THREE people have been arrested in connection with an attempted bank robbery in Arnold.

Police were called to the HSBC branch, in Front Street, after masked offenders entered the bank at about 1055am yesterday.

They demanded cash and threatened staff before fleeing the scene in a Volkswagen Golf.

Two men, aged 32 and 24, and a 57-year-old woman, have now been detained on suspicion of conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

They remain in custody and are due to be questioned by detectives.

Witnesses, or anyone with information, should call Nottinghamshire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

POLICE are investigating after a man was found dead at a house in Selston.
Officers were called to the house in Church Lane by an ambulance crew at 9.35am on Wednesday. 
The man, believed to be the householder, is in his 70s and his death is not being treated as suspicious at this stage. A file is being prepared for the coroner.
However, a cordon remains in place at the house while detectives investigate evidence to suggest there may have been a burglary. This is believed to have taken place after the man's death.
A 33-year-old local man has been arrested on suspicion of burglary and bailed pending further enquiries.
Anyone with any information should contact Notts Police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

A "GREEDY" Arnold businessman used forged invoices to fraudulently claim almost £40,000 in VAT repayments.

Peter Wilding was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, yesterday.

Wilding, of Killisick Road, was disqualified from holding a company directorship until 2017, but claimed £39,755 in VAT repayments he was not entitled to through two IT businesses he ran.

He was arrested last July when an investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) uncovered he had used Nottingham-based firms Evolve TS and IP Logik to commit the tax fraud.

Gary Lampon, assistant director of criminal investigation for HMRC, said: "Wilding was motivated by greed to steal a substantial sum of taxpayers' money to line his own pockets. This latest prosecution will send a firm message to anyone involved in or considering tax fraud – your time is up.

"With over £10 billion being stolen from UK finances each year by criminals involved in the hidden economy, it's serious crime, which we are determined to eradicate."

Wilding was also ordered to carry out 150 hours' unpaid work.

A six-month house curfew between 8pm and 7am was also imposed.

He pleaded guilty to charges of VAT fraud under the Value Added Tax Act 1994.

Following action by the Insolvency Service in 2010, Wilding was disqualified from becoming a company director for a seven-year period – 2010 to 2017 – over his involvement in a previous company – QOS Communications.

A NEW map highlighting the number of children up for adoption in Nottingham and Notts could attract more prospective adopters, it is hoped.

The Adoption Gateway Map, launched yesterday, shows the number of children up for adoption in different local authority areas.

The colour-coded map shows the number of children waiting to be adopted across four categories – 17 or fewer, 18 to 27, 28 to 47, and 48 and over.

Both Nottingham and Notts are in the highest category.

Councillor Philip Owen, Notts County Council committee chairman for children and young people's services , welcomed the map.

He said: "We believe it will be a positive development which will supplement and not replace existing entry points within the local authority and other adoption agencies. I hope it will assist the start of the application process for potential adopters."

Steve Edwards, the county council's director for children's social care, added: "This map may encourage potential adopters in Nottinghamshire to come forward."

Notts County Council matched 65 children with adoptive parents between April and December last year.

Councillor Owen added: "We have approved more adopters this year than previous years and we have matched more children, but we desperately need more adopters to come forward."

To see the new map, visit www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/families/adoption. Anyone interested in adopting in Notts can call 0845 301 2288, or e-mail adoption@nottscc.gov.uk.

KEITH Curle sounded a bit like Kevin Costner from the film 'Field of Dreams', saying: "If we win, they will come."

The Notts County boss was talking about the hot topic of falling crowds at Meadow Lane this season, after the club's chairman Ray Trew took to a fans' messageboard this week to tell supporters straight that he is disillusioned by a lack of support on the terraces.

Curle shares Trew's feelings, but he knows the best way to get fans flocking back – and that is to turn Meadow Lane into their very own field of dreams by winning more games.

A lot of fans have stopped going to games because the Magpies have struggled badly on home soil so far this season, losing half of their 12 league games – and also being dumped out of the FA Cup, Capital One Cup and Johnstone's Paint Trophy in front of their own supporters.

While they are unbeaten away, they have won just four league games at Meadow Lane – and only one since the end of September.

