Welcome to the rolling news live blog where you'll find all the latest news and traffic, travel, sport and weather updates for Burton and the surrounding area. If it's happening, you'll hear it here first. If it's happening in the wider world and we think you'll be interested, this is where you will find it. We will keep you up to date on all you need to know.

We're hoping you can be our eyes and ears in your own communities so if you spot something going on you can email our reporters at editorial@burtonmail.co.uk or call us on 01283 245032

Conkers make changes for bonfire and fireworks display night to prevent repeat of last year's fiasco

Overcrowding at Conkers last year
Overcrowding at Conkers last year

Rigorous safety measures have been put in place to prevent overcrowding problems which saw more than 6,000 people attend Conkers’ Bonfire Night fireworks display last year.

The event at the site in Rawdon Road, Moira, sparked fury and attracted hundreds of complaints last year with many worried for their own safety because of the sheer number of people allowed through the gates.

Read the full story here.

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Stapenhill ram-raid thieves still on the run after stealing cashpoint from Spar shop

Thieves who rammed a vehicle into a store in Stapenhill are still at large as investigations remain ongoing. Thieves used a digger-type machine to steal the cashpoint machine from outside the Spar shop in Rosliston Road at around 3am on Monday, October 2, police have said.

The incident comes after two previous raids on the same shop earlier this year - one involving robbers armed with knives. These crimes remain unsolved.

Read the full story here.

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Former homeless man Dave is major success as he gets set to travel to China to teach

Dave is now flying out to China to teach two years after he was living on the streets
Dave is now flying out to China to teach two years after he was living on the streets

He was once wandering the streets a down and out and homeless man in Burton, but Dave has managed to turn his life around and is set to fly to China to teach. Now he wants to show how grateful he is to those in the town who have helped him get back on his feet.

The 55-year-old, who wants to remain anonymous except for his first name, contacted the Burton Mail in a bid to let those who put a roof over his head in the town know just how far he has come.

Read the full story here.

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Midway man who bought cannabis growing equipment at car boot sale is told his behaviour 'could be classed as abuse'

A cannabis user has been told his behaviour “could be classed as abuse” after growing the Class B drug in a Midway home he shared with his partner and her children.

Martin Lewis set up a 5ft by 8ft growing tent in one of the rooms at the property he lived in and claimed he bought all the equipment he needed for his set-up at a car boot sale.

Read the full story here.

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St Peter's Bridge repairs are on schedule as waterproofing looks to end and kerb installations are set to begin

Picture of the ongoing roadworks on the St Peter's Bridge in Burton. Titled "Water Under Troubled Bridge".
Picture of the ongoing roadworks on the St Peter's Bridge in Burton. Titled "Water Under Troubled Bridge". (Image: IAN LEECH)

A major part of the St Peter’s Bridge repair project in Burton is set to be completed next week as the final stages of ‘deck waterproofing’ to the road surface is carried out.

After the carriageway has been waterproofed, the installation of kerbs and resurfacing of the bridge pavements and carriageway can take place.

Read the full story here.

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Police hunt 'chubby' man seen performing sex act in an Etwall field

A chubby man who was seen performing a sex act in an Etwall field has prompted an urgent police appeal for witnesses.

Two women were riding their horses on the Route 68 cycle path close to Etwall when they reported seeing a man touching himself indecently in a nearby field. The incident happened at around 1.50pm on Saturday, October 7.

Read the full story here.

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'Business is the worst it's been in 31 years' say owners of aquatics shop following closure of St Peter's Bridge

A popular aquatics store near Burton is suffering its worst downturn in trade for 31 years following the controversial St Peter’s Bridge closure.

Maureen and Herbert Bareja, joint owners of Byrkley Aquatics, say they are doing anything they can to survive as Burton enters the second month of the bridge closure.

Read the full story here.

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Revamp for Princess Diana Memorial Garden in Swadlincote stalls over granite delivery wait

Pictured at the Diana Memorial Garden is John Perks, managing director of Mason Cash, Frank McArdle, chief executive of South Derbyshire District Council and Richard Shaw at the construction area, that will be the new Princess Diana Memorial Garden.
Pictured at the Diana Memorial Garden is John Perks, managing director of Mason Cash, Frank McArdle, chief executive of South Derbyshire District Council and Richard Shaw at the construction area, that will be the new Princess Diana Memorial Garden.

Long-awaited work to complete the Princess Diana Memorial Garden in Swadlincote has stalled while contractors await a delivery of granite, it has been revealed.

It comes as a Swadlincote resident spoke during a public meeting of her disappointment that a local company was not given the contract for the £90,000 renovation, which instead was awarded to a firm in Melton Mowbray.

Read the full story here.

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Popular Burton Mail Baby and Toddler of the Year competition returns

Burton Mail Baby of the Year photographs are being taken in the Cooper's Square Shopping Centre with Andrea Powell Photography taking the photographs Baby: Lucie - Paige Deakin Mum: Elizabeth Grumshaw
Burton Mail Baby of the Year photographs are being taken in the Cooper's Square Shopping Centre with Andrea Powell Photography taking the photographs Baby: Lucie - Paige Deakin Mum: Elizabeth Grumshaw

Tots across the area are preparing to show off their widest grins as one of the area’s most popular Baby and Toddler competition returns.

The Burton Mail Baby and Toddler of the Year competition is set to return with parents being offered free photo sessions in Coopers Square shopping centre and a chance to win a share of £1,500.

Read how to take part here.

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Work well under way for two new schools in Burton which are set to take in thousands of pupils

The roof of a new £30 million secondary school at Tatenhill has been put into place in a key milestone for the first building project of its kind in Staffordshire for 25 years.

