Industry

Can farmers still 'go green' without grants?

by Owen
written by Owen

When the government axed the Sustainable Farming Incentive, many farmers said the loss of cash incentives to grow nature-friendly crops would leave them facing a hard choice.

That choice was between growing as much food as possible to make a profit, or looking after nature while losing money in the process.

But some farmers argue it is possible to do both.

Aidan Stanley raises beef cattle entirely on untouched grass pastures at Lilliput Farm near Bath, a practice which substantially reduces carbon emissions.

"This is working because of public demand," he said.

So what is he doing to make his farm more sustainable, and how does he make it pay?

Industry

Fisherman's Friends to hold their own festival

by Addison
written by Addison

Fisherman's Friends are set to stage their own festival next year – as their popularity now makes it impossible for them to perform in their home village in Cornwall.

The Cornish folk group has announced plans to host the first Fisherman's Friends Festival in May 2026.

The sea shanty band from Port Isaac, who have been performing together since 1995, can no longer perform in the village as "too many people turn up for it to be safe".

But, having previously played the main stage at Glastonbury and the Royal Albert Hall, they said a festival seemed "like a natural progression" for them.

Kate Rusby
Folk singer Kate Rusby will be part of the lineup for the festival

A spokesman for the band said: "The guys are no longer able to perform on The Platt in Port Isaac because of health and safety – too many people turn up – and every show they headline in their home county sells out really fast.

"Creating their own festival seems like a good way to give people an authentic taste of the authentic FF vibe, while showcasing the Cornwall they love."

Fisherman's Friends went from singing in their local pub to having a top 10 UK album, a movie made about them and also a musical.

Band member Jon Cleave said it would be a "brand new festival down in the very heart of our wondrous county at Stithians, in what promises to be a Cornish occasion for all friends you've known for years and for all those you've yet to meet."

Jools Holland OBE and his 20 piece Rhythm & Blues Orchestra will perform as well as Mercury Prize winner Kate Rusby, Celtic band Skipinnish and others.

Attendees will be able to camp and enjoy local foods, drinks and crafts.

The festival will take place at the Stithians Showground on Friday 22 until Sunday 24 May 2026.

Global Trade

Shoe fetish killer denied open prison move

by Heather
written by Heather

A shoe fetishist who raped and murdered a woman in her own home will not be moved to an open prison, the Ministry of Justice has confirmed.

Christopher Farrow was jailed for life in 2000 for the murder of mother-of-two Wendy Speakes in Wakefield six years previously.

Last month the Parole Board said Farrow, who received a minimum term of 18 years, should not be freed but instead moved to a Category D facility, the least secure.

But the government has blocked the proposal, saying public protection was its "number one priority".

'Horrific crime'

A spokesperson added: "Wendy Speakes' murder was a horrific crime and our thoughts remain with her friends and family."

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood was required to make the final decision whether to accept the recommendation.

Farrow raped Ms Speakes, 51, in 1994 after breaking into her home, raiding her shoe drawer and tying her up with black tights. He then stabbed her 11 times.

It took police six years to catch him after advances were made in fingerprint technology.

The Parole Board said that, at the time of the murder, he had a sexual interest in rape, sexual violence, stockings and high-heeled shoes, along with issues in relationships and managing his emotions.

Farrow has been denied release on four occasions, following hearings in 2018, 2020 and 2023.

Family handout
Wendy Speakes, a receptionist, was killed in her home in March 1994

Ms Speakes' daughter Tracey Millington-Jones said: "It is reassuring that victims are being heard and put first.

"The fact we victims should not have to go through this every two years is another concern which needs to be heard.

"But for now, I am very grateful that women will be safe from Christopher Farrow."

Ms Millington-Jones thanked Ms Mahmood, her MP Sir John Whittingdale and the media for supporting her campaign to keep Farrow in prison, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

She added: "Justice should be served for the pre-meditated horrific murder of my innocent lovely mum."

Farrow, now aged 63, has spent almost 25 years in prison since being sentenced.

LDRS
Mrs Speakes' and her daughter Tracey Millington-Jones on her wedding day

On 27 February, at his fourth parole hearing since his minimum term ended, the board heard he had completed an accredited programme last year to address "offence-related sexual thoughts".

A decision summary from the board said he had completed "extensive" work in custody including sessions with a psychologist, but only recent work had allowed professionals to say he showed insight into his offending.

