Sutton Coldfield MP, Andrew Mitchell and Strictly Come Dancing’s, AJ Pritchard and Chloe Hewitt attended the launch of Stage Studios, the new performing arts facility at Sutton Coldfield College – giving the building and its students top marks. 

Sutton Coldfield MP, Andrew Mitchell officially opened the Stage Studios by unveiling a commemorative plaque. 

He said: “Sutton Coldfield has a thriving arts community where individuals of all ages and from all backgrounds can be involved in or be entertained by a range of shows and productions.  The Stage Studios will be a vital part of this local scene.”

Dance duo, AJ Pritchard and Chloe Hewitt who first found fame on Britain’s Got Talent congratulated dance, musical theatre and acting students for the routines, songs and monologues they performed at the launch event.  These included a vocal performance from Hamilton – The Musical, a Shakespeare monologue and a dance routine to the Austin Powers movie theme song.

AJ and Chloe also took part in a Q&A session with students where they shared their experiences of competing in dance events and becoming national and European Latin dance champions.

AJ said: “The studios are fantastic.  It’s great that the college offers a whole performing arts package where learners can hone their creative skills.  Everyone has to start somewhere, so the more knowledge these students gain, the more power they have to achieve their goals.

“And I love how these students are involved in other things on top of their college courses.  Belonging to dance groups, taking part in events and appearing in productions at different theatres will help them go as far as possible in their careers.”

Stage Studios is a £168,000 custom-built facility containing four brand new studios.  150 students developing skills in dance and choreography, drama, acting and theatre studies will benefit from state-of-the-art equipment and the best teaching resources available.  The college offers performing arts courses from GCSE-equivalent to university level.

Sutton Coldfield College Principal, Andrew Cleaves said: “Stage Studios give our students the creative freedom and motivation to develop their skills and perform at their very best.  They have a more flexible area in which to rehearse and to work with other companies and community organisations so they can build on their experiences while working with some of the best people in the industry.”

Guests from local schools, dance schools, theatres and the wider performing arts industry also attended the Stage Studios launch, along with some of the college’s former students.

Former England cricketer and newly appointed Sports Director at Warwickshire County Cricket Club, Ashley Giles, is the latest to join QEHB Charity at Velo Birmingham, a 100-mile closed-road bicycle race that is arriving in the second city on Sunday 24 September.

For Ashley, there was no question as to which charity he wanted to raise money for.

In 2006 he rushed back from the Ashes in Australia, where he was part of the England team, to be with his wife Stine, who had just been diagnosed with a brain tumour.

After successful removal of the tumour and further treatment, in 2012 they were both devastated to learn that two more tumours had been discovered, which required immediate attention.

He said: “The treatment Stine received was so new that she was one of the first people to go through it – she was treated on the new TomoTherapy machine bought by the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham Charity just weeks before. Without it, there were few options of treatment left.  Stine experienced first-hand how important research and new treatments are so promised herself that if everything went well and her prognosis was good, she would endeavour to raise money to support brain tumour research in the future... and so the Giles' Trust was born”

Thankfully, Stine’s pioneering treatment worked, and, although she continues to have regular checks and scans, she is back enjoying life with her family. Along with Ashley, Stine set up the Giles’ Trust at QEHB Charity which funds research and support to patients with brain tumours. The Giles’ Trust has funded a clinical research nurse who helps Professor Cruickshank to double the number of patients taking part in brain tumour research at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham.

Ashley said: “As a cricketer by trade I am excited to try my hand at a new challenge, and cycling 100 miles in 24 hours will be just that – a challenge!

“The work that goes on at QEHB is fantastic, and much of it wouldn’t be possible without QEHB Charity, which raises money for extra research, facilities and equipment over and above what the NHS can provide.

“I hope people dig deep and feel inspired to sponsor my challenge, and more importantly, to help make a difference for future patients like my wife who may, one day, need the fantastic support of QEHB.”

According to the latest Lloyds Bank regional PMI for March, there has been some easing of performance in Britain, coupled with an acceleration of price pressures. In particular, the latest regional PMI data shows a softening but still robust performance in the West Midlands, which is down from 57.0 in February to 56.1. This reflects the softening seen in the national manufacturing and construction PMIs in March, and in official data with short-term indicators showing slowing but still positive output performance.

Nevertheless, UK manufacturing, construction, and services PMIs all reported an increase in confidence for the next twelve months, with confidence in the manufacturing sector reaching a ten-month high. A lowering of Brexit uncertainty among clients was reported, providing a boost to output demand. There was also increased demand and interest from foreign markets, most probably due to the lower value of Sterling, thereby making UK businesses more internationally price competitive.

