This week the Government has been urged to outlaw essay writing services after a study found evidence of a rapid increase in contract cheating. Birmingham Eastside’s Wan Ulfa Nur Zuhra spent three months investigating the problem, speaking to a former essay ghostwriter, following trails that led to fake addresses, and uncovering a systemic problem whereby universities are failing to keep records on the problem. Read her special immersive feature below.
Author: Wan Ulfa
This week the Government has been urged to outlaw essay writing services after a study found evidence of a rapid increase in contract cheating. Birmingham Eastside’s Wan Ulfa Nur Zuhra spent three months investigating the problem, speaking to a former essay ghostwriter, following trails that led to fake addresses, and uncovering a systemic problem whereby universities are failing to keep records on the problem. Read her special immersive feature below.
The average monthly spending of Birmingham City Council on bailiffs rose by 27% this year compared to last year. Based on the Birmingham City Council Payments to Suppliers data, it paid £189,000 in average every month to some vendors who identified as bailiffs during the 2017/2018 financial year. This number has increased from the previous financial year when the council spent £149,000 every month. When people cannot pay their council tax, parking fines, or business rate arrears, an enforcement letter will come to their house. If they keep not pay the debts, bailiffs will be sent to take their assets. Birmingham City Council…
Two West Midlands football clubs were among those named and shamed Friday in a government list of companies who flouted Britain’s minimum pay laws. At the top of the list however, came three multinational companies — Wagamama, Marriott Hotels and TGI Fridays. The list of low-pay offenders included 15 West Midlands-based companies, with Birmingham City Football Club and Stoke City Football Club among them. Globebrow Ltd, the Shropshire-based company that runs Manor Adventure, came top of the list for the West Midlands. But the three giants, who all have branches across the West Midlands, topped the list of 179 offenders nationally.…
The number of knife crimes in Birmingham has almost doubled since 2014. The majority of cases ended up without suspect identified, Wan Ulfa investigates. A 19-year-old man was waiting for his taxi near Aston University just after midnight on 19 September 2017. Suddenly, another man came up to him and stabbed him with his knife. He was hospitalized. Luckily, he survived. Two weeks later, the West Midlands Police released photographs of suspects. They still don’t have any solid information on his identity yet. Two days before that attack, a 23-year-old man walking through Small Heath Park was brutally attacked by two…
More people are sleeping rough across the West Midlands, according to the latest government figures. The numbers released on Thursday for last autumn record a total of 295 in the region: two percent up on the previous year. The figures followed the trend across the whole of England, which recorded a total of 4,751 rough sleepers, a 15-percent increase. But homelessness campaigners at the charity Crisis, say the real number is much higher. Their research suggests that there are as many as 8,000 rough sleepers across England. And the charity Shelter said welfare cuts were exacerbating the homelessness crisis. Chief…
Airbnb is booming in Birmingham. The city has the biggest increase in Airbnb rentals among the top 10 cities in the UK. The number of rentals offered in this short-term lodging lease platform grew a 678% between 2015 and 2017, based on a research by the Residential Landlords Association (RLA). There were 1,834 rentals in the city last year, according to the RLA report published in December. This ranks Birmingham the 7th city in the UK with more Airbnb offers, still far from the 173,714 in London. Between 2016 and 2017 only Cardiff experienced a higher increase of rentals –…
Birmingham MP Preet Gill has expressed shock at new figures revealing the limited use of a law designed to prevent domestic violence — particularly in the West Midlands. She has added her voice to that of fellow Birmingham MP Jess Phillips, who has already called for the law to be more actively applied. The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme — also known as Clare’s Law — is designed to alert potential victims if their partner has a history of violence. But West Midlands Police came bottom of a new survey of how forces in England and Wales apply its measures. “I…
Visualization by Wan Ulfa, Victòria Oliveres and Carmen Aguilar Five out of six hospitals in Birmingham had over 85% overnight bed occupation rate from July to September 2017, according to the last NHS England report. During the day, the rate was even higher. Three out of five hospitals had over 90% of their beds occupied. All the beds were full at the Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust for that period. Evolution During the second quarter of 2017, the bed occupation day rate improved in all Birmingham hospitals, in comparison with the previous years. Only the Heart of England…
Domestic violence “high-risk” cases in Birmingham have nearly doubled in the last 4 years, according to an investigation by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Birmingham Eastside.