:00:00. > :00:10.This is East Midlands Today. Tonight ` hundreds pay their
:00:11. > :00:17.respects at the funeral of Leicester author Sue Townsend.
:00:18. > :00:23.Among those at the packed service, the actor who played Adrian Morley,
:00:24. > :00:28.her best`known creation. She looked after me. She was on set every day.
:00:29. > :00:37.She got that guided me through the whole thing.
:00:38. > :00:44.Also tonight, a man is convicted of `` a man is arrested on suspicion of
:00:45. > :00:48.rape at a children's home. And with more and more East Midlands
:00:49. > :01:02.people wanting allotments, should current holders consider dividing
:01:03. > :01:05.their plots into. Good evening and welcome to
:01:06. > :01:08.tonight's programme. First tonight, hundreds gathered in Leicester this
:01:09. > :01:11.afternoon to pay tribute to the life of the Leicester author Sue
:01:12. > :01:14.Townsend, the woman who gave us Adrian Mole. Her family chose to
:01:15. > :01:19.hold a public funeral service at De Montfort Hall, in the heart of the
:01:20. > :01:22.city she loved. Sue was described as generous and kind with a wicked
:01:23. > :01:30.sense of humour. Geeta Pendse reports.
:01:31. > :01:34.An iconic cultural venue befitting a woman who put Leicester on the
:01:35. > :01:41.literary map. Sue Townsend's family, friends and the public
:01:42. > :01:46.attended the funeral service. While cameras were not present, audio was
:01:47. > :01:52.relayed to mourners outside. Extracts of her work were read out.
:01:53. > :01:57.She was not scared of death, but she was not ready to die. She loved life
:01:58. > :02:03.too much. She loved Leicester and the overflowing home that she had
:02:04. > :03:53.made off a corner of it. She loved trees,
:03:54. > :03:59.Jeremy Ball, is there for us tonight. What do we know about this
:04:00. > :04:02.arrest? Well, this arrest follows a complex police investigation, into
:04:03. > :04:08.more than 50 abuse allegations, going back to the 1970s. It involves
:04:09. > :04:15.a children's home that closed eight years ago. You can see it is fenced
:04:16. > :04:18.off. I understand that a man in hiis fifties has been questioned on
:04:19. > :04:26.suspicion of raping a child at Beechwood. He's subsequently been
:04:27. > :04:30.bailed pending further enquiries. And the offence is alleged to have
:04:31. > :04:32.taken place in the early 1980s. And Nottinghamshire Police haven't said
:04:33. > :04:35.whether the man they've arrested worked at Beechwood. But the police
:04:36. > :04:38.have made clear they're still following other lines of inquiry.
:04:39. > :04:42.They're said to refer to a significant number of potential
:04:43. > :04:45.suspects. And their investigation has already been extended to four
:04:46. > :04:47.other children's homes in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. And
:04:48. > :04:53.there's been another development in this case today, hasn't there? Yes.
:04:54. > :04:55.Separately to the police inquiry, we've discovered that 26 former
:04:56. > :05:03.residents have been awarded compensation after claiming they
:05:04. > :05:06.were sexually abused. That's come out of a Freedom of Information
:05:07. > :05:09.request we made about the Beechwood inquiry. Together, the City and
:05:10. > :05:17.County Councils have paid almost ?250,000 so far. They say a
:05:18. > :05:22."significant" number of other claims are still being considered. And
:05:23. > :05:25.because of that, they can't go into more detail. But they've made it
:05:26. > :05:31.clear those settlements have been made without any admission of
:05:32. > :05:41.liability. Thank you. Still to come ` will the weather
:05:42. > :05:47.behave? Yes. With high pressure in charge,
:05:48. > :05:52.there is no need to put the bank holiday weather on the naughty step.