"We want more people coming through the gates and we need to win more games at home – they go hand in hand," said Curle.

"Our performance levels at home at the beginning of the season were excellent and we were rewarded by people coming to watch us.

"But because the results haven't been good recently there has been a fall in attendances.

"There is also not a lot of money around because it's been Christmas.

"Hopefully if we start getting results and get back up to where we want to be the crowds will come."

The crowds at Meadow Lane have only topped 7,000 for one home league game this season, when they faced league leaders Tranmere Rovers back in October – and their average gate is around 5,900.

It is not going to be easy for them to turn it around quickly either because their next home game is against high-flying Sheffield United next Saturday.

Their home form is the only question mark hanging over them in their quest to win promotion into the Championship this season – and Curle admits he has even thought about getting his players to change in the away dressing room at Meadow Lane to see if it makes a difference.

"I've looked at so many videos of the games and we've gone through the planning, the preparation and the mind-set of the players," he added.

"We've thought about having a pre-match meal like we do before away games or going to a hotel, putting them on a coach and bringing them into Meadow Lane like it's an away game – or even changing in the away dressing room.

"We've gone through lots of different things.

"At the end of the day, players go out onto the pitch and make decisions and we need to make better decisions."

Trew has also told fans he is not prepared to plough any more cash into the club to fund signings in the January transfer window because they are not supporting him.

It means Curle has to offload more players before he can sign new ones to strengthen his squad for a push for promotion in League One in the second half of the season.

"I've not seen what the chairman said, but I've spoken to him so I'm fully aware of what the situation is," said Curle.

"All he is saying is we have to do some wheeling and dealing.

"I need to create monetary movement in the budget, I need to free up some cash by getting players out if I can and then I can bring some other players in as replacements.

"I was told that at a board meeting a long time before this."

New Football League rules mean Notts can only spend 60 per cent of their turnover on players – so falling gates means less spending power.

"It's not just us – all clubs are having to be cost effective because of the new League rules," added Curle.

"They are setting our budget levels based on the income streams that come into the club.

"We need to be cost effective as a business, otherwise the club will suffer.

"With the financial background the chairman has got, there is no way this club will get into trouble.

"I know the chairman is not like Roman Abramovich at Chelsea so this club has to run as a business.

"We've got a fantastic budget that was set by the league that is funded by the chairman and we have got to work with it – it's very simple."

All the talk of cash-flow issues and financial cuts at Meadow Lane is quite ironic because Notts face crisis-club Portsmouth at Fratton Park today.

"Portsmouth is a club that has been massively mismanaged, but I know that with our chairman's astute business sense this club will not get into the same situation," said Curle.

A CARE home manager stole more than £100,000 from an elderly widow and spent it on gambling.

Imran Ahmed was jailed for three years at Nottingham Crown Court yesterday after admitting stealing from a current account belonging to Audrey Green, a resident at the Lilac House Care Home in Beeston, which he managed.

Ahmed, 39, used the money to fund "a double life" of gambling, the court heard.

The father-of-two lost hundreds of pounds at casinos and at the races but his family were unaware of his gambling addiction.

He made withdrawals from cash machines using Mrs Green's debit card which was kept, along with her PIN, in a safe at the home, owned by his family.

Esther Harrison, prosecuting, said Ahmed would use the card to take out between £150 and £300 at a time and sometimes make more than one withdrawal a day.

Ahmed also stole Mrs Green's cheque book, stealing £58,000 in cash and £43,000 in cheques over five years.

The theft only came to light when the care home closed in 2011. Mrs Green, now aged 80, was a "vulnerable woman" who "lacked confidence and was not financially aware," the court was told.

But Ahmed, of Orchard Cottage, Bestwood Park, was attracted by the thrill of the gambling lifestyle and being "with the high rollers".

Judge Michael Stokes sentenced him to three years in prison, of which he will serve half before being eligible for release, calling his behaviour as "gross a breach of trust as it is possible to imagine".

He added: "Elderly vulnerable people are regrettably far too often the target of fraudsmen and the court has got to make it plain that anyone who takes part in this deliberate behaviour will be severely punished.

