:00:07. > :00:10.Staffordshire Police have issued handwritten warning letters
:00:11. > :00:13.to homeless people suspected of begging in Stoke-on-Trent.
:00:14. > :00:17.They're telling them to leave or face potential prosecution.
:00:18. > :00:19.Homeless people in the city claim they're being treated like rats
:00:20. > :00:25.Here's our Staffordshire reporter, Sian Grzeszczyk.
:00:26. > :00:28.This is where I was when the police came and they turned around
:00:29. > :00:32.Gary's been on the streets for the last 22 years,
:00:33. > :00:35.last month he was given a letter by police accusing him of begging
:00:36. > :00:38.and threatening prosecution if he didn't move on,
:00:39. > :00:43.For example, if I was to see you in the street, love,
:00:44. > :00:46.I would ask you, "Please, could you spare a little change
:00:47. > :00:49.or get me a hot drink or something to eat, please?"
:00:50. > :00:56.That's not not a beggar, that's asking for help in an hour of need.
:00:57. > :00:59.What's the atmosphere like amongst homeless people
:01:00. > :01:03.We feel run down and we're being treated like rats.
:01:04. > :01:06.Like we are part of the sewer system or something, and we're not.
:01:07. > :01:08.We're general human beings, just like the rest of society,
:01:09. > :01:14.Glyn and Jeanette provide hot meals for homeless people in the city,
:01:15. > :01:17.they think the police are being heavy-handed.
:01:18. > :01:19.We were quite outraged when we actually read it because,
:01:20. > :01:23.I mean, there's quite a few moments in there that state he's
:01:24. > :01:29.Well, he was at the time of receiving the letter,
:01:30. > :01:34.But it's just the way that they're portraying the homeless.
:01:35. > :01:36.No-one was available from Staffordshire Police
:01:37. > :01:39.for interview today, instead they released a statement
:01:40. > :01:41.saying that they work closely with partners trying to offer advice
:01:42. > :01:48.Sometimes it gets a bit awkward, when you're coming in and out
:01:49. > :01:53.But, that said, there have been a few where we have give them money
:01:54. > :01:56.because we do feel sorry for them, especially at this time of year.
:01:57. > :01:58.We need to give them more support rather than just
:01:59. > :02:00.keep moving them around, passing them around.
:02:01. > :02:03.They need help, not just pushed away.
:02:04. > :02:06.Homelessness is a problem across the country and the West Midlands.
:02:07. > :02:09.In Gloucester, a new team tackling begging says the problem is made
:02:10. > :02:12.worse by people who are just trying to help.
:02:13. > :02:14.When well-meaning people give food instead of money,
:02:15. > :02:17.that just frees up the money that people would have spent on food
:02:18. > :02:21.So we really are hoping that some people will consider alternative
:02:22. > :02:30.Sian Grzeszczyk, BBC Midlands Today, Stoke-on-Trent.
:02:31. > :02:32.Tonight, Stoke-on-Trent City Council told us they're working hard
:02:33. > :02:35.with a number of agencies across the city to help homeless
:02:36. > :02:41.We're joined now by our reporter, Bob Hockenhull, who's
:02:42. > :02:45.And, I understand, Bob, there has been some good news
:02:46. > :02:48.for those who are trying to solve the problem of
:02:49. > :03:02.That's right, Nick. Charities are welcoming the news that ?1.7 million
:03:03. > :03:07.is being donated by the Government to tackle the root causes of
:03:08. > :03:11.homelessness in Birmingham and Solihull. The money will be used to
:03:12. > :03:16.fund a dedicated team to help vulnerable people.
:03:17. > :03:19.It's about time that the Government puts some more money into homeless
:03:20. > :03:22.services because anyone can see, just walking around the streets
:03:23. > :03:24.of Birmingham, what a visible problem we've got and that's just
:03:25. > :03:27.the people on the streets, but obviously a lot more
:03:28. > :03:28.people are sofa surfing, they're in hostels.
:03:29. > :03:33.They may be in squats that are unsafe.
