Wednesday 15th September 2010 Lead thieves get jail
Three men found guilty of stealing lead from a church roof have been
jailed for eight months. The three, Spartakus Grachauskas, 23, Mykolas
Serdicenko, 18 and Nikoladus Janouicius, 23, all from Crewe, were
sentenced at Stoke Crown Court. The men were arrested in April after a
passer by spotted the theft in progress and informed the police. The
thieves caused extensive damage to the Stoke Minster roof that will
cost around £30,000 to repair. An appeal has been launched by the
church for funds to help replace the stolen lead. Gavin Drake, from
the Diocese of Lichfield, said: "This is a very serious crime which
has left the worshipping community at Stoke Minster with a large
repair bill." Staffordshire

Thursday 29th July 2010 Placard man lands job
A man who stood for three hours in the rain holding a placard asking for a job has found work. Mark Wheeldon, 23, remained by a roundabout in Stoke-on-Trent until someone stopped and gave him employment. Vince Champion, a director at Smart Timber Frame Company, said Mr Wheeldon's tenacity and "determination to find a job" had impressed him. Stoke-on-Trent has more people on Jobseeker's Allowance than the national average and Mr Wheeldon, of Newcastle-under-Lyme, had been unemployed for two years when he decided to go out with a sign saying "Please give me a job" earlier this month. "I'm over the moon, I can't believe it to be honest with you," he said after getting the job offer. "I'm back in work now and I'm enjoying the work I'm doing and looking to the future." Staffordshire

Thursday 1st April 2010 £130m debt for Wedgwood Museum
The Wedgwood Museum in Stoke-on-Trent has been hit with a bill for a
£130m pension debt transferred to it from the now defunct pottery
maker. The museum is a trust fund, separated from the pottery
manufacturer, but linked by a shared pension fund.

Chris Johnson, chair of the Wedgwood Group Pension Plan, said the
notice was served "with very great regret", adding: "I have been a
Wedgwood man forever, and I'm passionate about its history and
treasure. But we have to obey the law and obey due process."

Trust chairman George Stonier said: "We are absolutely determined to
do everything we can to preserve our museum." Staffordshire

Thursday 19th November 2009 He’s 97 but he can still ring your bell
Bill Harding has no plans to ring the changes. Mr Harding, who is 97,
has rang the bells at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Brewood,
Staffordshire for 25 years and now he’s passing the skill on to
youngsters. He has no plans to stop ringing the bells himself though,
he expects to still be part of the daily noon bell ringing even when
he reaches 100.

Mr Harding's enthusiasm for the task is still strong despite a near
miss with a bell that came adrift during ringing when the rope
snapped.

Remembering the day when he almost met his maker Mr Harding said: "The
bell itself came crashing down and I had to run for cover. I was
frightened that the bell might fall through the roof, but fortunately
it didn't." Staffordshire

Friday 9th October 2009 Waste firm probed in River Trent cyanide incident
A suspension notice has been served on Red Industries Ltd of Burslem,
Stoke-on-Trent by the Environment Agency. Tens of thousands of fish
died and people were warned away from a 30-mile stretch of the river.
The Environment Agency carried out tests on a sewage discharge pipe
used by the factory which revealed traces of cyanide. The firm
involved has confirmed that they are working with the investigators to
try and determine the source of the spillage.

Red Industries issued a statement saying: "We have always worked
closely with the Environment Agency and will continue to assist them
fully in their investigation." Staffordshire

Wednesday 7th October 2009 Cyanide pollutes River Trent
Warnings have been issued after the deadly chemical cyanide was found
to have entered the River Trent in Staffordshire. A 30-mile stretch of
the river is now contaminated with both cyanide and raw sewage
according to the Environment Agency. The incident has had “a huge
impact” according to the Environment Agency’s spokesman Alan Walters.
The Agency are warning that water should not be removed from the river
under any circumstances. Fish and wildlife have already been reported
dead or dying in the area. The pollution is expected to reach
Burton-on-Trent by late afternoon Wednesday (7th October)

Severn Trent Water say the raw sewage leakage occurred as a result of
the cyanide spillage, which they claim knocked out their treatment
plant. The RSPCA are sending a team to the area, a spokeswoman for the
RSPCA said:

"We expect there will be quite a big clean-up operation involved. For
those people with livestock we would remind them to get them away from
the area as safely as possible." Staffordshire

Thursday 24th September 2009 Huge Anglo-Saxon Hoard found in Staffordshire
The largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon treasure ever found in the UK has been turned up by metal detectors working in a field in Staffordshire. The collection is so vast that it is likely to take over a year to value it. Terry Herbert was on farmland with a metal detector has been quoted as saying it “was what metal detectorists dream of”.

The collection is not only valuable and beautiful but it’s also of massive architectural value. With 5kg of gold and 2.5kg of silver it easily outstrips the Sutton Hoo find of 1939. Duncan Slarke, Staffordshire’s finds liaison officer was described as “speechless” when he first was shown the hoard. Staffordshire