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A farm in Herefordshire is set to receive £1m funding to build fruit stores.

EC Drummond has already invested £1.5m in new apple orchards and infrastructure at its Tillington fruit farm, near Burghill, northwest of Hereford.

The firm, which is based near Ross-on-Wye, is now seeking planning permission to build a new store for the fruit, instead of its present method of using third-party storage.

If approved, the building would measure 70 by 26 metres, giving an area of over seven tennis courts, with a height of nine metres, plans show.

According to the application, it would have refrigeration and atmospheric controls to keep the apples fresh through to the following summer.

The firm also wants to add roof-mounted solar panels and two rainwater harvesting tanks.

"Bringing storage on-site will also save on costs and on traffic through the village at harvest," company chairman Eric Drummond said.

The fruit will still have to be taken elsewhere for sorting and packing.

Mr Drummond said: "[The investment] will secure employment and continue the production of dessert apples in Herefordshire which has been diminishing recently."

The proposal includes 640 metres of new native hedgerows around the boundaries, new trees and a wildflower area.

The fruit farm was previously owned by the Co-op but was acquired by EC Drummond when the retailer sold off its farms estate a decade ago and is managed under its Tillington Top Fruit Ltd arm.

Comments on the planning application can be made until 30 May.

"It's taken a big toll on my life," says Elle Jones, 19, reflecting on her severe eczema.

The office worker from Devon describes days bedridden with "excruciating" pain and chronic itching, while waiting up to 18 months for NHS treatments.

But she says the emotional impact is the worst part, making her feel "trapped, hopeless" and afraid of never being "free" from her skin disease.

Miss Jones is one of thousands of people across the country who are waiting a year or more to see a dermatologist due to pressure on services caused by increased urgent skin cancer referrals and a shortage of specialist doctors.

"I've missed out on work, school, college," says Miss Jones, adding she has "spent a long time hating myself".

One in 10 people in the UK has eczema and one in five children, according to the National Eczema Society.

It is often lifelong and incurable.

Miss Jones says her life got "dark" when she experienced a severe flare-up at college in 2021, describing it as a "never-ending tunnel because there's just no light there".

"You're stuck in pain and agony," she says.

"Your skin is always red… bleeding all the time… I couldn't even recognise myself.

"It's soul-destroying."

She says steroid and moisturiser creams prescribed by her GP "just made me burn and itch", so she was referred to see a dermatologist.

However, 12 months later she was still waiting, when she moved home to Devon from college.

She then waited a further 12 months for light therapy, and 18 months at the same time for skin allergy patch testing in summer 2024.

Patch testing results showed several skin reactions, so she cut out make up, hair and nail products, but nothing helped.

The longest wait for dermatology treatment in her area in north Devon is two years, according to NHS data published for January, with overall waits in the country longer than the England average.

Miss Jones is now trying an immunosuppressant drug which she says makes her "sleep all weekend".

Her hunt for successful treatment continues.

She says she has learned to accept her condition, stay positive and "keep fighting".

'The forgotten many'

Inflammatory skin disease patients often face long waits because departments are inundated with growing skin cancer referrals, which are the highest of any NHS urgent cancer referrals.

These diagnoses are prioritised, with waiting time targets set by the government.

Coupled with that, a shortage of dermatologists is adding pressure.

Some patients also report long waits for non-life threatening skin cancer treatments and follow-ups.

Waiting times to receive treatment across NHS dermatology departments in England are longer than they were before the Covid-19 pandemic.

NHS data from the beginning of the year, shows 43% of patients waited longer than the NHS target of 18 weeks at the start of 2025.

About 9,000 people had been waiting for one year or more.

Three of the most common inflammatory skin diseases are eczema, psoriasis and acne, which can cause permanent scarring.

Some patients try treatments through their GP for years before being referred to a consultant and some are admitted to hospital with repeated infections.

Consultant dermatologist Dr Toby Nelson who practises in Cornwall and Devon, describes these patients as "the forgotten many".

He says: "You can't say skin cancer shouldn't take priority over these other patients, but at the moment there does seem to be a significant imbalance.

"Some are in a living hell."

Dr Nelson says more are turning to private healthcare to be seen quickly.

But some of them face further disappointment, as newer "transformative medicines" can only be prescribed by the NHS, he adds.

He advises people on waiting lists to make healthy life choices with things like sleep, alcohol and smoking "as skin disease is rarely just related to the skin".

"In some situations this will improve your skin disease on its own," he says.

Like Miss Jones, Ben Varco, 24, from St Austell in Cornwall has been suffering behind closed doors.

"It's draining both mentally and physically," he says.

"You feel embarrassed to go out."

Mr Varco, a wine cellar worker, says he was referred to dermatology on the NHS in July 2024 for severe acne but nine months later has heard nothing.