"You had an extensive and long-standing gambling addiction which a report tells me has been the driver of your offending.

"Doubtless it was but that in reality it amounts to little in mitigation."

Ahmed stole the money between January 2005 and December 2011.

Philip Bown, for Ahmed, said: "This was a man being driven to distraction by the pathological addiction to gambling. It was running his life."

After being told there was insufficient money in Mrs Green's account, her friends Janet and Paul Boothroyd, of Stapleford, looked at her bank statements and noticed the money had been taken.

After the sentencing, Mrs Boothroyd said: "I'm a bit disappointed with three years. Whether he stole the money for gambling or whatever it doesn't matter. The fact of the matter remains that he stole money from a vulnerable, old woman. She's a lovely woman and didn't deserve anything like this to happen to her."

She said Barclays had returned £96,000 to Mrs Green, now living in Attenborough.

A GROUP of people made redundant from city firm Games Workshop are now enjoying huge success with a new company they set up.

Warlord Games was founded by John Stallard and Paul Sawyer five years ago – and is based in the Lenton Business Centre, just one mile from their old employers.

Their success has been so great that they have now set up a new office in Arizona, USA, to oversee distribution.

Meanwhile they have joined forces with another new company – Dark Space Corp – to develop a new tabletop war game called The Gates of Antares.

Mr Stallard said: "We have been doing very well. We now have 22 members of staff who all worked for Games Workshop.

"The US office opening is a very exciting development. We have two guys who were based over there who are running that office and overseeing distribution of the products.

"We hope in the next five years we can continue to grow, and have 90 staff and more distribution centres across the world."

Warlord is similar to Games Workshop in that it produces model soldiers which people use to play war games, though Mr Stallard says its historical figures set it apart from his former employers.

Models include Romans, English Civil War and Second World War figures.

In producing the new game, they have enlisted the help of Rick Priestley, who created Games Workshop's hugely successful games Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000.

They are looking to raise £300,000 by the end of February through the Kickstarter funding programme, which allows people across the world to pledge money online towards a project. So far, they have raised £77,000.

Mr Priestley said: "Producing the new game is very exciting. It is a science fiction tabletop game.

"We hope to have it finished and ready for launch by December this year.

"I worked with Games Workshop for 28 years, going from shop-floor worker to board director. The company grew in size, and is now a huge local employer.

"But I'm glad to be where I am now. We are not sure how the game will work out, but we are very hopeful it will be a success."

The company sends the models to shops in more than 50 countries, including USA, Germany, France and Russia.

SNOW could fall on higher ground in Notts tomorrow – with more expected at lower levels on Monday.

Temperatures are expected to remain around freezing point today and into next week, as Siberian winds blow in from the east.

A Met Office spokeswoman said: "On Sunday for the most part it is going to be dry. However people shouldn't be surprised to see snow on higher ground above 100m.

"It's Monday when we are really going to see the snow coming down. We could see between 5cm and 10cm."

Temperatures will reach a high of 3°C today, although the easterly winds will mean it will feel more like -3°C in the morning and -1°C into the afternoon and evening. The Met Office is also warning of icy conditions. After Monday's snow, conditions will turn brighter on Tuesday but remain cold with snow showers in places.

ELLIOTT Ward will be reunited with some familiar faces this afternoon, in more ways than one.

During little more than a week back at parent club Norwich, the defender managed to force his way onto the Canaries bench last weekend, as they faced Peterborough in the FA Cup.

Today, the defender will not only be reunited with Nottingham Forest, but also Darren Ferguson's resurgent Posh, as the two sides meet at the City Ground.

Ward admits he has provided a little inside info on Forest's opponents. But he is more concerned about delivering his own, more personal, message to new Reds boss Alex McLeish, as he looks to ensure a more permanent stay in the East Midlands.

Out of contract at Carrow Road in the summer, 27-year-old Ward hopes to earn himself a deal with Forest.

He will get an immediate chance to impress this afternoon, with Daniel Ayala injured and Danny Collins suspended.

But Ward warns Forest are in for a more difficult challenge than the victory Norwich secured over Peterborough might suggest.

"We watched Peterborough play Wolves on video, prior to last weekend, and they were brilliant. They won 3-0.

