21/01/2014 East Midlands Today

rain from the east. That's all from the BBC

This is East Midlands Today with Anne Davies and me, Dominic Heale.

Tonight: A tram driver says there was nothing he could have done to

avoid hitting a teenager on a crossing.

Lindsey Inger was killed in November 20 12th half a metre from safety.

Also, love and loss, and online dating scam leaves a Leicester woman

penniless. I have no food. My cupboards are empty and I have no

one to eternity. Plus, shall remember them. Could sponsorship

help pay for the memorials. These three premature but they were the

first to get donated breast milk. Good evening and welcome to the

programme. First tonight, the family of a teenager who was killed on a

tram crossing has told an inquest it was the first time she'd used it.

13`year`old Lindsey Inger was hit as she walked across with friends at

Moor Bridge near Hucknall. The tram driver told the hearing

that there was absolutely nothing he could have done to avoid hitting

her. Lindsey's family said they didn't blame him. Here's our Chief

News reporter Quentin Rayner. Lindsey was killed when she and

three other girls crossed the tram crossing to get to one of the

friend's houses. Adrian described as very experienced, was driving the

tram. He blew his horn and slow down when he saw three of the girls in

the middle of the lane. He kept thinking to himself, move, move. He

said she count `` casually carried on walking by until the commission.

`` collision. He applied the breaks and there was a deadly silence. A

family member told him that they didn't blame him and didn't want him

living with guilds. One passenger said she had seen Lindsey but she

had to turn away when she knew the tram was going to hit her. Gary on

the right said he heard screams and stroked Lindsey's arm but she wasn't

conscious. The tram horn was sounded five seconds before the collision.

From analysing CCTV, it wasn't possible to tell whether she had

looked to her right at the oncoming tram. There was nothing to suggest

she had been distracted by a phone or if phones. She had almost catch a

bus crossed the tram line when she was hit and was centimetres from

safety. One qui `` A verdict is expected tomorrow but one key

question won't be answered will it? No and it's the question everyone

wants answered. Why did Lindsey decide to cross the tramline and end

up getting hit by the 40 tonne tram? The Nottinghamshire coroner Maureen

Casey has been at pains to explain to Lindsay's family that she

understands why 0 to Lindsay's family that she

understands why they 0 to Lindsay's family that she

understands why they need to know. But she told them today that that

question is unanswerable and despite all the investigations, we just

won't know why Lindsey crossed when she did.

There is now a fail`safe option now. A footbridge has been built which

will eliminate the risk of this ever happening again. One of our county

councils has announced further cuts to the services it provides and

admits vulnerable people may be hit the hardest.

Derbyshire's planning to increase council tax by 2%, but still has to

make tens of millions of pounds of savings. Here's our political

reporter Chris Doidge. Last week, it was addled scare, today a further

swathe of council services in Derbyshire will put on the chopping

block. It is not a happy day for us. The county council has two save ?157

million from its budget by 2018 and announced that even the most

important services cannot be entirely protected. Among those

taking a hit of potholes. Maintenance will lose ?2 million a

year. Up to seven children Centres will go. Library opening hours will

be reduced and the council will review its spending. We do have few

options now. All the easy options have gone. It is the worst at the

moment. What is so frustrating is we `` is if we have been in power over

the previous four years we could have anticipated the scale of these

cuts and would have started to shape services differently. We spent four

years making the cuts we needed to make and every single one of those

cuts was objected to by a neighbour who had banners and protests and now

they seem to 0 who had banners and protests and now

they seem to be 0 who had banners and protests and now

they seem to be saying we should have done more vote for them. There

are more than 80 cuts set out in these documents but with some of the

details still unclear, it is not certain who will be affected by them

the most. The county council does know that with vulnerable people

most reliant upon them, it is likely that they will be severely affected

by some of the proposals in here. One of our police forces generated

about ?2.5 million from running speed awareness courses for drivers

caught going over the limit. The courses began in 2009. Figures

obtained by BBC Radio Nottingham show that more than 80,000 motorists

have taken part. The attendance cost for drivers has risen by more than

40% since the courses started and now stands at over ?90 each. The

police claim the courses have help reduce casualty figures and in turn

cut the costs associated with serious accidents.