Farrow, originally from Cookridge in Leeds, was moved to an open prison in 2018 but was returned to a closed jail the next year due to a number of cold case investigations taking place.

The Parole Board confirmed he was no longer a person of interest to police.

West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds

Innovation

'Real chance' true killer from 1986 still at large

by Christian
written by Christian

Detectives have said there is a "very real chance" the killer of a young woman who was murdered in 1986 is still at large after a man wrongfully convicted of the frenzied sexual attack was freed.

Peter Sullivan spent the last 38 years behind bars for murdering 21-year-old Diane Sindall in Birkenhead, Merseyside, before he was acquitted at the Court of Appeal on Tuesday.

Now 68, Mr Sullivan was released from prison after judges heard a DNA profile pointing to an unknown attacker was found after new testing on semen samples preserved from the crime scene.

Merseyside Police said more than 260 men identified in the original investigation had been tested and eliminated as suspects.

The force's head of investigations, Det Ch Supt Karen Jaundrill, said officers "had not met with any resistance" to DNA screening.

She has now appealed for people in the community to come forward if they can think of anyone whose "behaviour they were not happy with" at the time, admitting there was a "very real chance" the killer was still at large.

  • Who is Peter Sullivan and why was he jailed?
  • Why was Peter Sullivan not freed earlier?

Miss Sindall was dragged into an alley and beaten to death on 2 August 1986 in an attack detectives described at the time as the worst they had ever been involved in.

Merseyside Police said it had immediately reopened Miss Sindall's case after being told there was a new DNA profile in 2023, despite Mr Sullivan's appeal still being in progress at the time.

Det Ch Supt Karen Jaundrill said the force was desperate for information

Det Ch Supt Jaundrill said that while the DNA was the main focus of investigative efforts, her team will rely heavily on people who lived in Birkenhead at the time for answers.

"I'm really hopeful with the work that we are doing but we really are relying on the community, particularly Birkenhead, just to really think about the nature of that investigation at the time," she said.

"Try and reflect on any individuals that you weren't happy with at the time.

"It may be that somebody has passed away and you weren't happy with their behaviour at the time and you think they were linked.

"My ask would be please contact us, regardless of how insignificant you think the information is, and let us judge where that fits into our investigation."

Miss Sindall, who worked as a florist, had also been doing part-time bar work at the Wellington Pub in Bebington to save up for her upcoming wedding to her fiancé, David Beattie.

Julia Quenzler/BBC
Peter Sullivan held his hand to his face and sobbed when he was told his conviction would be quashed

She began driving to her home in Seacombe in her blue Fiat van but seemingly ran out of petrol, and began walking to what police believe was either a bus stop or an all-night garage shortly after 00:00 BST.

Her semi-naked body was discovered partially concealed in an alleyway by a woman walking her dog at about 12:30 that day.

The victim had suffered severe injuries and her death was found to have been caused by repeated blows to the head.

Det Ch Supt Jaundrill said Miss Sindall's family and fiancé were "fully supportive" of the new investigation and "very much want us" to find her real killer.

Asked about the chances of the young woman's attacker still being on the streets nearly four decades later, she added: "There is a very real chance.

"That's where I reiterate our dedicated team of investigators are working tirelessly.

"We're exploiting every opportunity to try and identify who the person is in relation to that DNA sample, but it does come back to that point – we are reliant on the communities, particularly [in] Birkenhead, to provide information."

The force has defended how it investigated the original case, and highlighted that the technology to extract a DNA profile from the semen samples recovered from Miss Sindall's body was still many years away at the time of her murder.

Merseyside Police
Peter Sullivan was in his late 20s when he was arrested

It has also pointed to the fact that two other grounds of appeal, related to how Mr Sullivan was interrogated and the admissibility of bite mark evidence, were rejected by appeal court judges.

Det Ch Supt Jaundrill said: "Nobody at Merseyside Police underestimates the impact on Peter Sullivan and I am grateful that the outcome at court will allow him to go out and rebuild his life.

"Our focus remains on finding justice for Diane."

Mr Sullivan's solicitor Sarah Myatt said her client was a "private man" and wanted to be "left in peace" to rebuild his life.

Mr Sullivan, in a statement read to the media by Ms Myatt outside the Court of Appeal, said he was not "angry or bitter" and expressed his wish that the Sindall family get justice.

Ms Myatt, who has represented him for 20 years, said she had been "honoured" to read those words on his behalf.

