NewsBeat

The shifting reality of knife crime in the UK

Published

5 hours ago

11 February 2026

The shifting reality of knife crime in the UK

Politicians may claim that ‘Britain is lawless’, but data shows that violent crime is falling – including knife crime. We speak to the people and organisations helping to make the streets safer

At 17, Samir Khattab was caught up in a gang fight, “ducking and diving” to avoid being stabbed. He was “sliced” in the head, admitted to a London hospital trauma ward, given surgical staples, then discharged. “In my day, they patched you up, then kicked you out.”

Now, at two major east London hospitals, Khattab leads a team of case workers offering bedside support to young knife crime victims. In the team’s 12th-floor office at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, he sits facing a map of the capital marked with brightly coloured tabs showing postcode gangs. He explains how he and his colleagues do everything they can to prevent patients coming to harm again once they leave hospital.

Often this means arranging mental health support. “Our clinical staff address the physical wounds of our young people, but who’s going to help with the traumatic experiences that probably got them into a bad space in the first place?” The team also helps them return to education or find safe housing.

The next day, having hired a van, Khattab is set to help a family of six move home after the eldest child was stabbed.

“It’s about mitigating the risk of future harm after a perpetrator has compromised the address, and providing a fresh start.” There is no “expiry date” to the support, he adds. “We couldn’t build trust with patients if they felt they were being treated like ticked boxes.”

Khattab stresses that the work goes beyond protecting young people from future harm. It also deters them from causing harm. Victims and perpetrators overlap significantly, with 61% of teenage perpetrators of violence having also been victims, according to the Youth Endowment Fund (YEF), which invests in work preventing youth violence.

“We’re stopping victims becoming perpetrators,” Khattab says. His own experience shows what can happen when vulnerable young people are discharged without the support they need. Nobody checked on him when he was a 17-year-old with a head wound. “The services didn’t exist,” he says. A year later, Khattab was convicted of a gang-related murder and sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Samir Khattab was sentenced to 16 years in prison. Now he works to keep others away from a life of crime

“Who knows what the trajectory of my life could have been if I’d had a case worker, who’d said, ‘Yo, you alright?’ I might have opened up and said, ‘Look, I’m sofa surfing, I’ve got no stability, I have a violent peer group.’” Having grown up amid instability, including his mother facing domestic abuse and incarceration, violence became a “way to express the pain I was experiencing,” he explains.

His personal history now gives him the resilience to work with vulnerable patients. “It’s fuelled me. There’s no loss of empathy, I’m not desensitised, but I can engage with these young people because I’ve been through it.”

At times it is a “secret weapon” for engaging reluctant patients. He recalls one 14-year-old from east London who had been stabbed. “He was just looking up at the ceiling; he didn’t want to speak to me. I said, ‘You got parents coming, you got visitors? Are you good? I want to make sure that you’re being loved.’ He goes, ‘Ain’t got no parents, I’m in care.’ And I said, ‘I’ve been in care too.’ He snapped his neck, locked eyes with me and said, ‘What the heck? I never expected that.’”

Who knows what the trajectory of my life could have been if I’d had a caseworker, who said ‘Yo, you alright?’

Once a high-risk Category A inmate in Belmarsh Prison, “walking around the exercise yard with terrorists”, Khattab now feels lucky “to be able to give back”. He is clear-eyed about the past. “I’m regretful, and I put many families through pain and suffering. But I’m trying my best to right my wrongs through the work that I do.”

Knife crime has dominated headlines in recent years, with commentators making frenzied claims. Yet figures released by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime show that the murder rate in London for the first nine months of 2025 was at its lowest since monthly records began in 2003. There has been a 50% reduction in the number of young people murdered compared to 2024, which itself saw the under-25 homicide rate fall to a 22-year low. Greater London Authority data shows knife crime fell by 19% in London between April and June 2025 compared with the same period the previous year.

Reports contending that it is currently at a record high often rely on police data, neglecting to account for improvements in police recording practices over the past decade that have had a “substantial impact” on the figures, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Such trends should therefore be “interpreted with caution”, the body advises. Even when considering these figures, knife crime is still 4% lower than it was in the year ending March 2020.

