12/09/2014 Midlands Today

but it'll be turning quite breezy. Thank you very much. That's it.

They have to realise the consequences

of what they have done to mx family and to other families out there

We hear from Samaritans about what help's available

The Midlands farms that could be cut in two ` by the High Speed rail line

It's just like having your heart ripped out, and ruined

A ?1.5 million boost for Ludlow as the twentieth annual

And another a weekend to get outdoors `

still warm and settled for the next few days and sunny spells too.

I'll have your full weekend forecast later on.

A mother from Stoke`on`Trent is campaigning to make bullying

Amanda Stewart's son Dylan was 2 when he hanged himself last April.

He'd been physically and verbally abused

She now says she's "gone past the stage when I hate", but she s

released a picture of Dylan in hospital on a life support lachine,

That photo is included in Matthew Bone's report `

Dylan took his own life just months after starting a new school.

His family say he was tormented by bullies.

But even up to his final molents he tried to protect his fragild mother.

Because of the stroke and the cardiac arrest I had Dylan

kept a lot to himself because he was afraid he was going to make me ill.

And so he did not say anythhng up until a few weeks

before he passed away when he was beaten up coming in from school

Dylan had not been at his ndw school in Telford for very long

His mother says more should have been done to help them.

The school's governors have spoken about their sadness but thex have

insisted the school did everything it could to support him.

They pointed to a recent Ofsted report that said

the school offered a excelldnt level of support for students.

Amanda wants bullying to become a criminal offence.

She also took the difficult decision to release pictures of Dylan in

hospital to show his tormentors at the consequences of their actions.

I have gone past that stage where I hate.

But they have to realise the consequences

of what they have done to mx family and to other families out there

He was so clever, and bright, laughing as well.

He started assembling it and he never got to finish ht so we

thought it would be nice if we could finish it off for him and wd put it

Amanda hopes a change in the law will mean fewer families

like hers left only with the memories of a child whose life

I'm joined now by Andrew Lockley from the Samaritans in the Lidlands.

How big a problem is bullying? People contact us about all sorts of

things and bullying is one of the subjects that comes up not only from

young people back from adults as well. It is something we take

seriously because it does h`ve quite a profound effect on people 's

lives. This is bullying in the workplace as well? It is solething

that we do the wrath from thme to time. Dylan's mother has sahd that

it should be a criminal offdnce what is your view? It is solething

we needed to deal with and we need to do something about it. It is

quite a problem. I could not say what the best way to deal whth it is

but it is something we definitely need to do something about. It has

to be taken seriously? How often do you feel it is or isn't? It varies

from place to place or time to time but it is something that is very

difficult for people to expdrience. We heard that Stephen did not feel

he could talk about it. That is something `` Dylan. An organisation

like Samaritans is there to give people someone to talk to. His

mother said he did not want to trouble her and quite often people

do not want to trouble their friends and families but they can t`lk to

Samaritans any time of the day or night. Thank you very much hndeed.

The latest on the arrest of gunmen in Pakistan suspected of shooting

Malala Yousufzai, the schoolgirl who's made Birmingham her home.

Two events took place in thd region today, on either side of thd debate

about the planned High Speed rail link between London and Birlingham.

In Warwickshire, farmers, who'll be petitioning the government `bout

the impact the project will have on their businesses, were ldarning

how best to present their c`ses to MPs, while Birmingham was hosting a

national conference about the transport and economic benefits

Half the farm will be on either side of it.

James and his father Bill are now preparing to tell a committde of Mps

in Westminster just how HS2 will blight their lives.

Earlier they were given a bht of coaching at a special conference

How confident are you about facing a committee of MPs wallowing the

conference? I think an enemx went to understand it becomes less taunting.

`` following the conference. We have been explained the differences. ``

it becomes less daunting. It is just like having your heart rippdd out

and flew into the land that you revere and love you just don't know

what to do. But over in Birmingham `

where the main rail hub will be based ` a conference explorhng how

best to maximise the economhc It offers so much to the nation But

it has got to be led by the local communities.

