gang from the Black Country which used a religious organisation as a front for importing 400 kilos of cannabis into the UK via Birmingham Airport are facing lengthy prison sentences.

A memorial to honour those lost to Aids and those living with HIV has been unveiled in Birmingham.

Fog is set to envelop the Black Country from Thursday afternoon, with the Met Office issuing a weather warning for the region.

"It's going to be a bostin' Black Country Christmas!" with all the Christmas-themed events to get you into the festive spirit this weekend.

Troubled fashion brand Joules is to shut 19 stores and cut 133 jobs after it was bought by retail rival Next and founder Tom Joule.

Tickets are selling fast for Wolverhampton Grand Theatre's Christmas pantomime which is set to get up and running on Saturday.

The People's Orchestra is performing a special Christmas concert in West Bromwich this weekend.

A disused former history centre in Walsall could be transformed into a new community facility offering educational classes and funeral services.

A picture of a pet cat taken by a college student has earned him the title of Wolverhampton Young Photographer of the Year in a competition organised by the city's art gallery.

A rise in incidents of offensive graffiti across Wolverhampton is set to be clamped down on by the city’s environmental bosses.

Two fundraisers were egged by yobs and had abuse hurled at them from groups of people leaving bars during a charity sleep-rough night outside a church.

New equipment is being installed in gyms in Walsall.

Pupil attendance has dropped five per cent in Wyre Forest secondary schools since the pandemic, new figures have shown.

An award-winning video and animation agency based in Wolverhampton is demonstrating its commitment to providing young people with digital work opportunities by partnering with the BBC Apprentice Hub.

Transport unions walked out for several days in October, demanding better pay as their members faced a soaring cost of living.

A Kidderminster pub is to reopen on December 15 with a new name.

The long-running revamp of a major Black Country bottleneck will continue into next year after "unexpected challenges" delayed work.

Prices for EVs had fallen far more than the market average

An inquest has been opened into the death of a 78-year-old cyclist involved in a crash with a mini-SUV.

A data breach specialist fears that South Staffordshire Water employees and customers are at risk of identity fraud.

A lorry driver has been arrested after being found to be more than three times over the drink-drive limit.

Thousands of Royal Mail workers, university lecturers and sixth-form staff across the region hit the picket lines over pay and conditions.

Birmingham Airport carried out £2 million of essential airfield maintenance work throughout November.

Homewares retailer Dunelm is using its Oldbury store to trial the launch of Home to Home, an innovative ‘pass it on’ scheme.

Tributes have been paid to a “compassionate, caring and resilient” 15-year-old girl after her death on a busy Black Country road.

Chocolate maker Hotel Chocolat Group has seen strong growth in sales in the UK in its latest financial year.

A pantomime star welcomed Santa at a popular Black Country attraction and declared its Christmas grotto officially open.

Firms blamed weak new business, supply chain disruption and shortages.

Cannock Chase Council is writing off debts and benefit overpayments totalling almost a quarter of a million pounds after it was unable to recover the funds.

Regulator Ofwat recorded a 33% rise in the number of customers struggling to pay since May, up from 15% to 20%.

Around half of GP appointments are taken up with often preventable, long-term conditions.

The fallout from the mini-budget continued to affect the market, Nationwide Building Society said.

National Energy Action (NEA) said those in fuel poverty will include 5.9 million low income and financially vulnerable households.

A person was cut free from a vehicle and taken to hospital after a smash involving four vehicles on the M54 in Shropshire.

Plans to build 19 new homes on a public open space in Wolverhampton have been submitted to city council bosses.

Disused town centre offices in Walsall are set to be converted into bedsits to provide "much-needed accommodation" in the area.

India has become the second biggest inward investor in the West Midlands and is "nipping on the heels" of the United States, the region's mayor has revealed.

The RAC said the research ‘completely undermines’ the main reason for turning hard shoulders into running lanes.

Timber suppliers James Latham enjoyed a 7.90 per cent rise in sales to £212.8 million for its latest half year.

A soup kitchen hoping to provide a place to stay and a hot meal for hungry people seven days a week has been opposed by West Midlands Police.

A Black Country Tory MP has accused ministers of showing a "lack of political will" to tackle illegal immigration after plans to turn migrant boats around in the Channel were scrapped.

A 15-year-old girl has died after being hit by a car in Cannock, just a day after it was announced another 15-year-old girl had died after a collision near Merry Hill shopping centre.

The West Midlands has lost a fifth of its cash machines since 2018.

Volunteers at a community radio station have been celebrating after being officially crowned Station of the Year.

A Black Country MP has urged the Government to ban the use of "cruel" electric shock collars on dogs "without further delays".

A Christmas tree business in Wolverhampton is giving a warm welcome to customers this festive season and is hoping it will be a bumper year.

Celebrity chef Liam Dillon has teamed up with his old school to create a hospitality training programme for teenagers.

Wednesbury Library played host to the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future as it put on a free interactive performance of A Christmas Carol.

Central Co-op’s community dividend fund has awarded £31,980 to 21 charities and good causes, all of which support access to food, health and wellbeing, inclusion and the environment.

Dudley’s Russells Hall Hospital is getting into the Christmas spirit today, with the arrival of its festive market and Christmas light switch-on.

Five medium-rise buildings on a large Wolverhampton housing estate are to undergo substantial structural improvements, including the installation of advanced fire prevention fittings.

A woman has been arrested after a man was stabbed in Bloxwich.

A family’s bid to build two bungalows on land at the back of a Cannock house have once again been given the green light despite objections from neighbours.

An “amazing” nurse makes up the third generation of her family to work in healthcare – and has even brought her mum to tears with her caring nature.

Wolverhampton's New Cross Hospital turned festive as reindeer visited patients and a special guest switched on its Christmas lights.

A surgeon has been sacked after hundreds of hospital patients were recalled amid concerns about shoulder operations.

A giant crocheted Christmas tree will be bringing festive cheer to Bewdley Museum.

A widow was found dead at her Cannock home with multiple stab wounds days after offering shelter to a man on Christmas Eve.

Unions say members of the public are showing their support for workers on picket lines.

Members of the GMB union at nine NHS trusts in England and Wales backed industrial action.

A main road in Stafford has closed and is set to be shut for more than a week while bridge repair work is carried out.

The future of a 200-year-old tree at a Black Country nature reserve is secure, after vital work to prolong its life was completed.

A former school in Walsall that was used as an illegal cannabis farm is being sold at auction with a price tag of nearly £1.3 million.

HomeServe UK has continued its expansion of ownership of locally branded boiler companies with the announcement of its seventh acquisition – H2 Property Services.

Some of the most magical train journeys of the year are given the right this weekend when the first Polar Express trips of 2022 begin.

Pupils at a Wolverhampton school have been busy making heart-themed gifts to raise money for the children’s hospital ward that cared for their teacher’s daughter.

Mindful drinking is the way to go, says TV and radio presenter after he was shocked by how much he was putting away.

Cafe bar chain Loungers saw sales rise 53.2 per cent for its latest trading period compared to the same pre-pandemic 24 weeks.

A teenager had been cycling home from work when he was killed in a crash in Darlaston after a driver attempting to avoid police lost control of a stolen car, a court heard.

A man has been jailed for nine years for causing the death of a 19-year-old cyclist by dangerous driving in Darlaston.

A Walsall church is hosting a Christmas market on Saturday to get people into the festive spirit.

A Black Country postman has been hailed as a hero after saving the life of a man who collapsed outside a sorting office.