Source: Office for National Statistics, World Bank, NHS England Digital

But police data is not the only metric. Knife-enabled homicides, which are less affected by recording changes, were at a six-year low and 23% lower in the year ending March 2025 than the previous year, according to the ONS. NHS England also reported a 9% decrease in knife crime admissions in 2024 to 2025 compared with the year earlier, and records for the year ending March 2025 show that hospital admissions for assault by a sharp object were lower than at any time in the previous decade.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly commented on UK knife crime, once describing a London hospital as “like a war zone for horrible stabbing wounds” in a 2018 speech to the National Rife Association, despite the US having 52% more homicides caused by knives per million people than the UK, according to the most recent available data at the time.

His comments appear to have misconstrued remarks by trauma surgeon Prof Martin Griffiths, who launched the Royal London Hospital’s violence reduction service in 2015 after despairing at seeing the same young victims return again and again. With case workers from the St Giles’ Trust charity, the programme has contributed to a fall in readmission rates from 35% to 2.63% for the year to March 2025.

Forming community ties is vital – we can’t arrest our way out of this issue

Ciaran Thapar, a director at the YEF and former youth worker, says there is reason for optimism. He points to the fact that there were no homicides of under-25-year-olds in London during the long 2025 summer holiday. “That’s quite remarkable, when it’s become almost a fact that the summer holiday is going to throw up some really tragic murders of teenagers in London.”

He also highlights the efforts of grassroots groups, including United Borders, founded by former prison officer and bus driver Justin Finlayson in Brent, northwest London.

After the fatal shooting of 22-year-old business studies student James Owusu-Agyekum in 2016 in a case of mistaken identity, Finlayson was determined to bring together the borough’s postcode gangs. He bought an old double-decker bus with his savings and converted it into a travelling music studio. Young residents from one area would come aboard to create rhythm tracks, then he would drive to another estate where rival youths unknowingly rapped over them, and vice versa.

Source: Office for National Statistics, World Bank, NHS England Digital

“I had to present the idea of each group working with me separately,” Finlayson explains. “After two weeks, they were really on the beats, married to the music, and we revealed to them that they’d been working together.” There was initial suspicion, here calls, “but we’d built up enough of a mentoring relationship. Then it was, ‘Okay, cool.’” Eventually both factions made music together. Today, United Borders travels across London offering mentoring and workshops wherever they are needed. “If there’s a spate of young people being harmed, we get our bus down to those places,” Finlayson says.

At points in recent years, the highest rate of police recorded knife crime in the UK has not been in London but in the West Midlands. Yet the region saw a 15% drop in these figures in the year ending March 2025, helped in part, the force believes, by a three-year pilot scheme rooted in a US model from Boston.

Focused deterrence recognises that most serious violence is committed by small groups, who themselves often have histories of trauma and difficult life circumstances.

Source: Office for National Statistics, World Bank, NHS England Digital

To assess its effectiveness in the UK, the Home Office and YEF invested £7m in focused deterrence projects at police forces in England. Although evaluation by the University of Hull is ongoing, Zeba Chowdhury, who led the West Midlands scheme, is enthusiastic about its impact.

The investment enabled the region’s violence reduction partnership to offer 24-hour support through a team of navigators. “If a young person was arrested, even if it was 2am, a navigator would visit and say ‘here’s a way out’ at that reachable, teachable moment,” Chowdhury explains. With ringfenced funding, individuals received timely support, including cognitive behavioural therapy, careers advice and help with education, training and housing.“

“It wasn’t a case of signposting them to an organisation providing mentoring, or a mental health service with a ridiculously long waiting list,” she says. Participants were contacted within 72 hours of being identified or referred, to understand their needs. Although there was no upper age limit, those aged 21 and under were four times more likely to accept support.

“One young person described their navigator as like having an assigned best friend,” Chowdhury recalls. “Bearing in mind that the navigator is a police officer, and that the young person may not have had the best relationship with authority, that was really lovely to hear.” Forming these local ties is vital, she believes. “We can’t arrest our way out of this issue.”