The UK PMIs saw increases in new orders in March, with further demand from foreign markets for manufacturers and services providers, and lower anxiety surrounding Brexit was a contributing factor for construction. As a region, the West Midlands appears to be outperforming the UK in terms of new orders, which has enabled growth. Furthermore, as business outstanding increases, there could be an increase in employment as companies raise their capacity to deal with new business. This was reflected in March’s PMIs, with the West Midlands showing employment growth above the UK overall.

The Sterling effective exchange rate has fallen 10.4% since the Brexit referendum and has contributed to tightening inflationary pressures, with the CPI reaching 2.3% in February, the strongest since September 2013. According to official data, producer input prices have risen 19.1% over the same period, and has fed through into producer output prices, which have increased 10.7%. Transport, especially fuel prices were the principal contributory factors. Similar price pressures were evident in the recent PMIs, and remained acute in March. Manufacturing, construction, and services PMIs all reported increases in input prices in March. These pressures were evident in the regional PMIs, with input and output costs rising faster in the Midlands than the UK overall, and many businesses reporting that squeezed profit margins were causing them to pass on costs to clients.

Corin Crane, Chief Executive of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, commented: “The latest West Midlands PMI highlights the need for an effective regionally-focussed Industrial Strategy. The strength of new orders and rising outstanding business demonstrates the need for infrastructure and skills investment in the region. The current capacity constraints appear to be having an impact on future growth prospects and potential gains in productivity performance."

Keeping physical active is vital to maintaining a healthy heart. However, last week the British Heart Foundation revealed new statistics which showed that 1.8million adults in the West Midlands are failing to meet the recommended level of physical activity, significantly increasing their risk of heart disease and early death.

In the UK alone physical inactivity causes one in ten premature deaths from coronary heart disease, and one in six deaths overall. So it’s never been more important to get your heart pumping.

But getting active doesn’t have to be difficult. With the British Heart Foundation’s MyMarathon challenge you can complete the 26.2 miles in your own time, whether it’s over 4 hours, 4 days or 4 weeks. Run to work every morning, jog during your lunchbreaks or run laps around the park in the evenings; you decide the place and you decide the pace.

More than 30,000 people of all fitness levels took part in MyMarathon last year, raising over £1million for the BHF’s life saving heart research. Why not take on the challenge this May and help give your physical activity a boost.

Every pound raised could help BHF accelerate the right against heart disease, and make a real difference the 655,800 people locally that are living with its burden.

Consumers in Milton Keynes are the big spenders on second-hand cars, shelling out two-thirds more than the UK average, according to research carried out by a leading car finance provider.

Creditplus.co.uk looked at the average loan taken out over the past 12 months to purchase a used car in major towns and cities across the UK, and found that car owners in Milton Keynes borrowed an average of £18,225, compared to the UK average of £10,962.

The research revealed that the average car loan taken out, varied by as much as 118% depending on where you live in the country. At the lower end, used car purchasers in Ipswich and Norwich borrowed an average of just £8,360 and £8,466 respectively.

The Midlands featured heavily in the list of the UK’s biggest borrowers. Four out of five towns and cities, where consumers borrowed the most to buy a used car, were in that region of the country. The average loan size in Coventry was £13,186 over the past year, the second highest after Milton Keynes.

You would be hard pressed to find someone who didn't know the name 'Christian Dior' or the fact that he was French, but did you know that the fashion legend was born and raised in Normandy? To celebrate the Dior fashion house's seventieth anniversary this year, the Christian Dior Museum in Granville, the very house in which Dior grew up, is hosting a new exhibition called Christian Dior and Granville: Roots of a Legend, which opened on 8 April will run until 24 September 2017.

On 12 February 1947, Christian Dior gave his first show. It was an unprecedented success in the history of fashion design, instantly making the fashion house the epitome of French haute couture. As part of the 70th anniversary of the Dior fashion house, the Christian Dior Museum is offering visitors a new perspective on Dior's formative years in his home town of Granville.

The exhibition sheds new light on the great fashion designer's life and how his family home in Granville played a key role in inspiring his work. Dior's attachment to his Normandy roots is evoked in the exhibition, and visitors are taken on a historical and stylistic journey. Rekindling the memory of the designer's childhood paradise, the exhibition features around 60 haute couture dresses dating back as far as 1947; both the artistic licence of Dior himself and subsequent directors, who have all remained faithful to Dior's vision, maintaining a connection to his preferred themes and colours.