Birmingham Post

Who Will Save City's Curzon Street Station?

An historic landmark in the heart of Birmingham's Eastside development is being boarded up as attempts continue to find a use for it. The Grade I listed Curzon Street station will have boards nailed on to the inside and outside of the ground floor windows and doors on the advice of the city council's insurers.

New Academy Means Business

Teachers are to be replaced by "learning consultants" under plans to transform a Midland school into a business-backed city academy. The role of headteacher will also disappear at Dartmouth High School in Sandwell to be replaced by a company-style "chief executive".

Pounds 1m Payouts for Firm Partners

Thirty-eight partners in upmarket estate agent Knight Frank received payouts averaging pounds 1 million each after the group enjoyed a record year for property sales, results showed yesterday. The group's partners saw their earnings soar by 47 per cent during the year to average pounds 1.1 million, with the highest paid receiving pounds 1.8 million.

Police Clampdown On 'Boy Racers' ; Anti-Social

Police in Birmingham launched a major clampdown on 'boy racers' and car cruisers over the weekend. Officers used new dispersal powers to disperse people driving irresponsibly or causing anti-social behaviour in the Nechells area.

Web Wedding ; Social

A country house hotel has become the first in the UK to offer an all-in-one wedding deal on the internet sale site eBay. The Fox and Hounds Country Hotel in Eggesford, Devon, is offering an inclusive wedding deal for pounds 1,000 which includes bubbly, food and wine for the couple and 18 guests; registry fees and a function room for a civil ceremony. Also included is a night in the four-poster bed honeymoon suite.

All Wrapped Up ; Retail

Most men appear to have wrapped up their Christmas shopping early this year, but some have had an ulterior motive. Men have gone for gifts for their partners that they would seem to get more out of, according to a survey by lastminute.com.

Street Smart

As the annual round of Christmas parties begins, Birmingham restaurants are asking you to spare a thought for the city's homeless. Almost 20 of Birmingham's favourite eating places are supporting the StreetSmart scheme, by asking their customers for a donation of pounds 1 on each table's bill.

St Barnabas Church

'Unfit Care' Fears for the Uk's Vulnerable Citizens

Thousands of people with learning disabilities are receiving care unfit for modern society, according to a report published today. Most services offer a poor standard of care and there are "unacceptable" variations across England, said the study from the Healthcare Commission.

150 Years of Eye-Catching Images

An exhibition charting the changing face of Birmingham will be officially opened today, as The Birmingham Post's launches its 150th birthday celebrations. Since the first edition of The Birmingham Daily Post, was pulled off the presses on December 4, 1857, both the city and the paper have undergone radical changes.

National Role for Birmingham Gp

A Birmingham GP has been elected as the new chairman of the Royal College of General Practitioners. Professor Steve Field, a GP partner at Bel-levue Medical Centre in Edgbaston, is the 20th chair to be elected by the RCGP Council and will hold the post three years.

Leaked Memo Sparks Cadbury Jobs Fight

Union leaders have stepped up their campaign to save a Cadbury factory threatened with closure after publishing an internal memo showing a huge increase in the company's sales in the UK. Unite said last night that the message revealed a 15 per cent increase in sales in October which the union claimed proved it was "unnecessary" to close the factory at Keyn-sham, near Bristol.

Don't Buy That Unwanted Gift - Splash Out On a Child in Need

A leading children's charity is asking Mid-landers to buy an ethical festive gift to change the lives of families in poverty across the globe. Instead of ending up with unwanted Christmas gifts, Save the Children is encouraging the region's shoppers to log on to an online catalogue.

Father Dives in to Save Son From River

A father who was saved from a raging river after diving in to rescue his son said there was "no way" he would allow him to be swept away. Nine-year-old Michael Byrne was playing with his pet dog when he fell in to the River Lyn near Lynton, north Devon, at about 9.40am yesterday.

College Lands Pounds 22,000 for Research Into Alzheimer's

A Birmingham university has received a pounds 22,000 grant for a study to identify what causes Alzheimer's patients problems in learning and recalling memories. Researchers at Aston University have been awarded funding by the Alzheimer's Research Trust to examine the changes that occur in the brain of people with this form of dementia.

Bosses Loosen the Christmas Eve Shackles

Millions of bosses are ditching their Scrooge-like image by giving workers an extra day off this Christmas. Experts predict a huge chunk of the country's workforce will be given Monday December 24 off in order to enjoy an extra long holiday weekend.

Birmingham On List of Areas at Risk of Flooding

Birmingham is among the top 20 places in Britain most at risk from flooding, according to new research. Analysis of official data by Channel 4's Dispatches revealed Boston in Lincolnshire - which has a population of about 65,000 and where nearly 16,000 properties (57 per cent of homeowners) are at "significant risk" - to be the most susceptible to flood waters.

Rush to Join Q3 for a Bold Taste of Teaching's Future ; What Kind of School Would Have Learning Consultants Instead of Teachers and a Chief Executive Instead of a Head? Education Correspondent Shahid Naqvi Visited Dartmouth High School - Soon to Be Renamed Q3 - to Find Out

Located in the shadow of the M6, you can hear the roar of cars on the motorway outside Dartmouth High School. Massive electric power cables run adjacent to the site which consists of dated 60s buildings. Surrounded by fallen autumn leaves, the scene is somewhat desolate.

Mum the Key Figure in Uk Children's Lives, Says Study

One in four children do not regard their fathers as part of their immediate family, according to a survey published today. The study also showed that while the vast majority of children in the UK describe themselves as "happy", a significant minority would like to change the way they look.

Indian-Born Women Return Home to Abort Girls - Claim

Pressure to have sons is causing some pregnant Indian-born women to return to India to abort their unwanted unborn daughters, a BBC investigation has concluded. It revealed how "selective sex abortion", a practice outlawed in India in the 1980s, is still widespread in the Asian country and being used by some women living in England and Wales.