22/09/2014 Midlands Today

A family's search for answers, eight year after their son died

after being sent home from hospital with a ruptured spleen.

We'll be reporting live from the inquest.

Shock claims that 95% of sexual offences on buses go unreported

Just the ticket for commuters in Shropshire, as Virgin get

the go`ahead to start direct train services from Shrewsbury to London.

Stars on the red carpet as the new series of Peaky Blinders gets

Like clockwork, autumn arrives and the temperatures ease down ` notch.

A fresher, cooler week ahead, but bathed in glowing sunshhne.

If there are any glitches, H'll be telling you about them l`ter

Eight years after he died, a couple are hoping that a new

inquest will reveal the truth about the treatment of their 20`ydar`old

John Moore`Robinson went to Stafford A on 1st April 2006

He'd suffered a ruptured spleen but it wasn't diagnosed.

He was discharged and died the next day.

An inquest into his death w`s held a year later.

But, last August, the verdict in that inquest was quashed

Michele Paduano has been at the Coroner's Court in Leicdster.

It reads like a film script, a second inquest last year interrupted

because new witnesses had bden found. John Moore`Robinson's father

is hoping this time he will finally get the whole truth. To losd a child

is life changing. We have to travel this road to find the truth. We owe

that to John. It needs to bd done. It has been done, all but the final

day. He had fallen off his lountain bike. Despite paramedics suggesting

he had life`threatening injtries he was discharged from Stafford

Hospital. His family arrived today to hear from a junior doctor who

examined him. He accepted whth hindsight that John

Moore`Robinson's observations were not normal and his two should have

seen them sooner. He was asked if he had carried out a full investigation

at the time. He said, I think that I did. When asked that that w`s

reflected in the notes, you he said it is lacking from a documentation

at the time. It is not something I am proud of. Last year we

interviewed one of the new once witnesses to come forward. He said

they were pressurised to relove patients from AMD. We didn't have

bricks. `` Breaks. A matron said that staff

should have recognised his hnjuries and kept him in hospital ovdrnight.

Well, Michele is in Leicester this evening.

This inquest is due to last five days, Michele.

Who will the coroner be hearing from?

We are expecting to hear from the person who wrote the report that was

so critical of the hospital back in 2,000 and `` 2007. This is the first

opportunity he has had to s`y in a public arena exactly what hd felt

about the issues that took place that day. Then there will bd a

series of accident and emergency experts who will look at thd wider

scheme of things. The issue here is for the family, they want to get to

the truth. The NHS has to rdalise that this had been dealt with

properly in the first place, all the problems with Stafford Hosphtal not

have happened. Good to have you with us thhs

evening here on Midlands Today. Why protesters joined a march

in support of an education centre It is believed that over 95$

of sexual offences committed on public transport in the

West Midlands go unreported. The figure comes from West Lidlands

Police, who have begun a calpaign called Project Empower to t`rget

offenders and help passengers understand when they've been

the victim of a sexual assatlt. It was during a regular journey that

a woman we are calling Katid was sexually assaulted. I kept trying to

move my legs away but he was a lot bigger than me. He kept tryhng to

put his arm around me. I kept moving away. Then he asked me to ghve him a

kiss. I kept moving my head. He kept doing it and I moving my he`d. Katie

called the police as soon as she got off the bus but understand that

people are reluctant to do so. We know that these offences ard

occurring at a regular basis. We believe that less than 5% rdported

to us. Of the a sexual offence on public transport, some of the

offences are very common. I suspect we'll get onto a bus where there are

empty seats but will choose to set beside a lone female passenger. They

described being almost pinndd against the window. They talk about

not being able to move. Would female students go to the police if they

were treated inappropriatelx? Nothing would be done. It h`ppened

so often. I don't think ( nhce that, but it happened so often thdy would

just brush it off. Police are now going on public transport to tell

people to call 999. With caleras across the transport network, CCTV

can be retrieved weeks after an incident so when Katie went to the

police suspect was identifidd, arrested and charged.

You can see more on that on Inside Out tonight at 7.30 here on BBC .

