04/06/2014 Midlands Today

in advance of the general election. That is

baby over again. When we eventually did find out, we were very angry,

very upset and it was like losing her again. Many parents in the same

position claim they were told no ashes existed. Also tonight, an

11`year`old boy is arrested after 20 children were stabbed with a needle

in the Black Country. The row over alleged infiltration

over `` in schools by extremists. And we uncover the surprising links

between reggae legend Bob Marley and rural shop she.

And good news tomorrow is looking much better with more scenes like

this. The weekend is arriving with a bang. I will have more details

later. All were cremated

in the last decade at But only one set of parents was

given the ashes of their child. Many others were told nothing

remained, although industry experts Our reporter Amy Cole has been to

meet one A few hours after this footage was

filmed, her parents put her to bed. I found Olivia. She was publicly

grey colour. She was a limp, like a little rag doll.

Olivia died from Sudden Infant Death syndrome in 2007.

Her family chose to cremate her ` a decision they now regret.

You were told there was no ashes. You have since found out. We were

very angry and upset. You seem very tearful. It is very painful.

Ken West writes a blog for a funeral website.

He used to work at Emstrey Crematorium where Olivia

was cremated and believes that bad practice led to the ashes not being

When I worked there in the 60s and early 70s, it was policy to recover

the remains of small babies. We didn't do many cremations, maybe one

or two a year at the mumps. Certainly, I was familiar with the

tray and always that cremated remains would be given back to

parents. All cremations have been said to be carried out by strict

standards but the authority said it would begin and end the stick.

Charles Crosland has been supporting the Perkins family.

A baptist minister for 30 years, he says the loss of

All cremations have been said to be carried out by strict

For the parents, the tragedies go on. My wife wanted a teaspoon of her

ashes so she could have them put in a necklace or offering or something

to keep close to home. And we couldn't even get that.

The Co`op, which now runs Emstrey Crematorium on behalf of

Shropshire Council has told Midlands Today that it's recently installed

new equipment with specific settings and a special tray that collects

There's more on this story at the BBC news website for Shropshire.

Thank you for joining us. Later in the Himalayan invader causing mayhem

in the macro one. `` Moorlands. It grows enormously tall and strangles

all the other beautiful flowers. An 11`year`old boy has been arrested

after 20 children were stabbed with None of the pupils at Morton

Community School were seriously hurt They're now receiving treatment

as a precaution against infection. Here's our health correspondent,

Michele Paduano. This school is home to 700 pupils

but just one may have damaged its reputation. On Monday morning, an

11`year`old is alleged to have stabbed 20 children with a needle.

The mother of one was not happy. It is not good enough. They shouldn't

be needles in the school. Another mum's fan was stabbed in the face.

It is horrible, traumatic. The kids are traumatised as it is. To protect

them, all the children were vaccinated against hepatitis. Most

of the students are back at school. Some have been to the hospital. They

have kept them off as a precaution. Public health said the chances of

any child coming to harm was minimal but there was a possible risk. If

there was to be a virus present then the one that is most transmissible

is hepatitis B so to protect the children against that, we started

them on a habitat is being vaccination programme. It is

believed the boy took diabetic needles from his mother. This is a

frustration. In the old days, they could have dealt with this quietly

in`house but we live now in the world of social media. The pupil has

been bailed by police while they investigate.

Allegations of the plot by hardline Muslims to take over some schools is

now a row. Reading `` leading educationalists are questioning the

impartiality of Ofsted investigators. This all started with

some scathing comments from the Home Secretary? Yes, it is the most that

she wrote a very sharply worded letter to Michael Gove about claims

first reported by the BBC that warnings about all this were issued

as long ago as 2008 two Birmingham City Council and 2010 to Mr Gove's

own department and she challenges him and asks him to explain how

central and local government appeared to have been unable to

act. Subsequently, both Cabinet ministers have issued a statement in

which they state they are working very hard together to tackle the

issues raised by these allegations but it certainly does nothing to

dispel the sense that there is a really bitter argument going on at

the top of government about the governance and oversight about our

schools in general and in particular how this does or does not fit into

the other investigation being led by the former head of counterterrorism

Peter Clark. Turning to the Ofsted investigation, what exactly the

educationalists saying? It is certainly a very distinguished group

of experts including the former Birmingham chief education officer

Sir Tim Brickhouse and in a letter to the Guardian, they are particular

concerned about the Ofsted emergency investigation into schools. They say

that it beggars belief that school is described by Ofsted less than a

year ago as outstanding are now deemed by Ofsted to be inadequate.

It says it casts a question of the impartial itty of Ofsted itself. It

is hard to see where this will end. What do you think happens next? Next

up we will get the Ofsted report. Then the Education Department

themselves are due to report later this summer. Politically, this will

continue for some time. Tristram Hunt, the Shadow Education Secretary

has accused Mr Gove of being ministerial incompetence. Letters

have been sent to the former governing body at an Islamic faith

school in Birmingham, `` banning them from the premises. The team has

been turned away from the school three times after they were denied

access. The council says it is clearest league concerned about the

school's financial position with debts of over ?900,000.

