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A woman has been scarred for life and left needing surgery after a dog attack. Hasnan Bukhari had been ‘emptying his bins’ when his Belgian Shepherd escaped from his garden and savaged the woman’s leg.North Staffordshire Justice Centre heard the 38-year-old reluctantly took in his dad’s dog after he passed away. But Bukhari was ‘unaware that the dog could pose a danger’.Prosecutor Lucy Allen told the court: “The victim was walking along on her daily commute to work when the defendant’s dog escaped from his property and attacked her. She was left with nasty injuries which required extensive medical treatment and skin grafts to repair. She will be scarred for life.”In an impact statement, the victim said: “This incident really affected me. I will always have scars on my leg as a result of this attack. That dog could have attacked anyone. I dread to think what would have happened if it had escaped and attacked a child. I spent 10 years in the military but I have never had nightmares like this until now. I’m scared to walk my own dog along the street.”Bukhari, of Minerva Road, Fenton, pleaded guilty to owning a dangerously out-of-control dog which caused injury.Mark Holder, mitigating, said that Bukhari has also been shocked and traumatised by the unexpected attack.He explained: “The dog got out from the garden while he was emptying the bins. The attack took him completely by surprise. He was devastated that this could happen. It is a tragic matter all round. The defendant rushed out to help this woman. He hit the dog to get her free. Then he took her inside his home so he could help with her injuries.”Bukhari was handed a 12-month community order with 200 hours unpaid work. He must also pay £599 costs. Whether the dog will be destroyed will be decided at a further hearing on August 6.District Judge Joseph O’Connor said: “I’m not able to deal with the question of what to do with the dog as it currently stands. I do not have enough information about his current temperament and the way he behaves to safely rule whether he should be destroyed.“But what I can say is that the impact on the victim has been severe. She had to undergo surgery and will carry a visual reminder of this attack for the rest of her life. She is now scared to walk down the street.“However, I am also reminded that your personal culpability in this was low. The dog escaped and attacked the victim. You rushed to help, hitting the animal, and looking after the victim in your home. This means I am satisfied your case can be dealt with by way of a community order.”Ensure our latest headlines always appear at the top of your Google SearchGet all the latest news from court here

Anyone who sees Matthew should contact policeMatthew, 37Police are appealing to locate a missing man who was last seen more than a week ago.Matthew, 37, is missing from Stoke-on-Trent after last being seen at around 12pm on Tuesday, June 16. After he was reported missing yesterday, police are now appealing for help to find the missing man.Matthew is described as being around 5ft 7ins tall, with short brown hair and blue eyes.Staffordshire Police said: “We’re looking for missing man Matthew, from Stoke-on-Trent, and we need your help.”The 37-year-old was last seen in the Stoke area at about 12pm on Tuesday 16 June and was reported missing yesterday (Tuesday 23 June).”Matthew is described as being around 5ft 7ins tall, with short brown hair and blue eyes.”If you’ve seen him, or if you have any idea where he could be, get in touch with us by calling 101 or using Live Chat on our website, quoting incident 616 of 23 June.”Community news with InYourAreaInYourArea gives you the community news you need. Find out about events where you live, the latest news, property for sale and all the local planning and council notices. All the local updates straight to your inbox!You can sign up here.Get email alerts for the latest top stories from Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire

A town centre restaurant is ‘closed until further notice’. Alberto’s Kitchen was unable to open last night following a storage room fire.It comes as an investigation is to be launched into the cause of the fire within The Smithfield Centre, in Leek. It broke out at 4.50am yesterday.Now it is not known when Alberto’s Kitchen will reopen.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn a social media post to customers, Alberto’s Kitchen stated: “Unfortunately we experienced a fire in our upstairs storage room. Thankfully, the fire was contained and did not spread further. However, it has caused significant damage and we need time to fully assess the situation and ensure everything is safe before reopening. As a result, we will remain closed until further notice. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this difficult time.”We will keep everyone updated as we learn more. Our hope is to resume collection and delivery services as soon as possible but at this stage we are unable to provide a reopening date. Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to serving you again soon.”Get even more North Staffordshire exclusives – and it is free

Young people setting of fireworks are thought to have caused a large grass fire described as a ‘near miss’ by a wildlife charity.Staffordshire Wildlife Trust (SWT) issued a warning about using fireworks after the fire broke out at The Roaches in Upper Hulme in the Peak District on Monday evening.Firefighters were called at about 21:35 BST, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said, and managed to extinguish the blaze. No-one was reported to have been injured.Police said the fire was believed to have been caused deliberately by young people setting off fireworks and confirmed the incident was under investigation.SWT said the bird nesting season was currently at its peak and the fire could have “easily devastated” breeding curlew, meadow pipits and birds of prey.Jeff Sim, head of nature reserves at SWT, said: “Looking over the fire site this morning, we see some encouraging signs.”The fire caused minimal damage where the sphagnum moss plants are well established in the vegetation as they’ve kept the ground wet.”