"But, against Norwich, they were completely different and their manager came out and said that they had not been good enough.

"So I don't expect that this week. They will come out fighting; there will be more passion about them.

"They will probably be more organised, they will have more organisation.

"I expect their performance against Norwich was a one off.

"I have spoken to the manager a little bit, but the club also has a good scouting system that will have picked things up."

Forest's previous manager, Sean O'Driscoll, had intimated to Ward that he hoped to sign him permanently in January.

But the defender is not deterred by the fact that he now has to impress McLeish to secure a permanent move.

"It is an encouragement that he has brought me back, that he wants to have a look at me," said Ward. "If I was not comfortable, I would not have come. I am happy with what has been said.

"I know that, if I perform as I did towards the end of my previous loan spell, I will be fine.

"I have to make sure that I am at my best in every game. I will just give my all, then we will see what happens.

"It is in my own hands. If I do well, I will get a contract here. If I don't, then I will be a free agent.

"I am here to play well, to hopefully push Forest on and see where we can all go."

One change for Ward will be the keeper playing behind him.

With Lee Camp told he has no future at the club, it will either be Karl Darlow or a new signing between the posts this afternoon.

"It is like any new player. You have to use your experience and talk. You just have to organise each other," said Ward.

"Whoever it is, it will not be their debut. They are likely to be a player who has played a lot of games.

"As long as the communication is fine, I don't see it being an issue."

What matters to Ward is not the personnel involved, but the fact that, as a team, Forest find a way to become harder to beat.

McLeish this week called for more toughness; more steel from his side.

And Ward agrees with his manager's sentiments, saying: "In every team, you need to be hard to beat. If you are not, you will not be anywhere near where you want to be.

"To get into the top six, you have to show fight and passion, you need qualities like that.

"We do not feel as though we are far away, we are nearly there. What will it take to make that next step?

"It will need a good run of performances. Being consistent is the biggest thing for anyone.

"If you try to be as consistent as you can, you can build a good run.

"We are not far off achieving that. But every team is striving for the same thing.

"Every team knows that consistency is the key, but it is an inconsistent division.

"The first step is not to lose two games in a row.

"But it starts today for us, we start by trying to beat Peterborough, then we have a big derby game next weekend."

The upcoming run of fixtures, which also includes the visit of high-flying Watford and a return, for McLeish, to Birmingham City in early February, looks a tough one on paper.

But Ward said: "It is a big spell for us, when you consider the games coming up.

"But we have to make things difficult for the sides we face as well.

"We feel it is a run of games that we can pick up plenty of points in. We are confident.

"We just need to find that consistency.

"It is important to have a steady back four, but you also need to have a squad.

"This season has been disrupted in all positions, particularly in the back four. Left-back, right-back, central defenders – they have all been chopped and changed.

"It can disrupt things a little bit. You might have seen that in some of the performances.

"Hopefully we can get settled quite quickly and use that as a base to build on.

"You want to start with a clean sheet in any game. Then, if anyone scores for you, you get the win.

"In this league, anyone can beat anyone, which is sometimes the problem.

"Occasionally, you don't expect the other team to be as good as they are. But the starting point is always that clean sheet.

"Whoever you are playing, the starting point is always to stop them from scoring.

"You have to be wary of every team, but particularly those who are in form."

If, come 5pm, Ward has played a part in another 3-0 win over Peterborough, nobody at Forest will be complaining.

MANY 20-somethings have ideas of what they would like to do by the time they reach 30.

For some it may involve settling down and getting married. Ambitions of others may be focused on their career.

Jonny Heald, however, wants to complete a list of 100 challenges he set himself when he turned 20.

Now 27, he is nearly two-thirds of the way through his list, having ticked off things like sky diving, running the London Marathon, swimming with dolphins, walking on glass, getting his hands on the FA Cup, playing a match at the City Ground, driving a car to Mongolia and riding a bike from Land's End to John O' Groats.

His upcoming challenges include learning to fly a plane, wing-walking and breaking the Guinness World Record for the number of high-fives in a 24-hour period.

For the latter, he hopes to smash the record of 8,000 – set in Canada – by reaching 10,000.