It is justified and necessary. That money is used to support the

partnership. We employ 44 people who do all the work to process people

that get caught speeding. That money pays their salaries. The money we

have spare is being put back into digital cameras. Nine out of ten

drivers learned by it. They don't get caught again and learn by the

educational courses that they do. Today, though, the way money is

raised through speed awareness courses has been criticised. A

little earlier we spoke to the founder of the Drivers' Union, Keith

Peat, who is also a former traffic police officer. His group aims to

promote the rights of drivers as well as safe motoring. The issue is

the fact that we have a speeding industry including companies that

are running courses with all their staff, their tutors, their whole

basis of which means we have `` we need speeders. It is not in their

interest to stop speeding. What is happening is speeding is actually

being encouraged by ignoring the zones where it automatically entices

people to inadvertently speed. I think the police will take you up on

your use of the word, entice. They always say the main problems on our

roads are cars that go too fast. Too fast is a different issue and that

is the fault. It is deliberate mingling and the profiteers stepping

in. Mostly it is below the speed limit and that is where most

accidents 0 limit and that is where most

accidents are caused. Let us take our attention to the causes. The

police say they help stop people reoffending and the money is used

for safety measures within the locality that the courses take

place. My concept of road safety isn't about threatening drivers,

coercing them into paying money to private companies or else they get

prosecuted. That is not my concept of safety. As far as the courses are

concerned, they run private companies for profit. This is wrong.

Somebody has got to run the courses. Thank you very much for speaking to

us. 0 us.

The NHS is to investigate Jimmy Savile's connections with a

children's home in Leicestershire. Savile is believed to have abused

hundreds of victims around the country, many of them youngsters.

Woodhouse Eaves Children's Convalescent Home in Leicester is

the 33rd NHS organisation to come under review. It's now closed.

Leicester NHS Trust says an incident may have occurred more than 40 years

ago. Two men have been charged after

three people were attacked on a busy street in Leicester. The incident

closed part of East Park Road. A 25`year`old man has been charged

with two counts of attempted murder and one of wounding and conspiracy

to murder. A 43`year`old man has been charged with conspiracy to

commit murder. Derby's velodrome will feature

cutting`edge technology to help everything run as smoothly as

possible. The city council's released a customer experience guide

to the venue which should open in a year's time. The publication has

revealed that the velodrome will remember your shoe size. And staff

will carry tablet computers at busy times to take bookings.

A woman from Leicester says she's lost everything after falling for a

stranger on 0 lost everything after falling for a

stranger on a dating website. 53`year`old Ann Bowen ended up

paying out ?2,000 to help the man she met online.

Now she wants to warn others about the very real dangers of online

fraud. Eleanor Garnier reports. It was loneliness that drove and to

look for love online. It wasn't long before she found someone. Same`macro

he has been in the Army for many years and wanted to retire. He said

he wanted to come home to me. It is nice and flattering to start with

and then you start thinking, does he really? Is this a con? Aye her fears

intensified when she started getting e`mails asking for money. She hadn't

spoken on the phone to this man but he asked her to pay a ?2000 admin

fee so he could secure his US Army pension. If you've transferred by

way of a bank account, there are steps that law enforcement could

take but it is time dependent. The reality is by the time you are aware

of this, the money has gone. She isn't the only one. Figures show

that around one in four people across Great Britain will have used

a dating website at some point. They say out of all the people they serve

eight, around 40% had come across fake profiles and 20% had been asked

for money by someone they have been contacting online. She now wants to

warn others about the dangers of `` online fraud. I have nothing. I have

no gas, I have no money to pay bills, I am totally reliant on money

coming into my account next week to be able to have some heat. I have no

food, Mike freezer and covers all empty and I have no one to turn to.

`` my freezer. Still to come ` war memorial maintenance. Remembering

the fallen comes at a cost ` now one council's looking for sponsors to

help out. It is all change with the weather.

We are on the move once again. Join me for the details later.

There are more signs tonight that the Government's welfare reforms are

starting to bite. The number of applications for help with paying

the rent has risen sharply. That's been put down to

deficit`cutting measures like the spare room subsidy, bedroom tax and

the benefit cap. Our social affairs correspondent Jeremy Ball has been

asking local housing authorities just what's happening. Jeremy.