Ten years ago the UK saw one of the most important political events in living memory as the country voted to leave the European Union. On June 23, 2016, the EU referendum resulted in a 52 to 48 per cent vote in favour of Brexit, leading to political, social and economic changes that we are still experiencing a decade later.The referendum has been particularly impactful in Stoke-on-Trent – dubbed the ‘Brexit capital of Britain due to the city’s 69.4 per cent Leave vote, one of the highest in the country. London’s political class, which had long overlooked the Potteries, suddenly became interested in ‘left behind’ places like North Staffordshire which had played such a key role in the referendum.Voters in Stoke-on-Trent, which had long been a Labour stronghold, shifted towards the Conservatives in both local and national elections, as ‘Get Brexit Done’ became a winning campaign slogan. And places such as Stoke-on-Trent became the focus of the government’s Levelling Up agenda, with the city securing £56 million of regeneration cash.While Stoke-on-Trent and much of Staffordshire later swung back to Labour, the political earthquake triggered 10 years ago is still continuing.Reform UK, which evolved out of the Brexit Party, has dominated local elections in Staffordshire since since last year, taking over Staffordshire County Council and Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council. And several local Tories, including former Stoke-on-Trent MP Jonathan Gullis, have switched to Nigel Farage’s party.Phil Catney, senior lecturer in politics at Keele University, believes these ruptures are continuing due to the politicians’ failure to tackle the underlying issues that led to the Brexit vote, such as inequality and economic changes over the last 50 years. He says that in some ways these problems have actually got worse as a result of Brexit.Dr Catney said: “We haven’t had honest conversations in Britain about why our economy is the way it is, why inequality is the way it is, why people have lower life chances if they live in a place like Stoke-on-Trent. And so when you don’t address those issues, or you don’t don’t talk about them properly, that’s when you leave yourself open to political projects that say, ‘Actually, it’s the migrants’ fault, or it’s the EU’s fault.’ “Populists see people’s grievances and they give them an easy answer on who to blame.”The EU had its problems, but there was no clear plan on what our economy would look like post-Brexit. The trade deals that have been signed aren’t anywhere near good enough to replace what we lost. Covid masked the impact, but we came out of the pandemic much more slowly than other countries.”And the promise was that after Brexit, migration would be managed. But that’s not what has happened.”On Monday, Keir Starmer became the sixth Prime Minister to be ousted in the decade since the referendum. Dr Catney believes his successor cannot afford to overlook the needs of Brexit-voting areas like the Potteries.He said: “The British state has never really had a very good regional policy to target de-industrialised places like Stoke-on-Trent. We have attracted some hi-tech industries into the city, but we’re not growing at the same rate as the superstar cities to our north and south, and people feel that.”If the government’s really want to try and deal with the issue, they should look at how they can equalise life chances, so you’re not disadvantaged too much by where you live.”Councillor Dan Jellyman, who leads the Reform group on Stoke-on-Trent City Council, was among the local politicians who defected to the party from the Conservatives. He backed the Leave campaign in 2016 and still believes it was the right decision for Stoke-on-Trent and the country as a whole, as it meant ‘having destiny in our own hands’.But he does not think that successive government’s have truly taken advantage of Britain’s departure from the EU. Cllr Jellyman said: “The first impact we saw was the vaccine roll-out, which was the fastest in the world. That was because we were freed from all the European regulations.”We saw the benefits of what we could do, but then we bottled it, and basically stopped. Both the Conservatives and Labour have failed to realise the benefits of being outside the EU.”In Stoke, our ceramics sector have had problems with high energy costs and cheap imports from the Far East. Coming out of the EU meant we were free from the rules over state support for companies, that say a government can’t favour their own manufacturing industry. We should also have imposed tariffs on imports from the Far East. But we haven’t done that, and ironically Europe has.”We’ve had a lack of vision, and a lack of leadership. We’ve now had six Prime Ministers since the referendum. All of them have failed on leadership.”For many voters, immigration was the key reason why they voted to leave the EU in 2016. But both legal migration and asylum have continued to be major issues since Brexit – small boat crossings increased exponentially after 2020, with more asylum seekers being dispersed to Stoke-on-Trent than most other areas.Cllr Jellyman blames ‘outdated’ human rights laws for successive government’s inability to tackle the small boats issues. But he also criticises Boris Johnson’s government for allowing legal migration to increase post-Brexit, which he sees as another example of the failure to grasp the opportunities of life outside the EU.Alec Sandiford, a Liberal Democrat councillor on Stafford Borough Council, backed Remain in the referendum, and believes that Brexit opened up a ‘Pandora’s box’ that has continued to dominate politics ever since. He does not think leaving the EU has benefited Staffordshire, and thinks it is wrong that politicians who pushed Brexit 10 years ago are still in the ascendancy.Cllr Sandiford said: “The question always frustrated me – do you want to leave, yes or no. It was a lot more complex than that. During the campaign there was a lot of exaggeration and lies, and a lot of division, that is still being used now by the likes of Farage and Reform. But it didn’t actually tackle the core issues of what people were upset about.”People in places like Stoke-on-Trent were told that it was certain people or the EU that were to blame for problems in their area, when really it was successive governments that let them down.”You look at businesses that are struggling with exports, and the hit to the economy. After 10 years, I don’t think we should have another referendum or rejoin, but we certainly need to have closer alignment with Europe.”Cllr Sandiford believes the increase in small boat crossings is a ‘direct consequence’ of the hard Brexit pushed by the likes of Mr Farage, and says those same politicians are now using the issue to ‘stoke up hate and division’. He added: “It just seems to have been a deliberate project to move us towards a more polarised, American-style politics.”