He plans to start on Friday, March 8, taking in The Script gig at Capital FM Arena that evening before going around the city's pubs and clubs and then the shops the next day before finishing at the City Ground, where his beloved Nottingham Forest will be playing Wolves.

Jonny, of Long Eaton, said: "When I turned 20, I thought I had often let opportunities go and I wanted to change that. I was really keen to make sure I did this.

"After I went on Channel 5 game show called Brainteaser and lost, a friend challenged me to go on another and win it.

"Then I got thinking of other things I'd like to do and I started to form a list. I eventually thought why not decide on 100 things to do by the time I reach 30."

Jonny, a primary school teacher, did realise his ambition of winning a game show – picking up £26,000 on Noel Edmonds' Deal or No Deal.

He added: "I've been on a game show, seen lots of great things in the world. There have been so many exciting challenges."

Along the way he has raised £30,000 for charities including the British Heart Foundation.

And his efforts also got him noticed, to the extent he was invited to carry the Olympic Torch through Coventry – near where he has been teaching – last year.

He may have more than 30 things to tick off his list before his 30th – on August 3, 2015 – but he remains confident: "I'm stepping up the efforts. A few things are already booked in and I believe I can reach my target."

OVER the last couple of months, Blue Square Bet Premier games have been few and far between for Mansfield Town.

With FA Cup and also FA Trophy commitments, alongside postponements, they have lost ground on many rivals in the league.

So much so, they have five games in hand on some but it is all about to change, with 24 matches to fit in between now and April 20.

It means plenty of midweek matches but with Kidderminster up first for the Stags at the One Call Stadium today, defender Lee Beevers sees it as the ideal opportunity.

With last week's match with Liverpool in the FA Cup consigned to the past, he wants total focus on the league.

And he said Mansfield have to look no further than today's opposition for an example of what a winning run can do.

Steve Burr's side did not win any of their first ten matches but have won eight of their last nine league games to propel themselves up to sixth.

Mansfield sit tenth, seven points off the play-offs but know winning their games in hand will be huge in terms of getting in the promotion mix.

And Beevers sees no reason why the Stags cannot do exactly that, as Paul Cox's sides have regularly finished seasons strongly.

No better example of that is last season when his Mansfield side won 13 and drew one of their last 15 games to finish third.

Beevers said: "We have a lot of games to catch up on and we are five behind already on some. It is going to be a very busy end to the season.

"We did not start too good ourselves and have been on a bit of a run since November and now if we can keep winning, we can go right up there.

"As long as you get the consistency, back-to-back wins and on an unbeaten run, you can climb the table.

"When they start coming thick and fast, if you can get on a roll early the belief just comes more and more.

"You don't want to have a stoppage in fixtures, you want to play one team, move them on, bring on the next and keep it going.

"I do not know why it happens but once you get on that run, everybody feels unbeatable and you go out with so much confidence and it just rolls on from there.

"Kidderminster have been on a fantastic run and they did not have the best start to the season but they were not where they should have been at that point.

"They are on such a good run of form that they have now got up there – and there is no reason why we can't do the same."

The transfer window is now open and Cox is hoping to bolster his squad to help with a promotion push.

But full-back Beevers is not daunted by that prospect, instead he believes more competition is healthy for the whole team.

"We have this transfer window every season and if a player comes in, it is only going to make the squad stronger," he said. "I think it is a good thing because things happen during the season and it is a good time to have it and then see where you go after that.

"It brings a spark to the squad. It makes everyone hungrier and spurs everyone on.

"Now all focus is on Kidderminster. This game is more important than the Liverpool one.

"That was a one off and now it is down to what matters most, the league."

A NOTTS mental hospital is among the list of places where Jimmy Savile is said to have sexually abused patients.

According to a new report from the Metropolitan Police and NSPCC, the late TV and radio presenter abused a patient in 1971 at the old Saxondale Mental Hospital, near Bingham.

The hospital closed in 1988.

In total seven complaints made to Notts police about Savile have been referred to Operation Yewtree – a national investigation set up in October to look into claims of child abuse by Savile and others.

It is one part of the catalogue of abuse allegedly committed by the television star and charity ambassador – with 450 people accusing Savile of sexual assault.