:05:53. > :05:55.I will have the details later. An inquest into the death of a GP
:05:56. > :05:58.who had been diagnosed with postnatal depression has concluded
:05:59. > :06:03.she didn't intend to take her own life. There was a huge search for
:06:04. > :06:09.Elizabeth Kinston when she vanished from her home in Nottinghamshire
:06:10. > :06:17.last November. Her body was found two weeks later. Our Health
:06:18. > :06:21.Correspondent Rob Sissons reports. This was a very tragic and high
:06:22. > :06:26.profile case. She was a very well liked and
:06:27. > :06:31.respected GP and she worked in Derbyshire. When she vanished from
:06:32. > :06:35.her home at Beeston in Nottingham, it was learned that she was
:06:36. > :06:41.diagnosed with postnatal depression. Police looked at hours of CCTV. Her
:06:42. > :06:46.family appeal for her return. The inquest heard that she had a history
:06:47. > :06:51.of mental problems. She confided in her family and her GP but nobody
:06:52. > :06:56.knew the full picture. If they had done, she may have got the help she
:06:57. > :07:01.needed. Then came the call nobody wanted. Her body was found in
:07:02. > :07:09.grassland and yet taken a toxic mixture of medication. `` and she
:07:10. > :07:14.had taken. Elizabeth Kinston had begun to act irrationally, fearing
:07:15. > :07:19.neighbours were spying on her. Her husband did not want to say anything
:07:20. > :07:24.today. The inquest concluded that there was no evidence that she plans
:07:25. > :07:28.to take her own life, so there was no suicide. She had been looking
:07:29. > :07:32.forward to a family holiday in South Africa with her husband and children
:07:33. > :07:35.who had kept her going through her illness.
:07:36. > :07:39.A man has been charged with common assault after the UKIP leader Nigel
:07:40. > :07:41.Farage was hit by an egg in Nottingham. 33`year`old Frederick
:07:42. > :07:46.Glenister from Radford has been bailed. He's due before Magistrates
:07:47. > :07:49.in Nottingham on the 22nd of May. Meanwhile Mr Farage cancelled a
:07:50. > :07:55.walkabout in Cambridgeshire today following yesterday's incident.
:07:56. > :07:58.A Nottinghamshire family, forced to live in different countries for the
:07:59. > :08:02.past ten months, are to be re`united. Gill and Herb Reagan from
:08:03. > :08:07.Carlton were separated when he was deported to his birthplace ` America
:08:08. > :08:10.` due to visa problems. They had been returning to the UK after
:08:11. > :08:14.spending a decade volunteering in South Africa. An appeal judge has
:08:15. > :08:20.now ruled in their favour ` meaning Herb could be reunited with his wife
:08:21. > :08:24.and three sons within weeks. A jury has heard how a man was
:08:25. > :08:28.beaten to death and set alight outside a Derbyshire social club.
:08:29. > :08:32.Three people are accused of murdering Barry Smith last October.
:08:33. > :08:41.The attack on him was described in court today as "savage and
:08:42. > :08:47.merciless". Navtej Johal reports. Barry Smith was a traveller who had
:08:48. > :08:51.put down roots in the village in Derbyshire. He had only been living
:08:52. > :08:57.there a few years before he died outside the social club last October
:08:58. > :09:01.where he was a regular visitor. The visitor at Leicester Crown Court
:09:02. > :09:05.heard that a week before he died, Barry Smith was involved in an
:09:06. > :09:12.argument at the Kilburn welfare social club with the `` with a woman
:09:13. > :09:15.who racially insulted him. She resigned her post and the
:09:16. > :09:19.prosecution alleged that it was the loss of her job which led to her
:09:20. > :09:27.husband, also a steward at the club, their daughter and her
:09:28. > :09:32.partner, to kill Barry Smith in the early hours of Sunday morning when
:09:33. > :09:37.they were alone at the club. All three are charged with murder.
:09:38. > :09:41.Pamela Aitken is charged with assisting an offender. The
:09:42. > :09:45.prosecution described what happened as cold, chilling and brutal
:09:46. > :09:53.revenge. He told the jury how the forensics pathologist documented
:09:54. > :09:58.dozens of sites of recent injury and drag marks on the ground leading to
:09:59. > :10:03.where the body was found. He said a fence post had been used in the
:10:04. > :10:08.attack and Mr Smith had had his face smashed in before being set alight.
:10:09. > :10:11.All the defendants deny the charges. The trial continues.
:10:12. > :10:14.Fire`fighters in the region have escalated strike action in their
:10:15. > :10:19.long` running dispute with the government over changes to their
:10:20. > :10:22.pensions. They started three consecutive days of industrial
:10:23. > :10:26.action today ` with an overtime ban next week, too. One Fire Service
:10:27. > :10:30.trained up what it calls "contingency operatives" as cover.
:10:31. > :10:39.And they were soon in action. Mike O'Sullivan reports.