Photography by Laurie Fletcher

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Keir Starmer Could Have Blocked Peerage For Ex-Spin Doctor

Published

6 minutes ago

11 February 2026

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Keir Starmer Could Have Blocked Peerage For Ex-Spin Doctor

Keir Starmer could have blocked the peerage of his former spin doctor over his links to a convicted paedophile even after it was announced, it has emerged.

The prime minister is at the centre of a fresh crisis over his decision to put Matthew Doyle into the House of Lords last month.

On Tuesday, Labour suspended Doyle, who was the No.10 director of communications until last March, after it emerged he campaigned for Sean Morton, who had been charged with having indecent images of children.

Six months later, Morton, a former Labour councillor, admitted the charges.

Doyle’s peerage was announced on December 10, and the Sunday Times revealed he campaigned for Morton on December 27.

He formally became Baron Doyle of Great Barford on January 8 in a process known as having his “letters patent sealed”.

Starmer came under fire at prime minister’s questions, with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch accusing him of “stuffing government with hypocrites and paedophile apologists”.

Downing Street sources admitted that the PM became aware of the full extent of Doyle’s links to Morton on December 27, but his spokesman insisted there was “no precedent for withdrawing a peerage nomination after the announcement stage”.

“That’s why we’re undertaking wider reform to both vetting and appointment processes”, he said.

But the House of Lords later appeared to blow a hole in No.10′s argument.

A Lords spokesman said: “We cannot comment on specific confidential advice given by parliamentary officials.

“However our understanding is that under the Life Peerages Act 1958 a Peerage is created when the letters patent are sealed.”

That means Starmer could have acted to prevent Doyle becoming a peer before it became official on January 8.

The row has clear parallels to the scandal surrounding Peter Mandelson, who Starmer made the UK’s ambassador to Washington despite his known links to the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

When further details emerged of the extent of Mandelson’s friendship with the billionaire financier became known seven months later, the PM sacked him.

Mandelson is now facing a police probe over allegations he passed market sensitive information to Epstein when he was business secretary in the wake of the global financial crash.

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Dickinson’s Real Deal guest in tears after show first as host David steps in

Published

13 minutes ago

11 February 2026

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David Dickinson was forced to step in on his ITV programme Dickinson’s Real Deal following a major show first

Joe Crutchley Screen Time Reporter

16:23, 11 Feb 2026

A guest on Dickinson’s Real Deal was left wiping away the tears following an emotional moment on the ITV programme.

The beloved show returned to screen on Thursday afternoon (February 5) with David Dickinson back at the helm. For the instalment, the programme paid a visit to Cirencester.

Plenty of members of the public were quick to show off their prized possessions to be valued by the programme’s dealers before deciding whether to accept their offer or go to auction.

But things took an emotional turn when a guest broke down in tears following a show first. On the programme, Anna and Rachel brought in a huge meat platter to show dealer Henry Nicholls, to see how much it was worth.

When asked how they acquired the item, the guests – who work at the Dogs Trust charity – explained: “It came two years ago to the charity. It was very difficult to sell in the shop, so we decided to bring it here to you and see how much we can get.”

Henry Nicholls replied: “You’ve brought it to the right person because it’s my favourite charity!” The guests added: “So many dogs need rehoming. We’re trying to help with behaviour training and vet assistance.”

Henry then looked over the 200-year-old item and explained: “It was made by a very famous manufacturer called Spode. Now, Josiah Spode started the factory in the late 18th century and they produced all manner of different types of patterns, depicting different scenes, neoclassical scenes etc.

“This one is a standard Spode what they call Blue Italian. But there is one thing that puts this into a different league from any other Spode piece you will see from this period.”

He said: “And there we go,” before turning the platter over to reveal a mark that confirmed it was printed in August 1816. Henry added: “The mark on the back here is probably the rarest Spode mark that you will ever get.”

It was then time for Henry to offer some cash for the meat platter. His first offer was £200, but he continued to put down the notes on the table. Eventually, he made his final offer of £500.

“We’re getting close,” the guest cheekily quipped before Henry got David in to hear his thoughts. David said: “I’ve just been having a word with our experts and this is a very rare piece of Spode with that mark on the back. The estimation from my independent values is £150 to £300.”

