07/03/2014 BBC Points West

Welcome to BBC Points West with at Six. On BBC One, we now join the

Welcome to BBC Points West with David Garmston and Alex Lovdll. Our

main story tonight: A young life taken away. Nicholas Robinson was

stabbed to death outside his flat. He's a 19`year`old boy, start of his

life, studying to make a better life for himself and that has bedn taken

away. Police say someone, somewhere, has

the information that could bring the killer to justice.

Our other headlines tonight: The heart`warming response to the

floods. Hundreds from across the UK sign up to help.

It's not just the humans who've suffered. Many barn owls have been

wiped out by the rain. And chasing away the winter blues.

We're at the International Jazz Festival in Bristol ahead of 40

concerts this weekend. Volunteers from around the country

are arriving in the Somerset village of Moorland to help with thd

clear`up operation. More th`n 5 0 people have signed up onlind to

help, shifting sandbags, moving wood and getting rid of everything that's

been ruined. Scott Ellis has spent the day in Moorland.

Soggy sandbags weighing up to 3 kilogrammes each. In Moorland alone,

there are 50,000 of them to get rid of. Fortunately, there's no shortage

of volunteers to haul sandb`gs out of back gardens and onto thd main

road. There are many local people here and volunteers coming from

Leeds, London and Manchester. You have got to go all the sandbags onto

the road? That's right. Across Somerset, there are a 100,000 of

them to clear away. Each village will be cleared in turn. We need to

prioritise more land. Moorl`nd's flood victims appreciate thd help

they're getting as they makd day trips back to clear out what they

couldn't save from the flood water. We waded into this house three weeks

ago to find a disgruntled homeowner. How is it? Not great. Today she was

back, the ground floor of hdr pre`flooding world stacked tp on the

lawn, ready for disposal, grateful for some spring sun. It's a

beautiful day. It reminds md of before the floods. The last few

weeks has been like a ghost town here. How are things now? Gdtting

better. And neighbours agreds. Life's on the mend. You just want to

see the back of it now and, touch wood, it never happens again. Some

neighbours joke they should hang on to their sandbags just in c`se. But

perhaps it's best to have a good clear`out in a village that's

suffered so much in the last month. Nice to see signs of hope there

While the human misery has been uppermost in people's minds, it s

becoming clear that the floods are causing serious problems for

wildlife, too. Conservationhsts say the barn owl population, whhch

dropped by 75% during the l`st flooding, has been badly hit again.

And they say wildlife gener`lly is struggling, with 23,000 acrds of

land still underwater. Here's our Somerset correspondent, Clinton

Rogers. Bo is becoming rarer by the day In

2012, we had a drought. Conservation groups say the last floods `cross

Britain reduced the barn owl population by 75%. In the Somerset

Levels, they think there were only 200 birds left before the l`test

floods. Last year, we had an 85 failure rate. The problem is the

small mammals the barn owls feed off have been wiped out here. Whthout

food, the owls are starving to death. The barn owl will survive but

projects like this in Somerset to put up hundreds of nesting boxes to

boost the population have bdcome that much more more critical. The

wider impact on wildlife across the Levels is yet to be fully assessed

but here at the Secret World Rescue Centre in Somerset, they have a feel

for how bad it is. These two badgers are among the latest casualties

rescued from a thin strip of dry land in the middle of what had

become a vast lake. They were so week they had to be handfed when

they first arrived at the cdntre. If the water had gone much higher, they

would have drowned. Normallx, there are a few bits of elevated land

where small mammals and insdcts will have survived and they can spread

out and repopulate the area quite quickly. We had to move milds across

the site and it will take a long time before that land supports

wildlife again. Here, even swans have been rescued, disorientated and

too young to find dry land on their own.

Councils in the West need more foster carers to come forward.

Figures show there's been a 6% rise in the number of children who need

to be looked after in the p`st three years. Tracey Miller has bedn

hearing about the differencd fostering made to one woman's life.

Sharing her teenage photos, she is back in the place she called home

for over four years. Halina went into foster care at the age of 4

and placed with Andy. She is now a mum herself and brings her own

children to visit. As a kid, I called this place home. I don't know

where I would be now. She w`s a figure I needed at that timd in my

life. She was a friend and lum, she was everything. Andy has fostered

over 100 children over the last 29 years. At the time, I might not have

thought I got anywhere becatse she was like any other teenager. Lots of

the other ones I have looked after ring me up after they have left care

and say, that was the best time of my life! But when they are not

enough foster places for chhldren, it can mean they go into chhldren's

homes or are moved to foster homes in other parts of the country.

Social services needed a pl`ce for a ten`year`old boy. Neither the social

services department nor our agency had anything to offer that boy last

night. He won't have stayed in Bristol, where he needed to be. I

would like to think we can offer more to our children than wd could

last night. That means findhng more foster carers.

Well, Brenda Massey is the `ssistant mayor for Children and Young

People's Services and she's here now. There was a boy mentioned in

the film there. Did you man`ge to find a place for him? He was placed

straightaway and it wasn't last night, it was the night before. We

have priority the children `nd no child is left without a place to go.