Meanwhile, in a second major educational boost for the Burton area, work has now officially launched on a new £5 million primary school near Henhurst Ridge.

Read the full story here.

Sod Cutting Ceremony for new Henhurst Ridge Academy Primary School. Pictured are Martin Gallagher, managing director at Tomlinson; Andy Morris, contracts manager; Laura Hand, deputy head of Scientia Academy; Charlotte Hopkins, new head of Henhurst Ridge Academy Primary School, and Philip White, county councillor
Sod Cutting Ceremony for new Henhurst Ridge Academy Primary School. Pictured are Martin Gallagher, managing director at Tomlinson; Andy Morris, contracts manager; Laura Hand, deputy head of Scientia Academy; Charlotte Hopkins, new head of Henhurst Ridge Academy Primary School, and Philip White, county councillor
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Parking problems at Woodville Surgery with lack of signs being blamed

Parking problems have hit a new state-of-the-art medical centre in South Derbyshire, with a lack of signs being blamed.

The Woodville Surgery opened last month at the former TH Archer garage site off Burton Road in the village, but concerns have been raised over vehicles parking on the road outside the building, rather than in its dedicated car park at the back.

Woodville resident Don Redfern spoke out at the latest Swadlincote Safer Neighbourhood meeting about the issues.

Read the full story here.

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Motorcyclist dies after taking part in Ride to the Wall event at National Memorial Arboretum

A motorcyclist who died after taking part in the 10th anniversary of Ride to the Wall has been named locally.

Darryl Souza, a warehouse section leader at Asda, was on his way home after Saturday’s event at the National Memorial Arboretum when he was involved in a collision in Northamptonshire.

The 26-year-old, of Rushden, had been paying tribute to fallen soldiers just hours before the accident. He was on a Yamaha motorbike when he collided with a Mini at the crossroads of Naseby Road and Long Holt Road in Clipston.

Read the full story here.

Darryl, 26, is pictured with his wife Louise on their wedding day
Darryl, 26, is pictured with his wife Louise on their wedding day
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Car stopped on M1 did not have tax

Police have stopped and seized a Toyota car stopped on the M1 after finding that the driver did not have any road tax.

M1. Stopped for no Tax which usually means another problem. In this case uninsured also. #Seized pic.twitter.com/FYFckvHZC4

— Derbys Roads Police (@DerbyshireRPU) October 9, 2017

Toyota car stopped on the M1 for not having road tax is seized by police
Toyota car stopped on the M1 for not having road tax is seized by police
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Business boss marks second year paying to keep council-axed lollipop lady in Branston

A top business boss has stepped into pay the wages of a lollipop lady for another year so she can keep getting children to school safely after her job was set to be axed.

Lollipop lady Claire Sworder has been helping children cross the road outside Rykneld Primary School, in Main Street, Branston, for four years, but last year the 41-year-old’s post was controversially axed by Staffordshire County Council to say costs.

Read the full story here.

Pictured is lollipop lady Claire Sworder with Michael Price, distribution centre manager at Wincanton for B&Q
Pictured is lollipop lady Claire Sworder with Michael Price, distribution centre manager at Wincanton for B&Q
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Swadlincote traders reveal how the closure of St Peter's Bridge in neighbouring Burton has hit them

Some market traders in Swadlincote say they have seen a rise in the number of customers who have been heading to the town as they give Burton a wide berth due to the bridge repair works there.

It comes as market traders and businesses in Burton have already told how they have seen takings slump due to the £6.1 million repairs to St Peter’s Bridge, which has seen the main route into the town closed.

Read the full story here.

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'Business is the worst it's been in 31 years' say owners of aquatics shop following closure of St Peter's Bridge

A popular aquatics store near Burton is suffering its worst downturn in trade for 31 years following the controversial St Peter’s Bridge closure.

Maureen and Herbert Bareja, joint owners of Byrkley Aquatics, say they are doing anything they can to survive as Burton enters the second month of the bridge closure.

Read the full story here.

The family have been running the business for 31 years
The family have been running the business for 31 years
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MP brands Midland Classic 'outrageous' after two stops are dropped from popular route in Stretton

Burton MP Andrew Griffiths has slammed a local bus company for scrapping a popular service from Stretton, branding the move “outrageous.”

Midland Classic, which offers a range of services around the area, changed its route one service, meaning that it will no longer serve Athelston Way and Bitham Lane in Stretton. The changes led to several residents complaining to the MP.

Read the full story here.

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Delays in Winshill and Stapenhill

There is queuing traffic in Staffordshire, particularly in both Winshill and Stapenhill this morning.

At the A511 Ashby Road westbound, there is some traffic in the road works area of Winshill, while in Stapenhill, between St Peter’s Bridge and Main Street, roadworks are once again causing traffic.

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Burton's Queen's Hospital to open £50-plus million health care village and multi-storey car park

Queen’s Hospital in Burton is set for a £50 million-plus revamp which will see a multi-storey car park and a healthcare village built.

The £50 million village will be built on the Outwoods site, next to the hospital in Belvedere Road, with a number of old buildings being flattened to make way for the new facilities - and should be opened by the end of 2019.

Read the full story here.

Queen's Hospital
Queen's Hospital
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Good morning!

It should be a cloudy day in Burton and South Derbyshire if forecasts are to be believed.

with high temperatures of around 17C at 2pm and 3pm, with it not dropping below 15C until 7pm, it should be a fairly mild day.

Stick with us here throughout the day for more weather, traffic updates and your breaking news from the area.

It is going to be a cloudy day in Burton and South Derbyshire
It is going to be a cloudy day in Burton and South Derbyshire (Image: Getty)
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