:10:40. > :10:43.Midday at Central Fire Station in Nottingham. The beginning of five
:10:44. > :10:49.hours of strike action. Members of the Fire Brigades' Union asked that
:10:50. > :10:54.walking out over proposed changes to their pensions, including pushing up
:10:55. > :10:59.the retirement age to 60. This is the start of strike action over
:11:00. > :11:03.three days. We are putting the public in danger. We don't want to
:11:04. > :11:07.strike. This is the government putting them in danger. We are
:11:08. > :11:13.fighting for our rights. There will be a 12 hour stoppage on Saturday.
:11:14. > :11:16.Then on Sunday, a five hour strike from 10am. It is the first time
:11:17. > :11:24.there have been three consecutive days of action. In Nottinghamshire,
:11:25. > :11:28.the service has recruited 24 of what it calls contingency operatives to
:11:29. > :11:32.help senior officers provide cover during the strikes. They were soon
:11:33. > :11:36.in action this afternoon. They helped to rescue a woman from a
:11:37. > :11:40.kitchen fire in Mansfield Woodhouse and helping to rescue a woman
:11:41. > :11:46.motorist after a car accident nearby. We have recruited from the
:11:47. > :11:52.local population. We have given them basic training and kit `` on our kit
:11:53. > :11:56.and our appliances. And they are working alongside professional
:11:57. > :12:00.firefighters and officers. I sincerely hope we don't get a major
:12:01. > :12:05.incident because those people will be in danger. This is a highly
:12:06. > :12:11.skilled job, firefighting and these people are in danger. The Derbyshire
:12:12. > :12:17.and Leicestershire services had nose a difficult call out this afternoon
:12:18. > :12:22.but fire chiefs are urging people to take care over the bank holiday
:12:23. > :12:26.weekend. `` their services had no significant call`outs.
:12:27. > :12:30.People in the East Midlands are being urged to report on an illegal
:12:31. > :12:32.abuse of young women. The issue of Female Genital Mutilation is
:12:33. > :12:35.difficult for many, but it's a subject that health workers and
:12:36. > :12:38.others have to confront. Police have announced they'll be at airports
:12:39. > :12:41.this year to stop parents taking their daughters abroad for the
:12:42. > :12:51.procedure. One victim has been speaking to our reporter Simon Ward.
:12:52. > :12:57.Educate them. And when you educate them and they know better, they will
:12:58. > :13:03.stop and realise that this is you is not going anywhere unless they
:13:04. > :13:06.change themselves. She knows what she's talking about. This girl was a
:13:07. > :13:09.little girl in Somalia when she became a victim of genital
:13:10. > :13:12.mutilation. Now her organisation in Leicester aims to prevent it from
:13:13. > :13:19.happening to others. I was actually very young. I was 11 at the time I
:13:20. > :13:23.had it done. It was an experience that I will never forget and if I
:13:24. > :13:31.can make a difference by raising awareness, you know, I would love to
:13:32. > :13:37.do that. And for the last 21 odd years, I have been doing my best to
:13:38. > :13:43.raise awareness of FGM. These care workers are role`playing to explore
:13:44. > :13:47.the issues. `` these health workers. The origin of FGM in some African
:13:48. > :13:51.and Asian countries are not about medical issues but many except it is
:13:52. > :13:56.about male dominance over women in some cultures. `` many access it it
:13:57. > :13:59.is about male dominance `` many except it is about male dominance.
:14:00. > :14:03.This legal firm says it is working on one case to prevent the abuse of
:14:04. > :14:07.a girl. Passports can be taken away and legal powers used before a court
:14:08. > :14:10.case and before anyone is hurt. I think for family lawyers, the
:14:11. > :14:14.prevention side that I'm keen on, I think it is lack of knowledge. I
:14:15. > :14:17.don't think many people are aware that they can come to a family
:14:18. > :14:21.lawyer. The public can do that, not a government agency. It is a taboo
:14:22. > :14:29.subject but by talking about genital mutilation, more girls can grow up
:14:30. > :14:33.naturally, without interference. Still to come ` mixed feelings for
:14:34. > :14:37.fans on the final weekend of the football season.
:14:38. > :14:41.And allotments on alert. We report on a plan that would see allotment
:14:42. > :14:51.holders give up half their plots to help reduce the waiting list for
:14:52. > :14:54.land. Now, in under three weeks' time
:14:55. > :14:58.we'll be voting in the European elections. After yesterday's
:14:59. > :15:02.campaigning in the East Midlands by UKIP, today it was the turn of
:15:03. > :15:11.Labour. The party will be hoping it can gain a second MEP. From Derby,
:15:12. > :15:17.Simon Hare reports. Time is running out for voters to
:15:18. > :15:22.make up their minds. Today in bark `` in Derby marketplace, Labour
:15:23. > :15:27.began its campaign for this month's Euro elections. Among those
:15:28. > :15:33.gathered, the sitting Labour MP, Gladys Wilmot. She joined other
:15:34. > :15:37.candidates who she hoped would join her in the European Parliament.
