A university has been awarded £10,000 to nurture the next generation of medical researchers.

The Inspire award, from the Academy of Medical Sciences and Wellcome Trust, will fund activities for medical students at the University of Leicester to encourage an enthusiasm for research.

The high point will be an annual East Midlands Medical Student Research Training Conference. The first will be held in Leicester in November, when students from the Leicester, Nottingham and Norwich medical schools will reveal the results of their research projects.

The University of Leicester student Medical Research Society will be supported in its activities to link students with researchers in the university and NHS trusts.

Dr Bob Norman, who is leading the initiative for the medical school, said he was delighted with the award.

Professor Sir John Tooke, president of the Academy of Medical Sciences, said: "Inspiring students to pursue research is crucial for the future of medicine in the UK.

"By nurturing talent from an early stage, we can ensure future patients will benefit from the latest breakthroughs in medical science.

Dr John Williams, head of clinical activities at the Wellcome Trust, said: "If we are to drive forward the translation of research findings into patient benefit, we need to attract more medical and dental students into research.

"Inspire offers this crucial group a series of creative programmes we hope will inspire them to develop a research interest and go on to make use of research findings in clinical practice."

A corner shop has been closed after health inspectors found live and dead mice in the building.

Two live and four dead rodents were discovered in storage areas at Shopways, in The Exchange, Eyres Monsell, Leicester.

The shop, a small supermarket, was closed as soon the mice were found and will have to stay shut until it no longer poses an imminent risk to public health.

The closure was ratified by a district judge at a hearing at Leicester Magistrates' Court yesterday.

Shilpa Thakrar, representing Leicester City Council, told the hearing environmental health officers Alison Cadmore and Andrew Woods made the discovery when they inspected the premises on Monday.

Their visit followed a complaint from a member of the public.

The court was told the ground floor shop had a number of storage areas directly off it. Two live and two dead mice were found on a sticky board in once of the storage areas.

Two more dead mice were found on sticky boards in other stores.

Mr Woods, who said there was "an overwhelming smell of rodents" when entering one of the store rooms, said droppings and gnawed food and packaging were found throughout the building.

More droppings were found under shelves at the front of the shop, where drinks were on display.

There was bait in paper cake cases accessible to customers and a tub of rodenticide was in a side storeroom.

In her statement, Ms Cadmore said while inspecting the refuse storage areas she found a bin in a garage so full of clutter she could not get into the area to look properly.

"I later found out that there was a door directly off the shop into the garage," she said.

"I opened this door to find a mouse stuck to one of several glue boards on the floor.

"A strong odour of mice emanated from the garage.

"I quickly realised there was a serious mouse infestation."

The health inspectors immediately served a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice on the shop, preventing it from selling food.

Owner Mahesh Vakani, of Jackson Close, Oadby, who did not attend the hearing, was ordered by District Judge John Temperley to pay £695 costs.

The court heard Mr Vakani had told Ms Cadmore the problem with mice had started three or four weeks previously.

He blamed it on vacant flats above the shop.

He told the officers he used to have a pest control contract but had stopped it because he had not had any problems with mice and was now treating it himself by laying down glue boards and rodenticide.

A former prisoner of war who saw the atom bomb dropped over Nagasaki in 1945 has died.

Bert Brown was born and educated in Leicester and worked for the Gas Board before joining the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and being posted to the Far East during the Second World War.

In the space of three years, he was captured in Singapore and forced to toil on the notorious Railway of Death, shipwrecked and left adrift for two days in shark-infested seas and then imprisoned on the edge of Nagasaki, destined to become synonymous with mankind's most destructive weapon of war.

His daughter, Judith Garner, said Bert, who died at a care home on February 1, aged 95, was a "great character".

Mrs Garner, 64, said: "He was full of stories about being captured by the Japanese. He bore the scars of the injuries he suffered and had to walk with a stick."