Peter Watt, NSPCC director of child protection advice and awareness, hopes the report will bring closure for Savile's victims.

"The sheer scale of Savile's abuse over six decades simply beggars belief," he said.

"He is without doubt one of the most prolific sex offenders we have ever come across and every number represents a victim that will never get justice now he is dead.

"But with this report we can at least show his victims that they have been taken seriously and their suffering has been recognised."

David Hardwick, 67, appeared on Savile's Radio One show Speakeasy in the early 1970s after he founded a youth group.

He was given a lift back to his home town of Mansfield with Savile in the star's motor home.

He got out at a service station for something to eat and when he returned he said he saw two girls, believed to be aged 13 to 15, emerge from the vehicle looking "dishevelled".

The incident was raised with the show's producer, and in turn a manager, but Mr Hardwick said they were told to drop the complaint.

"Celebrity opens doors, but shouldn't mean the right security checks are not carried out," said Mr Hardwick, who now lives in Riddings, near Alfreton.

"My overwhelming feeling is disappointment, not with the report, but that a guy that did so much good in his life and destroyed it all by his weaknesses."

NOTTS County want a longer look at St Johnstone striker Craig Beattie.

The 28-year-old spent this week training at Notts before returning north of the border.

And boss Keith Curle plans to chat to his old Man City team-mate and Saints manager Steve Lomas to see if he will let the Scot rejoin Notts on trial.

Curle is eager to sign a striker during the January transfer window because he only has two in Yoann Arquin and Enoch Showunmi now Lee Hughes has left Meadow Lane – and he rates Beattie very highly, having coached him at Crystal Palace.

Curle said: "I tried to bring him here during the summer, because I know what he can do. But he made the decision to stay in Scotland.

"Things have changed slightly now though and he wants to be playing football.

"He's gone there and not had the best of times."

Beattie has only played two games as a sub in the SPL this season because of a long injury and also illness so Curle wants to find out how fit he is before deciding whether to make a bid.

"There is no hiding away from the fact that I want to bring in another centre forward and Craig is someone I've had the opportunity to look at," he added.

"He's short of fitness and match practice because of an injury he picked up when he first joined St Johnstone, so it's a chance for him to show us where he's at physically.

"It was initially for this week, but if I can extend it I will do, but we're mindful he's a St Johnstone player."

Having already signed midfielder Andre Boucaud since the transfer window opened, Curle says he has several more targets.

"I could give you about seven or eight targets we're trying to bring into the club, but we've got a budget to stick to," he said.

AN open prison inmate has been locked up indefinitely after carrying out a series of robberies on weekend leave.

Eithan Teanby, 41, was serving a sentence for wounding and assault at HMP North Sea Camp in Boston when he was granted leave on May 18 last year.

He was due to return on Monday, May 21, but never did, Nottingham Crown Court heard yesterday.

He went on to rob a post office in Scunthorpe and then attempted to rob a branch of Santander in Clumber Street in Nottingham city centre. He also robbed a branch of Halifax in Bulwell.

Judge Michael Stokes locked him up for public projection and ordered he serve a minimum of seven years before parole was considered.

He said Teanby went "out of control" when he attacked staff at East Common Lane Post Office, Scunthorpe, slashing postmaster Peter Smith and his wife, Hilary, with a knife. Assistant Sue Smith, banged her head and suffered an eye injury.

Jon Fountain, prosecuting, said Teanby shouted he wanted money and would kill the staff if they did not turn off the panic alarm. He escaped with £2,560 but left behind his fingerprints and his jacket.

Judge Stokes awarded the Smiths £500 each from public funds for their "courage" and "valour".

"It must have been terrifying for all three of them to undergo this experience," he said.

Teanby tried to rob the Clumber Street Santander on May 29. He said to a cashier "give me all your money from the till", but she refused.

He indicated that he had a gun and threatened to "smash her face in".

Mr Fountain said: "She asked him, 'are you being serious?' and he confirmed he was."

She called out to her manager that Teanby was threatening her and he fled empty-handed.

