'I live in a peaceful corner of Bristol. But the house next door is empty and full of rats'

57 minutes ago Share Save Nathan Heath BBC West Investigations Share Save

BBC Ann Devereaux lives next to a property which has been empty for decades

Across England, the number of empty homes has been steadily rising, with councils "increasingly concerned" about both the impact they have on local communities and the lost resource.

"It makes you feel afraid because you don't know what's going to happen next." Ann Devereaux has cherished her home in a peaceful corner of Bristol for more than 25 years. But the property next door - empty, collapsing and overrun with pests - has become a constant source of stress. What was once just an eyesore is now a "magnet" for crime, she said. "It's a place just available and open for misuse," she added. "Whether it's men coming out and urinating against the wall, drug-dealing or fly-tipping. "It makes me feel scared when I leave my house or come in at night. It's wearing me down emotionally." She has witnessed violence outside her front door, and the rotting smell of rubbish dumped inside the building sometimes drifts into her living room.

The empty property is attached to Ms Devereaux's house

Bristol City Council said it has ordered the owner of the building to make it safe. But Ms Devereaux and others in the tight-knit community of St Werburgh's say the situation is "only getting worse". Just months ago, the roof of the derelict property collapsed, unleashing dozens of rats into nearby gardens. "It's a wasted resource, and I know there are a lot of places like this which are empty and rotting and creating real problems," said Ms Devereaux. The city council said it is "continuing to monitor the building" and will consider further action, including stepping in to carry out safety works, if the owner does not meet their obligations.

The roof of the property collapsed causing rats to escape into neighbour's gardens

The BBC contacted the owner of the building, but had no response. Residents of St Werburgh's say they want the property brought back into use urgently - and their story is not unique. The number of empty homes in England has risen over the last decade, even as the country grapples with a housing shortage. There are now more than 700,000 empty homes, according to the most recent government figures. Of those, 264,884 are classed as "long-term empty", meaning no one has lived there for six months or more. In Wales, the figure stood at 120,000 empty properties the last time the data was collated. In 2023 the Welsh Government launched a £50m National Empty Homes scheme, which offered up to £25,000 for improvements to be made to properties to make them available again.

Empty homes are also viewed as a missed opportunity by housing charities. On one single night last autumn there were 4,667 people sleeping on the streets in England, according to official statistics - a near-record high and the third annual rise in a row. Bristol charity, 1625 Independent People, is trying to change that. Its Future Builders programme is transforming vacant properties into homes for young people facing homelessness to rent at a reduced cost.

Becky Hopkins was offered an affordable place to live through the Future Builders scheme

Becky Hopkins became homeless in the city at just 18 years old. "I was completely lost, lonely, and isolated. I had feelings of self-hatred. I was worried all the time," she said. But the programme gave Ms Hopkins a more affordable place to rent while she worked towards a more stable future. "After having a stable place, I really could focus on working on my mental health and building better habits." Now 21, she is training to become a Royal Navy engineer. "It's a transformation I didn't think was possible," she said.

Sean Fudge said empty homes can have "a detrimental impact" on the neighbourhood

Local councils are on the frontline of the empty homes issue, and leaders are now calling for stronger powers and resources to bring more back into use. Specific officers are tasked with tracing the owners of empty properties so they can be held accountable. Sean Fudge leads the team at South Gloucestershire Council, which has brought 47 properties back into use so far this year. "If left empty, they can lead to a spiral of decline, neglect and decay in a community," he said. "We initially try to engage with the owner, but when it becomes a detrimental impact to the wider neighbourhood, then we have to take enforcement action to stop that decline."

Law change call

If the property has been empty for more than two years, and the owner is not cooperating, councils can apply for an Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO). If granted, the council does not gain ownership of the property, but gets the right to manage and potentially improve it, recouping costs through rent. But this power is rarely utilised because of the long and complex process involved. In England, between 2017 and 2020, only 20 decisions were made on EDMO applications, according to government research. The Local Government Association is calling for changes in the law to make it easier for councils to take over the management of vacant homes.