She said he was the centre of attention at the Horse and Groom Pub, in Rearsby, which he ran for more than 17 years from the mid-1950s.

Mrs Garner, who lives in Barrow upon Soar, said: "He used to tell people stories about his war years as a prisoner of the Japanese. He was a great character."

Bert, who worked for the Mercury in the 1970s, spoke about the atomic bomb to feature writer Jeremy Clay in August 2005.

He said: "At about 11am on August 9, the air-raid siren sounded.

"We all took to the shelter. I was the last to get there because I was on crutches. I was standing against the open doorway with a guard.

"I saw it fly over, the B-29. I thought it was a reconnaissance plane. I said it was just one plane, to take a photo, and the guard said 'choujou' – good.

"No sooner had he said that than the ground shook. It wasn't like the way the earth moves during ordinary bombing, it was a single shock. As I looked up, a white and yellow flash raced over.

"I had no idea what it was. Then everything went quiet. I can't remember hearing the bomb. No soundwave, not a thing.

"The wind was blowing in the opposite direction, maybe that's why.

"They reckon if it had been blowing the other way, we'd have copped for the radiation."

He said a doctor warned him the radiation from the mushroom cloud would prevent him having children, but Mrs Garner said: "Obviously, I am proof that was not true."

Mr Brown escaped serious injury, aged 82, in October 2000 when his Jaguar left the road before crashing 40ft down an embankment.

He escaped with whiplash, a bump on his head and a cut finger. He gave up driving 18 months ago.

He lived in Old Dalby for many years before he went into the Waltham Hall nursing home, in Waltham on the Wolds, three years ago.

Mrs Garner said: "He loved the visits from his great-grandchildren."

Bert is survived by his daughter and son-in-law Fred, grandchildren Andrew, Peter and Jacki and 10 great-grandchildren.

His funeral service was held at Grantham Crematorium on Monday.

Prime Minister David Cameron's decision not to apologise for the massacre of hundreds of Indian people in 1919 by troops under the command of a senior officer in the British-Indian Army has been criticised by Leicester's Sikh community.

Ordered by Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer, the troops shot into a crowd of thousands of protesters, including women, children and elderly people until their ammunition ran out.

Mr Cameron visited the site of the shootings in Amritsar, northern India, yesterday, signing a book of condolence and laying a wreath at the spot of the slaughter.

The first British PM to do so, he described the atrocity as "a deeply shameful event in British history".

However, Mr Cameron stopped short of an official British apology, claiming it would not be right to "reach back into history and to seek out things that we should apologise for".

"I think the right thing to do is to acknowledge what happened, to recall what happened, to show respect and understanding," he said.

The decision has sparked debate as to whether he should have issued a formal apology to the people of India.

Raj Mann, of the Leicester Sikh Alliance, had two great-grandfathers who served as British officers in the British-Indian Army.

He said: "It's very positive he acknowledged the 1919 massacre as a shameful and indelible stain on Britain's colonial history, but it doesn't go far enough.

"He needs to look at compensation and reparations for the families of the victims and we're disappointed with the level of apology he's given."

Mr Cameron visited the holy Sikh city, in the state of Punjab, during a visit to India to encourage business links. Before visiting the massacre site, he toured Amritsar's Golden Temple, the holiest site in the Sikh religion.

"Some commentators have argued this was a trade visit and it would have been a cynical apology, but I don't agree – I don't think that's right," said Mr Mann. "He had the perfect opportunity."

Amandeep Rai, also a member of the Leicester Sikh Alliance, said: "It's mixed feelings, to be honest. Mr Cameron didn't have to go to Amritsar and make any kind of statement or sign the book. It was kind of a half-baked sentiment.

"I'm not saying bridge-building is required, just some acknowledgement in the form of an apology."

Rushey Mead councillor Culdipp Bhatti, a former Punjabi national, who had family in the British forces, said: "Sikh soldiers fought and died for a country they had never been to and this is the reward they get.

