09/03/2017 South Today

Hello, good evening, I'm Tom Hepworth.

Shameful and an utter disgrace - a children's charity calls

on the Government to enforce its law on adults sexually grooming

I'd get text messages from him when my parents weren't home,

and he'd be driving round my street, trying to get me to go

And taking a look at the gig economy - a healthcheck

of live music is underway, here in the south.

It's a legal loophole the NSPCC has branded an "utter disgrace".

The charity has condemned the Government for not implementing

a law that was drawn up two years ago, to stop people

Tonight, we have the story of a 15-year-old girl

from Wiltshire, who was sent sexual messages by someone twice her age.

We've changed their names, Molly was targeted by Gavin

It was just pure innocence at the beginning.

He used just be like "How's your family, what you doing?"

And him telling me that his partner was in the bath, or asleep.

He's just being overly friendly, at the time, is what I thought.

I got up for school and I went downstairs and I loaded up my laptop

I just read the message and closed my laptop back down

I'd get text messages from him when my parents weren't home,

and he'd be driving round my street, trying to get me to go

I'd make an excuse that I was looking after my sisters.

One time it got so bad I had to crawl around on my bedroom floor

There are a lot of people out there that are having, like,

adults talk to them the way they shouldn't, online.

A lot more children could be protected from being groomed.

It does happen a hell of a lot more than anybody would want to admit.

The current grooming law only applies to people who meet

or try to meet a child with the intention of abusing them.

According to the NSPCC, the case of the former England

footballer Adam Johnson highlights what they call the flaw in the law.

He was convicted for sexual activity with a child, but the 800 sexual

messages he sent were not a criminal offence.

We have been waiting two years for this law to be available

for the police to use to protect children.

We have asked the MOJ to explain and asked if we can

help to alleviate any challenges they may be facing.

It is operational in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

We need it to be available to police to use in England and Wales

We asked the Government for an interview but they told us

no one was available, instead they sent a statement

saying they are looking to make an announcement

There are calls for the resignation of Surrey County Council leader

David Hodge tonight, after further twists

in the "sweetheart deal" allegations.

Documents released last night, revealed the fury of some MPs

who thought the council had been promised ?40 million of extra cash.

The documents obtained after a BBC Freedom of Information request,

detail extensive negotiations to allow the County Council to be

the first in the country, to keep all of its business rates.

But in Parliament today the Local Government Secretary

answered Labour's questions, by saying no deal was done.

The BBC has now published a letter from DCLG officials showing they did

in fact offer Surrey more cash in a unique deal.

Did the Secretary of State know about that letter

Surrey approached the department, as do many other councils before

a financial settlement asking for more money and they made

a request being considered for business rates retention plan

How to avoid mental health patients being arrested or taken to A

As we reported yesterday, that's the challenge

facing our police forces, but what's the solution?

South Today has been given exclusive access to some of the region's

mental health programmes aiming to give the right care,

Our home affairs correspondent Peter Cooke reports.

Reading street triage team links up a mental health worker and police

officer who attend emergency mental health calls.

The team advise those in need about finding suitable care and help

the avoid being taken into custody or hospital.

This man called 999, saying he was depressed

Yes, it does, but the thing is, when it goes away,

You know, the mental health problems.

Nobody knows what I'm going through, basically.

The scheme will soon be operating seven days a week.

It means that we can do some reviewing

We get some instant updates on the background

of people and it just gives us a sporting chance.

A team of mental health experts are on hand

at the Royal Berkshire Hospital to support them.

Elsewhere, the Isle of Wight runs a project called

Serenity Integrated Mentoring - a police officer working

with mental health professionals to reduce front-line costs,

achieved by supporting those who repeatedly rely on the police

Just a washed-up junkie with a mental health illness.

And I've got to be, by far, the worst service user for SIM.

Set up in 2014, it's already had a big impact in reducing

the number of people being sectioned.

There were times when we had up to 21 section 136s a month

and through the joint approach of both Steet Triage

and Serenity Integrated Mentoring we now have about four

Do we select officers who jus want to drive fast cars

and break down doors, or do we go for officers

with preventative, clinical, human...

more of that emphasis so they come into the service looking at justice

rather than outcome, and that is a massive

challenge but it starts with projects like ours.