:03:34. > :03:41.As I said, Solihull is benefitting from this cash as well. Many think
:03:42. > :03:43.of it it as a prosperous area. Solihull Council say it has its fair
:03:44. > :03:48.share of social problems. This grant will help us in many ways
:03:49. > :03:50.because homelessness isn't just about housing,
:03:51. > :03:52.it's about mental health. It's about people's skills,
:03:53. > :03:54.so they can get jobs. It's about adult social care,
:03:55. > :03:56.care and education. So it's going to help us
:03:57. > :04:07.in lots of ways to help Organisations work together. One of
:04:08. > :04:16.the things that this money will do is support vulnerable people when
:04:17. > :04:17.they are leaving custody or hospital if they have no address to go to.
:04:18. > :04:22.Bob, thank you. Every year more than 14,000 people
:04:23. > :04:25.are reported missing in our region. Nationally, police are called about
:04:26. > :04:28.a missing person every two minutes. The vast majority, 95%,
:04:29. > :04:30.will return home within a week. What of the impact on their
:04:31. > :04:34.families, who're struggling to cope Sarah Bishop's been to meet
:04:35. > :04:38.the parents of a Shropshire farmer who disappeared without trace,
:04:39. > :04:40.six months ago today. Our way of coping is just to get
:04:41. > :04:43.on with the work, isn't it? We have good days and
:04:44. > :04:45.bad days, don't we? We have good days, we feel real
:04:46. > :04:50.positive and then we have, obviously, the bad days
:04:51. > :04:51.where we think, perhaps he has done something,
:04:52. > :04:55.but we're hoping not. On the evening of June 22nd,
:04:56. > :04:59.Andrew Green put his two young children to bed
:05:00. > :05:02.and then seemingly disappeared. His long-term partner had just
:05:03. > :05:07.told him that she was to leave. It's the not knowing that
:05:08. > :05:11.messes your head about. We thought he might have
:05:12. > :05:13.done something drastic because he'd gone with a rope,
:05:14. > :05:17.and we didn't find him or the rope. But, as time goes on,
:05:18. > :05:24.we're just hopeful he hasn't. The 33-year-old got into his car
:05:25. > :05:27.after an apparently normal conversation with his father
:05:28. > :05:29.and then vanished. It was down here in these woods,
:05:30. > :05:34.less than half a mile from Andrew's farm, that his car
:05:35. > :05:38.was eventually found. There have been extensive searches
:05:39. > :05:42.of this entire area of farmland, around 700 acres of it,
:05:43. > :05:45.by the police and the community, The police say they're treating
:05:46. > :05:50.Andrew as a high-risk missing person, but they're keeping an open
:05:51. > :05:53.mind as to what may They can't believe they haven't got
:05:54. > :05:59.a lead, there's just Statistically, things
:06:00. > :06:08.happen within so many... I don't know, 1,800 meters
:06:09. > :06:11.from a vehicle or a house or something, but they haven't
:06:12. > :06:15.found a thing. The police intend a fresh
:06:16. > :06:19.search in the new year. In the meantime, Christmas
:06:20. > :06:23.for the Greens', on the farm their son loves so much,
:06:24. > :06:26.will be a tempered affair. With no body, no contact, they're
:06:27. > :06:28.stuck between hoping and fearing. Sarah Bishop, BBC Midlands
:06:29. > :06:37.Today in Shropshire. People in Herefordshire
:06:38. > :06:41.are being warned they face hefty fines or even a prison sentence
:06:42. > :06:43.if they're caught harming buzzards. A recent spate of deaths
:06:44. > :06:45.is causing concern. West Mercia Police say they know
:06:46. > :06:49.of 10 birds deliberately Although it's illegal to kill birds
:06:50. > :06:54.of prey without a licence, x-rays show a number of the buzzards
:06:55. > :06:58.had been shot. We had to euthanise some of them
:06:59. > :07:03.because they were so badly injured and you find
:07:04. > :07:06.all these gunshot pellets. So, yes, it was a terrible
:07:07. > :07:08.thing to find. It makes me wonder how many more
