10/03/2017 Midlands Today

degrees. Fiona. Thank you, Sarah. That's all from the BBC News at

The rise in fly-tipping - from fridges to giant teddybears,

it's a rat's paradise, with a clean-up cost

For people to have to live next door to this is outrageous.

We'll be looking at how some parts of the region

West Midlands Police deny a positive discrimination recruitment

drive, despite criticism from another force.

Everything we have done is absolutely lawful,

it's appropriate and I think that it is outstanding good

More than 1,000 beers and ciders from around the world...

I'm in Burton-upon-Trent, the home of brewing,

30 years on from their FA Cup song, Coventry City fans are keeping

the dream alive for another trip to Wembley.

And from the sunshine of yesterday to something much cloudier today -

this weekend is looking much the same, with brighter spells

But if you've got plans this weekend, stick around...

It's a blight on our landscape, a health hazard and it's

costing us millions - fly-tipping.

The cost to councils in the West Midlands of cleaning

up fly-tipping reached ?3 million last year.

Government figures reveal the number of incidents across the region has

increased by 13% over the last five years.

Local authorities across England recorded 100 reports of illegal

Emma Thomas has been out with one council trying

A warning - if you are eating, you might want to take a pause.

Birmingham City Council is one of four local authorities

in our region which has defied the trend, seeing a reduction

in fly-tipping for two consecutive years, after a dedicated team

That can be from local CCTV, from CCTV that stores and local

businesses may have, as well as just actually

And I looked out my bedroom window two days later

You've only got to look at this, I mean it's absolutely disgusting.

If we remove the progress of Birmingham from the West Midlands

statistics, we see a 29% increase in fly-tipping over

Around a third of all incidents were recorded as a "car-load" size.

So why are people choosing to break the law rather

In Staffordshire, we've had a levy placed on charging for some

of the waste that was previously going free into the tips

and that has an impact on forcing people to think

about what their alternatives are, particularly if you are

In November, Staffordshire County Council introduced charges

for certain items at its tips, including the tip the other

Things such as ?3 for a bag of rubble, ?4 for a tyre.

But the authority says there is no evidence to suggest the charges

Local councils do have the power to issue penalties to fly-tippers

But with fines ranging from ?400 to ?5,000,

some charities say the detterant, unlike the mounting piles

Emma Thomas, BBC Midlands Today, Birmingham.

Emma joins us now from just outside Tyseley incinerator in Birmingham.

We've seen what some councils are doing to tackle the problem,

but other areas are struggling to keep on top of this, aren't they?

The incinerator behind me is where the rubbish from Birmingham

It's no surprise the city sees the highest number

of fly-tipping incidents, given its size.

But if we look across the region, Stoke-on-Trent, Walsall and Sandwell

are all examples of areas where fly-tipping has doubled

The problem isn't confined to just the urban cities,

but the rural country lanes which are affected too.

In Herefordshire, a largely agricultural county,

it's gone up by nearly 50% in five years.

What are the penalties for fly-tippers?

Prison sentences can be used, such as when the materials

fly-tipped pose a threat to the environment.

In March last year, two men from Aston in Birmingham were jailed

for a combined period of 17 months after they dumped sheep

The investigation relied on evidence from CCTV cameras,

which we're told can play a key role as councils hope to reduce

the financial burden to taxpayers of cleaning up fly-tipping.

And there will be more on this story on the Sunday Politics this weekend,

The Chief Constable of West Midlands Police has

denied his force is engaged in "positive discrimination"

in appointing black and ethnic minority officers.

A big recruitment drive is underway, which includes a series

of workshops for applicants from diverse communities.

But senior police officers at another force have said they fear

that the process is unfair and borderline discriminatory.

The Chief Constable of West Midlands Police has made no

secret of his desire for his officers to be

more representative of the people they serve.

In an extraordinary intervention, unnamed officers with

South Yorkshire Police told a public meeting that West Midlands Police

are "pushing the boundaries of positive action" by tailoring

coaching for black and ethnic minority job candidates.

That is not discrimination, says the Chief.

We offer the same level of advice for any candidate. But those from

minority communities perhaps need more confidence, more insight, more

awareness so that they are better prepared to come forward and compete

at the same level as any other camp did it. -- as any other candidate.

Here are just 9% of all West Midlands Police officers are from

those backgrounds. Added the second highest representation and all

policing. But look at the latest round of recruitment and one are

from a BNP background. The numbers are increasing. -- B M E.

West Midlands Police has held workshops in areas with more

under-represented groups, but says it's never at the exclusion

Encouraging applications and providing support pre-application

stage to those of a particular race is not discriminatory and is not

unlawful under the Equality Act 2010.

he attended a workshop which he says broke down negative stereotypes

We always knew at the same time we had to score this course to get in

and it is a scoring system and we knew we did not score the right

scores. Without the training we were not have made it and been selected.