A suspected illegal immigrant has been discovered clinging to

the bottom of a coach carrying school pupils

The 35`year`old from Sudan was arrested as the party

arrived at Perry Beeches Ac`demy in Great Barr late on Saturday.

He had been hanging onto the axle for 250 miles.

He's been detained on suspicion of immigration offences.

The mobile phone operator ed is to buy 58 stores from the Staffordshire

company Phones 4U, which fell into administration last wedk.

The deal means the jobs of 359 shop staff will be s`ved

However, thousands of posts remain at risk at Phones 4U, which had

operated more than 700 outldts and had more than 5,500 staff.

A fire which broke out at the site of an old school campus

in Wolverhampton last night was started deliberately.

Around 30 firefighters tackled the blaze in the dining hall and kitchen

The building had been due for demolition.

The Royal Shakespeare Company is to receive ?1.5 million

from the Government to translate the Bard's work into Mandarhn.

It's also been granted a further ?300,00 to help ftnd

The Culture Secretary says creating stronger links with China is a top

priority for the Government and it will help boost visitor numbers

Virgin Trains have been givdn permission to run a direct rail

It follows a long campaign to restore the route after Wrexham and

Virgin's application was given approval earlier today by the Office

It now plans to start trains running in December.

Our Transport Correspondent, Peter Plisner, is with me now.

Peter, its great news, but we've been here before haven't we?

This is now the fourth attelpt to make money running trains

Before rail privatisation, British Rail used to run tr`ins to

the capital, but that service ended in 1892.

Soon after the railways went private

Virgin launched a new service, but, within a couple of years,

that stopped too, with the company claiming it just wasn't viable.

Then, in 2008, came the Wrexham and Shropshire service, which sadly

suffered during the recession and the last train ran in January 2 11.

So, what makes this service different from the others?

A question we put to Virgin earlier today.

We can run our trains directly through from Shrewsbury to London

without the need to attach `n electric locomotive. We can run the

trains at The Times that will be popular. If you live in Shrdwsbury

or coming up to visit the thme from London, you will have a track times

which means that the trains are well filled.

What are the timings of the new services?

The new service is set to bdgin on 14th December this year.

There will be two trains per day in each direction.

To London, there'll be a peak time departure at 6.39am

It is due to stop at Wellington and Telford.

When it reaches Wolverhampton, it will become

a normal service to London, stopping in the usual places.

There will also be an off`pdak service leaving Shrewsbury `t just

The two trains from London will be at around

What has the Shropshire bushness community said about today's news?

Not surprisingly, they've welcomed it.

This latest service comes after a long campaign by many

businesses who have always lade it clear that Shropshire is ond of

the only counties in England without a direct rail service to London

But, like before, this will be viewed

Unlike other routes, there will be no Government handouts

to help run the trains, so the service needs to attract

passengers and make money, otherwise this could be another one that gets

The future of a training centre for youngsters with learning

difficulties in Warwickshird will be decided this week.

The County Council say, with "shrinking resources",

they have to consider how training can be delivered in a

But campaigners maintain the most vulnerable youngstdrs are

Michael dreams of being a mdchanic or an engineer. He has struggled in

mainstream schools that belheves specialist vocational units like

this centre in Nuneaton havd turned his life around. I find the

opportunities very useful. They help people out in ways that othdr

centres probably don't. Thex help students who have been thrown out of

other schools. Other training providers would just say th`t we can

handle them if you have been thrown out of schools. The Academy caters

for teenagers with special educational needs. The head is angry

that this service is not under threat. These are the most

vulnerable learners in the county. If they have vocational trahning

they have an opportunity of finding work. If they are not given this

sort of training they will be unemployed and unemployable.

Protesters took to the stredts to object to the potential closure of

the centre and to present a 170 name petition urging councillors to

think carefully. Times have not changed for the young peopld. They

want to come and get some b`sic support from the centre and the

smaller organisations, and that can be a springboard to go on to

college. They are ripping the heart out of the young people to lake

their own decisions and havhng the decisions made for them. Thdre may

not be dozens of people on this march but what campaigners say is

the opportunities Centre helps some of the most vulnerable youngsters in

society and enabled them to have a future. I think they were bding put

on the scrapheap. Without this bridge between school and college,

these children would stand ` chance. The County Council will deb`te

future of the on Thursday. Sent home from hospital with

a ruptured spleen ` an inquest is told how a 20`year`old

man died after a cycling accident. We have

your detailed weather forec`st to IM live in it and to meet the Mayor

and his sporting guests who struck gold in the Black Country.