:15:38. > :15:41.Among them, Rory Palmer, who is second on the list of Labour
:15:42. > :15:48.candidates. Let's have a good campaign and best of luck in local
:15:49. > :15:51.elections, too. Last time out in the Euro elections, the Conservatives
:15:52. > :15:57.were the biggest vote winners in the East Midlands. But if there is a
:15:58. > :16:01.swing away from the Tories, Labour hopers `` labour is hoping that it
:16:02. > :16:08.is not just UKIP who will go up in the polls. I hope people will turn
:16:09. > :16:13.out. I think people don't understand the importance of this election.
:16:14. > :16:17.40,000 jobs are dependent on our trade in Europe. It is important
:16:18. > :16:25.during this cost of living rises that we do something about jobs and
:16:26. > :16:30.growth. Should the party's vote go up enough, under the system in place
:16:31. > :16:35.for Euro elections, afterwards Labour will be hoping that it will
:16:36. > :16:43.need a seat for two to accommodate its Euro MVP is for the East
:16:44. > :16:54.Midlands. `` MEPs. There are nine parties standing.
:16:55. > :17:03.I'm tempted to say, something even more appalled and politics.
:17:04. > :17:05.Quite a lot of people who are nervous this weekend.
:17:06. > :17:07.Coming up, the day of destiny for Notts County but first Leicester
:17:08. > :17:10.City's Thai owner Mr Srivaddhanaprabha says he and his
:17:11. > :17:13.father have written off over ?100 million at Leicester. He says
:17:14. > :17:15.they'll invest in the Premier League campaign and will continue to
:17:16. > :17:21.support Nigel Pearson with everything he wants. Natalie Jackson
:17:22. > :17:28.reports. In his grand room at the King Power
:17:29. > :17:32.Stadium, the owner Mr Srivaddhanaprabha says it has not
:17:33. > :17:36.been about money but he and his father have written off millions in
:17:37. > :17:41.the `` getting the Premier League for Leicester City. To write off
:17:42. > :17:48.?100 million worth of debt while you have been yeah? Yes. We love
:17:49. > :17:54.football here and we love the club. For us, we have got the return
:17:55. > :17:58.already. Not in money, but we tried to make the club a success and now
:17:59. > :18:07.we have got a success and we enjoy watching the team in the Premier
:18:08. > :18:13.league. What are your plans? It is for Nigel to decide. I will support
:18:14. > :18:23.Nigel in everything he decides. We talk really openly so he and I are
:18:24. > :18:27.like friends. Did you think about a management change last season? Never
:18:28. > :18:38.thought about that. Never considered a change. So like I said, since the
:18:39. > :18:44.set `` first day that I met Nigel, I felt he was the right guy. This
:18:45. > :18:52.weekend, he is looking forward to being with the fans as Leicester
:18:53. > :19:00.lifted the temperature Trophy `` the temperature Trophy and parade around
:19:01. > :19:04.the city. I will stay and listen to what the fans want and I will try to
:19:05. > :19:07.make the team stronger in the Premier league.
:19:08. > :19:10.Derby still have a chance to join Leicester in the Premier League
:19:11. > :19:14.through the play`offs. But before that, at Leeds tomorrow they can set
:19:15. > :19:17.a new points record for a season. So by way of inspiration this week they
:19:18. > :19:21.welcomed another big record breaker. Former Olympic 400m Champion Michael
:19:22. > :19:24.Johnson was at the club to talk to the players.