In a statement, South Yorkshire Police -

which is also trying to diversify its workforce -

said the comments were part of a ongoing discussion.

They have slightly you offer. But they have never been here. What I

would say to them is if people want to understand what we're doing and a

real insight and they have a genuine commitment, a genuine commitment to

diversify their force, we will get this and try to copy it.

800 new West Midlands Police officers will be enlisted by 2020 -

more than 10,000 people have registered an interest.

Ben Godfrey, BBC Midlands Today, Birmingham.

Headteachers are meeting in Birmingham this weekend

It got underway this morning, with Education Secretary Justine

Greening facing a tough reception and heckling from teachers, who say

The Association of School and College Leaders say class

sizes are on the rise, special needs support is being cut,

and the choice of subjects at GCSE and A-level is being restricted

Elizabeth Glinka has been taking a look at this and joins me now.

The question of funding is nothing new, is it?

Well, this is a subject that's been bubbling along for some time,

with teachers saying funding is now becoming a critical issue.

One of the things that's come up today is the idea that courses

are having to be cut, particularly things

The government will point out that spending on education is now

And earlier this week it announced ?530 million for new free schools,

But remember education spending is worked out per child,

so more children than ever before naturally means more

Overheads go up every year and the government is also asking

schools to give back part of their budget to fund the National

The National Audit Office has warned that schools in England are facing

an 8% real-terms cut per pupil by 2019-20.

And teachers say all this means tough choices.

Carl Ward runs Haywood Academy in Stoke and has cut over ?350,000

So this means less staff in schools, fewer curriculum offers,

less enrichment activities and we are really at the stage now

where the pips are really starting to squeak.

A rally involving parents and a number of the teaching unions

is taking place at the Quarry in Shrewsbury tomorrow,

while at the conference in Birmingham, headteachers

A man from Kidderminster has been jailed, after admitting starting

a fire in a toilet on board a flight to Egypt.

46-year-old John Cox was arrested as he arrived back

The cabin crew had to put out two fires, both in the toilets,

The second was so severe, the captain made a Mayday

call and began to plan an emergency descent.

Cox will serve four years and six months behind bars.

Thousands of fake and illegal cigarettes have been seized

Officers found around 8,000 cigarettes and more

It's part of an ongoing operation by Trading Standards in Staffordshire.

Last autumn, 17,000 cigarettes and ten kilos

As a town, Burton-upon-Trent has a proud brewing history stretching

back thousands of years, all based on the quality

of the spring water - the taste of the beer is down

Today the industry contributes more than ?140 million to the UK economy.

This week, the town has been hosting the International

Ben Sidwell's at the National Brewery Centre where

Well, the industry is actually brimming, Mary, there has been a 15%

increase over the last two years in the number of new brewery is opening

up here in the UK. Some of those beers and ciders are among the over

100 one -- 100,000 beverages at these awards in Burton-upon-Trent

this week. From the familiar to the obscure,

there were beers and brewers from all of the world in

Burton-upon-Trent today. All hoping to take on one of the most coveted

accolades in the brewing industry. We have got an expert panel of

judges, expert judges from 16 countries and these are the oldest

brewing awards are still operating in the world, they are considered

very prestigious. The body is fantastic. The hop character on that

is particularly strong. That is God! For the long arduous days, judges

sampled some of the best bears the world has to offer. It is a tough

job. Being a judge here is kind of a thrilling experience in terms of you

are part of the history. It is an honour to be a judge but you must

put in 100% effort as a taster and someone who evaluates them.

Burton-upon-Trent is the home of brewing and was once considered to

be the biggest producer of beer in the world. Today, it is still big

business. With more than 5000 people working here in the industry.