With temperatures rising this week, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service is urging people to enjoy the sun responsibly.This comes after the service saw a 70% increase in the number of outdoor fires from April to September last year, in comparison to the same period the previous year. Head of Prevent, Protect and Partnerships, Nick Jones, said: “We were called to over 1,800 outdoor fires last spring and summer, which not only strain resources but damage wildlife and landscapes.”Many of these fires were accidental and therefore preventable, so I would urge people to not have disposable BBQs, drop cigarettes or burn waste in the garden, as these practices can easily start fires.”I would also urge people not to start deliberate fires because during periods of warm weather, the ground is much drier meaning that fires can spread quickly and become out of control.”Finally, whilst open water might seem inviting, people should avoid swimming in lakes or canals as there can be hidden dangers.”It’s particularly important for parents to discuss the dangers with their children, particularly teenagers, who may go out with their friends and not appreciate the risks and consequences of cooling off in open water.”The service has issued a list of tips to help people stay safe including not driving the morning after a big night out, considering underwater hazards and educating children on the consequences of starting deliberate fires.

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Local pet owners might soon have a place to say goodbyeAuthor: Adam SmithPublished 6 hours agoNewcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council has submitted plans to establish a pet crematorium within the grounds of Bradwell Crematorium.The proposed service, which would cater to domestic animals, aims to provide individual cremations for a variety of pets, ranging from small birds and guinea pigs to large dogs. In order to avoid disrupting the main crematorium’s operations, appointments would be scheduled at specific times. The planning application and supporting documents are available for public viewing and comment as part of the formal consultation process. Cllr. Ben Simpson, Cabinet member for Waste, Recycling and Green Spaces, highlighted the proposal’s intention to offer a compassionate and affordable service for the community. “This proposal seeks to provide a compassionate, affordable and locally accessible pet cremation service for residents. The submission of a planning application represents an important milestone, ensuring that the proposal is independently assessed through the established planning process and considered against all relevant policies before any decision is made. If approved, a dedicated pet crematorium would offer families a respectful and dignified local option when saying goodbye to a much-loved pet, while helping to meet a growing need within our community.” A regulatory licence from Defra will also be required, along with planning permission, for the pet crematorium to operate. The council encourages residents to review the application online and submit comments during the consultation phase. Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.

A Stone reader has prompted a local spotter challenge after noticing that Stafford Knot emblems around Staffordshire do not always appear to be shown in quite the same way.

Lynn, who makes corn dollies, says the Stafford Knot corn dolly is the local design for the area, but she has noticed that versions of the knot on signs, badges, crests and public features can vary.

In some examples, the right hand section of the knot appears to sit over the loop, while in others it appears to pass underneath.

Lynn has sent in a collection of examples, including knots on crests, street furniture, badges, pottery marks, flags and local features, and is asking whether other residents have spotted the same thing.

Lynn said

“I make corn dollies and the Stafford Knot corn dolly is the one for our area. All the usual Stafford Knot emblems around the county have the end on top of the right hand loop, except for Staffordshire County Council signs which goes under. Weird … Has anyone other resident noticed this?”