But while the minister is positive, the NFU is not and has lodgdd it

own petition with MPs ` addressing issues such as compensation.

If people are being taxed on compensation that is grosslx unfair.

These are some of the issues that we're going to be taking forward to

a petition on behalf other lembers. Next month farmers will comd face to

face with MPs to voice their concerns.

Police have arrested a third person on suspicion

The body of Glynis Bensley, who was 47, was found in Chdshire

The latest arrest is of a 20 year`old man from the area.

A mother and her two sons have been charged

after three women were injured in a dog attack in Herefordshire.

It happened in Bridge Street in Leominster at the end of May

One of the victims is still recdiving

Davina Stutchbery, who's 51, and her 23 and 22 year`old sons

Kenneth and Andrew are due before magistrates next month.

After a week in which the Scottish Saltire has been flown over

council buildings in Sandwell, Stoke and Wolverhampton in support

of a 'No Vote' in Scotland, there a growing demands for England

A Midlands MEP has told the BBC s Sunday Politics that Westminster

Perhaps we could look at an arrangement where am issues that

only affect England are votdd on in Westminster by English MPs but I

think it would be a big mistake to create another layer of burdaucracy

and the cost on complication. And our political editor

Patrick Burns returns with Sunday Politics this weekend,

at its usual time of 11:00al, The father of Malala Yousafzai `

the Pakistani teenager who was shot in the head by the Taliban `

has welcomed the news that ten men, believed to be involved

in the attack, have been arrested. The 17`year`old, who now lives with

her family in Birmingham was targetted by the Taliban in Pakistan

two years ago for speaking out The BBC's Pakistan Editor, Haroon

Rashid, was at a press confdrence A short while ago,

I asked him what was said: This is the first official

confirmation that the peopld involved in that attack on Lalala in

October 2012 have been arrested The military spokesmen told journalists

today that a gang of ten people were involved in it and that thex were

taking directions from the Pakistani Taliban leader and they werd being

directed to carry out this `ttack on this girl education activist. What

sort of impact have these arrests had in Pakistan on a story which has

gone around the world? Malala is news in Pakistan. People want to

know who was behind the att`ck and what their motives well but it is

not a big news story at the moment. Malala was an activist in P`kistan,

has what she strove for continued? She was as Unitarian starting to

write an anonymous blog for the BBC Urdu service in Pakistan on the

plight that female students were facing when the Taliban took

control. She is a big force ever since then when she was att`cked

even now they are spending some money on a development of fdmale

education in that area. An lesson she is herself here in Pakistan ``

unless she takes leadership of this project it still has to makd a mark

in Pakistan I think. Thank xou. The mother of twelve`year old

Dylan Stewart from Stoke`on`Trent, who hanged himself, has called for

bullying to be a criminal offence. Your detailed weather forec`st to

come shortly with Rebecca ` Also in Rehearsing and remembering ` The new

work commemorating World War One. I'm trying to get this match ball

out, from shooting practice. And the Manager of Coleshill Town

clearly has much on his hands ahead The twentieth annual Ludlow Food

Festival got underway today. It attracts 20,000 visitors a year,

more than doubling the local population and generating

?1.5 million for the local dconomy. Tourists travel in from

as far away as Japan and thd United States, as it's conshstently

named as one of the top ten food So, with such

an established reputation, what s In the medieval castle grounds, a

21st`century feast. The Ludlow food Festival is a 21st`century feast.

The Ludlow food Festival is the peak for the eyes started 20 years ago as

a backlash against plans for an out`of`town supermarket. So they

decided to run what was then the first ever farmer's market hn the UK

and it has grown to this. 20,00 people 20 years on. We have three

supermarkets in town but many independent shops. 180 Artisan

producers are here, all within 0 miles of Ludlow. Among them a former

nurse who now makes chocolate from her home in true is great. H was

really poorly and I had cancer. I think the positive thing th`t has

come out of something bad lhke that and this is the most amazing thing

that I have done. Luxury coffee in banks. This business is not even two

years old but now supplies ` line that the likes of Harvey Nichols. ``

luxury coffee in bags. I wotld like something equally as good as what is

available on a cavity. It attracts people from around the world. We are

eating a lot and we enjoy this day. After all that lovely food xou might

want to exercise your limbs and climbed the 100 or so steps to the

top of this castle because ht is up here that you get the most fantastic

views. The whole town gets behind this event, these hotels ard booked

up a year in advance. Makes me hungry.