Including John Mills, who opened Tower Brewery in 2001. There were

around 350 brewers in the UK when I started, big and small, I believe it

is neither 1700 brewers. That increases the competition. The

supermarkets have been a big change. -- nearer 1700. That is a big part

of my business which was not there when I started. The silver goes to

approval tip. Back at the National Brewery Centre, celebrations for

some of the results were announced. When I was from over 21 different

countries from around the world. It is wonderful that I got a medal in a

city with such history in the UK and throughout the world and then the

beer business. The increase in the number of beer breweries is showing

no sign of decline, meaning winning one of the industry's top award is

only going to get harder. Let us speak to a man who has been a

brewer his entire working life, here's the head brewer here at the

national brewing centre, Steve, we have here there is an increase in

the industry, is it buoyant, is it doing well? It is doing remarkably

well, especially at the lower end, the microbreweries, which are

increasing at an enormous rate, 1500 of them now in the country, with his

ten years ago they were probably only five. What about the situation

with Burton, you know how good it is important and how good this place is

for brewing, but what is the situation here? We still have quite

a few microbreweries. We have the big guys, of course, and who

continue to be here but we have lost one or two of the big breweries in

Burton but that has been filled up with the smaller breweries that have

opened, not in terms of volume, but in terms of production of the

different types of beers, which, of course, the consumer is really

nothing. That is the big thing, briefly, the change in the industry,

microbreweries, specialist beers, that is the direction it is going

in. Yes, if you have 1500 microbreweries, you can have up to

12 dozen beers to choose from, if you want to! Plenty of beers to

choose from and plenty of people are doing so. The awards have happened

and been given out. This weekend, here at the National Brewery Centre,

they will celebrate those beers from around the world, a festival going

on all weekend where you can sample some of those 1100, including

award-winning beers. Just the 1100! Looks like they are in for a good

time, thank you, Ben. Beavers could be enlisted to help

tackle flooding in one The Forestry Commission wants to try

the idea on a site near Lydbrook, which was badly affected

by floods in 2012. It's hoped the beavers

will build dams to keep storm They're described as

energetic and enthusiastic, These are the latest

recruits to try to tackle flooding in the village of

Lydbrook. The Beavers, long-term, they will

maintain the dam is free of charge. The beaver family are

currently living in Devon, but the Forestry Commission wants

to move them to Gloucestershire to see if beavers really

can stop flooding. It is an effective solution. The

Beavers use materials which are naturally sustainable, things like

Matt, rocks, Willow and at the end they work very hard to maintain the

damp structures. It is an extremely cost-effective solution.

And this is where the beavers will be kept.

A metre-high fence will be built around this 15-acre site,

with mesh put underground to stop the beavers from burrowing out.

The beavers and their dams will be monitored closely to see

if there really are any benefits in stopping storm water

Lydbrook was badly hit by floods in 2012.

And it's stopping a repeat of that, which means residents

From the biodiversity point of view it is worthwhile giving it a go. It

is a win-win situation, we cannot lose and we might stop the flooding.

Not everyone agrees beavers are a good thing, some question

the impact they have on wildlife and the rate at which

But if approval is granted, these beavers could be setting up

home in the Forest of Dean as soon as this September.

Lee Madan, BBC Midlands Today, Lydbrook.

A big weekend for some of our football fans ahead -

The prospect of a trip to Wembley for some...

Yes, remarkable bearing in mind the football season we have had this

season so far. Most supporters will go an entire

lifetime without seeing their team So there's massive motivation

this weekend for two Bromsgrove Sporting

and Coleshill Town have made it The dream - to meet each other

in the final in May. It's a cold Tuesday night

on the terraces but there's a warm Because Bromsgrove Sporting are just

180 minutes from Wembley. An amazing feat for a club formed

just seven years ago. Unbelievable, really. Just really

looking forward to hopefully getting there. I would never have dreamt 12

months ago that we would have been staring down the barrel of possibly

watching our team at Wembley, amazing. For a small club like

Bromsgrove Sporting to reach Wembley would be massive, for such a small

town. The capacity at the Victoria Ground

has been increased to 3,500 for the first leg of their semifinal

against Cleethorpes tomorrow but they've still had no

problem selling tickets. The town are starting to buzz with

the football, we are getting them back. To have 3500 in here, it is a

non-believable achievement. They are not the only ones. -- unbelievable.

25 miles over the border in Warwickshire, they've got Cup

Can I have two tickets for the semifinal, please? You are in luck,

we have just got some more in. No-one wants to miss out

on an occasion which has got I never thought I would see the day.

Those of us who usually go and watch them will go and watch them

tomorrow. Everyone is commenting on aren't we doing well.

At the ground this afternoon, everyone was joining in to make

final preparations for their Vase semifinal against South Shields.

Even chairman Paul Billing had a broom in his hand.

They want everything to be perfect for players and supporters alike.