"The comments he made about wanting the family to get a resolution, to find peace, that is a true reflection on the man that he is," she said.

Fresh flowers have been left at a memorial to Diane Sindall

Another man who spent time in prison for a crime he did not commit, John Actie, said he could not understand why Mr Sullivan was not angry about everything he had gone through.

While on remand, Mr Actie was in jail for two years while accused of the murder of Lynette White in a Cardiff flat on 14 February 1988.

He was cleared at trial.

Three of his co-defendants were found guilty of her murder, but later had their convictions quashed by the Court of Appeal in a case that garnered national attention and became known as the Cardiff Five in the media.

Mr Actie told BBC Radio Wales: "It just made my stomach go over. It could have happened to us, we could have been in jail for a lot longer.

"Fortunately we were lucky and we got out because they came to the right decision.

"He's not bitter? Well I'm bitter, and I spent two years in jail. I have nightmares about it still.

"He's got to start his life again now, at 68. It's absolutely terrible.

"I'm flabbergasted that he's not angry with what's happened to him – I just can't believe that he's not angry. I'm choking up thinking about it."

Tech

'Why I chose to donate my breast milk'

by Jacob
written by Jacob

Soon after Jess gave birth to her first baby, she ran out of freezer space.

"I was producing so much breast milk my husband couldn't fit the food in the freezer," said Jess, a 30-year-old mother from South Derbyshire.

It was then that she found out about the option of donating surplus breast milk to a local milk bank.

"I knew that poorly and premature babies in the neonatal unit were fed with donated milk. So I thought why not give them some of mine?"

ALEJANDRO PRIETO/EPA
Feeding babies breast milk "increases chances of survival" according to the NHS milk bank in Birmingham

Jess said donating her milk was easy, adding: "I phoned Birmingham milk bank and they sent me a blood test in the post."

She added that other than dropping off the blood test at the hospital, she did not have to leave the house to donate.

"They sent me all the bottles and equipment," she added. "It was all free."

She said her first donation was 10 litres (two gallons) of breast milk.

Jess described her 13-week-old baby Lucas as a "big chunky baby" weighing nearly a stone.

She added: "I thought he's got loads of my milk, so I'm going to help make chunky babies all over the nation!"

DERBYSHIRE BLOOD BIKES
Volunteers from Derbyshire Blood Bikes transport blood, breast milk, and medication to and from NHS facilities

Jess's milk was transported from her house to the human milk bank Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital by Derbyshire Blood Bikes – a charity which provides a medical courier service for NHS hospitals across the county.

"The Blood Bikes were so good," says Jess. "They came right to the door and gave me the cooler bags they transport the milk in.

"I literally just had to take it out the freezer and give it to them."

"It created space for more food, actually. My husband was happy!"

A spokesperson from the Birmingham Women's Hospital milk bank team said: "We'd like to say a huge thank you to all of the generous women who donate their breast milk to help protect tiny babies.

"Donations are crucial, they play a huge part in providing the necessary care for our unwell babies in our neonatal unit, as breast milk is vital at protecting extremely sick babies.

"We know that many hospitals are in need of human milk for their neonatal services which is why we supply milk to surrounding hospitals throughout the UK."

How does it work?

On its NHS trust website, the milk bank at Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital said it was providing donor breast milk to its own neonatal babies as well as to other hospitals across the region and beyond.

Donor breast milk, it says, can be offered to support mothers while they are establishing their own milk supply, or if they are unable to provide their own milk due to geographical separation or maternal illness.

Eligible donors would have established breastfeeding with their own baby and find they have surplus milk to their baby's requirements.

Blood tests are done before donations to ensure infections will not be passed on via the milk, and certain reasons will exclude people from becoming donors such as smoking or taking certain prescribed medicine.

DERBYSHIRE BLOOD BIKES
Volunteer blood biker Adam transported the first batch of breast milk to be given to babies by nurses at Royal Derby Hospital

Last month, Royal Derby Hospital used donor breast milk to feed babies on their neonatal unit for the first time.

The first batch of donor milk came from the human milk bank in Birmingham, which was delivered by a Derbyshire Blood Bikes volunteer.

Mark Vallis, Operations Manager at Derbyshire Blood Bikes, said: "It means mothers at the hospital can rest assured that the neonatal unit will be able to get milk to them. In all instances that will be milk from the Birmingham bank, delivered to Derby free of charge by Blood Bikes."