David then shared that they have had a look at two Spode items that previously sold in an auction, in which one went for an eye-watering £900. David said: “It really is an antique collector specialist piece, so it could do quite well. But it’s all ‘could’ and ‘maybe’.”

Henry added: “I think pretty much that’s what it’s worth,” while David declared: “Come on, out a bit more!” Henry then revealed his plan: “What I’m wanting them to do is to accept my £500.

“Then, because it’s my favourite charity, I’m going to do something that people would consider me mad to do. If you accept my £500, as a donation to the Dogs Trust I’m going to match that £500. I will be donating £500 to my favourite charity.”

**For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website**

The guests were left over the moon at Henry’s offer. David said: “I think that’s a done deal,” as one of the guests immediately went to shake Henry’s hand and said: “Thank you!” A stunned David added: “An extraordinary offer! Never been known on the show before.”

Henry then started putting down the extra £500 down on the table while one of the guests broke down in tears, before wiping her eyes. David quipped: “I tell you what, I think you deserve a kiss here for that one,” before stepping on to kiss Henry on the forehead.

After, the guests said: “Just thank you so much, that was an amazing deal!” Meanwhile, Henry shared: “I am over the moon to own this platter. It’s so rare and what a delightful deal that was. Everyone’s a winner!”

Dickinson’s Real Deal airs Monday to Friday at 2pm on ITV1.

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Scientists Answer: What Is The Most Tiring Life Stage?

Published

20 minutes ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

Scientists Answer: What Is The Most Tiring Life Stage?

Something I have noticed about my inner circle hitting our mid-thirties to early-forties is that we now speak very, very fondly about what were most definitely our most chaotic days.

A huge thing we just can’t seem to get our heads around is all the energy we once had. For example, when I was 21, I could work a full retail shift, go home, get changed, then go on a night out until 3-4am, grab a quick sleep and be in work for 9am. I would do this several times a week.

I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that 15 years later, if I tried that nonsense, I’d be hospitalised.

How did we ever live like this?! We lived as if we were invincible and it was probably because we felt like we were.

These days, we need routine. We need to be keeping a regular sleeping pattern, taking our daily vitamins and making sure that we fix exercise and a good diet into our lives to ensure we feel half alive.

We’re all a lot more tired than we were back in our booze-soaked glory days.

However, fatigue is most prevalent in our 40′s

Yep. If you find yourself having a tired-off with colleagues after a particularly rough nights’ sleep, you may want to consider if age is a factor in yours or your colleague’s tiredness.

Writing for The Conversation, Michelle Spear, a Professor of Anatomy, University of Bristol explains: “In your 20s, poor sleep or stress could be buffered. In your 40s, inefficiency is exposed. Recovery becomes more “expensive”.

“Sleep also changes. Many people still get enough hours, but sleep fragments. Less deep sleep means less repair. Fatigue feels cumulative rather than episodic.

“Hormones don’t disappear in midlife – they fluctuate, particularly in women. Variability, not deficiency, disrupts temperature regulation, sleep timing and energy rhythms. The body copes better with low levels than with unpredictable ones.”

There are also lifestyle factors, too. Many of us find ourselves in leadership and caring roles, not to mention the pressures of parenthood and ageing parents which can take a huge toll on our physical and mental reserves.

It’s not all bad news, though

While we often look at our lives and bodies as things that gradually decline, Spear assures that it levels out significantly by our 60s and adds: “Across adulthood, energy shifts in character rather than simply declining. The mistake we make is assuming that feeling tired in midlife reflects a personal failing, or that it marks the start of an unavoidable decline. Anatomically, it is neither…

“The hopeful message is not that we can reclaim our 20-year-old selves. Rather, it is that energy in later life remains highly modifiable, and that the exhaustion so characteristic of the 40s is not the endpoint of the story. Fatigue at this stage is not a warning of inevitable decline; it is a signal that the rules have changed.”

Looking forward to meeting the energetic 60-year-old me.

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Cambridgeshire parents face ‘pure penalisation’ over holiday fines

Published

26 minutes ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

Nearly 6,700 penalty notices were issued to parents in Cambridgeshire last year, down from 10,300 the previous year, bucking the national trend

Claire Elliott and Cambridgeshire Live readers

16:00, 11 Feb 2026

CambridgeshireLive readers have heard that the number of fines issued to parents for term time holidays fell sharply in Cambridgeshire last year, bucking the national trend of rising penalties across England.

