A talented artist has scooped £150 after winning a competition to brighten up office space. The Open College Network West Midlands has recently redecorated its offices and training rooms, and while they look clean and smart, they were sorely lacking artwork on the walls.

The hedgehog population in the UK is declining at a worrying rate. Wildlife charities People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) and The British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS) recently published a report which revealed that hedgehog populations have plummeted by between 30% to 75% in rural areas since 2000, with the largest declines in eastern England.

People on low incomes are pawning household goods to pay for food and rent as the cost of living rises, new research shows. The Social Market Foundation said that pawnbroking is an essential source of credit for some customers, who feel they have no alternative ways to borrow.

The importance of pawnbroking to people on low incomes is likely to grow as the cost of living rises, the SMF said in a report based on extensive interviews with pawnbroking customers.

Birmingham 2022 Festival and Fierce today announce Yale as official sponsor of Key to the City and that the location of the ‘Key Exchange Ceremony’ site will be Birmingham New Street Station. Security experts Yale will produce 15,000 keys (and their respective locks), which will give recipients access to 22 locations around the city region that, combined, create a compelling portrait.

It has been announced that an aerial acrobatics display will be held as part of celebrations to mark Coventry's final month as the UK City of Culture.

French company Gratte Ciel will be performing its show The Awakening on Broadgate on May 13 and 14. The 40-minute display will feature aerial stunts with performers hanging from a giant dream catcher.

Philip Richardson, head of employment law at Stephensons Solicitors, commented following the announcement by London law firm Stephenson Harwood, saying it would allow staff to work remotely but pay them 20% less than their current salary.

He said: “Post-pandemic, many firms are trying to navigate a completely different world of work. How and where that work is conducted has changed completely.