That debited leader of Stoke on Trent City Council pull shot on has

stepped down after using fake names on the radio. He sent messages in

support of council policies. The leader said he had made a mistake

that has now done the right thing for the city.

West Midlands Police have released a recording of a woman dialling nine

990 complain about the sprinkles on an ice cream she had bought from an

ice cream van. By releasing this call, police said on to highlight

the importance of using my 9`iron for emergencies only.

We are joined by Chief Superintendent. Good evening. You

can't help smiling at this but there is a serious side? Well, it is

particularly extreme example but we do get a lot of calls. Around 1500

calls a day and around 10% of those are cool that really shouldn't be

999 at all. That should only be open for emergencies. What was your

reaction when you heard this? We do hear quite a few so I'd guess it is

no surprise to get quite a few similar sort of things, often

involving disputes between taxi drivers and neighbours and so on.

Quite often we have examples that should not be for the police at all.

We would prefer people to call police on 101 which is our most ``

nonemergency number. Does that work? Yes, it absolutely does. It is a new

facility, we're really proud of it, we get a lot of calls a day. 90% of

our calls are answered `` within 30 seconds. 999 for emergencies only

please. What other dangers if too many people call my 9`iron? It ties

up 999 line for people who have genuine emergencies and we really

would like to keep those open. We want to get police officers where

they are needed. So, if it is not an emergency, please dial 101. We ask

you to think again in the sort of examples where frankly, they should

not be calling the police at all. 999 is for emergencies only. Our top

story. Parents despair over the mystery of what happened to their

babies ashes. Your detailed and brighter weather forecast comes

shortly. Also to Matt, the story behind 50 Kisses, a new film being

made in the Midlands and premiered this weekend.

And one man's abiding passion to record the best of our ancient

churches for posterity. Volunteers are out in force in the

Staffordshire Peak District battling the invasion of foreign weeds.

The dreaded Japanese knotweed can wreck the foundations of houses.

On the banks of the River Manifold in Staffordshire, searching for the

Himalayan balsam. These volunteers are hunting for a plant which

threatens to crowd out other wildlife. The plant was introduced

It is taking over the native flower was on the river bank and this

becomes a real problem because it just becomes a forest of Himalayan

balsam and you lose all the other species that we like to have one

hour river bank. The plant was introduced to Britain in the 1800

and escaped from Victorian gardens into the countryside. Later in the

year, each plant will develop pink flower was. The pods can scatter far

and wide. That is why these conservationists are uprooting them.

It is hard work but worth it to help give other plants a chance. It grows

enormously tall. And it strangles all the other beautiful flowers. It

helps keep the countryside looking as it should, it doesn't get

overgrown with species that aren't natural to the environment. By

coming and clearing it, we feel it is a really worthwhile job and we

are very privileged to be part of the team. Across the countryside,

other invasive plants need to be dealt with and horticulturalists

have concerns over the spread of some non`native species. They spread

so fast that efforts to control them are extremely expensive and we are

very unlikely to eradicate them unless we adopt some novel methods

of control. The dedication of these volunteers should help preserve the

natural beauty of this countryside but it is work that should continue

all year round to ensure the landscape is protected.

There will be more about this on the breakfast show tomorrow morning.

Now, what possible link could rule Shropshire have with Bob Marley? To

find out, we need to wind the clock back to 1916 when one of the

country's biggest training camps of First World War training camps was

in Westray. Think Bob Marley, think Rastafarian,

think reggae and think of performances like these on Top of

the Pops. What you don't readily think is rural Shropshire. 25,000

soldiers were based here, training for tough times in the First World

War. Among them, Norval Marley. Born in Sussex, he later chapter ``

travelled to Jamaica and then back to the UK where he was apparently

constructed in 1916. Within weeks, the tough training camp, he reported

problems with incontinence. The Army examines him and find nothing really

physically wrong. One the medical reports has a hint that maybe this

is a man of nervous disposition. What happened to him after his

medical examinations? He is downgraded in his medical grading

and ends up in the Labour Court. So, he is not going to serve at the

front or overseas, he is going to be occupied entirely on menial duties.

In Shrewsbury, reggae artist Beth Pryor performs her Marley inspired

mash up and is amazed to discover the news about her hair red's

father. Bob Marley was charismatic and strong. He is seen as a great

writer, great performer, great figure, but his father, you know, is

seen as this week man who didn't serve and couldn't serve due to

health problems. Old records and a trailer detective work helped the

journalist I'm Earthsea stories. I met a lovely lady and she found all

these amazing documents with Norval Marley's name on it. It was just

great. About who he was, where he came from. So, when was Bob Vaughan?

Fast forward to the end of World War II and Jamaica. Norval Marley was 60

and mate `` met his wife but it was tough. He was a white man and I was

a black girl. I guess he was like the black sheep with his family. Bob

Marley saw little of his father, he died when Bob was ten. His time in

Shropshire was far from reggae and far from Ruth `` far removed from

Jamaica. Isn't that fascinating. Could 50

Kisses be a surprise hit? It is a new feature about 50 kisses on one

Valentine's Day. Our arts reporter has been talking to some of those

involved. Kisses, we give them, we've received them, and in this

film, there are plenty of them. 50 Kisses was an initiative created to

connect screenwriters with film`makers so we created this idea

of writing the two page script that must contain a kiss and we said on

Valentine's Day. And so you get films like this. This film is called

poster boy. For the writer, it is a venture into the world of cinema.