Teanby went on to rob Halifax, in Commercial Road, Bulwell, after leaping on to the counter with a ten -inch knife in his hand on May 30, 2012. He told a cashier "do as I say...no one will get hurt" and reached into the till and grabbed £2,000. He was arrested on June 2.

He admitted two robberies, one attempted robbery and two charges of possessing a knife.

He later said he committed the offences because he owed a debt to a fellow prisoner.

After the hearing, Detective Constable Adam Cooper said: "Teanby was a violent and prolific criminal who wasn't deterred from committing further crimes by the fact he was wanted by two different police forces. He brazenly targeted both the Post Office and the banks in broad daylight and in one case waited in line, posing as a customer, before seizing his moment. However, his short-lived crime spree ended when an eagle-eyed officer saw him loitering around the city centre and arrested him."

TWO young girls were trapped in their burning house after a tealight caused a devastating blaze.

Neighbours tried to help as the girls, aged five and 15, screamed from an upstairs window.

Flames tore through the house in Osborne Grove, Sherwood, on Thursday evening.

Investigators say the fire started when a tealight melted into their TV, starting a blaze so hot it caused windows to explode.

The girls were alone in the house when the fire broke out at 10.15pm.

Neighbours said the pair were lucky to get out alive and praised firefighters for their quick action.

Benedict Cooper saw the drama unfold.

The 30-year-old said: "I heard the commotion and saw the flames coming out of the window – the room was glowing orange and it was quite shocking really. People were yelling at the girls in the window, trying to reassure them and telling them to keep their heads down to avoid breathing in too much smoke."

Ali Asghar, 65, lives across from the house. He said: "The firefighters are heroes – you couldn't praise them enough.

"The girls were in big danger – they were crying out for help and they arrived quickly and got them out the house."

And William Phung, 22, said: "People from all across the street came out to see what was going on and help any way they could."

A neighbour, who called the fire brigade but did not wish to be named, said: "I heard the girl shouting – that was the first thing I noticed. I could just see the older girl hanging out the window and I saw the house was on fire.

"I could see the orange glow (of the fire) while we were out on the street. The windows exploded pretty quickly.

"If it had been later at night and they had been asleep then it could have been smoke inhalation and I don't know if we would have heard."

In the morning, the devastation caused by the blaze was clear.

Members of the family were back at the house yesterday picking through their belongings but were too distressed to speak to the Post.

The missing windows have now been boarded up.

The fire service spent 45 minutes at the scene on Thursday evening and have issued a warning about candles and tealights in the home.

Liz Reeson, of Notts Fire and Rescue Service, said: "People don't realise the danger of naked flames and their potential for accidents such as this."

She advised people to ensure tealights were kept in holders and kept away from items that could catch light.

NOTTINGHAM Forest have named an unchanged side just ONCE all season – but boss Alex McLeish says he hopes to find a settled team.

The Scot believes establishing a regular starting XI will help the Reds find the consistency they need to climb the Championship table.

Previous boss Sean O'Driscoll last named an unchanged side when he took them to newly-relegated Bolton on Friday August 24, following the draw at Huddersfield.

But O'Driscoll subsequently continued to make changes as he sought to decide on his best Forest line-up.

And McLeish has since made changes in all three of his games so far – which means the Reds have not had the same starting line-up in 25 consecutive matches.

Now McLeish admits he hopes to find a settled side quickly, in order to help Forest find the consistent form that has eluded them all season.

"Getting a settled team will help. If we can have players who are playing to a level where their performances are consistently good, then they will have the energy, because they will be confident," said McLeish, ahead of today's visit of Peterborough.

"I don't want to make too many changes every week. We did not want to stray too far away from what we had done in the Leeds and Crystal Palace games."

But McLeish says it may take time for him to find the right blend.

"I can see there are players who lack sharpness, because they have not had games," he said.

"The first two league games were an education for us. We have lost goals in situations where I did not see goals coming.

"That has to do with concentration levels and not locking things up when we have not got the ball.

"When we have the ball, we can be expansive still. But we do not have to be vulnerable. Having a settled side might help with that."

McLeish will have to make changes again when Peterborough visit the City Ground this weekend as Danny Collins is suspended – meaning that run will extend to 26. Andy Reid could be sidelined for a month with a groin injury.