Birmingham Post

Olympic Gold Medal Winners

Olympic gold medal winner Mark Lewis Francis had a hero's welcome in Birmingham last night at a special Lord Mayor's reception. Lewis-Francis, aged 22, from Darlaston, Walsall, thrilled the nation when he and fellow members of the 4x100 relay team beat the US favourites in Athens this summer. Last night as he was congratulated at the Council House alongside Paralympic silver and bronze medal winner Deborah Brennan by Lord Mayor Mike Nangle, he told how his life had changed since the win.

Music Crisis in Elgar County

The spiralling cost of tuition in the Midland county which boasts Sir Edward Elgar and Nigel Kennedy among its most famous sons has left its schools music service on the verge of crisis. Officials in Worcestershire fear that learning a musical instrument may be beyond the reach of many schoolchildren after the doubling of tuition fees to schools.

Brum Businesswomen Breaking Glass Ceiling

Birmingham is the female business capital of the UK as it is home to the highest number of women directors in the country, new figures have revealed. The city is building a reputation as a breeding ground for female business talent as it has 8,126 female directors. There are also 24,000 women worth more than pounds 500,000 living in the West Midlands, according to lobby group Birmingham Forward, which represents the city's professional and financial services sector.

Captive Audience for Laurence's Artistic Flair

Visiting time will never be the same again for six inmates at Stafford Prison when interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen stops by their cell to teach them about the finer points of art. The famous TV dandy (left) will spend two weeks at the jail as part of a new BBC programme which will see prisoners taught painting and sculpture. The controversial show has been criticised for using licence fee-payers' money to allow prisoners to skip daily chores and fund extra security for Llewelyn-Bowen.

City Scientists Discover New Hope in the Fight to Defeat Diabetes

A major study by Birmingham University scientists has provided new hope in the battle against diabetes. The five-year project, which monitored the health of 250 people with Type 2 diabetes and early kidney disease, found two different drugs stabilised the volunteers' condition. During the research 80 people in the sample (35 per cent) would have been expected to die but by taking one of two different types of drugs only five died from heart disease or strokes. Scientists treated half the grou...

Common Virus has Clue to Cancers

A common virus that causes glandular fever may contain clues to what causes some cancers, researchers have found. Scientists at Birmingham University believe the EpsteinBarr virus (EBV), which millions of people carry without knowing, can be manipulated to treat tumours more effectively.

How Hancock's Armful Made a Hero of Andrew

A Birmingham man who cannot stand the sight of blood has been honoured for becoming one of the city's most loyal blood donors. Andrew Wall has regularly rolled up his shirt sleeves to donate 'an armful' after his wife Lynne underwent several transfusions while pregnant.

Fire-Ravaged Fleece to Re-Open in Spring

Work will start today on restoring an historic pub which was destroyed by fire. The Fleece Inn at Bretforton, Worcestershire, could be open by next Spring following extensive repairs.

Rail Track Fall

Six Arrested at Stoke Game

Six football hooligans were arrested after trouble flared at a match on Saturday afternoon. Staffordshire Police arrested five Stoke City fans and one Millwall supporter after the two teams met at Britannia Stadium in Stoke on Trent.

Mast Protesters to Party One Year On

Protesters against a mobile phone mast are in party mood this week celebrating the first anniversary of it being felled. Last Guy Fawkes night saw the 22-metre T-mobile mast in Wishaw, Sutton Coldfield, torn down by someone using a rope and 4x4 vehicle.

Education Matters: Counting On Backing the Brightest Leavers

Companies are increasingly using scholarships to bag bright school leavers by offering to help them pay the increased cost of going to university. Tuition charges are set to rise from a fixed rate of pounds 1,125 annually to up to pounds 3,000 with the introduction of variable fees in 2006.

Education Matters: Bouncers Back in Class

Free training for security staff is being offered by a Birmingham college. The course is open to all businesses that employ bouncers, door supervisors and other security personnel and leads to a Level Two Btec in Security Operations.

Education Matters: Mother's Bright Idea

Illuminated house numbers could soon become a common sight at night, thanks to a Midland mother. Amal Oraifige, aged 31, came up with the bright idea after her son fell ill and an ambulance crew had trouble locating her house.

Education Matters: Second Language Can Be a Real Earner

People who speak a second language can earn an extra pounds 3,000 a year and are even seen as sexier than the less linguistically talented. A survey of businesses found managers were much more likely to hire someone with good language skills - and pay them more than a mono-lingual candidate.

Education Matters: Teachers Must Learn Their Lines

Teachers are bottom of the class at handwriting, a survey of professionals has found. Five different groups of workers - doctors, accountants, teachers, retail workers and IT managers - submitted examples of their scrawl to writing experts.

Education Matters: Union in Trip Danger Warnings

Teachers should abandon school trips because of the danger of being sued if anything goes wrong, one of their unions warned yesterday. A new test of the 'educational validity' of trips should be introduced to cut down on unnecessary risks, said the NASUWT.

Education Matters: University Praised for Security Improvement Since Sex Attack

A university where a foreign student was raped on campus last year has received an award for security from West Midlands Police. The University of Warwick received the force's Blue Lamp accolade in recognition of the work of its security team. The award was to honour 'outstanding' levels of co-operation with police and a crime crackdown that has led to a 42 per cent rise in arrests on campus since the sex attack.

Education Matters: Pounds 1.6bn Cost of Driving the Kids to School

Britons spend pounds 1.66 billion a year on the school run, it was revealed yesterday. The daily school run traffic between 7am and 9am would stretch 10,000 miles from London to Sydney.

Education Matters: Music and Lyric Course