It is good times at the club. For non-league football, it is clubs

like ourselves to get some recognition and see the team doing

well. It's amazing what the prospect

of a Wembley final can do to bring Nick Clitheroe, BBC

Midlands Today, Coleshill. And you can hear coverage

of both games on your And Birmingham City

could do with a bit too. And you've been to see manager

Gianfranco Zola this afternoon. He's very likeable and today

was upbeat, passionate His record as the Blues boss

is pretty desperate... He joined when they were seventh

and just three points from third. They're now 17th and with relegation

fears growing by the week. They've got four tough

games coming up, starting Well, today, I asked Zola if he'd

considered quitting. If I was like what you are saying,

probably I would not have got Do not think that it was all roses

and flowers, I had to face problems and I did not back off

of the problems. So if I see that the people

are following me, I will carry on. If they don't do that, I will do

something else, don't worry... It's not a great time for Blues

fans but it's far worse They don't have a team

at the moment. And they organised

a protest this afternoon. Coventry have been thrown out

of the Premiership due to a row between the owners

of Brandon Stadium and the club. There's been speedway

in Coventry for 70 years. Some of the fans got into the

stadium to have a look around and were not impressed. It was not sure

I want to come and see this like this but I am here now. It hurts. It

really hurts. There is a stadium here, perfectly capable of both

sports being run here, Speedway and stockcar racing and we cannot

understand the politics behind why we are not able to return. Tricky

times for them. And Cheltenham Festival, one of your highlights.

Yes, looking forward to that, all roads lead to the Gold Cup. Full

coverage next week, cannot wait. We look forward to it. Thank you, Dan.

30 years ago, Coventry City fans packed Wembley Stadium

From the terraces they belted out the song Go For It City -

written by husband and wife duo, Steve and Heather

Next month the Sky Blues are playing at Wembley again

to record a new song, also written by the Taylors.

Amy Cole joined them at the studios of BBC Coventry and Warwickshire.

It was a packed house at BBC Coventry and Warwickshire:

Fans eager to be part of recording this new song -

But it's not the first it's been done.

Go For It City was written by Steve and Heather Taylor

in 1987 and recorded at their home in Coventry.

It was performed by the players before their face-off with Spurs

at Wembley in the FA Cup Final, which they won.

30 years on and they're back at it with a new song to motivate

the Sky Blues as the club prepares for Wembley again.

People said, are you doing a new song, because you did Go For It

City, and you should have another song because we are at Wembley

again. That was the main reason. We thought after all these people were

in contact with us, we thought that perhaps we should do one, for the

fans. of league one but the fans

are hoping this song I am 67 and I just ran down here, so

this is fantastic for me, especially Coventry, I hope that they do it. I

was at Wembley in 1987 and I went through that and it is great to be

back so I want to be part of it. They are going to have to pull it

out of the bag? Absolutely, we are the and we live and die for the

city. This Coventry City have any hope against Oxford United?

Absolutely, football is a funny old game. The best example was watching

Barcelona this week. Coming back from 4-0 down, fantastic result. I

will keep my fingers crossed and hope that illegal out against and

the SRE would put in a good performance.

mid-morning presenter wanted after a sleepless night.

I was up at 2:30am worrying about whether anyone would come. I

genuinely had a nightmare that it was just me singing the song and

nobody would want that any million years, so thank heavens the sky blue

Army have come out today and all been prepared to join in. Amy Cole,

BBC Midlands Today, Coventry. Coventry City, just like Barcelona,

that could only come from a Sky Blues fan! Time for the weather now.

Good evening. A cloudy day to day, a touch brighter to come through this

weekend, but there was lots of grey sky as he started the day. But

steadily, it started to thin and break, the cloud, and will we saw

that and the sun coming out, we had much milder air and we started to

reap the benefits. We got some brighter spells this afternoon and

as a result our temperatures managed to push up to 14 Celsius once again.

They could do better than that as we head to this weekend. It was still a

pleasant end to the day. We have started to see that Carlton and

break. For the weekend, there will be some sunny spells. It is a mixed

picture because we have rain to come. Predominantly through Sunday.

It is feeling mild and we have the milder air over the top of us. That

is murky, so for tonight lots of cloud. It is giving us some mist in

some spots, where we get any breaks. But it is remaining mild overnight.

Temperatures ranging between eight and nine Celsius. That is a hive for

this time of year. Mild overnight and mild start tomorrow. This cold

front of the West of the country stalls but will swing through on

Sunday. As that passes as it will give us some rain. Once that clears,

it is looking much better. Tomorrow, dry. We start to draw much drier air

from the South. We will get the cloud thinning and breaking,

temperatures doing better than on the board, we could get 16 Celsius.

Lots of sunshine in the end of the day and the rain will then arrive.

That will be with us overnight into Sunday, temperatures holding up to

eight, nine Celsius. Better picture for Sunday, temperatures up to

around 12 Celsius. Two bands of rain through the day but once that

clears, it is looking drier and brighter. Better news for

Cheltenham. Enjoy tomorrow but the sunshine, rain on Sunday.

Thank you, Rebecca. Your next Midlands

news is at 10:30pm. So, like, you get sponsored to swap

clothes with somebody for a day. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

OK, I don't get that. So, maybe... I don't get that.

..you wear your mother's clothes? I don't get it. What does she wear?

No, no, she wears someone else's. OK, I don't get that, it's

too complicated. Do another one.