Birmingham Post

Digest: Woman Raped

An 18-year-old woman was raped in the early hours of New Year's Day after being followed by a teenage cyclist, police revealed yesterday. Officers said the attack happened at about 3.45am on January 1 after the victim was pushed to the ground in World's End Lane, Quinton, Birmingham.

Digest: Knife Attack

A delivery driver was threatened with a knife and then locked in the back of his vehicle at a filling station. The victim was assaulted by three men as he made a delivery of cigarettes to Jay's service station on the A41 at Cosford, in Shropshire, on Wednesday morning.

Digest: Safari Park

Stoke-on-Trent City Council has announced plans to install a safari-themed play area in Hanley's Central Forest Park. Work will start later this month on the new facilities, which include a climbing area, a safari jeep and giant boulders to clamber over.

Digest: Horse Brigade

Firefighters were called out to help a vet get a horse, which had been knocked down in an accident, back on its feet yesterday. The horse had fallen on to its side after it had been hit by a lorry in Wednesbury Oak Road, Gospel Oak, Tipton.

Mp's 'Nazi' Group Outburst

An anti-immigration pressure group has been compared to "Nazis" by a Birmingham MP after it called for strict limits on arranged marriages. Think-tank Migration-watch said there should be greater restrictions on the practice of bringing over women from countries such as Pakistan or Bangladesh to marry local men.

Brum Pair Honoured for Selfless Devotion

Two volunteers from Birmingham are to be honoured for their selfless work helping others at a national awards ceremony in London. April Barrett and Roland Agbor will attend a presentation evening at the Theatre Royal, Dury Lane, on January 22 to reward people across the country who give their time as volunteers.

Mushrooms and Lanscapes Win Picture Award

A picture of some porcelain mushrooms has earned Danny Beath the title of West Midlands wildlife photographer of the year. Mr Beath, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire, also won the first prize in the landscape category of the competition, which was run by the West Midlands Biodiversity Partnership.

Iraqi Doctor Could Be Struck Off Over Cv Lies

An Iraqi doctor faces being struck off the medical register after he was jailed for lying on his CV, the General Medical Council has said. Dr Juamer Baldar also claimed more than pounds 15,000 in sick pay from one hospital while he was working for two others, including one in Birmingham.

Dna Traps Hostel Rapist

A serial sex offender who brutally raped a 17-year-old girl in 1991 has been jailed for seven years after being identified through advances in DNA technology. Adrian John Fleurs, who was already serving life for a horrific sex offence in Scotland, showed no emotion as he was sentenced at Worcester Crown Court to a seven-year concurrent term.

Who Plays Pip in the Royal Shakespeare

Actor Samuel Roukin, who plays Pip in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, poses at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust with the visitor book open on the page containing Dickens' signature. The book forms part of the trust's archive collection.

Hundreds in Marches to Save Hospitals

Hundreds of people are expected to take part in marches today in protest at the proposed closure of three community hospitals. Protesters will make their way through Bridgnorth, Ludlow and Whitchurch, in Shropshire, in an attempt to save the towns' hospitals, which are under threat as Shropshire's health services attempt to claw back some their pounds 36 million debts.

Paternity Test Clinic Opens in the City

Couples in doubt over a child's paternity can now get conclusive tests done at the Midlands' first walk-in DNA clinic. The Birmingham DNA Clinic - at The Well Natural Health Centre, in Kings Heath - opened last month.

Inquiry Into Toxic Blaze

Fire crews spent much of yesterday damping down at the site of a major fire at a Black Country industrial estate. A huge pall of toxic smoke drifted across the West Bromwich area during the fire at the premises of non-stick kitchen utensil coating company Pargat in Colliery Road, which involved up to 30 tons of chemicals.

Parents Fear Home Delay May Keep 'Miracle' Baby Charlotte in Hospital

The parents of severely disabled two-year-old Charlotte Wyatt fear that delays in providing a new home for their family could prevent their daughter from leaving hospital. Debbie, aged 24, and Darren Wyatt, aged 33, who are originally from Birmingham but now live in Portsmouth, have been informed that Charlotte's discharge from St Mary's Hospital in Portsmouth is imminent as her condition continues to improve.

Pupils to Benefit

The head of a Birmingham school which the city council is planning to turn into a city academy said yesterday the move was "a great opportunity" for his pupils. David Gould, head of St Alban's Church of England School in High gate, said it would provide a much-needed injection of resources to a deprived inner city area.

Brum's Big Names Line Up to Get Involved with Schools

Private companies, health trusts, universities and business lobby groups are among organisations lining up to sponsor Birmingham's new city academies. Education chiefs say a number of bodies both in the private and public sector have expressed interest in supporting the programme.

Minister to Defy Education Bill Rebels

Schools Minister and Midland MP Jacqui Smith has vowed to press ahead with controversial plans to reform Britain's education system. She highlighted her experience as a teacher in Redditch, Worcester and Hagley, Worcestershire, as she vowed to stand firm against Labour rebels.

Love Is Blind for Radio Couple

Aother controversial blind-date wedding competition has been launched by a Birmingham radio station. BRMB's Two Strangers and a Wedding 2 competition will seek two strangers who are prepared to be married without having met before.

Paramedics Praised for Festive Work

Paramedics in Staffordshire have been praised for meeting a "phenomenal" number of emergency calls over the festive period. Between Christmas Eve and January 2, Staffordshire Ambulance Service received 8,360 emergency calls and 10,327 out-of-hours calls from GPs during the ten-day period.

University Vows to Reinstate Easter

A city university has pledged to reprint its 2006 calendar after it published it with no mention of Christmas or Easter. UCE Birmingham included the religious festivals for other world faiths including Muslim, Hindu and Jewish.