UK

A Year 8 pupil at a school in southeast London has died after contracting Strep A – as another bereaved family revealed the symptoms their son experienced in his final days. Colfe’s School wrote to parents on Thursday to inform them a student had died after developing the infection. Sky News understands that the pupil

Less mixing between children due to the pandemic could have caused a drop in immunity to infections such as Strep A, a leading expert has suggested. Six children have died in the UK after being found to have the bacterial infection and there have been more cases than normal this year. Most Strep A cases

The father of a four-year-old girl who is in critical care with Group A Strep has said he’s “praying for a miracle” she comes home alive. Dean Burns’s daughter, Camila Rose Burns, has been fighting for her life on a ventilator at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool since Monday after she contracted the infection.

A child has become the third to die from a Strep A infection in the UK in the past week. Health officials said the child, whose age has not been revealed, went to a school in Ealing in west London and died after contracting the invasive Group A streptococcal (iGAS or Strep A) infection. Dr

A black domestic abuse campaigner who was repeatedly asked where she “really came from” by Prince William’s godmother said she felt abused, verbally attacked and “trapped”. Ngozi Fulani, founder of the charity Sistah Space, works as an advocate for survivors of domestic abuse and described the exchange as a “violation”. “I was not giving the

Lady Susan Hussey has left her role at Buckingham Palace after she asked a black visitor where she “really came from” during a reception hosted by the Queen Consort. Ngozi Fulani, the chief executive of Sistah Space and a prominent advocate for survivors of domestic abuse, described the exchange as a “violation”. Lady Hussey served

A member of the Buckingham Palace household has resigned after “unacceptable” comments were made at a reception held by the Queen Consort. Ngozi Fulani, chief executive of Sistah Space, said she was asked by the household member where she “really came from” during an event at the palace on Tuesday. Ms Fulani, who is black,

Labour has won the Chester by-election – the first public vote since both Boris Johnson and Liz Truss were ousted from Number 10. Samantha Dixon retained the seat for her party with 17,309 votes – a 61% share and nearly 11,000 more than the Conservative candidate. Labour was expected to win but the margin was

Doctors have hailed a “new era” of medicine after a study showed for the first time that a drug can slow the debilitating symptoms of Alzheimer’s. Results from the clinical trial also revealed that the drug lecanemab cleared clumps of a protein called amyloid – thought to be a key cause of the most common

Fifty migrants who have arrived in the UK this year have been diagnosed with diphtheria, the immigration minister has revealed, with the vast majority being reported in the last two months. Robert Jenrick told MPs that the number has increased significantly since he first gave an update on 1 November. The latest UK Health Security

A scheme that will see households rewarded for not using power-intensive products at peak times could be used for the first time on Tuesday, it has been revealed. National Grid’s system operator said it may activate its Demand Flexibility Service (DFS), which is designed to avoid blackouts, on Tuesday evening to reduce strain on the

A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of the murders of two boys following fatal stabbings in southeast London. The victims, named earlier as Charlie Bartolo and Kearne Solanke, were found with stab wounds in Titmuss Avenue, Thamesmead, and Sewell Road, Abbey Wood, on Saturday at around 5.10pm. Officers had attended with the London

The murders of two 16-year-old boys who were stabbed to death in London are believed to be linked, police say. They have been named as Kearne Solanke and Charlie Bartolo Police have appealed for information about the killings after the teenagers were found injured in two locations around a mile apart in Thamesmead, southeast London,

The head of the London Fire Brigade (LFB) has vowed to sack firefighters who bullied colleagues or have been racist, misogynistic or homophobic as he vowed to take a zero tolerance approach. Commissioner Andy Roe’s comments come after a damning independent report revealed the “toxic culture” in the LFB, with accounts ranging from women being

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) is “institutionally misogynist and racist” with a “toxic culture that allows bullying and abuse”, an independent review has found. One black firefighter had a noose put above his locker while a female firefighter said she advised female friends not to let male firefighters in the house to check smoke alarms

Heavy rain could cause travel chaos across the weekend as it coincides with a strike by train drivers on Saturday. The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for southern England and southern Wales on Saturday and Sunday. Parts of Scotland are under a yellow weather warning on Saturday. It said downpours would likely cause

Two late goals by Iran in stoppage time have left Wales’ World Cup hopes hanging by a thread following a 2-0 defeat. Goals by Rouzbeh Cheshmi and Ramin Rezaeian gave Iran only their third ever World Cup victory – and Wales their first loss of this campaign. It came after Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey was

At this year’s Trade Union Congress (TUC), union leaders representing 5.5 million members called for “a special working group of willing unions which would organise coordinated action over pay and terms and conditions where possible with all TUC unions, including further demonstrations, national and regional rallies, and coordinated industrial action where possible”. Mick Lynch, who

Ten times more people are in hospital with flu than this time last year, latest figures show. There were an average of 344 patients a day with flu in hospital last week, compared with the 31 seen at the beginning of December last year, according to data released by NHS England. It comes amid pressures

Nicola Sturgeon has vowed to find another way “for Scottish people to express their will” after judges ruled that another independence referendum cannot be held without the backing of Westminster. After the judgment this morning, the Scottish first minister said she will continue to push for independence, declaring: “We must and we will find another