Surrey Police is now planning to introduce the project.

A drunk driver who crashed into the River Medina, in Newport

on the Isle of Wight, has been given a suspended

CCTV footage shows 29-year-old Lucy Wilton's car careering

around Coppins Bridge, undertaking a vehicle, before

She will have to do 100 hours of community service,

and is disqualified from driving for almost three years.

It's being called a "springwatch for live music".

Tonight a census is under way to check up on the health

It's important to the night time economy and a vibrant part

of a town or city's culture, but are venues booming

That's what the researchers hope to find out in six cities including

Lewis Coombes is in Southampton for us tonight, how important

The Talking Heads venue here in Southampton is one

of Hampshire's best-loved music venues - described to me today

as the veins that breathe life to the local music scene -

allowing bands to learn their craft on the road,

Volunteers from Solent University have toured venues like this today

for the world's first Music Census looking to assess

If we get stronger data sets we can get the Government behind the

When they realise the importance of it, hopefully we can

get smaller venues recognised as arts centres and not just licensed

premises, whereby they just charged as a small business like everybody

They are very important in the ecosystem of live music.

The Talking Heads is a case in point - on the verge of closure at it's

previous site nearby, in Portswood - a public campaign to keep it open

saw two local businessmen take over and move the business here.

But it's not getting any easier - business rates for many

are going up, which, it's feared, could force many

If we change the name to the Talking Heads Theatre

We offer live performances of comedy, poetry,

everything you can think of that a theatre does.

So I don't see why we should be treated differently and be

cut off from the funding which I know is available.

With big stadium tours and festivals, live music now earns

the music industry more money than recording revenues.

But it's the small venues that serve as the training ground

It's something a little bit different from the normal going to

the pub, clubbing, it's more chilled out, going to a gig, see some live

They're not only important for the local musical

industry but there are important for the local economy as well.

They bring people together and they bring

the community together, and they bring everyone, on a happy vibe,

The census runs until midday tomorrow, with volunteers charting

everything from "lone buskers to pub gigs to stadium concerts"

and there's a nationwide online survey that runs until May.

That's how its looking tonight, thanks for being there.

We'll be back with bulletins in BBC Breakfast tomorrow

morning but first Alexis is here with your regional

in Ohio 16 Celsius widely across the region. Tomorrow there will be clear

spells at with increasing cloud temperatures will rise. Under the

clearing skies we could see a low of around three Celsius. Increasing

cloud tomorrow morning, patchy rain, the cloud will start to engulf much

of the region and we will see a lot of low cloud, perhaps mist and fog,

temperatures reaching ten to 11 Celsius with light winds. There will

be a good deal of cloud tomorrow night and during the early hours of

Saturday. Some clear spells but Saturday should be mainly dry. It is

the better day of the weekend. Still a lot of cloud but we are expecting

some bright and sunny spells during the afternoon. The next weather

front moves in from the West on Sunday. We are still uncertain as to

the time of the rain on Sunday but there will be some rain in the

middle of the day. A lot of cloud over the next few days. Rain

expected on Sunday. Tomorrow and Saturday

day. On Sunday, cloudier, maybe spots of rain.

Good evening, in the spring sunshine we saw temperatures as high as 17.5

Celsius. Not as warm or Sonning on Friday. Still a lot of dry, settled

weather in the forecast for the next few days. This was the sunset

captured by one of our Weather Watchers. Clear skies there. We have

had increasing amounts of cloud moving in from the West. Through the

remainder of tonight we will continue to see that cloud across

the south-west of England, the Channel Isles, weaving in across

Wales, Northern Ireland and western Scotland. Bringing with it some

outbreaks of drizzly rain, particularly around the coast and

the hills. Further east, clear skies and the coldest temperatures. We are

likely to see frost across eastern parts of Scotland by Friday morning.

The west of Scotland will see the cloud moving in, bringing spots of

light, drizzly rain. A similar picture for Northern Ireland. Fairly

cloudy and grey. A bit of hill