In 2024 to 25, almost 6,700 notices were issued in the county, mainly for unauthorised family holidays. That equates to 556 fines per 10,000 pupils, a 35 percent drop from the 10,300 issued the previous year. The figure is also down from 9,500 in 2022 to 23 and lower than the 8,700 recorded in 2018 to 19 before the pandemic.

Parents in the wider Cambridgeshire council area were slightly more likely to be fined than those in Peterborough, with 560 fines per 10,000 pupils compared with 549.

Nationally, however, fines continue to climb. A record 459,000 penalty notices were issued across England in 2024 to 25, equal to more than 620 per 10,000 pupils. That compares with 116,000 in 2016 to 17, rising to 288,000 in 2018 to 19, 356,000 in 2022 to 23 and 443,000 in 2023 to 24.

The highest rates are in the North of England, where councils issued 817 fines per 10,000 pupils last year, compared with 665 in the Midlands and 550 in the South. Barnsley recorded the highest rate in the country at 1,700 per 10,000 pupils, followed by Oldham, Blackpool, Hartlepool, Leicester, Rotherham and St Helens.

Penalty notices are issued when parents fail to ensure their child attends school. In 2024 to 25 the fine was £80 if paid within 21 days, rising to £160 after that. A second notice within three years is charged at £160. Most fines, around 93 percent, are for unauthorised term time holidays.

Commenter Terry B says: “Teachers can strike or hold scheduled training days through the authority or union, and those days still affect pupils’ learning. If a teacher or student is off sick for a period, learning is disrupted too, yet pupils still manage to achieve. I understand the need in some cases, but is it really essential?

Marty S agrees: “Yet no fines are imposed on teachers when strike action forces parents to keep their children at home from school.”

Liz D asks: “Are the fines actually lower than the steep price hikes during school holidays that cash in on families? It almost feels like the school calendar creates a guaranteed stream of business.”

Amyalan1958 replies: “It’s cheaper to pay the fines than to pay peak school holiday prices; other sanctions are needed.”

Tomasz D complains: “This is a pure penalisation of parents for their parental duties. How many other countries have those fines in place? Answers anyone?”

Rhodabike thinks: “This is just another excuse for schools to extort money off parents. Our education system has numerous issues, but kids missing a few days a year for a holiday isn’t one of them.”

WelcomeToTheFuture writes: “We never did it when my kids were at school, but I can understand it makes sense, the prices go up wildly in the summer holidays so paying a fine is a drop in the ocean compared to the savings you would make for a family of 4, it could easily be thousands of pounds saved.”

Timbiscuit suggests: “Expel them. Then watch as the parents discover how difficult it is to find a placement. Going on holiday during term time is ridiculous!”

With fines falling locally but rising sharply nationwide, is the current approach to term time holidays really working? Have your say in our comments section.

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Everything to know about snow warning for Greater Manchester

Published

33 minutes ago

11 February 2026

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Everything to know about snow warning for Greater Manchester – Manchester Evening News

Need to know

The Met Office has issued several snow and ice warnings

Snow and ice warnings issued by the Met Office (Image: Met Office)

Everything to know about snow forecast

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice across Greater Manchester, starting at 9pm on Thursday (February 12 )and lasting until midday on Friday (February 13). This warning covers parts of Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Tameside, Stockport, and Manchester, as well as large areas in the North West, North East, Midlands, Yorkshire & Humber, and Scotland.
Forecasters predict up to 10cm of snow could settle in some higher areas, especially above 300 metres, with 2-5cm possible above 200 metres. Lower levels may also see snow as temperatures drop sharply across the UK, bringing wintry conditions.
The Met Office warns that rain, sleet, and snow are likely to create icy surfaces, increasing the risk of slips and falls. Untreated roads, pavements, and cycle paths could become hazardous, potentially causing travel disruption and longer journey times for road, bus, and train services.
Weather maps show lighter flurries of snow overnight into Friday morning, with light snow forecast in Bolton, Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Tameside, and parts of Stockport by 6am. The snow and ice are expected to clear south during the early hours of Friday as skies clear and temperatures fall further, increasing the risk of ice.
Another snow and ice warning is in place for most of Scotland from Thursday afternoon until Friday midday, with 1-2cm of snow possible widely and up to 10cm on higher ground. More snow is expected in Greater Manchester on Sunday (February 15), as a large band of snow moves eastwards, bringing moderate to light snowfall across the region through the early morning hours.
READ THE FULL STORY HERE: Met Office issues snow weather warning for Greater Manchester as 10cm forecast

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What are Canada’s gun ownership laws?