Jess said the move was "amazing", adding: "I see on Facebook groups mums asking for spare milk, and that's obviously not right. So it's really important they can get it from a safe source."

A spokesperson for the University Hospitals Trust of Derby and Burton said: "We offer expert advice and breastfeeding support to women, however, where expressing milk is not an option, donated breastmilk is a more suitable way to support pre-term baby's development.

"We are pleased to be working with Birmingham Milk Bank so that some of our families, with neonatal babies, can access donor breastmilk."

Industry

'Let's start a conversation about black hair'

by Michelle
written by Michelle

A woman says she wants to wants to "start a conversation" about afro hair, including the challenge of finding a salon that caters for black and mixed heritage people.

Rayh Mohammed, from Hull, has opened a photographic exhibition at the city's Ferens Art Gallery, which she hopes will challenge stereotypes.

Ms Mohammed said for many people even finding a salon that caters for black hair can be problematic, leaving some with no option but to call on family and friends.

The free exhibition, Hair: Identity in the AfroWorld, runs until 17 August.

Rayh Mohammed
Volunteers from Hull have spoken about their relationship with their hair

Ms Mohammed, 34, said she now regularly travels to salons in Bradford, in West Yorkshire, and Kettering in Northamptonshire.

Referring to Hull, she said: "There's still a very small amount of people (salons) that attend to the nuances of black hair.

"That's why the home salon is such a big thing for a lot of black people. I do your hair, you do my hair."

The Nigerian-born artist said she loves her afro hair.

"It's versatile, it's strong," she said.

"I love the fact that it defies gravity. It teaches us patience. It forces you to sometimes be self-sufficient."

Visitors to the exhibition can learn about braiding styles and hair care techniques passed down through generations.

Ms Mohammed said she hopes people, including children, will find the exhibition "validating".

Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Soundslatest episode of Look North here.

Global Trade

Popular Exmoor footbridge closed over safety fears

by Amy
written by Amy

A popular footbridge in Exmoor has been shut over safety fears.

The Hinds Pitt bridge, near the Tarr Steps circular walk, in Somerset, has been deemed unsafe after structural failures.

Exmoor National Park Authority (ENPA) said it was working on a plan for a long-term replacement, reinstating public access.

ENPA access and recreation manager, Dan Barnett, said: "The bridge has been there since the 1950s and some key parts of the steel structure have deteriorated to a point where they are no longer safe."

Industry

School transport funding changes upheld after vote

by Anthony
written by Anthony

Councillors have rejected calls to scrap changes to a new home-to-school transport funding policy.

North Yorkshire Council voted last year to only pay for transport to a child's nearest school, rather than using school catchment areas as had previously happened.

Opposition councillors and parents had called for the policy change to be reversed, resulting in fresh vote on the issue at a meeting earlier.

However, the motion was defeated by ten votes, with a council spokesperson later stating that pupils starting new schools in September would find out if they are eligible for free travel in the coming weeks.

Ahead of the meeting councillors were met by a group of about 100 people protesting against the policy outside County Hall in Northallerton, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The council had said it hoped the policy – due to come into effect in September – would deliver savings of up to £4.2m a year.

But campaigners argued the new system may actually cost money to implement, and was damaging to pupils, schools and rural communities.

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Campaigners protested outside the county hall and held up banners inside during the meeting

The council said home-to-school transport was one of its three largest areas of expenditure, alongside adult social care and waste management.

A spokesperson added that the decision to change the policy was aimed at protecting frontline services.

Deputy leader Gareth Dadd said the new policy was "fairer to all families, responsible and affordable".

"Unfortunately, a more generous offer is no longer an option," he said.

"I would like to stress that parents and carers in North Yorkshire still have a choice as to where to send their children.

"It is important for them to factor in travel costs if they choose a school that is not the nearest to their home."

However, one parent speaking after the meeting said she now faced having to pay about £800 a year for her daughter to attend the same school as her son.

Another parent, Charlotte Fowler, said: "Shame on all those councillors who have let down North Yorkshire's children today.

"They had a chance to put things right and they blew it. By choosing to keep a broken system in place the council has left children isolated, parents burdened, and schools uncertain about their future."

Families of children due to start secondary school in September will find out if their child is eligible for free school travel by 30 May and those due to start primary school will find out by 30 June, the council has confirmed.

Industry

Man called woman 400 times over abuse charge

by Jose
written by Jose

A man who called a woman more than 400 times in three days to intimidate her into dropping domestic abuse accusations against him has been jailed.