When it was built 60 years `go it was considered 'an ideal hole'.

And today a flat`roofed bungalow in Coventry is being used to stage

a play, in celebration of 'Post War' style.

The house was part of an " an environmental experiment" in the

Our reporter Lindsay Doyle hs at one of them and joins us now

I think it is the quirkiness. It was as London 1958 as part of an

international architectural exhibition which was running a

competition to design the low cost has the future. There was a lot of

glass, a fitted kitchen and it cost ?4000 which is a snip now btt then

it was more expensive than lost other houses in Coventry. The

current owners have secured a grant from the arts Council and the

Heritage lottery fund to produce a play about the house in the house.

Before I start the talk I w`s just going to say, to ask, that of any of

you do experience any symptoms of anxiety, dread or panic while you

are viewing the house today if you could just raise your right hand as

a signal. I am with the current owner. And you have done so much

work on this place? We found out that 17,000 people came to view this

house in 1960 and that was just a challenge to us. How many pdople

could we find that have viewed this has? At the same time we went to the

bitter Tory and Albert Musetm and found a box of correspondence ``

Victoria and Albert Museum. It was talking about the bravery of the

builder who built this housd and we were interested to find out why they

did not buy it. What did people think about it? People were

perturbed or excited by the amount of glass. Some people thought it

would be like being a fish hn a fishbowl and other people thought it

would be quite Californian `nd luxurious. Not everyone lovdd it as

I found out earlier when I spoke to a lady who visited here in 0960 when

it was a show home. We also came and saw what people had written in the

visitor's book. It was actu`lly very interesting. Some were for the idea

and some were negative. I think one was a bit brutal because it said,

very good as a filling stathon. A little bit cheeky. Not sure what the

architect would think about. The play will run on Saturday and Sunday

and we are looking forward to it. It is open this weekend as part of the

Heritage open days scheme. And the experimental house hs open

this weekend as part of the Lots of other places,

including a number you wouldn't normally be able to see,

are also opening their doors. You can find out more

about what's going on via A new choral work commemorating

the centenary of World War H is going to be performed in Birmingham

this weekend. "Unfinished Remembering" was

inspired by the crowds who turned out to pay their respects to

soldiers killed in Afghanistan, as their funeral corteges wdre

driven through the town of Birmingham Bach Choir rehearse

for a new choral symphony. Dedicated to those who died

in the "Great War" ` and in subsequent conflicts, the m`n behind

the words says it's an epic piece. It's a work

of commemoration honouring the It's a work of celebration of our

diverse society that we havd built, but it's also a work of questioning

saying we still have to work hard to build the kind of justice and peace

that those soldiers fought for. The work was inspired

by the powerful images from Tait moved to the town in 2008 and

was amongst the hundreds of people The day I moved in there was a

repatriation and these four hearses going up the hill and I was so

profoundly moved that I wanted to write a work of comemoration and I

wanted to write something that asked our society what we were buhlding

what we were doing and I wanted also to celebr`te human

life and to celebrate Acclaimed composer Paul Spicer was

commissioned to write the sxmphony. It's dramatic on all sorts

of levels. There's a lot of noise,

there's an orchestra and of course there are two soloists `

there's professional semi chorus and then there's the Birmingham Bach

Choir which makes a big sound and And it's a chance for some of the

choir to remember loved ones lost This is for my dad. My dedication is

to my great`grandfather, Prhvate Charles. Posted with the roxal air

force to Africa. Unfinished Remembering will premier

this Saturday at Symphony H`ll. A wonderful way to reflect `nd

remember. And we're taking another stdp

along the road to Wembley . The FA Cup has reached

the first qualifying round. So Ian Winter is live at Coleshill

in Warwickshire. Is this the most cosy dresshng

room in the FA Cup this weekend There's barely enough room

for the shirts let alone But they'll all squeeze in tomorrow,

hoping to beat Barwell who `re two divisions above them

in the non`league pyramid. 24 hours before kick`off and the

manager of Coleshill Town is poking At last night's training session

the match ball got lost I think we need to practice more.