Published

40 minutes ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

According to a Canadian website on gun ownership, which obtained statistics from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or RCMP, there were 355,678 gun licences in British Columbia as of 2023, or about 6,240 gun licenses per 100,000 people. But the website cautioned that many people own guns without a licence, which is illegal.

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Chloe Mitchell’s family say trial decision delay ‘taking unbearable toll’

Published

48 minutes ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

The Ballymena woman was murdered in June 2023, and the trial into her death was planned for this month

The family of Chloe Mitchell have said the “ongoing uncertainty” on a decision regarding the trial date is “taking an unbearable toll” on them.

The Ballymena woman was murdered in June 2023 aged just 21, with her remains discovered in a flat in the James Street area eight days after she went missing.

Her family, and local political representatives in the North Antrim area, are calling for barristers to grant a derogation to allow her trial to begin despite ongoing strike action.

They are asking the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) to grant the same dispensation in regard to their strike action in the Chloe Mitchell case as in the Natalie McNally case, to allow the trial to go ahead this month as planned.

Chloe Mitchell’s family has sent the CBA an urgent plea to allow the trial to proceed this month as normal. Her sister, Nadine, said: “This ongoing uncertainty is taking an unbearable toll on us. Every single day we wake up with knots in our stomachs, living with constant anxiety, waiting for one answer — a simple yes or no — on whether this trial will be allowed to proceed.

“This is not how it should be. No family, no loved ones, should have to endure such prolonged uncertainty. We are mentally drained. We are emotionally exhausted. We feel as though our lives are on hold, suspended in limbo, unable to move forward while we wait for a decision that will determine whether justice can finally begin to take its course.”

Barristers withdrew from all legal aid-funded crown court trials on January 5 in a dispute over pay, with the strike action effectively halting crown court cases involving those who require legal aid. Last month, the CBA confirmed that it would make an exception in the Natalie McNally case so that it could proceed.

Brandon John Rainey, 29, who is currently housed in HMP Maghaberry and is formerly of James Street in Ballymena, is due to stand trial for the murder of Ms Mitchell, with the trial listed to start on February 23. He has been charged with murder and attempting to prevent ‘the lawful and decent burial of a deceased body.’

Nadine said her family need justice for her sister, now almost three years on from her death. She said: “We are begging you — please make a decision. Please understand the weight of this delay and what it is doing to us.

“The waiting is not neutral; it is painful. It reopens wounds every single day. We need clarity. We need resolution. We need hope.

“Most of all, we need justice for Chloe Mitchell. She deserves her day in court. She deserves for the process to move forward. And we, as those who love her, deserve the chance to see that justice is being pursued.

“We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for fairness, for progress, for the opportunity for this trial to go ahead so that the truth can be heard. Please do not let this continue to drag on without an answer. The emotional cost is immense.

“We are tired. We are worn down. But we will continue to stand and speak for Chloe. Today, we are simply asking — please let this trial proceed. Please give us the decision we have been waiting for. Please allow justice to move forward.”

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Arsenal star could miss rest of the season as injury expert explains World Cup dilemma | Football

Published

1 hour ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

Arsenal star could miss rest of the season as injury expert explains World Cup dilemma | Football

Merino has been an important player in midfield and up front for club and country (Picture: Getty)

Mikel Merino faces a race to return from injury before the end of the season when Arsenal will hope to still be battling for major silverware.

The Gunners are chasing an unprecedented quadruple this season, top of the Premier League, finishing top of the Champions League phase and already in the Carabao Cup final where they will meet Manchester City in March. They hope to reach the fifth round of the FA Cup when they take on Wigan Athletic on Sunday.