:19:25. > :19:28.Now there's no exaggerating just how big tomorrow's game is for Notts
:19:29. > :19:32.County. Their whole future in League 1 is at stake. Almost four thousand
:19:33. > :19:36.fans will make the trip to Oldham. But no one will be more desperate
:19:37. > :19:49.for them to make the great escape than Manager Shaun Derry as Kirsty
:19:50. > :19:54.Edwards reports. This is a man on a mission. A
:19:55. > :20:01.mission to save the club he grew up supporting. I know what it means to
:20:02. > :20:11.be a fan. Being behind that goal there and watching games with my dad
:20:12. > :20:18.and my brothers. It is a great place it is not just a job. He is taken as
:20:19. > :20:29.the bottom. Let's hope he can do on Saturday. He has never given up,
:20:30. > :20:34.even when fans have. We won last night, so all of us are confident we
:20:35. > :20:43.can get a point at the weekend. Just six weeks to go and not `` just with
:20:44. > :20:48.`` just six weeks ago, they looked odds`on to go down. Now they are two
:20:49. > :20:52.points clear of the relegation zone. The goal difference means just one
:20:53. > :20:59.point tomorrow will guarantee their safety. Tell us about the dreamy
:21:00. > :21:06.had? I had a dream about us and the last day. I just remember that
:21:07. > :21:18.Radford beat Tranmere so I hope that that comes true. `` Radford beat
:21:19. > :21:23.Tranmere. The manager beat `` the manager put his stamp on the team so
:21:24. > :21:29.we have every chance. He has to get all the plaudits, hasn't he? I feel
:21:30. > :21:35.this club can go higher than league one. To take a backward step now
:21:36. > :21:43.would be wrong. We have a plan and a vision and I want that vision to
:21:44. > :21:46.start as a league one team. Also playing tomorrow ` Forest who
:21:47. > :21:49.can influence the play`off race at home to Brighton and Mansfield, who
:21:50. > :21:53.could potentially send Bristol Rovers down from League 2. All the
:21:54. > :21:58.best coverage of the day's football on your BBC Local Radio station.
:21:59. > :22:01.Loads of other stuff to mention. Starting with Basketball's Leicester
:22:02. > :22:05.Riders who have put themselves in a tremendous position halfway through
:22:06. > :22:07.their play`off semi final. Opponents Newcastle won the league, but
:22:08. > :22:10.defending Wembley champions Leicester went after them hard at
:22:11. > :22:16.Loughborough and ended the first leg with an eleven point lead. The
:22:17. > :22:21.second leg ` in Newcastle ` is on Sunday afternoon.
:22:22. > :22:25.Down the road Rugby's Leicester Tigers ` who we featured yesterday `
:22:26. > :22:27.go to Sale needing a win to confirm their place in the Premiership
:22:28. > :22:31.play`off. Scrum half Ben Youngs makes his hundredth appearance.
:22:32. > :22:34.Still with Leicester, the city's snooker star Mark Selby is in a
:22:35. > :22:43.World Championship semifinal battle with Neil Robertson. At the end of
:22:44. > :22:47.this afternoon's session, he led nine frames to seven, with the match
:22:48. > :22:50.resuming tomorrow. In cricket, an outstanding signing
:22:51. > :22:53.for Leicestershire as they bring in big hitting New Zealander Scott
:22:54. > :22:55.Styris for the T20 Blast Competition. Meanwhile
:22:56. > :22:57.Nottinghamshire will loan batsman Alex Hales to Worcestershire for the
:22:58. > :23:01.next two County Championship matches. They say he needs first
:23:02. > :23:04.team practice in the four day game. He will return to Notts for T20.
:23:05. > :23:07.And finally, Nottingham Panthers will play in Ice Hockey's European
:23:08. > :23:11.Champions League next season. They've been given a wild card place
:23:12. > :23:18.as the only UK team in the competition.
:23:19. > :23:21.Now, as we approach the bank holiday, thousands of you will be
:23:22. > :23:26.getting out onto your allotments. But here's a notion to fire you up `
:23:27. > :23:29.how about handing over half of your well`tended plot to someone else?
:23:30. > :23:33.Well, given the huge waiting lists for land across the region, some
:23:34. > :23:36.people may say it sounds like a good idea. James Roberson reports from
:23:37. > :23:43.one of our oldest and biggest allotments.
:23:44. > :23:49.Rob Wood considers himself very lucky. He has an allotment. It is
:23:50. > :24:00.the world's oldest and biggest that these allotments could be cut
:24:01. > :24:04.in half to help waiting list. People can split the allotments, we can
:24:05. > :24:09.work with associations to get sites up quicker. Splitting plots might be
:24:10. > :24:13.necessary regionally given that Derby has 18 allotment site,
:24:14. > :24:20.Nottingham 42 and Leicester 45 and all have waiting list of around two
:24:21. > :24:26.years. I think you would get a mixed response. Someone like me would want
:24:27. > :24:31.the full size. Others, as they got older and had less time available,
:24:32. > :24:32.might welcome the idea of downsizing and growing a smaller range of
:24:33. > :26:13.crops. Men are even less tolerant of women
:26:14. > :28:08.than they were before.