She added that she would be interested to see how many examples local people can find.

The Stafford Knot is one of the county’s best known symbols, appearing on everything from flags and coats of arms to school badges, street furniture and local signs.

The question may be one for local historians, heraldry enthusiasts and sharp eyed walkers, but it also gives residents a reason to look twice at benches, plaques, signs and old markings around Stone and beyond.

Have you spotted a Stafford Knot in Stone, Stafford or elsewhere in Staffordshire where the knot appears to be tied differently?

Some of the knots Lynn has spotted:

A number of Stoke-on-Trent dads have been locked up for their crimes since the turn of the year. And it means many will be behind bars for Father’s Day.Here are seven dads in Stoke-on-Trent who were jailed in 2026. They included rioters, drug dealers and robbers.David LockettDavid Lockett, aged 53, was jailed for 20 months after pleading guilty to violent disorder on August 3, 2024.(Image: Staffordshire Police)Fifty-three-year-old David Lockett has been jailed after he shouted, ‘You dirty Muslim b******s, come on’, during the Hanley riots. Police asked him to move back and he said, ‘I will f*****g stab you, you black c**t’.He directed his attention to police telling them to, ‘f**k off’, and continued to shout abuse and gesticulate towards counter-protesters in the mosque car park. He moved towards the police line and had to be pushed back by an officer.Now Lockett has been jailed for 20 months at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.READ MOREAnthony WalkerAnthony Walker, aged 48, was jailed for 42 months after he pleaded guilty to robbery, two charges of possession of an offensive weapon and theft.Robber Anthony Walker swung a hammer at a shop worker before making off with a crate of booze. The 48-year-old grappled with the staff member at Milton Co-op.He had a hammer in his hand and swung it towards the worker. The next day he had a metal bar with him when he stole items from Farmfoods in Leek Road, Hanley.Now Walker has been jailed for three-and-a-half years at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.READ MORENeil McGilliganNeil McGilligan, aged 37, was jailed for 26 months after he pleaded guilty to wounding, criminal damage and burglary.(Image: Staffordshire Police)Dad-of-five Neil McGilligan burgled his ex-partner’s home. The 37-year-old took items from her Norton property and was outside when she arrived home.He ‘threw’ two ‘items’ – one of which cut her forehead causing a permanent scar. Now McGilligan has been jailed for 26 months at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.READ MOREAlan MohammedAlan Mohammed, aged 32, was jailed for two years at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after he pleaded guilty to violent disorder in Hanley on August 3, 2024.Iranian Alan Mohammed has been jailed after he threw bricks towards police and protesters in the Hanley riots. The 32-year-old went to a Hanley mosque during his lunch break and became involved in the August 3, 2024 disorder.He threw missiles from the mosque car park on Town Road, was in a group that ran into the road and faced the police line, and was aggressive towards police. Police had to threaten him with incapacitant spray to make him retreat.He later ran through the middle of Hanley with a group who assaulted a protester. Now Mohammed has been jailed for two years at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.READ MORELiam CurwenLiam Curwen, aged 32, admitted violent disorder.Dad Liam Curwen spat at officers and threw a brick towards the police line during the violent disorder in Hanley. The 32-year-old was part of a mob which walked towards the police line on Town Road on August 3, 2024, just days after three girls were murdered in a Southport dance studio.He spat towards the police line and threw a brick which hit an officer’s shield. Now Curwen has been jailed for 27 months at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.READ MOREMason ShawMason Shaw, aged 24, was jailed for 27 months after he pleaded guilty to criminal damage and strangulation.
(Image: Staffordshire Police)Cocaine user Mason Shaw strangled his partner and spat in her face after she refused to give him £20 to buy the drug. The 24-year-old trashed the victim’s home damaging numerous items including a vase which had great sentimental value.Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard he then pushed her on the floor and strangled her with both hands. The terrified mum thought she was going to die as he said, ‘How does it feel to be told no’.She was able to escape and seek refuge with a neighbour who was verbally abused by the defendant. Now Shaw has been jailed for 27 months.READ MOREJunaid IqbalJunaid Iqbal admitted conspiracy to supply cocaine.A dad was jailed for his part in a conspiracy to supply cocaine in Stoke-on-Trent. Junaid Iqbal, aged 25, was the central point of the three-month conspiracy and has been jailed for 40 months at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.READ MORE