The boulder stuck in the trde. The balls we were using last night where

brand`new. Most of them went in the net, not all of them though. So far

in the cup they have been scoring goals for fun. Three having to a

beat their opponent in the last round. Three to they beat their

opponents. Gary was only 16 when Aston Villa spotted him and the rest

is history. The transfer fed back in 1977 was a set of tracksuits and

Gary went on to win the First Division followed by the European

cup. Sadly he never got to play at Wembley. The chairman is yotr old

pal, you went to school togdther, what will it mean to him? Hd's got a

real interest anyway and he may well be in the dressing room tomorrow. He

is as keen as mustard and rdally looking forward to it. Could Gary be

your lucky and moral? I hopd so We have also excited for tolorrow.

There is a real buzz about the place and we cannot wait to displ`y

against them and show them what we can do, really. Let's have ` look at

the goal you scored in the previous round. The last minute of extra

time. He must have been chuffed to bits? A lot of relief to be fair, it

was a long game. Our captain loves that celebration. I had to put us in

there. What a celebration. They must have been at least ten playdrs on

top of you? It was all right at the start by Dustin is the biggdr lads

got on there I can certainlx say it has a bit `` at the start btt as

soon as the bigger lads got on there. We just want to show what we

can do really. FA Cup is on show and good luck to all the teams `t the

cup tomorrow. Congratulations to Worcestershire

county cricket club. They clinched promotion to

the first division of the county championship today with a dramatic

victory over Surrey at New Road They will return to the top flight

next season for the first thme So what does

the weekend weather have in store? Here's Rebecca Wood with

a promise of great weather, I hope. Well Michael ` as the weathdr goes,

very little has changed this week already ` and as we head through the

weekend it's staying settled too. Now we've had a bit of a split with

our temperatures today ` sthll lovely and warm ` but furthdr north

where the cloud has been totgher to clear they're a little lower. Still

cloud in the forecast for the next few days ` there will be sole sunny

spells and pleasant brightndss, and our winds start to pick up through

Sunday. The blanket of cloud sitting over us for much of the morning has

started to thin and break dtring the afternoon ` and further south and

east it's been brighter ` overnight the cloud will continue to break up

and with those clear spells temperatures will fall away to give

us a chilly night for some places, and with light winds, in shdltered

spots that could lead to sole mist and fog patches developing. Those

are the values in the towns and cities ` in rural spots it will be

cooler. So that mist and fog clearing during the morning and we

will get some pleasant breaks in the cloud though Saturday morning `

which will help to lift those temperatures ` highs of 21 celcius

tomorrow ` a nice day. Then very little changes ` another sililar

night to tonight. Although for eastern parts there will be a little

more cloud. And that could be thick enough to squeeze out a few spots of

drizzle ` combined with somd slightly stronger winds that will

help to keep temperatures up and stop any mist or fog patches

developing. Lows of 10 celchus. Sunday ` another similar dax to come

` again there will be plentx of cloud about ` although it whll break

up to give us some good spells of sunshine. The best of those in the

west ` further east that cloud could squeeze out some drizzle. Whnds are

little stronger ` but we should still see our temperatures getting

up to 20 celcius. It stays rather cloudy. Not so bad

at all. The firebrand of hardline unionism

in Northern Ireland ` Tributes have been paid frol

across the religious Oscar Pistorius is found guhlty

of killing his girlfriend Rdeva A mother from Stoke`on`Trent is

campaigning to make bullying a criminal offence after her 12

year`old son hanged himself. more than

400 international competitors. No strangers to battle,

all have served their country. Prince Harry has challenged them -

now they will challenge each other, pushing their bodies to the limit

in the quest for glory.