This has been my film school in a way. It has put me right into the

middle of a very supportive film making community and I would not

have had that otherwise. But it is not just writers who have been given

a chance to show off their work. Film`makers were invited to create a

feature based on the scripts admitted. Amongst them, I called

Mannion who worked with the production in Staffordshire. It is

hard to get your work out and into cinemas. A lot of indie film`makers

release on the internet. To be united as a collective is actually

really good. 50 Kisses is that crowd created feature. In other words,

lots of different writers and film`makers have come together

online with their productions and together they have made a feature

length film. It'll be shown this Saturday in Birmingham and is also

during festivals. This project has given emerging producers, directors,

writers and production staff a chance to see their work on the

silver screen and that is a priceless opportunity in a world of

film`making which can often be hard to break through.

Joining us now is Pip Piper lectures at Birmingham City University. So,

is this the way forward was to mark crowd creating, bringing people

together? Sadly, we seem to have lost Pip Piper. Hopefully, we will

get him back. Now, when Reggie Portman was taken ill in 2000, he

decided to do something with his enforced free time and go and draw

his local church. He had always loved drawing, and it was an

important part of his recovery plan. 14 years on, there is no stopping

him. The sky is blue, the birds are in song and Reggie Portman arrives

at a church in a beautiful setting. He sets up his easel and gets to

work. I can't think of a better spot, the tranquillity, the piece,

the birdsong. A lovely day at the office. In fact, he enjoys it so

much, he has now drawn more than 300 of the 400 or so churches in the

dioceses of Hereford which takes in South Shropshire, Herefordshire and

parts of Powys and Worcestershire. Reggie, whose age remains a mystery,

uses a special device to help with measurements. That is very clever.

Once the pencil drawing is complete, he goes over it in ink. Sometimes,

when I have been doing it, I have fallen asleep. If the weather is

good, he can draw three churches in a day and to save him travelling

home, locals like to offer him a bed for the night. This will be his

fourth night. I think he is rather `` rather hoping to be of regular

because we are fairly central to the places he is doing around here. We

will have this unique collection. Reggie hopes to complete the project

by next summer and is looking for something else to keep this. Someone

suggested doing public houses. But that might take too long. He has

given his drawings to the dioceses and with more than 400, it will make

for a very big exhibition. Let's have another go of talking to the

film producer Pip Piper who lectures at university as well. We are

talking about this film 50 Kisses and the concept of crowd creating,

by bringing different people together, is this the way forward? I

think it is, the decree for independent producers and film

directors and writers. Films have always been made by very large

groups of people soak in a way, it is not different. I think it is the

internet that is making things possible in a way that they weren't

possible before, bringing groups together, enabling them to connect

and make something and put it out there in a very different way than

it has been before. Couldn't it all get a bit messy with so many people

involved? In traditional film making, you would always have very

traditional roles, the expectations would be very clear, so, yes, there

is a potential danger that if it is not done in the right way, who owns

the film, what they can do with it afterwards, yes, there are dangers.

But if it is put together correctly, it could be a recipe for success. Do

you think we could get a Blockbuster this way? Wouldn't it be great if we

could. It would be absolutely fantastic for the region. There are

a lot of crowd funded projects as well happening. Crowd funding is a

serious phenomena, 2007 at all kicked off. We now have over 600

platforms across the globe. Across that five or six year period,

billions have been raised for creative projects and that is

happening in the region. My own company, we have crowd funded number

of our own independent films, raising thousands of pounds towards

those. That enables you to work in a different way. Where you had to go

to other funders in the past, you can be a little bit more nimble.

Thank you very much indeed. Dismal weather again today but a bit more

hopeful tomorrow. It has been an appalling day`to`day. As we head

through into tomorrow, it is a much better picture. Fine and dry weather

to come with the sun coming out as well and the temperatures slowly

starting to rise. Today, we have had this blanket of cloud and this area

of rain sitting over the top of us and it has really affected our

temperatures. We only got up to 11 or 12 Celsius today which is well

below where we would expect to be. We will get clear spells developing

and the temperatures will fall away so called a night than we have seen

recently. The rain clears through the morning and Thursday is a much

better day. The spells of sunshine to come through. Temperatures

climbing back up to where we were at the start of the week, hovering

around 18 Celsius, so not a bad day at all. Some late afternoon sunshine

to enjoy and overnight, we are going to start to see those skies clearing

so our temperatures are going to fall away once again. Another cold

night. Friday is looking like another good day, too. We have an

early yellow weather warning in place for heavy rain. We start to

pull in humid air from the continent on Friday and that will collide with

this weather system on Saturday giving us some very lively

thunderstorms so do make the most of tomorrow and Friday because it is

getting a lot worst. I will be back at 10pm with the latest updates.

Have a good evening. Goodbye for now.

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