Teen Injured After Pier Jump

A 14-year-old has injured his head and an arm while jumping off Ilfracombe pier in Devon. Coastguards say the teen was with two friends when he leapt off - wrenching his arm and hitting his head on a wall. They said he was "tombstoning" - jumping from a height into water. Coastguards say nine people have been killed and 18 seriously injured in the UK while tombstoning in the last two years. The boy being treated at North Devon District Hospital.

Firefighters Tackle Blaze

A fire has been reported in Bradford. Around 90 fire officers have been using 17 pumps to deal with a huge fire at several disused buildings in Bradford. A number of one, two and three-storey buildings on Ripley Road in West Bowling are alight. Flames were spotted at around 11.00pm on Wednesday. No one has been hurt, West Yorkshire fire service has said. A huge plume of smoke can be seen above the fire and eyewitnesses have reported seeing a helicopter flying over the scene.

New Chair Appointed For ESRC

Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Lord Mandelson, today announced the appointment of Dr Alan Gillespie CBE as the new Chair of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). Lord Mandelson said: "I am very pleased to appoint Alan Gillespie as Chair of the Economic and Social Research Council. His experience across business, government and academia will contribute greatly to its leadership and strategic direction. The ESRC has a key role to play in meeting some of the big challenges our country faces - as a funder of both excellent and relevant social science research and high quality postgraduate training".

Work Takes Off At Bristol International Airport

Building contractor Kier Western and Bristol International Airport celebrated the beginning of an important new venture. Kier Western Operations Director Martyn Osborne joined Bristol International's Chief Executive Officer, Robert Sinclair, and Head of Development Andrew Goodenough, to mark the start of the £7.5m western walkway project - a major investment to improve facilities for airlines and passengers using the airport. The new 450m walkway, which will include facilities for passengers with reduced mobility, will enable passengers to walk to its eight new embarkation pre-boarding zones without using buses, improving customer service and reducing emissions from airport vehicles.

(JM/NS)