"I think the Sikh people deserve an apology."

Mr Cameron signed the book of condolence at a permanent plaque in the Jallianwala Bagh public gardens, where the massacre took place.

Mr Cameron wrote: "We must never forget what happened here, and in remembering we must ensure the UK stands up for the right of peaceful protest around the world."

An inquiry commissioned by the Raj colonial authorities found 379 people were killed, though this has been challenged by Indian sources, who put the death toll at 1,000 or more.

A man has been left paralysed and brain damaged after being struck down by a single punch in the street, a court heard.

The blow caused the 23-year-old victim to fall and bang his head on the pavement, causing injuries that have had an "utterly devastating" effect on his life.

The assault happened outside McDonald's, near Leicester Clock Tower, in the early hours of Saturday, July 21, last year.

Joshua Smith (19), who delivered the punch, pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm at Leicester Crown Court yesterday. The assault by Smith, of Upper Temple Walk, Beaumont Leys, Leicester, was preceded by a verbal exchange between some of those at the scene during a night out.

Victoria Rose, prosecuting, said that, after being punched, the victim was transferred to Queen's Medical Centre, in Nottingham, where he had an operation for bleeding on his brain.

During the surgery, he suffered a stroke and ended up in a coma in the intensive care unit, before regaining consciousness.

He has now been transferred to a neurological centre in Peterborough.

"There are days when he recognises his family and days when he doesn't," said Miss Rose.

"He has only slight movement in his left arm.

"He's now able to swallow.

"He still needs one-to-one care."

Miss Rose said the victim was due to be assessed for an operation to replace part of his skull that was removed during the earlier surgery.

She added that the victim remained "extremely poorly", with an unknown prognosis.

The victim's relatives and friends packed into in the public gallery of the court for the hearing and several sobbed as the medical details were given. The defendant's family were also present in court. Sentencing was adjourned so pre-sentence and psychiatric reports on the defendant could be prepared for the judge's consideration.

Smith was released on bail.

Judge Simon Hammond said: "This is a desperately sad case.

"The consequences have been utterly devastating for the complainant and his family.

"No-one can turn the clock back.

"It involved one punch.

"This case is one of the most difficult of cases for any judge to sentence."

He told Smith: "The court will be considering a custodial sentence."

Police investigating a spate of vandalism and criminal damage in Narborough have arrested two more people.

A 17-year-old and 15-year-old were arrested on Tuesday in connection with a number of incidents in the Leicester Road area of the village.

A 16-year-old was also arrested on Monday evening.

All three youths arrested have been released on police bail pending further inquiries.

It follows reports from residents that cars and windows of properties were damaged on Monday.

Sergeant Mike Cawley, of Blaby police, said: "We are extremely disappointed with the behaviour of some youths who were congregating in the area on Monday evening.

"There were a number of reports of thoughtless damage, which we are taking very seriously."

Sgt Cawley said the police would like to hear from anyone who witnessed the damage, adding that officers were aware of previous problems with anti-social behaviour in the village.

"We have a number of lines of inquiry to follow up and several names have been provided to us," he said.

"We are in the process of speaking to these people but would urge anyone who was involved or in the area at the time to come forward.

"Plain clothes police officers have been patrolling alongside uniformed officers at times and locations identified as having suffered from incidents of anti-social behaviour.

"Groups of youngsters are gathering in the area, but this needs to be balanced with the fact not all young people are there to commit anti-social behaviour. Any groups seen gathering in the area causing a nuisance are being dispersed."

Sgt Cawley urged the public to report further incidents of anti-social behaviour.

Anyone with information should call the police by dialling 101.

It seems incredible now that 40% of home rental payments were made in cash in 2001. A report by the Payments Council, The Way We Pay, showed that the fourfold rise in debit card spending is steadily pushing cheque and cash payments to the brink of extinction, with landlords collecting just over a quarter of rents in cash during 2011.