There are more than 700,000 empty and unfurnished homes in England

The group Action on Empty Homes is also campaigning to bring empty properties back into use. Campaign manager Chris Bailey said: "Every empty home is a lost opportunity to improve the life of a family that's currently homeless. "These are homes which are relevant, in the right places - in the middle of towns and cities where people want to live - where services exist already. "It's not a case of building a whole new town and waiting for 10 years for it to happen, these are homes that are available now, they could be brought back into use within a year." But it is not always straightforward.

Jenni Sadler inherited a house which had fallen into disrepair

When homeowners die, their property often remains empty during the probate process, during which their assets are legally assessed and distributed. Jenni Sadler inherited her mother's house in 2011. "It's a huge privilege to inherit a home," she said. "But it's bittersweet when it's such a close family member, because the home is them and they are the home." The property had fallen into disrepair, and Ms Sadler struggled to afford the mounting costs of essential renovations. As a result, the house has been empty while work is ongoing. "We found more and more things that needed work," she said. "You find yourself thinking - how am I going to do this?" Ms Sadler has secured a loan from Lendology which works with councils to offer low-interest loans to bring empty homes back into use. She now hopes to complete the renovations and rent out the property through the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Ms Sadler said she had a good experience in the family home and now wants another family to experience that

More teens to get their choice of uni even if they miss their grades, says Ucas

47 minutes ago Share Save Hazel Shearing • @hazelshearing Education correspondent Share Save

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A record number of 18-year-olds are likely to get into their first choice of university this year, the head of the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) has said - even if they narrowly miss their grades. Dr Jo Saxton said universities were keen to enrol UK undergraduates because there was more "uncertainty" around international student numbers. She said they would "quite possibly" accept students who did not meet the conditions of their offer adding that domestic students offered universities "stability" for "financial planning". The prediction comes as thousands of students will open A-level, T-level, Btec and other level-three results next week.

Dr Saxton said it was a "really, really good year to be a UK-domiciled 18-year-old that wants to go to one of our world-class universities". "I would anticipate a record number of 18-year-olds will wake up with confirmation, quite possibly even where they are near-misses," she said. She added that universities were "recognising, actually, that a three-year undergraduate student is stability for your teaching and learning, for your university community, for your financial planning". Vivienne Stern, chief executive of Universities UK, said universities were "certainly competitive" with one another, which meant applicants had "lots of choice".

Ucas says universities have made more offers this year, which it says "typically translates into more acceptances". Dr Saxton said she expected there to be "slightly fewer" places in clearing as a result - because if more places are taken up by students who have received offers, there will be fewer places to list. Ucas's clearing system lets students search for university courses with available places. More than 22,600 courses had listed vacancies for undergraduate students from England this week, according to a Press Association analysis of 129 universities. There were more than 3,600 courses advertised across 17 of the selective Russell Group universities.

Nick Hillman, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute, said year 13 students were "well placed" to study where they wanted to. "The financial plight of universities makes them very keen to fill their courses and they will be falling over themselves to sign up good potential students," he said. Students from England and Wales will pay higher tuition fees for university this year, after the sector called for help with its finances. Tuition fees have risen from £9,250 to £9,535 for the 2025-26 academic year. It is the first time they have gone up in England since 2017, and comes after universities said their real-terms value had fallen. They have become increasingly reliant on higher fees from international students in recent years to make up for frozen domestic fees - but the number of overseas students coming to the UK has fallen. In May, the regulator in England, the Office for Students, warned that more than four in 10 universities expected to be in a financial deficit by this summer. Maintenance loans have also gone up this year, which means students can borrow more to help with day-to-day living costs. In England, the maximum maintenance loan for students from England who live away from their parents outside London has increased to £10,544 a year, up from £10,227. Ucas said last month that the number of 18-year-olds from the UK applying to university had risen again to 328,390. However, because the total number of 18-year-olds in the UK has also grown, those applicants make up a slightly smaller proportion of the total 18-year-old population than last year (41.2%). Students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will receive A-level and other level-three grades next week. In Scotland, the number of pupils achieving an A, B or C grade at National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher rose across the board this year. The Scottish Qualifications Authority also reported a reduction in the attainment gap between candidates from the most and least deprived areas.

It was only a pre-season friendly against Villarreal, yet there was still a feeling of excitement and anticipation heading to Emirates Stadium as Arsenal supporters looked to see new £64m signing Viktor Gyokeres in action.