Discretionary Housing Payments made by councils, the people you can't

pay the rent. They are available to tenants on housing benefit or

Universal Credit is. We have asked for 0

Universal Credit is. We have asked for a snapshot of what's happening.

They are reporting increases. In Derby, the number of claims has more

than trebled from 531 in the last financial year to more than 1600

since last April. The value of those claims rose fourfold to ?419,000 and

that is with two months still to go. The council says 83% of those

applied because of the bedroom tax or spare room subsidy. Smaller

councils are seeing the same trend. Charnwood says DHP has increased

325%. A similar story in Nottingham. Debs was threatened with eviction

before her DHP was approved. That is because the housing benefit changes

left her with a rent bill for two spare rooms that used to be used by

her son and Graham `` grandson. I have tried to find another place but

I haven't had any luck. It is either have gas or electric or have food.

Debs is one of 1800 tenants in Nottingham who have applied for the

Discretionary Housing Payments, claims adding up to half ?1 million.

The Labour council says many of those tenants have jobs but still

can't afford the rent because their pay is so low. People are applying

for its because of the bedroom tax. People are not moving. It is acting

as a punishment and not an incentive. For Debs, the prof ``

worry of losing her home has been dramatic and her Discretionary

Housing Payments have meant all the difference. But now she will have to

apply for it all over again. The government has been allocated six

point `` millions of pounds to pay for this. They say they have tripled

extra funding to ?190 million so they can help vulnerable residents

who might need extra help. Nottingham City Council says that is

a fraction of what is needed. The government says these reforms are

vital and that they are fixing the benefits system.

Nottinghamshire County Council is hoping sponsors can be found to help

with the upkeep of local war memorials. Officials reckon they've

spent around ?500,000 on maintenance and repairs over the past seven

years. It's a lot of money in these

straitened times. So would local people and businesses be willing to

look after some of our historic monuments? Carol Hinds reports.

A war 0 monuments? Carol Hinds reports.

A war memorial is more than a local landmark, it is an important part of

a village or a town's history. In summer 2012, Nottinghamshire County

Cricket Club undertook a survey of 95 and monuments within its

boundary. They need TLC and a bit of pointing. The Reddington War

Memorial is a listed war memorial and it did have more severe signs of

deterioration, in particular some of the 0

deterioration, in particular some of the steps were subsiding. The survey

found the theft of copier `` copper or bronze plaques was a problem.

This one was targeted in 2011 by `` and by Remembrance 0

This one was targeted in 2011 by `` and by Remembrance Sunday they were

able to show the replacement plaque made of granite. Nottinghamshire

county council has worked with local groups since 2000 to fund projects

and create 23 memorials at a cost of over ?500,000. Would people in West

bridge could be willing to help maintain their war memorial? It is

part of the community and it is important to remember these people.

It should be looked after. It is something every member of the

community should take on. It is something you should be proud of. I

live in colic and I would be more than happy to help. It is hoped

these war memorials will be preserved for many generations to

come. Next tonight breast is best, especially for babies born

prematurely. 0 prematurely.

But not all of their mums are able to produce the milk they need

straightaway. That's why Kings Mill Hospital has

become the first in the East Midlands to use breast milk donated

by other women. Jo Healey has been to meet the first babies to benefit.

Luke, Lily and Josh, born seven weeks premature. We decided to give

them the donor breastmilk because I didn't have enough breast milk to

give them to start with. The doctors advised on that because it is better

for them. The donor milk is being pioneered here. Premature babies

tolerate breastmilk better and it reduces the risk of them getting a

potentially fatal inflammatory bowel disorder. We really know we are

giving them the best at this important stage of their

development. It is like having a blood transfusion. It is help from

another human being. What about the mums? It has taken the pressure of a

mum. We have a baby early it often affects your milk supply for a

while. They get the donor breastmilk is from bank `` banks. There are 17

in the country. I was a bit unsure at first. They told me it was

screened and cleaned and it was the right thing for them to do. They

have done really well. The trial is running for six months. These three

were the first to benefit. They are now thriving.