Adrian Kamellard, Chief Executive of the Payments Council, said: "Someone in their thirties today will see more change in their lifetime than in the entire history of money.  Just as we can't imagine how we ever did without the internet, many people will soon wonder how we used to be so dependent on cash and cheque."

The report also shed some light on our spending habits. It noted that entertainment spending has risen by over 60% between 2001 and 2011, outpacing growth in consumer spending by over a quarter. And it seems we are not letting the cost of utilities weigh us down too much, with Brits spending one and a half times more on having fun (£58bn) than on gas and electricity. 

It also highlighted that the amount we collectively spend on rent has risen 104% in a decade, whilst spending on mortgages has increased by 99% - statistics which clearly demonstrate the dramatic rise in the cost of housing.

With this in mind, what are the best ways for Leicestershire residents to improve their chances in the mortgage market?

Be patient

It may be frustrating when you're desperate to buy your own place, but being patient can pay off. It sounds simple, but the more you save, the better the position you will ultimately be in.

Spring clean your credit record

Since lenders cast an eye over your credit history when you apply for a mortgage, it's crucial to check all the details are correct. If your credit record contains a mistake, it could affect your chances of getting a mortgage.

Pay down debts

Reduce other debts where possible. Rather than just repaying balance on credit cards, be sure to cancel them as well so this borrowing facility isn't still recorded as 'live' on your record.

Shop around

If you are hoping to get onto the property ladder, compare mortgages before making any major decisions. Take smaller building societies into consideration as well as the high street banks so that you have the widest available range of options.

Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson said his squad have the character to get their automatic promotion push back on track at Blackpool on Saturday.

City suffered their second consecutive league defeat, and third in all competitions, on Tuesday night as Charlton grabbed victory at the King Power Stadium.

But Pearson said his side had proven on several occasions this season that they are capable of bouncing back.

The City boss said he would protect his players from any negativity generated by the recent results, which come on the back of an eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions.

"It is a test of character for us, it always is," said Pearson.

"I remember sitting here after winning three, four and five on the spin, but I will view the games in the same way.

"I think when things have gone our way and broke for us when we haven't played well, I would say it. Likewise, when you lose games you have to have a rounded view of it.

"It was a poor result (against Charlton) for us, and it is not one of our better performances.

"But, for me and the players, it is a case of not getting into a situation where the somewhat negative vibes you might hear elsewhere affect us.

"We have been here before this season on a couple of occasions. It rather amuses me, to be honest."

Pearson admitted some of his players have struggled to maintain their level of performance, and said defensive lapses, which allowed Yann Kermorgant and Danny Haynes to score for the Addicks, cost them dearly. But he also believes City should have capitalised on a good spell following Chris Wood's equaliser.

"We had a number of players who struggled to cope with the game, which is a shame, but ultimately if you concede the types of goals we conceded, it gives us a problem in terms of winning games," he said.

"I don't think we deserved to lose the game, but we did.

"I know the second goal (Haynes' goal) is a good strike, but we did not deal with a situation I would have expected us to snuff out pretty effectively.

"We had plenty of players around, but we stood off a player who was able to hit a speculative shot and it is a very good goal. But from a defensive point of view, it was avoidable.

"It is not like us, we have been very good defensively.

"We have a fully fit squad at the moment and this is the same group of players who have been playing very well.

"I think the danger is that you get too far ahead of yourselves by looking at what is happening elsewhere.

"We have lost two league games on the spin and didn't play particularly well (against Charlton), but we didn't deserve to lose. That is how it is."

Our Monthly 7 aside cup is being held on Sunday 23rd March @ 6pm. Only Limited Spaces so call us on 0116 2490555 to book your team in.

Winners and Runners up Will get Trophies

Our Monthly 7 aside cup is being held on Sunday 23rd March @ 6pm. Only Limited Spaces so call us on 0116 2490555 to book your team in.

Winners and Runners up Will get Trophies