Fans are desperately hoping the 27-year-old striker will be the missing piece whose arrival allows the Gunners to lift a trophy for the first time since 2020.

The loudest cheers before kick-off were for Gyokeres when his name was read out in the starting line-up. The only noise to rival it came for the introduction of talented 15-year-old Max Dowman.

There was expectation every time the ball went near the Sweden international and it looked as though his team-mates were also trying to make sure Gyokeres scored on his first start, and at his new home ground.

That did not happen as Arsenal lost 3-2 to the La Liga side, with another summer signing Christian Norgaard and captain Martin Odegaard on target in each half.

But there were promising signs, and the hour Gyokeres played will be crucial to his fitness before Arsenal start the new Premier League season at Manchester United on Sunday, 17 August.

Having not trained with a team for two months after leaving Sporting, and with another Arsenal game to follow on Saturday against Athletic Bilbao, manager Mikel Arteta said the forward will "100%" be ready for the Old Trafford test.

"I think mentally, and understanding what he needs to do, he will be 100% or more," added the Spaniard.

"Because he is so willing and so confident he can deliver straight away, I have no doubts he will be in a really good place.

"We already broke that line today, because I think it was very important for him to start a match and start to have the feeling and the connection with the team.

"He's been with us only a week or so, but I already saw a lot of things and a lot of purpose, especially the way he was attacking in certain spaces.

"So, in general, for a lot of players that haven't played many minutes, we have a lot now that they're going to be ready for Saturday [against Bilbao] in a much better condition."

Son Heung-min admits a move to Los Angeles FC was not his "first choice" but a chat with the club's president "changed his heart" to join for a record Major League Soccer (MLS) fee.

BBC Sport understands LAFC have paid a fee in excess of £20m for the former Tottenham Hotspur captain, whose two-year contract has the option of an additional two years.

Son revealed in a news conference on Saturday he would leave Tottenham after 10 years at the club.

The 33-year-old was present at LAFC's 2-1 Leagues Cup win over Mexican side Tigres UANL on Tuesday.

The fee paid to Spurs for the South Korean surpasses the previous MLS record of £16.5m paid by Atlanta United to sign Emmanuel Latte Lath from Middlesbrough in February.

"A big summer."

Manager Eddie Howe was not the only senior figure behind the scenes at Newcastle United to utter those words before the summer transfer window opened.

The club may have ended a long wait for silverware and qualified for the Champions League, but the importance of this window was not lost on anyone.

And it has been big - but for frustrating reasons.

Newcastle have lost out on a host of targets. Alexander Isak has been subject of a bid from Liverpool. It looks possible that Manchester United could sign their main striker target Benjamin Sesko, after Liverpool snatched away Hugo Ekitike in July.

On top of all that there has been upheaval behind the scenes.

Now the club face a race against time to strengthen their squad and calm any fears with the season starting and window closing in the coming weeks.

A late flurry of runs from Southern Brave's tailenders took them to a thrilling one-wicket win against Manchester Originals in The Hundred.

Chasing 132, Brave were struggling, needing 26 from the last 11 balls, with eight wickets down.

However, a Tymal Mills six followed by three consecutive Craig Overton boundaries dragged Brave back into contention, before Mills was caught off Lewis Gregory with three needed from three deliveries.

Reece Topley was the last man out of the dugout and the fast bowler cut his first ball for four to take his side to victory with one ball to spare.

Mills had starred in the Originals innings, taking 3-22 and removing three key top-order batters, including opener Phil Salt, who top-scored with 60.

The home side struggled after the powerplay, scoring just 82 runs off their last 74 deliveries to finish on 131-4.

Originals looked to be doing a good job of defending their low total, with seamer Scott Currie taking 4-28 as six Brave batters fell for single figures.

But Overton and his fellow seamers slugged the winning runs to see the 2024 runners-up home.

The US Open men's and women's singles winners will get $5m (£3.7m) each as part of a total pot of $90m (£67.4m) in prize money, which the tournament says is "the largest purse in tennis history".

