The Staffordshire Signal Weekly: Duchess China's big week in Longton, the Cannock Chase rut, and 2,000 take on the Potters 'Arf

Duchess China lands fresh investment and a global JCB order, the fallow deer rut gets going on Cannock Chase, and more than 2,000 runners tackle the Potters 'Arf. This week in The Staffordshire Signal Weekly.

Dear readers,

Autumn has well and truly arrived. The heating is creeping back on, the leaves are turning, and out on Cannock Chase the fallow deer have started their rut, a few short weeks of groaning and clashing antlers. Natalee and I headed out with our cameras for it, and I'd urge you to set an alarm, take a flask and go and see it for yourself. It costs nothing, it's half an hour from most of the county, and it's a cracking reminder of just how much we have on our doorstep here in Staffordshire.

Now for something a little less cheerful. If you've noticed fewer of our stories popping up in your feeds lately, you're not imagining it. The social media platforms are throttling just about everyone at the moment, and Facebook in particular has been quietly burying posts that carry links. For a newsroom whose whole job is to send you to the full story, that's a bit like being told you can run a bus service as long as it never stops anywhere. So we're spreading out, with this paper landing in your inbox every Wednesday, our WhatsApp channel, and new corners of the internet where Staffordshire people are talking. If you value what we do, the single most useful thing you can do this week is forward this email to someone who'd enjoy it.

This week's front page belongs to Longton. Duchess China has been making fine bone china behind the same 1888 date stone on Uttoxeter Road for 138 years, and it has just landed fresh investment and a global order from JCB. Our ceramics story is very much not finished, and we'd love to tell more of it. If you make, paint, fire, sell or collect, or you know a local business that deserves a bit of the spotlight, send them our way at jenna@thestaffordshiresignal.co.uk.

Elsewhere, more than 2,000 people tackled the hills of the Potters 'Arf, JCB has dug deep for Cheddleton's medieval church, and there's a pumpkin patch guide for anyone with small people to entertain this October.

And one small favour. We've put together a short survey about what you want from your Wednesday paper, what you love, and what you'd like more of. It takes a couple of minutes, and every answer genuinely shapes what we do next. Would you fill it in for us? You'll find the link at the bottom of this email, or head straight there now.

Until next Wednesday.

Jenna