Homes & Gardens

Firefighters up and down the country are preparing to roll up their sleeves to take part in the National Car Wash this Saturday, 10 September to raise vital funds for The Fire Fighters Charity.

Bring your car along and have it washed in return for a donation to The Fire Fighters Charity, the UK’s leading provider of services that enhance quality of life for serving and retired fire service personnel and their families.

Lee Howell, Chief Fire Officer for Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Servicer said: “Monies raised through national fundraising initiatives provide a...

A proposed cap on Housing Benefit could see the South West’s supported housing residents asked to make up a shortfall of more than £51 a week to pay rent. According to figures from the Starts at Home campaign, roughly 5,500 could be affected in the first year alone.

The Starts at Home campaign aims to highlight the importance of supported housing, a diverse sector made up of schemes that provide extra care and support ranging from women’s refuges and specialist dementia accommodation to veterans’ services. On 1 September, housing associations are taking part in ‘Starts at Home Day...

The Local Government Association is urging new ministers to rethink the Pay to Stay policy which will require councils to charge some of their tenants higher rents from April 2017.

It comes as new analysis reveals today that more than 70,000 social housing tenants could face rent rise bills of an average £1,000 a year from next year under government plans to increase rents for those deemed to be earning high incomes. The LGA is warning the policy would create a bureaucracy causing stress to families, further costs to councils, and financial returns to the Government far lower than...

Historically low interest rates and schemes such as Help to Buy are set to ensure that buyers looking to make a move to Exeter in 2016 will be able to take advantage of some of the best buying conditions the housing market has ever seen.

Five star housebuilder David Wilson Homes, which has a number of developments in Exeter, said the EU Referendum result has created some uncertainty for potential buyers but says that nothing has changed in terms of attractive interest rates and schemes to help existing owners move to a larger home in the city.

Help to Buy is a very popular...