Adrian Duke, 37, of Russell Street, Peterborough, also hid in her house while she was visited by police and threatened her with violence if she read her statement in court.

Police said she withdrew the charges but later confided in officers.

Duke, who coerced the victim between September and December, pleaded guilty to intimidating a witness or juror and was jailed for one year and ten months at Cambridge Crown Court.

Det Con Isabelle Wilding, from Cambridgeshire Police, said: "The victim believed she had no option but to drop the charges, fearing violent consequences if she didn't.

"Everyone should feel able to contact the police without fearing the repercussions.

"This sentence not only means justice has been done, but will hopefully allow the victim to move on with her life."

Global Trade

Six Bulgarians jailed for spying for Russia

by Natalie
written by Natalie

Six Bulgarians have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for spying for the Kremlin in the UK and across Europe.

During a trial in London, the Old Bailey court heard the cell was paid handsomely for their services, which included spying on two journalists who had exposed nerve agent attacks on Russian dissidents Alexei Navalny and Sergei Skripal.

The sentencing judge said the group's activities had posed a serious risk to the UK's national security.

Ringleader Orlin Roussev, 47, was jailed for 10 years and eight months. His deputy, Biser Dzhambazov, 44, was sentenced to 10 years and two months.

Dzhambazov's former partner, Katrin Ivanova, 33, was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison. Three others – Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, Ivan Stoyanov, 33, and Vanya Gaberova, 30 – were jailed for between six and eight years.

Roussev, Dzhambazov and Stoyanov all pleaded guilty to the spying charges, while the other three were convicted at a trial in March.

Prosecutors had told the court they had conducted operations in the UK, Austria, Spain, Germany and Montenegro.

They targeted investigative journalists Christo Grozev and Roman Dobrokhotov, as well as Russian dissidents, political figures and Ukrainian soldiers training at a military base in Germany.

The case against them was described as "one of the largest" foreign intelligence operations in the UK and focused on six of their assignments.

It presented, for the first time in a UK criminal court, the inner workings of a Russian operational spy cell – exposing their thousands of messages organising surveillance, photos and videos of their targets, and talk of plans to kidnap and kill.

Evidence presented to the court this week also revealed new details about Jan Marsalek, an overseas fugitive who directed the unit for Russian intelligence services.

Marsalek, an Austrian, is currently wanted in Germany for fraud allegations linked to the financial services company Wirecard. He is believed to be hiding in Moscow.

The court heard the spy ring referred to themselves as the "minions", inspired by the yellow sidekicks of the villain Gru in the Despicable Me children's film franchise.

The group also frequently referred to the Russian GRU agency – its military intelligence service – in Telegram messages.

Police raided the Norfolk guesthouse housing the operation in 2023 where they found a "treasure trove" of gadgets, including a Minion cuddly toy containing a camera.

In sentencing on Monday, Judge Nicholas Hilliard singled out Roussev as the boss but said all were "motivated by money". Sums of up to €1m (£840,000) were discussed by the gang, demonstrating the "value" of their covert activities to Russia.

Mr Justice Hilliard said using the UK as a base to plan spy operations was a "very serious offence" which "undermines this country's standing with allies".

"Targeting journalists… undermines freedom of the press, one of our core democratic values," he added.

Russia's embassy in London has not responded to the case. The Kremlin has previously always rejected allegations of spying.

Conspiracy to spy carries a maximum sentence of 14 years, but Roussev, Dzhambazov and Stoyanov were afforded some credit for their guilty pleas.

Roussev was ordered to pay a confiscation order of £180,768 in ill-gotten gains by August 2025.

Meanwhile, Gaberova's sentenced was reduced to six years, eight months and three weeks following mitigation.

Her barrister Anthony Metzer KC said she had been "controlled, coerced into this conspiracy by Mr Dzhambazov," who was her lover while also being involved with Ivanova.

The court was told Gaberova had been diagnosed with depression, panic disorder, claustrophobia and anxiety.

The Met Police's Counter Terrorism Command said the case was "a clear example" of the increasing threat of state espionage.

Commander Dominic Murphy said it "highlights a relatively new phenomenon whereby espionage is being 'outsourced' by certain states".

Security Minister Dan Jarvis said: "These substantial sentences should send a clear warning to anyone seeking to threaten our security, harm the UK, and compromise the safety of the public."