:07:09. > :07:12.in the past we might have found A Gloucestershire hospice
:07:13. > :07:18.is celebrating the longstanding Prince Charles attended
:07:19. > :07:27.a special reception today at the Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court,
:07:28. > :07:29.near Cheltenham, where he's The Prince of Wales normally
:07:30. > :07:35.makes a private visit here just before Christmas,
:07:36. > :07:37.but today was different, celebrating three decades of his involvement,
:07:38. > :07:40.he was here to meet staff, And, as ever, willing
:07:41. > :07:46.to get involved. In the art room, he was invited
:07:47. > :07:49.to make a felt snowman. It involves stabbing the felt
:07:50. > :07:51.rapidly with a needle, You have to pay attention
:07:52. > :08:02.to these things. Thankfully, everything was OK
:08:03. > :08:04.as it was on to then pull This was, without doubt,
:08:05. > :08:13.a visit to lift the spirits of everyone, from the staff,
:08:14. > :08:16.to the patients who rely so much The staff here are absolutely
:08:17. > :08:19.brilliant and the volunteers understand our needs because,
:08:20. > :08:21.largely, they've been through something similar
:08:22. > :08:25.to what I'm going through. A big difference because it gets me
:08:26. > :08:32.out and helps me meet If I'm at home, I only
:08:33. > :08:37.see the family, really. As well as this daycare, the hospice
:08:38. > :08:40.also provides 16 in-patient beds, the only unit of its type
:08:41. > :08:42.in the county. The Prince paid a private visit
:08:43. > :08:45.to see those patients, the more seriously ill for whom this
:08:46. > :08:53.Christmas may well be their last. The patients are really
:08:54. > :08:55.lifted up by his visits. He has a kind word for everybody,
:08:56. > :08:59.and so to have him as our And then, before he left, cutting
:09:00. > :09:03.a cake to celebrate his three decades as patron and his own chance
:09:04. > :09:06.to pay tribute to the Meeting the patients,
:09:07. > :09:09.they all say such marvellous things about the quality of the care
:09:10. > :09:13.and the attention they receive. So I hope you have many,
:09:14. > :09:16.many more years of making sure people are looked after at this
:09:17. > :09:20.particularly difficult As the Prince left there was music
:09:21. > :09:26.from the local primary school, but he will be back here again
:09:27. > :09:30.to say thanks for the vital work done here, not just at Christmas,
:09:31. > :09:33.but every day and night of the year. Steve Knibbs, BBC
:09:34. > :09:38.Midlands Today, Cheltenham. Time to catch up with
:09:39. > :09:58.the weather now from Rebecca. Thank you. This was the calm before
:09:59. > :10:03.the storm. We had a pleasant end to the day clear spells, but it's not
:10:04. > :10:09.long before Storm Barbara will make her presence felt. We have a Met
:10:10. > :10:14.Office yellow weather warning for strong gusts of wind, 50mph-60mph
:10:15. > :10:18.and heavy rain which could cause travel disruption. This is what it
:10:19. > :10:25.looks like. The wind will start to strengthen. A band of heavy rain
:10:26. > :10:30.following on behind. Tonight, we have clear skies. Temperatures will
:10:31. > :10:34.fall away. More high cloud will filter in from the west through the
:10:35. > :10:38.next few hours. That should help temperatures a little bit. The
:10:39. > :10:42.breeze will pick up. We should get down to one Celsius, lower than that
:10:43. > :10:46.in sheltered spots. A chilly start to tomorrow. We see the cloud
:10:47. > :10:49.starting to work its way in the breeze, it will strengthen during
:10:50. > :10:55.the day and the rain will arrive. It will blow through quickly. It will
:10:56. > :10:57.be heavy showers. Difficult driving conditions, temperatures between
:10:58. > :11:01.nine and 11 Celsius. Christmas Eve is better. More information on the
:11:02. > :11:03.national forecast. I will leave you with
:11:04. > :11:04.itself, it's not white, but it's warm. Temperatures could reach