"I feel kind of ignored, like it's not really taken seriously," he says.

Private care has cost him more than £1,000 to date.

Liam Garner, 19, sought private treatment following a severe eczema flare up in 2024.

The teaching assistant from Cornwall says: "I get it all over – the itch leads to bleeding… Moving can hurt and it keeps me up at night.

"I was off work for two months and had horrible anxiety."

Both young men needed help from their families to pay for treatment.

Skin disease can also affect patients' mental health with 98% of those surveyed for the All Party Parliamentary Group on Skin's 2020 report saying it affects their emotional and psychological wellbeing.

Andrew Proctor, chief executive of the National Eczema Society, says: "We don't understand why people with eczema and other inflammatory skin conditions are being treated as second-class citizens by the NHS."

'Workforce shortage'

In September 2024 a British Association of Dermatologists (BAD) workforce report warned of a "particularly concerning" situation for dermatology services, stating: "It is clear that demand for our services is outstripping the capacity of our workforce to deliver care."

Meanwhile a benchmark NHS dermatology report in 2021 highlighted a "severe workforce shortage caused by a long-term restriction on the number of new dermatology training posts".

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson says the NHS is "broken and it is unacceptable that patients have been left waiting in pain".

They say it has delivered an extra two million appointments sooner than planned, and some of those were in dermatology.

The spokesperson adds the department will publish workforce plans this summer – to ensure the NHS can deliver the care patients need.

A spokesperson for the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust says it is difficult to recruit and it faces pressure from some of the highest skin cancer rates in the UK.

"We are working to transform the way we deliver care to reduce our waiting lists," they add.

'Super clinic'

Dr Carolyn Charman, clinical vice-president of BAD says the NHS must build on innovative skin cancer diagnostic schemes, which are key to relieving pressure.

She says there are "real opportunities to counteract the challenges" using digital technology, patient images and artificial intelligence.

She adds patients who are suffering while waiting should contact their hospital team and seek advice from reliable sources online such as BAD's website.

At the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust, patients like Mr Garner and Mr Varco wait for up to 12 months routinely, despite a raft of new measures.

A spokesperson says: "We have implemented many innovations to proactively respond to the increasing demand."

These include "super clinics" where one specialist supervises multiple resident doctors and specialist nurses and a community imaging service run by healthcare assistants.

Some patients are using social media to help each other cope.

Katie Mackie, 28, and Maia Gray, 30, are "skin positivity influencers" from London.

Miss Mackie campaigns for charity Changing Faces after a "mentally draining rollercoaster ride" with eczema and wants others to know "things do improve".

"Tell people what you're going through, don't isolate yourself," she says.

"There is also free therapy and charities who can offer support."

Miss Gray who has had acne for 17 years, adds: "I think it needs to be highlighted that loads of people are struggling mentally with this.

"My message is whatever your skin condition is, continue to live life."

A section of the A46 in Warwickshire has reopened after it was closed for several hours following a serious crash between a lorry and a van.

In an update at about 13:00 BST, National Highways said the road southbound between the A45 for Coventry and the A452 Kenilworth had reopened.

A man in his 20s, a passenger in the van, was taken to hospital with serious leg injuries, not believed to be life-threatening, Warwickshire Police said.

The driver of the van was also taken to hospital with injuries not thought to be serious, West Midlands Ambulance Service added.

Emergency services had been working at the scene following the crash, which happened at about 03:30 BST.

Members of a community-run cricket club in Derby were left "close to tears" after its clubhouse was trashed in a "mindless" burglary.

Allestree Cricket Club discovered its facility had been broken into on Sunday night, with more than £2,500 worth of damage caused.

Furniture and toilets were damaged along with team trophies and a number of items were taken from behind the bar.

Derbyshire Police said it was investigating the burglary and has urged anyone with information to come forward.

The club was set up in 1860 and has been based at the Allestree Recreation Ground for more than 120 years.

While the club had been broken into "once or twice over the years", its director James Windscheffel, said it had never faced deliberate damage on this scale.

"It's not even just someone coming in and rooting around trying to find something and off they go," he said.

"They've gone in and they've tried to cause as much damage as they possibly can do and leave the club in an absolute state."

Club members had only recently upgraded the facility with new benches in changing rooms, fresh paint and new seating in the social area.

Repairs to the clubhouse and replacing stolen items are expected to cost upwards of £2,500.

The teams' trophies and photographs were also damaged, Mr Windscheffel said.

He added the cricket club rented the council-owned pavilion for a "peppercorn rent" and it was not a large "fashionable" club with significant cash reserves.

"To see the devastation that they [the perpetrators] caused – and it is devastation – it's a lump in the throat moment," he said.

He added: "This is just nasty, nasty behaviour and it serves no purpose.