Mikel Arteta has assembled one of the strongest squads in Europe to end their long wait for major silverware but were handed a major blow in January when Merino suffered a stress fracture in his foot during the 3-2 defeat to Manchester United.

The former Real Sociedad star underwent surgery this week with Arsenal expecting him to be out for an ‘extended’ period of time.

Arsenal will hope to have a very busy month of May with the FA Cup final taking place on the 17^th. The final weekend of the Premier League season takes place a week later with the Champions League final taking place in Budapest on 30 May.

Merino has repeatedly demonstrated how important he is to Arteta’s plans with his injury prompting a late and ultimately unsuccessful search for a replacement late in the January transfer window.

Both Arteta and Merino’s father have described the injury as ‘rare’. While the exact nature of the injury has not been disclosed, Stephen Smith, CEO of Kitman Labs which specialises in injury welfare and performance analytics, suggests Arsenal will err on the side of caution when it comes to his return.

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Arsenal FC Training Session - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD7 — Arsenal face being without him for the rest of the campaign (Picture: Getty Images)

While an estimated timeline could see Merino available again for the season run-in, Arsenal will be wary of undoing the hard work done behind the scenes.

‘The foot has multiple different bones and there are some that are much easier to deal with,’ Smith told Metro. ‘There are some metatarsal stress fractures that are much easier to deal with because they have a higher blood supply than others. The fifth metatarsal or the navicular are two bones that are rare to break but when they do, because they have a poor blood supply in that area, they can take much longer.

‘On the lower end, stress fractures can be dealt with in four to eight weeks. But if you have a scenario where it is in one of these tricker areas with poor blood supply you are talking anywhere from eight to 12 or even up to 16 weeks.

What Mikel Arteta has said about Merino’s injury

‘I think the doctors were really happy with the way [the surgery] went,’ Arteta told a press conference on Tuesday ahead of this week’s Premier League clash with Brentford.

‘Now it’s the start of obviously a long process, we’re talking about bone healing. So, we’ll respect the timings, and I’m sure he’s going to do everything he possibly can to speed up that recovery.

‘The timeframes, we’re talking about months – whether it’s three, four or five, we don’t know.’

‘If surgical fixation is required, you are generally talking about the higher side of two to three months and it often can be longer. It depends on the specifics of the issue. but if there is surgery, it will add to the timeline.

‘Even in those more serious scenarios, a return to play would generally be one erring on the side of caution. As soon as you go back to training you are loading again and you can go back to square one if there is a breakdown.

‘I would think at this point in the season, unless someone’s rehab goes incredibly well or there are really important games you absolutely need a player back for, they are probably going to be more conservative and ensure there is no recurrence.’

Will Merino be fit in time for Spain’s World Cup campaign?

Merino has made 33 appearances for Arsenal this season, stepping into midfield while again proving to be an effective option up front when called upon with six goals this term. He has developed into a similarly key presence in the Spanish national team, scoring eight times in 10 appearances for La Roja in 2025.

Spain v France - UEFA Nations League 2025 Semi-final — Merino has a hugely influential presence in the Spanish team (Picture: Getty)

Having developed into such a key player for his country, the Arsenal star would have been expected to head to the World Cup this summer with Spain opening their campaign against Cape Verde on 15 June. This injury blow could leave that in doubt. But while Arsenal will be understandably cautious, Merino will have the final say.

‘Arsenal will want to be protective over him given the expectations they have for him,’ Smith said. ‘The last thing they will want is to go through the rehab process and have someone go off to the World Cup and get hurt.

‘But at the same time, they will not want to hold a player of that quality back. Spain ill have their own expectations. So it will be a shared decision but the player will decide, taking advice from all involved, both club and country. But there is still lots of time to go. It would be a very different conversation if we were in March or April.’

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BBC Antiques Roadshow expert floored as West End item worth thousands ‘truly beautiful’

Published

1 hour ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

An Antiques Roadshow expert valued a Phantom of the Opera mask believed to have been worn by Michael Crawford at a staggering price

15:22, 11 Feb 2026Updated 15:25, 11 Feb 2026

Antiques Roadshow expert, Stephen Lane, discovered a treasured theatrical artefact from a legendary West End production carrying an eye-watering valuation.