How the fledgling Black Country Orchestra has managed to te`m up

with an award`winning composer who has written scores for films such

Did you get hooked on the drama series Peaky Blinders

I certainly did, and fellow fans were in for a treat

last night as the world preliere took place of the new series.

The story is based on a real`life gang in Birmingham in the l`te

Stars of the show came to the citx last

For one local actor, it was a first time experience in lore ways

than one, as our Arts Reporter Satnam Rana has been finding out.

Birmingham?s Broad Street h`s a red carpet.

Fans and stars of BBC gangster drama Peaky Blinders here for

I play a very complicated character. It is exhausting playing hil,

actually. I love it, so I fdel privileged. What about the haircut?

Yes, that is another issue. I wouldn't recommend it.

But for this young man from Birmingham,

He plays Finn, the youngest Shelby sibling,

and was cast from open auditions in the city earlier this ye`r.

I have never done autographs before, it is quite overwhelming! It

is overwhelming. Away from the red carpet,

this is the everyday realitx From homework on

a trailer to waiting for yotr call. GCSE revision is the norm, but for a

few months acting professionally is an ambition fulfilled.

But this teenager is as cool as a cucumber,

When I was younger I thought I want to be an actor. Now it is h`ppening,

it has just about sunk in. Ht is a dream come true.

Peaky Blinders is back on BBC Two next month and

for Harry this is just the beginning of what life could be

like once he's seen by millhons of fans on the small screen.

You can watch a longer interview with the star

of Peaky Blinders, Cillian Lurphy, on our Facebook page.

Series two starts on BBC Two at 9.00pm on Thursday, 2nd October.

On to sport now and utter rdlief for West Bromwich Albion fans ydsterday.

When West Bromwich Albion khcked off at Tottenham they were bottom of

the Premier League and still looking for their first win of the season.

Yet, 90 minutes later, they were celebrating a historic victory

in North London, which liftdd them out of the League's bottom three.

Is this the man to save Albhon's season?

Jolean Lescott finally made his debut yesterday.

If he wasn't trying to scord against Tottenham, he was m`king

His fine performance, along with Albion's,

was capped by James Morrison's headed winner 13 minutes from time.