"Nobody's running down the road with a haul of gold and silver on their back, it's just damage.

"The impact it has on others must always be greater than any warped satisfaction they get at the time."

Despite the upset the break-in caused, Mr Windscheffel said he and club were heartened by more than £4,000 in donations made to a crowdfunding page it set up in the hopes of raising repair funds.

The club said a clean-up operation started on Tuesday, after police forensic officers had left the scene.

A spokesperson for Derbyshire Police said: "Officers are investigating a burglary at Allestree Cricket Club sometime between 20:00 BST on Saturday 31 May and 08:20 BST on Monday."

"A quantity of alcohol and equipment was stolen along with damage caused to the premises."

A rare early Victorian coin less than a millimetre thick sold at auction for a "phenomenal" £1,600, auctioneers said.

The 1838 gold half sovereign, with a diameter of 19.3mm, was handed for sale to Richard Winterton's The Auction Café in Lichfield and sold at The Lichfield Auction Centre in April.

The coin is an example of the first half sovereigns issued during the reign of Queen Victoria.

Richard Winterton Auctioneers said the coin bears the first and smallest portrait of the young queen on the front, with a garnished shield on the other side.

"Depicting the young queen, this 1838 coin was the first half sovereign minted for Victoria," said specialist Phil Bridge.

"A huge amount of coins were lost due to being scrapped for bullion when gold prices started to escalate in 2011.

"We expected this example to perform well at auction but its rarity combined with it being in very good condition attracted lots of interest at auction and it made £1,600. A phenomenal amount of money for a half sovereign coin."

Also recently valued at The Auction Café was a UK 1980 gold proof four coin set with certificate of authenticity from the Royal Mint.

The set fetched £4,000 in the same sale at the auction centre off Wood End Lane, Fradley Park.

A university campus built in a Minecraft world is helping people with autism to settle into student life.

Parts of De Montfort University (DMU), in Leicester, have been recreated by student Eden Turner to provide a place for people to meet up and make friends while playing the hit video game.

A Minecraft Movie, which boasts a star-studded cast including Jason Momoa, Jack Black and Jennifer Coolidge, is currently taking cinemas by storm.

DMU said it hoped the film's success would shine a light on the virtual academic world Eden, 23, is crafting.

Since its test release in 2009, Minecraft has grown in popularity and is now the biggest selling computer game of all time. The game is set in an 'open world', allowing players to create almost anything imaginable out of blocks.

Eden, from Leicester, who uses "they" and them" as personal pronouns, has already recreated a university library through the game, and has been asked to start crafting other campus locations as a place where they and other autistic students can meet.

Eden's work on the Minecraft DMU campus is part of their final year of their educational studies degree.

Eden said: "It was a surprising and nice use of my time for an assignment. It's been really helpful in building my confidence.

"The opportunities to create [when playing Minecraft] are endless.

"It's such a fun experience to create with no limits and no one telling you what to build. There are no guidelines when you first spawn in the world."

Clare Squires, DMU's autism officer, said: "We use our Minecraft server to start building community and a sense of belonging.

"We use it with new applicants who haven't yet started at our university.

"Students can play with people they don't know, and they can start to make acquaintances and friends before they even set foot on campus."

She added: "Once they are with us, there are a lot of students that don't find socialising in clubs and pubs and bars a comfortable experience, so we use Minecraft as a way for them to socialise and meet other people

"As they are already playing Minecraft, they have something in common so they have a head start."

Mrs Squires said Eden's Minecraft version of the Kimberlin Library was "perfect".

"I know Eden is not happy with some of the little details, but it looks just like the real thing. It's incredible.

"We have big plans for them to build other parts of the campus.

"Anxiety is a big part of autism for a lot of people and that anxiety about going to a strange place and not knowing what to do or how to navigate. That will be alleviated by what Eden has done."

Plans to introduce a cycle parking hub as part of regeneration efforts in an area of Sheffield have been shelved because of a lack of interest.

The idea to build the hub at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park in Attercliffe formed part of a major scheme to encourage active travel in the area.

The aim now is to use £30,200 of the £17m Levelling Up Fund project budget to design up to 100 cycle parking spaces and associated infrastructure.

Rather than a big cycle hub, like the one at Sheffield railway station, this will comprise sets of street bike stands near the Olympic Legacy Park and tram stops.

These are known as Sheffield stands because the idea to use metal piping bent into a square arch shape to create low-cost bike racks apparently came from the Steel City, said the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

A meeting of the council's finance and performance committee heard that as well as a lack of interest, any plans to lease a building for a hub would not be possible as Levelling Up funding pays for capital projects and not rents.

Major plans for Attercliffe include building a NHS children's health research centre being developed by Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust at the Olympic Legacy Park.