The amount for the eventual singles champions is a 39% increase on 2024 when it was $3.6m (£2.8m), while the total purse has gone up 20% from the $75m (£57.8m) awarded last year.

In comparison, the total prize money at Wimbledon this year was £53.5m, with the men's and women's singles winners getting £3m apiece.

Players who are knocked out in the first round at the US Open will get $110,000 (£82,400), which is an increase of 10%.

Chris Woakes said he "wouldn't have been able to live with himself" had he not tried to bat for England in the extraordinary finish to the fifth Test against India.

The 36-year-old suffered a suspected dislocated shoulder on the first day at The Oval, yet still emerged to bat with his left arm in a sling on a dramatic final morning.

England needed 17 runs when Woakes came out at number 11. He did not face a ball but ran four runs, before Gus Atkinson was bowled to give India a six-run victory and leave the series level at 2-2.

Speaking to The Guardian,, external Woakes said: "I'm still gutted, devastated really, that we couldn't get the fairytale. But I never considered not going out there, even if it had been 100 runs still to win or whatever.

"But any other player would have done the same. You couldn't just call it off at nine wickets down."

Woakes was the only member of the England pace attack to play in all five Tests against India. On the first evening of the fifth Test, he chased the ball to the boundary and suffered the suspected dislocation.

Before the second day, the hosts ruled him out of the remainder of the match, but Woakes offered to bat in England's first innings, only to be knocked back by coach Brendon McCullum.

On Sunday's fourth day, with England chasing a record 374 to win, he was pictured in the home dressing room in his whites, ready to bat.

Woakes had practised in the nets, first in his usual right-handed stance, only to find that method was too painful. The Warwickshire man instead opted to bat left-handed, in order to put his healthy right arm at the top of the handle in control of the bat, and his injured left arm as far away from the ball as possible.

"I defended one normally [right-handed] and it was agony," he said. "We soon worked out that a left-hander's stance would shield the shoulder and at least allow me to sort of block with my top hand in control. I hit a few, missed a few, but it felt like the only way to survive."

On Monday's fifth day, England were 17 runs adrift of victory when Josh Tongue was bowled to become the ninth wicket to fall. Though some security staff rushed on to the outfield, believing the game to be over, Woakes appeared from the dressing room to a hero's welcome from the crowd.

Licences needed for Botox clinics in cosmetics crackdown

32 minutes ago Share Save Philippa Roxby Health reporter Share Save

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The government has announced plans to crack down on dodgy cosmetic practitioners who it says are exploiting people and causing harm. Under the new proposals, only qualified health professionals will be able to carry out risky non-surgical Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs) and clinics will need to meet strict rules to obtain licences to offer fillers and Botox. Under-18s will also be protected from potentially dangerous beauty trends on social media with age restrictions on certain procedures. The industry has welcomed the plans, although the government says it now needs to consult further to figure out exactly how this will work in practice.

There has been concern over the lack of rules in parts of the non-surgical cosmetic industry for some years. Many procedures, such as liquid BBLs, are marketed as non-surgical but are invasive and carry serious risks, experts say. Non-surgical BBLs are one of the most high-risk procedures which involve filler being injected into the buttocks to make them bigger, more rounded or lifted. Women have told the BBC of dangerous complications, pain and permanent scarring after treatment by rogue operators. In September 2024, Alice Webb is believed to have become the first person to die in the UK after receiving this unregulated procedure. The government says it will bring in regulations for the most dangerous procedures first - such as breast fillers and BBLs - which means only some qualified health professionals will be able to perform them. Rules on who can offer lower-risk treatments such as lip fillers, Botox and facial dermal fillers will also change. A licensing scheme run by local authorities will require practitioners to meet strict safety, training and insurance standards before they can operate. However, it could still be several years before any of these measures comes into force. The plans will be subject to public consultation and must go through Parliament before they are introduced.

'Wild west'

Health Minister Karin Smyth said the industry had been plagued by "a Wild West" of "cosmetic cowboys causing serious, catastrophic damage". She said the government was taking action to protect people, support honest practitioners and root out the unqualified, dangerous ones, while also reducing the costs to the NHS of fixing botched procedures. "This isn't about stopping anyone from getting treatments. It's about preventing rogue operators from exploiting people at the expense of their safety."