The Baggies first win at Tottenham in 30 years also lifts them

It hasn't been easy for the squad, or the management staff. Thd wind is

massive for the crowd going into next week. Burnley will be ` great

opportunity for us. Aston Villa's great start to

the season came apart in just over That was how long it took Arsenal to

score three times Perhaps Villa's implosion could be

due to a illness which swept the squad and has led to a

quarantine at the training ground. No such problems for Stoke City

but despite twice taking to the lead at QPR,

they had to settle for a 2`2 draw. It was a similar story for

Birmingham City in the Championship. Demarai Gray put them 2`0 up

at Norwich City, before former striker Cameron Jerome

pegged them back to 2`2. They took the lead against Bolton

with Nouha Dicko's scrappy dffort. But they needed Carl Ikeme's

double penalty save to secure the In League One, Port Vale's caretaker

manager, Rob Page, enjoyed ` perfect Mark Marshall's jinking run and shot

giving Vale a 2`1 win over Barnsley. Disappointment for Warwickshire

on Saturday at Lord's in thd It all hinged on the toss,

as it often does Warwickshire lost the toss `nd only

scored 165 from their 50 ovdrs. In fact, they only lasted 47

overs in difficult conditions. Durham had a few nervy moments

in their reply as Warwickshhre But, in the end,

they got comfortably home whnning by three wickets with almost 10

overs to spare. But they have already won the

T20 Blast and they can still finish Their final game starts

tomorrow against Durham. It is a big night for some

of Wolverhampton's finest sportsmen The Mayor is hosting a

Civic Reception to mark the city's success at the

Commonwealth and Invictus G`mes Wolverhampton is proud

of its sporting success over the past couple of months

and that's why they're celebrating Four medals at the Commonwe`lth

Games in Glasgow ` bronze in the wrestling, silver in the cycling,

two gold in gymnastics and the x400 Plus, one gold at the Invictus Games

last week for Andrew Roberts Andrew, how good was it to

win gold against the USA? It was amazing. To beat the

Americans have their own sport, especially in front of such a big

crowd and so many people watching on TV. The games copy imaginathon of

everybody watching. He got hnjured five years ago. How much of a row

has basketball played in yotr rehabilitation? It has playdd a

massive part in my recovery. I started playing it in Febru`ry. It

has been such a success, to win gold at the bit of schemes, it h`s been

fantastic. Matthew, congrattlations. How much did the medal mean to you?

It meant the world to me. I did not expect from this year, so it has

been a roller`coaster, especially with the first medal of the relay,

not thinking I was going to win it. Crazy. Here are some picturds from

July. Your heart must have been pounding. As soon as I got the bat

on, the crowd went crazy. I think that is what spurred me on to just

keep running. At the time wd were behind. Wolverhampton is very proud

of these two fine sporting sons A reminder that we're seeking your

nominations for this year's BBC We're looking for an individual or

pair, aged 16 or over, who give their time on a voluntary b`sis to

help others to participate hn sport. You can download

a nomination form on the BBC Sport Website or you can ring 0844 30

8000 and we'll send one to xou. Calls cost up to 5p a minutd

from a landline, He's an award`winning composer who

has written music for movies such as Titanic

and the James Bond film Goldeneye. John Altman has also worked with

numerous famous artists from Fleetwood Mac and Jimi Hendrix

to Amy Winehouse and Katie Lelua. So, it's something of a coup that

a Black Country orchestra, which was only formed in 2002, has

persuaded him to work with them John Altman with one of his

prodigies ` the late Amy Winehouse. The list of musical superst`rs John

has worked with is never ending He has also composed numerots film

scores, including the music Every person who has written music

for films dreams of doing h`ve James Bond movie.

Despite his high`profile career John's next collaboration whll be

with a little known ensembld from the West Midlands.

The People's Orchestra, made up of 70 amateur musichans

wrote to John asking if he's write a film score for them to perform.

The worst he could ever say was no, wasn't it? When he said yes, to go

and meet him at his home, sde the Golden discs on his wall, you

realise what a phenomenal t`lent he is. My feeling about getting

involved in the project was maybe I can fire some enthusiasm up, maybe a

violinist has a younger brother or sister who is thinking about taking

up an instrument, or a family friend, somebody who gets infused

with the idea of working on something like this. Rehearsals are

underway. The orchestra will premiere of the film score on 7th of

December, grateful they havd managed to catch the ear of one of the most

respected composers in the TK. Certainly a chill in

the air this morning, wasn't there? We are lucky this weekend that it

will be mostly dry and sunnx. There will be clear spells during the

night that will Leeds to sole missed. High pressure is on the

driving seat. The only glitch I can see is this frontal system starts to

move down from the North West overnight tomorrow. Once th`t is

clear there will be another frontal system clipping the northern half of

the country on Friday which will lead to the winds becoming slightly

stronger. It will be largelx dry. This evening will be dry, h`s it

will be overnight. Clear spdlls overnight, but the cloud will

fill`in slightly. That will hold temperatures up in most places.

Where we get the more clear spells, we will get patchy mist devdloping

into the morning tomorrow. Temperatures will drop to a minimum

of six Celsius. There could be a touch of frost and rural ardas, but,

generally speaking, around 00 Celsius. Where we get the more clear

spells, it will be a good started the day tomorrow with plentx

sunshine first thing. Gradu`lly through the day, because of the

frontal system heading our way, the cloud will thicken up in northern

parts of the region. Temper`tures will be pegged back to 17 orienting

tomorrow. We will see an increase in cloud and sunlight patchy r`in,

heavy in places. Trouble at Tesco ` its shard price

drops to a 10`year low after the supermarket significantly

overestimates its profits. Sent home from hospital with

a ruptured spleen ` an inquest is told how a 20`year`old

man died after a cycling accident. I'll be back

at 10.00pm with your latest update.