During an instalment of the popular BBC One programme’s companion series, Unseen Treasures at Shuttleworth House in Bedfordshire, expert Stephen was delighted to examine a mask apparently worn by performer Michael Crawford in the production of Phantom of the Opera.

A guest presented the famous West End piece, accompanied by a crew jacket and script, for assessment on the programme.

The guest revealed that her late husband was amongst the original company in the West End back in 1986 and he acquired Michael Crawford’s Phantom Mask following Michael’s, 84, departure from the production, preserving it throughout the years.

Specialist Stephen was captivated by the pieces, highlighting his appreciation for the deterioration visible inside the mask, stating: “So we can see that this has been used for many, many shows.”, reports the Express.

“There’s some sort of a build-up of makeup, perhaps makeup residue here. So it looks like it’s had great heavy use.”

He continued: “To go to the next level, really what I want to do is research this in further depth and see if we can find a photo, a behind-the-scenes photo or a stage show shot of Michael wearing the mask.

“Because as we look at the mask, there are a number of inherent details here and I’m just going to point to some of these. There’s some paint splashes the way that it’s been painted just along under the eye here and then there’s a little dent in the paintwork just in here as well.”

The expert explained: “So what’s really important to establish here is if this was a mask worn by Michael or by a stand-in and it really makes a difference in the value.”

He continued: “On one hand it’s going to be an interesting thing, it’s iconic in its own right, but if it’s worn by Michael Crawford it really elevates the value.”

The specialist added: “But as it stands today, I think it’s a highly desirable and collectible artefact and I wouldn’t hesitate to put an estimate on it of about £5,000 to £10,000.”

He elaborated: “So really, really valuable. If we can do that further research, I think the likelihood is if we can match it up and that should be possible, then you’re going to double that I think £10,000 to £20,000.”

The stunned guest could only manage a breathless: “Wow!” as expert Stephen admired the piece, describing it as: “Truly beautiful.”

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Tockholes village set to get a new dog exercise area

Published

1 hour ago

11 February 2026

NewsAdmin

Tockholes village set to get a new dog exercise area

Anne and Andrew Leaver want to convert the field at the rear of Hillcrest in Tockholes Road into a space for dogs to run free.

The 0.45-acre site is located within the Green Belt and the West Pennine Moors and forms part of a wider landholding under their ownership.

A supporting statement submitted to Blackburn with Darwen Council with the planning application says: “Anne and Andrew Leaver are seeking permission for the change of use of part of an existing field to a dog exercise area to provide a safe and secure environment where dogs and their owners can exercise throughout the year.

“Access to outdoor space plays an important role in supporting animal welfare and enabling people to spend time with their pets in a natural setting.

“The proposed facility would allow users to enjoy the countryside in a controlled and managed way, supporting regular outdoor activity while making use of existing rural land.

“Hillcrest Cattery is located within the wider site.

“The surrounding land is predominantly agricultural, comprising open fields with established tree belts and hedgerows.

“The proposal seeks permission for: the change of use of the land into a dog exercise area; the erection of 1.8m high posts and mesh fencing; and the extension of an existing hardstanding area on the wider site to allow for the parking of one car.

“The proposed opening times are in summer weekdays 8am to 7pm, Saturdays 8am to 7pm, and Sundays 9am to 5pm, and in winter 9am to 3pm seven days a week.

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“Clients will be able to book 60-minute sessions via the online booking system.

“Clients will be required to leave the site in good time.

“This will ensure that only one client is on the site at any one time.

“Once a client selects an hourly slot, then this slot is removed from the website to ensure no further bookings can take place within the same hour.

“No commercial dog groups, or private functions, dog training days, group sessions, or competitions will be using the site at any time.

“The site will only be used by private dog owners to exercise their pet away from home.

“The proposed dog exercise area is well screened by existing mature trees and vegetation.

“The proposal would be largely hidden within the landscape and would not appear visually prominent within the wider Green Belt.

“The purpose of the Green Belt exception for outdoor recreation is to enable greater access to the countryside and to support recreational and health-related activities.”

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