Other works include the redevelopment of the former steel production site Spartan Works as the Attercliffe Waterside community, including more than 1,000 homes and the creation of an arts complex, based at the old Adelphi cinema.

South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds

An American tourist who mistakenly boarded a boat full of die-hard Southend United fans has ended up a Shrimper.

Evan Johnston, a student from Arizona, thought he was taking a hop-on hop-off cruise past London's iconic landmarks on Saturday.

But the 21-year-old mistakenly boarded a Thames cruiser packed with a rowdy crowd of Shrimpers en route to their National League fixture at Sutton.

"It was a daunting start for him without a doubt, but he absolutely loved every minute of it," Southend fan Andy Ward said.

The day culminated with the Essex faithful singing "Evan is a Shrimper" from the away end as their side drew 1-1.

He has now been invited to be a guest at Roots Hall for Southend United's home fixture against Solihull Moors on Saturday.

Suspicions first arose when Mr Johnston was seen sitting by himself while everyone partied around him.

"He didn't know what was going on," Mr Ward told BBC Essex.

"But everyone made him feel welcome and in the end all the young lads bought him beers and gave him a match ticket.

"He absolutely loved it and the younger fans need praise because they were fantastic with him."

Mr Johnston admitted thinking it was strange that so many of his fellow passengers knew each other, but staff allowed him on board and he took his seat.

"He was loving it.. He said he'd never had that before. It was a bit surreal for everyone," Mr Ward said.

'Southend 'til I die'

However, the American guest missed what would have been the first goal he had ever seen scored – because he was at a burger van.

"He said 'I'm Southend 'til I die' and that really made me laugh," added Mr Ward, who also planned to show Mr Johnston the city's famous pier.

A spokesman for Southend United said the club would give him a behind-the-scenes tour of the ground on Saturday.

"After hearing he was one of the 1,459 fans in the away end at Sutton – by complete accident – we now want to make sure he can experience and enjoy a home match," he said.

"Full credit to our brilliant supporters who continue to back the team in their numbers.

"This story is a perfect example of the incredible community spirit that brings our club together."

A football club has launched a campaign to help its fans travel to Wembley to watch it play in the FA Trophy final.

Spennymoor Town FC are set to play Aldershot Town on 11 May and the club has said it wants as many of its fans as possible to be there in person.

It has launched the Back The Fans, Fill the Stands campaign to pay for coaches to take fans to London.

Spennymoor's partnerships manager Stephen Gilling said he wanted everyone from the "council to the corner shop" to chip in to make travel affordable.

He said he was asking local businesses and sponsors to pay for coaches to help "create a wall of black and white to roar the players on".

"I'm now asking for them to back the club and its fans in any way they can with this campaign and play a real part in what is a historic occasion for everyone in the town," Mr Gilling said.

The club has already subsidised coach travel to a number of away fixtures throughout the season.

The Back The Fans, Fill the Stands campaign allows people and businesses to donate directly to the club's PayPal account, with all donations going towards fan transport to Wembley.

Spennymoor beat Rochdale AFC 5-4 on penalties to secure their place in the FA Trophy final.

However, Rochdale later condemned a pitch invasion which took place after the final whistle and led to "unacceptable behaviour" from fans from both teams.

A new emergency department has been described as "incredible" by staff as they start to care for their first patients.

The purpose-built facility within Royal Bournemouth Hospital is part of a £500m investment in Dorset NHS sites.

This new A&E will eventually serve both Bournemouth and Poole and doctors working in the new facility said it was just what they "hoped it would be".

The emergency department officially launched earlier in May and has begun seeing new patients in the £91m BEACH building.

The branch is twice the size of the previous Bournemouth and Poole emergency departments and is part of a huge shake up to University Hospital Dorset sites.

Robert was one of the first patients to be cared for after a fall at home.

He said: "I felt strange and wobbly which is something that's happened a lot to me. I've been to a lot of hospitals all over the world this is streets ahead, much better."

David Martin, consultant in emergency medicine, said: "It is incredible, it's just what I hoped it would be and I can already see the benefit, I can already see our patients benefitting and actually the staff as well.

"No patient ever wants to be in the emergency department, you don't want to be unwell, but if you're unwell you want to be in a clean, dignified environment and that's what we can now provide."

'Helps massively'

Staff said patient waits for care should fall thanks to a quicker triage system and the new layout design meant quicker access to scans.

One nurse said the site was "brilliant", while another added the extra space "helps massively with the flow of the department".

Currently, the new department is only caring for Bournemouth patients, with Poole emergency department remaining open for an estimated eight more months.

Juliet Browning, a consultant in emergency medicine, said: "Poole is still very much open for business. It's still the emergency department as it was previously, still the area's trauma unit and still has paediatrics on site.

"So if you would normally go to Poole hospital, still go to that emergency department."