Is that a smile or is it something else? I was just thinking, what is

his `` what is he dreaming about? Now for the sport. There's never

been a more high profile and exciting time for women's football

and for the first time ever Nottingham's about to get a taste of

it at the very highest level. A revamped women's Superleague

begins in April and Notts County Ladies will be one of the teams in

the top tier. They've begun training this week and Kirsty Edwards has

been to meet them. Training hard for a big new season.

Notts County Ladies are among eight teams chosen to be in the top

league. They will be playing their home games on the same pitch as the

men are amongst the big clubs come to Meadow Lane will be the current

champions, Liverpool and big spending Manchester City. They are

not just looking to make up the numbers. They are aiming to make

Europe. We don't take second very gracefully so we will be competing.

We want to be successful. It won't be instant. We want to do ourselves

proud. Can 0 be instant. We want to do ourselves

proud. Can we win some silverware? Can we have a cup run? It will be

measured over two seasons and ensuring we are in the league. They

are training full`time in their bid for success and have made some

high`profile signings. A member of internationals are in the side

including four England players. I'm hoping with a link with Notts County

men, we will get a fewer people coming down and cheering us on. It

gives you that extra 10% of energy. Hopefully we can do Nottingham

proud. The amount of funding and coverage we are getting is amazing.

We are shocked and excited about it. Hopefully we will get a very good

crowd at nap `` at Notts County. This is a new dawn for women's

football and these players hope the next few 0

football and these players hope the next few months will see the game

become bigger than ever. I wonder if the arrival of the women

is what's inspired the Notts County men to up their game, recently? They

go to Peterborough this evening looking for their fourth win on the

trot. Full commentary is on BBC Radio Nottingham and coverage starts

just after our programme finishes. So that's good timing.

I'm going to leave you with the build up to the Winter Olympics in

Sochi. They're next month and we have genuine 0 0

Sochi. They're next month and we have genuine medal chances here in

the East Midlands. Our short track speed skaters go with great hopes.

My main job is getting out there and giving it my best shot. I hope

things pan out well. Obviously you want to. This week is about picking

up the clothing for Sochi. There is a photo booth also for a few laughs.

It is pulling on the clothes that make you part of Team GB. Even for

the most experienced member of this speed skating squad, it doesn't get

old. I really enjoyed going through and 0

old. I really enjoyed going through and having 0

old. I really enjoyed going through and having a personal shopper with

me. These Olympics aren't a first for Penny Combs and Nick Buckland,

this time they go with a European bronze medal to their names. We talk

a 0 0 bronze medal to their names. We talk

a lot 0 bronze medal to their names. We talk

a lot from it. We got a huge amount of experience and we haven't

experienced that kind of pressure before. We can take that to the

Olympic Games which is something that will be invaluable. There is

plenty to inspire them and they have impressed Robin Cousins. After

seeing the performance last weekend, it was much better than I was

expecting. It sets them up for Sochi, not this year, but four years

time. Penny has just said to me, we can do it better. It could be

Britain's best post`Winter games and here, we will have played a big

part. I am quite excited now. They are

probably used to the weather now. People have been saying it is mild,

but today, it was freezing. Fog has been an issue. This

photograph was taken over wood bred this morning. If you have any more

like that, keep them coming in. There is some fog forming over

eastern parts but it will be short lived tonight because we are

replacing with the rain. We have a line of weather fronts in the

Atlantic. We are saving the best till last. The weather is on the

move. There will be some spells of rape. There will be some `` there

will be some spells of rain. The wind will start to pick up. It will

reach all of us through the early hours of 0

reach all of us through the early hours of the morning. It is with us

throughout the night. At least we are frog and frost free. `` fog. It

is a damp start tomorrow. There is uncertainty when this rain will come

out of the way. It will clear out of the way and most of us will be dry

into the afternoon. There is some cloud for a time. It is feeling a

little warmer. We get a window of dry weather for Wednesday night

before the next weather system starts zooming in off the Atlantic

into Thursday. A repeat performance on Thursday. It will 0

into Thursday. A repeat performance on Thursday. It will be a dry stop

at the rain is pushing him quickly. That will clear out of the way so it

is drier and brighter for the afternoon.

I think it will `` I think I will stay in bed longer for the sun to

come up. See you on late news.