Why are we seeing a rise in the number of children who need to be

fostered or adopted? There hs more awareness now since high profile

cases and people are on the lookout for anything that worries them, so

there is an issue, we stick in `` step in and take action. Wh`t are

the main stumbling blocks? Ht can be rewarding, but we have to bd careful

that everyone comes forward. So people are worried about behng put

through the mill before thex are approved? It's not. A friend of mine

was a foster carer and found it incredibly rewarding. There are

certain checks we have to m`ke but even this week, we had an extra

three people go through our panel. At the moment, we have over 700

children in care and 268 foster carers. We want to increase the

diversity of carers because we want to reflect the city as a whole. And

you had an event to reflect that? We run events to talk to peopld who may

be interested. Last night, ht was for LG BT individuals. As a result,

we have three follow`ups. Do you get paid? You do. They get paid on a

sliding scale, depending on the complexity of the case. What if you

develop a strong relationshhp with the child you are looking after We

have a lot of you go on to `dopt. It's very useful to do that. We only

have 40 children waiting for adoption, which is really good. Go

to our website. There is a link on the City Council website.

Spring has finally sprung and the sun has been shining.

A teenager who was stabbed to death in Bristol this week has bedn named

as Nicholas Robinson, a 19`xear`old student who lived in the city.

Police are appealing for witnesses and say at this stage, they don t

know what the motive could have been. We are focusing on ond person

who was seen running away from the house. Anyone who has any

information on who that person may be needed to come forward.

Police have released CCTV ilages of a man they're looking for after a

76`year`old woman was beaten about the head in her own home. Jdan

Taylor was left bloodied and severely bruised after answdring the

door to her attacker who thdn forced his way inside her Totterdown home

on 28 January. Police would like to talk to the man seen in this image

who was in the area at the time of the attack.

Striking solicitors have bedn demonstrating outside Bristol

Magistrates Court this lunchtime in protest at cuts to the legal aid

budget. Court officials askdd the lawyers to halt their demonstration

and requested that the BBC stop filming. The strikers stayed put in

what's their second protest against the Government's cuts. The Linistry

of Justice says the cuts will make the system more sustainable but

legal professionals say it'll cause long`term chaos in our courts.

We'll have the weather shortly and Jemma will be bringing us some good

news at last! Last summer, their chances were

written off, but with a quarter of the season to go, Yeovil Town could

still keep their place in the Championship. Ali Durden is here

with tonight's sport. Given their resources, they should be bottom and

well adrift. Their budget is tiny compared to some clubs, spending

30`40 times as much. Certainly, all the pre`season headlines were about

a season of struggle and relegation, but they're just two points from

safety and their recent forl suggests the story might have a

different ending. At the local paper, the Glovers are

dominating the back pages. Ht's been a remarkable story to write this

season and the ending could still see them defy the odds and `void

relegation. It is nothing short of a miracle. Most critics would have

suggested Yeovil would be ddad and buried by now. Budget wise, Yeovil

town's would be average. It's incredible. They have the

Championship's smallest budget, around ?1.5 million. They'vd paid a

fee for just one player this season, bringing in ten free transfdrs and

bolstering the squad with 16 loan signings. But it's worked. We have

got a group of lads we can totally trust. We would be happy to go down

to April seven men. We don't want to, but if we do, we know there will

be there for us. It is that commitment to the course th`t we

will need now to keep us in the Championship. Next week, Yeovil have

to hand back the play`off trophy they won ten months ago. Thd club

lost over ?450,000 chasing promotion and have increased the budgdt to try

and stay up. We work within our means. We will not break thd club

financially. The budget has been stretched in every league btt we

have done it and can do it `gain. We are prepared to stay up. It remains

to be seen whether we can do the finishing job of the rest of the

season. Tomorrow, they could climb out of the relegation zone for the

first time since September. And if they do stay up, it would bd their

finest achievement yet. And it's Sheffield Wednesdax at home

tomorrow for Yeovil. Here are the rest of the games: Play`off chasing

Swindon will be trying to whn at home for the first time in six weeks

and BBC Late Kick Off's camdras will be at Bristol Rovers against

Plymouth, so look out for that on Monday night's show.

A place in the Anglo`Welsh Cup final is the prize for Bath as thdy take

on local rivals Exeter this weekend at the Rec. The two sides h`ve

already met three times this season with Bath coming out on top on each

occasion. However, Exeter h`ve the added incentive of the final being

played at their home ground, Sandy Park, a week on Sunday.

Bristol are also in action on Sunday. Good luck to them. We are

talking about how nice it would be to play a final in Exeter. Ht will

be a huge game. It all comes down to the day. I am sure, if they look

ahead to the final, good luck to them, but we are looking to see how

we can put things in place. Sitting top of the Championship, thdy play

Cornish Pirates at the Mem, looking for their eighth league win in a

row. Both those matches kick off at pm

ahead of England's Six Nations match against Wales at Twickenham.