They’ve all appeared at North Staffordshire Justice Centrestokesentinel Administrator10:34, 16 Jun 2026Updated 15:45, 20 Jun 2026Lee Ferns, aged 53, admitted two charges of possessing a class B drug.Here are the latest cases from the region’s courts:LEEK: Fifty-three-year-old Lee Ferns was handed a 12-month conditional discharge by magistrates at North Staffordshire Justice Centre after he admitted two charges of possessing a class B drug. Ferns, care of Prince Charles Avenue, Leek, has 45 previous convictions for 95 offences and was searched by police in Leek on October 30.Prosecutor Alexandra Youster said: “He admitted he was in possession of a bit of weed and whizz. Police recovered a bag of herbal cannabis and three wraps of white powder. He was voluntarily interviewed. He admitted being in possession of cannabis and amphetamine.”The offences placed him in breach of a conditional discharge he received on May 8, 2025 for three charges of possession of drugs.Iain Haley, mitigating, said Ferns became homeless and the drugs were for his personal use. But he has been accessing addiction services and is now clean of drugs. He is now living in a caravan and volunteering at St Paul’s Church in Leek.Magistrates took no action on the breach of the conditional discharge. They sentenced Ferns to a 12-month conditional discharge for the drug matters. He was ordered to pay a £26 surcharge.NEWCASTLE: DJ Jonathon Chapman has been banned from the roads for 14 months after he was caught drink-driving. The 36-year-old had performed as a DJ at a Newcastle venue and was travelling home towards junction 15 of the M6 when police stopped him in Clayton Road, Newcastle, in the early hours of May 23.Prosecutor Alexandra Youster told North Staffordshire Justice Centre that information was passed to the police that Chapman may be driving under the influence of alcohol.Miss Youster said: “The driver was stopped. The defendant gave a positive roadside sample and was arrested and taken to custody where he gave an evidential sample of 48 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, against the legal limit of 35.”Chapman, of Lansbury Avenue, Wednesbury, pleaded guilty to drink-driving.Andrea Wilkes, mitigating, said Chapman works as a carpenter during the day and is a part-time DJ. He travelled to Newcastle to DJ and had a couple of drinks early in the evening. He had his own intoxiliser, which showed he was under the limit but when he was stopped by police he was over the limit.Miss Wilkes added: “He realises he should not have had his drink early doors.”Magistrates fined Chapman £461 and ordered him to pay £85 costs and a £184 surcharge. His ban will be reduced by 14 weeks if he completes a drink-drivers’ rehabilitation course.BIRCHES HEAD: Drink-driver Oliver Hankey has been banned from the roads for 13 months. North Staffordshire Justice Centre heard the 24-year-old forklift truck driver was showing-off to a friend on the way home following a night at a snooker hall.Prosecutor Alexandra Youster said Hankey was stopped by police driving a Volkswagen Polo at speed in Park Hall Road, Longton, on December 5.Miss Youster said: “It was suspected he was under the influence of alcohol. He gave a positive breath sample at the roadside and was taken to custody where his reading was 43 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, against the legal limit of 35.”Hankey, of Handel Grove, Birches Head, pleaded guilty to drink-driving.Andrea Wilkes, mitigating, said Hankey had two pints of lager.She said: “He and his friends were in high spirits. He realises now that is what alerted police to him. He accepts he was probably showing off a little bit because he had another person in the car.”Magistrates fined Hankey £426 and ordered him to pay £85 costs and a £170 surcharge. His ban will be reduced by 13 weeks if he completes a drink-drivers’ rehabilitation course.STOKE: Mum Rachel Gladwin has been hit with a £253 court bill after she assaulted her partner. The 33-year-old assaulted her victim following a row at their home on February 4.Prosecutor Lee Stone said: “They were shouting at each other. He said she shouted, ‘You are not going to see me ever again’. She was red in the face with anger. As she walked past she elbowed him causing him to be winded.”Gladwin, of Cornwallis Street, Stoke, pleaded guilty to assault by beating.Andrea Wilkes, mitigating, said the relationship was coming to an end.Miss Wilkes said: “She went upstairs to try to calm the situation. He stood by the door. She barged him out of the way and left. He reported the matter to the police.”Magistrates fined Gladwin £120 and ordered her to pay £85 costs and a £48 surcharge.BALL GREEN: Forty-four-year-old Lee Johnson jumped on a car roof causing £400 damage. North Staffordshire Justice Centre heard Johnson jumped from a seven-foot wall in Whitfield Road, Ball Green, on to a parked Ford Fiesta on May 25. Johnson, of New Garden Street, Stafford, pleaded guilty to criminal damage. Simon Leech, mitigating, said Johnson fully accepts he should pay for the damage. Magistrates ordered Johnson to pay £400 compensation.Ensure our latest headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search