Schools under threat from £3bn of cuts
Teachers could be laid off, subjects dropped and after-school activities abandoned because schools are facing massive cuts to their budgets.
The National Audit Office is warning that the Government's promise to plough millions of pounds into education won't be enough to cover a huge increase in pupil numbers - including tens of thousands from overseas - unless schools are given more help on making savings.
They say in real terms schools will need to make £3 BILLION of savings within the next few years.
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Bucking retirement trends - Rosemary Shrager and Bobby George
Darts legend Bobby George, and celebrity chef Rosemary Shrager, joined us this morning to share tales of their latest retirement road trip that sees our intrepid tourists clash with Trump supporters in Florida, enjoy playpens aimed at over 55's - and in the case of Rosemary, have a first close encounter with fillers.
The two stars highlighted things we could learn from other countries about how we treat our elderly - for example Japan have employment agencies specifically for the over 60's.
Rosemary joked that neither she or Bobby will be retiring any time soon. We're glad to hear it!
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1000 lonely older people waiting for someone to become their Silver Line friend
You can be any age to volunteer - you don't have to be old to do it because young people can do it in their lunch hours from work
– Sue Smith - Silver Line volunteer
Today we meet two of Silver Line's volunteers. Susanna's mum, Sue Smith, who was inspired to volunteer after seeing 95 year old Bob Lowe talk about the charity on Good Morning Britain. And Linda Southan, who speaks to 82 year old Joseph on the phone each week.
Sue Smith was inspired to volunteer after seeing 95 year old Bob Lowe talk about it on Good Morning Britain. She wants to encourage others to follow her lead and sign up. Since launching our 1 million minutes campaign several hundred people have come forward to volunteer, but they still need hundreds more.
A ten from Len
I'm sure that in a years time I'll be sitting at home and I'll say I should have done it again
– Len Goodman on leaving Strictly Come Dancing
Len Goodman will be saying farewell after 12 years as head of the judging panel and hanging up his Strictly dancing shoes. Today he joined us on the sofa to talk all things strictly ahead of the final this week.
Military Awards honours the armed forces
One of the great things about the Army, and the military in general, is that we are a people based organisation and so, as long as I was good at my job, they were happy.
– Hannah is the most senior serving transgender officer in the British Army
Our brave servicemen and women of the Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy will be honoured tonight at the 9th annual Sun Military Awards.
This year's Millies sees the introduction of some new categories, including the Inspiring Others Award.
Captain Hannah Winterbourne is nominated. Her brave story of transitioning from a male officer to female after a tour in Afghanistan has lead her to be a huge inspiration to a new generation of soldiers.
And Petty Officer Emma Grant is nominated in another new category - Overcoming Adversity. After an accidental fall in 2006, she was warned she may never walk again. She's defied the odds and through her love of sport, and sheer mental strength, she's made an incredible recovery.
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Michael Sandford sentenced to 12 months in prison
Michael Sandford, a 20-year-old British man who was accused of trying to shoot Donald Trump, was sentenced in Las Vegas overnight to 12 months in prison. Michael's parents Lynne Sandford and Paul Davey gave their first TV reaction after sentencing, to Good Morning Britain today .
Lynne and Paul were said they were shocked and pleased with the outcome, praising the judge who recognised Micael had an illness. Michael's family were worried that Donald Trump's status as President-elect would negatively impact the outcome for Michael. While every day in prison will be a struggle for Michael his mother said that "knowing he has less than a year to do will be a big difference to him as he can see he has a future".
Top five headlines you're waking up to
Schools in England face an 8% real terms reduction in funding per pupil by 2019-20 because of cost pressures. The Department for Education has said this can be achieved while maintaining high standards. But the National Audit Office stressed the need to closely monitor the process, saying it was "uncertain" how schools would react to the budget squeeze and they could make choices which "put educational outcomes at risk". The Department for Education expects that schools will need to make efficiency savings through better procurement, saving £1.3 billion, and by using their staff more efficiently, saving £1.7 billion.
Syrian rebels say they have reached a ceasefire deal with Moscow to evacuate civilians and fighters from eastern Aleppo. The deal comes after the UN and opposition activists reported possible mass killings by government forces closing in on the rebels' last enclave. Osama Abu Zayd, a Turkey-based legal advisor for an umbrella group of rebel factions known as the Free Syrian Army, said the ceasefire went into effect on Tuesday evening and that the first batch will begin evacuating within hours.
Talks aimed at resolving the Southern Railway drivers' dispute will be held at the conciliation service Acas today. Today's strike is set to go ahead, as well as another 24-hour stoppage on Friday, in a long running row over driver-only trains. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling refused to rule out taking action to prevent future stoppages like the one which brought all Southern Railway services to a halt.
Michael Sanford, a 20-year-old British man who was accused of trying to grab a police officer's gun to allegedly shoot Donald Trump, has received a 12 month prison service. Sandford was arrested after trying to grab a police officer's gun, which he allegedly planned to use to try to kill the future President. Michael's mother Lynne says her son has various mental health issues including autism, anxiety, depression and anorexia.
Stars including Felicity Jones and Forest Whitaker hit the red carpet last night for possibly the biggest movie release of the year - Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