Gloucester number eight Ben Morgan gets his first start of the campaign

and will line up with club team`mates Billy Twelvetrees and

Jonny May. Bath's Davey Wilson retains his place in the front row

while Dave Attwood is on thd bench alongside George Ford.

My heart says England. My hdad is veering towards Wales. I probably

shouldn't say that! An entire personal collection of

unique tin toys has gone under the hammer in Gloucestershire today The

treasure trove of vintage toys began when the owner was a teenagdr and

developed into a career as ` toymaker. Ill health meant the

collection had to be sold btt the owner told our Gloucestershhre

reporter, Steve Knibbs, that he s glad that his passion will now

inspire others. Really nice reproductions by the Spanish company

who did reproductions of early German tin plate toys. This

collection evokes memories of generations of childhoods. Some of

you may have had one of these. There are also these robots. Great

memories from the 50s. A big wholesale company closed

down, stopped selling. The lan who ran it offered me his whole

warehouse full of broken once, the ones they have never sold.

Foolishly, I bought it! We had a few sound issues with that report. We

will try and get back to it. Some of the finest exponenets of

jazz have arrived in Brsitol for the C=city's second jazz festiv`l. The

three`day extravaganza officially gets underway in about 15 mhnutes

but already there's quite an atmosphere at Colston Hall, where

Jules Hyam is soaking up thd vibe. I have got you in one air that then

in the other ill, this trio. I know you are thinking. There are four of

them! That because when `` they are a trio with a special guest. It

hasn't even got underway yet and already look how many peopld there

are here. Nice round of applause for a good bit of old jazz piano. There

are events out here pretty luch every day. I am told they are free

and there are late`night jal sessions it as well. If you walk

through here, forward is OK, there is an exhibition of photogr`phy

This is work by a gentleman called David. Some of the best`known

musicians in the world. This chap here, all the way over here, BB

King. Really special photographs. It was that? Miles Davis! He mhght not

be playing today, but what we do have, a very special headline act

who was James Brown's man. We brought him down here to tell us a

bit about some of these gre`ts. Good picture of miles there. Louis

Armstrong. What can you say about him? OK. Good night.

Influence? I love big bands. Duke was the major influence on ly

writing. I learned a lot from him. Very generous in giving young people

tips. He taught me some stuff. Miles Davis, of course, influenced

everybody. I wrote a song for a band which was inspired by Miles Davis.

What was about him that was so interesting for you? What hd didn't

play. The simplicity. I worry sometimes that I should havd done

this this way or that way, but if you repair in enough, whatever you

do, you will be satisfied whth because is the best we can do. Any

questions before I go? It w`s absolutely fascinating talkhng to

him. He has been in the jazz business for more than 50 ydars He

is based in freedom now. He was in James Brown's band. They ard playing

on Saturday night. It's not just about the big names. It hasn't even

started yet and look at manx people have turned up! There is thd

photography exhibition as wdll. Night`time masterclasses and jam

sessions. Well done! He probably can't hear me anyway. And a bit of

company behind him as well. The Sunday politics is on this weekend

at 11am and next week, I am off to Strasbourg to find out if Somerset

will get any help from the DU to pay for flooding damage. You will keep

my chair warm for me? I will bring you back something nice!

I recognise some of those j`zz musicians. My mate was on the stage!

Certainly, the weekend bodes well. Twilight has just descended. The

weather has really settled, given the wet and windy chaos of the

winter. If we take a look at the satellite picture, although we

started with a bit of cloud, that broke nicely. A lot of the region

was really bathed in very nhce sunshine. Cloud beginning to

thicken. That didn't affect the temperatures. They were well above

the seasonal norm for this time of year. Very welcome after thd wet

weather. A bit of a breeze, which helps with the evaporation process.

The weekend, a subtle story. We are looking at dry weather for ` week,

really. Where we get the sunshine, it will feel mild. Where we get

holes in the cloud, we could be looking at chilly, frosty and foggy

starts. This is all due to ` nice big ridge of high pressure to the

east of us, but it is keeping an area of low pressure in the west

away from us. But it does mdan settled conditions for the next few

days. At the moment, not much cloud around at all. Not particul`rly

chilly. As that low from thd West clips us a little net `` it, it will

bring rather dank conditions. Temperatures holding up well.

Tomorrow morning, we hold onto that edge of low pressure. It will be

great, Misty and foggy and overcast, but the sun really gets to work

Glorious sunshine by tomorrow afternoon. 14`15 Celsius and with a

brisk but southerly breeze, that milder combines with the sunshine,

making it feel very springlhke indeed. Finally, things beghnning to

dry out properly. Tomorrow night, cloud thickens and builds. Because

of the cloud, we will have insulation. Sunday is more cloudy.

It will start cloudy and st`y like that. Right the way through next

week, a dry story, and wherd we get the sunshine, very pleasant indeed.

Who needs to go to Strasbourg?