Data protection warning for charities

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 11:22am

A leading South West expert in data protection is highlighting the pitfalls of data protection, following 11 charities being fined by the UK’s data watchdog. The Information Commissioner’s Office has issued fines to high profile charities including Cancer Research UK, The Royal British Legion and Oxfam. The offences included piecing together data from various sources and trading personal details to target new and lapsed donors. The International Fund for Animal Welfare received the highest fine of the 11 charities, at £18,000, after being found to have shared over 5 million donor records...

SW property industry must unite to end homelessness, says RICS

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 11:20am

The South West’s land, property and construction sectors must collaborate better to help end rising homelessness and deliver more affordable homes, says the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

The professional body is asking those who work in the industry to pledge their support for its ‘A Home For Cathy’ campaign, which aims to deliver solutions to alleviate the country’s affordable housing crisis.

RICS – which sets professional standards in the land, property and construction sectors – launched its ‘Home for Cathy’ campaign at the end of last year to coincide...

Photographs raise funds for charity

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 10:17am

The sale of photographs featured in an exhibition of work by past pupils at Blundell’s School, who have gone on to have successful careers as photographers or in related fields, raised £630 for Cancer Research UK. The exhibition was organised by former teacher of photography Steve Goodwin and marked his forty years of teaching the subject at Blundell’s. It included work by Joe Cornish, one of the most influential landscape photographers of his generation; the award-winning producer and director Richard Heeley, and Kate Lord Brown, whose travel editorial, photographs and novels have been...

Record award nominations for Seaton Jurassic

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 10:00am

The iconic Seaton Jurassic heritage centre has been shortlisted for a record six prestigious building and planning awards for its astonishing and forward-thinking design.

The centre, which was designed by Plymouth-based firm Form Design, was opened last year and has since had 50,000 visitors to the site.

Seaton Jurassic is owned by East Devon District Council and operated by the charity Devon Wildlife Trust.

Four of the nominations come from The Planning Awards 2017, an esteemed awards scheme which looks to honour "excellence in planning and placemaking". The four...

Mid Devon man raises over £8,500 with 710-mile coast path walk

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 9:38am

A Mid Devon man raised more than £8,500 for local cancer patients and their families by walking 710 miles along the entire South West Coast Path.

Jim Bray completed the 56-day, anti-clockwise trek from Minehead in Somerset to Poole Harbour in Dorset last year, with fundraising continuing into 2017.

The walk, entitled Jim’s Journey, raised £8,511.35, which was split 50-50 between Exeter-based FORCE and Over and Above, the charity of the Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust.

Jim, 37, who lives in Sampford Peverell, presented cheques to both charities at Tiverton Golf...

Full slate of Labour candidates ready to take on Conservatives for County Hall

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 9:36am

Devon Labour Party is proud to announce that for the first time every seat in the upcoming Devon County Council elections will have a Labour candidate. Rob Hannaford, Labour candidate for Exwick & St. Thomas in Exeter said: “I'm delighted our Party will for the first time stand candidates in every Devon division. "Our Party has a clear message for Devon voters - the Conservative's plan more Council Tax rises whilst cutting your key services, charging residents more for less. This will be disastrous for Devon’s social care, children's services, our NHS, education, our environment and...

Redrow West Country Extends Sales Team

Authored by Gill Vosper
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 9:21am

Redrow, one of the UK’s leading house builders, has extended the sales team of its West Country Division to support the firm’s growth plans across Somerset, Devon and Cornwall.

Michele Jones has been appointed Area Sales Manager to take responsibility for a portfolio of new and existing Redrow sites while Clare Mitchell has been promoted to the role of Trainee Area Sales Manager.

Michele brings 11 years’ experience in the field, having previously worked as a Connections Manager and Area Sales Manager at Linden Homes. With an expertise in lead prospecting and database...

Gender pay gap at 18.3% in South West

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 7:36am

Thousands of employers will publish their gender pay gap figures for the first time from today, helping break the glass ceiling and create a more modern workforce.

The UK is one of the first countries in the world to require gender pay gap reporting and follows the government’s commitment to introduce the requirements at the last election. This is a key part of the government’s work to eliminate the gender pay gap.

Voluntary, private and public sector employers with 250 or more employees will be required to publish their figures by April 2018. The regulations will cover...

University of Exeter opens business space at Exeter Science Park

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 04/06/2017 - 6:32am

The University of Exeter has launched new business space and hot-desking facilities at the Exeter Science Park to help build partnerships with high-growth businesses.

To mark the opening of the new space, CBI South West Director Deborah Waddell and Sean Fielding, Director of Innovation, Impact & Business at the University, met to discuss business collaboration and new initiatives.

The space at the Science Park will be managed by the University’s Innovation, Impact and Business (IIB) team, who are experts in creating collaboration opportunities and generating value for...

Increased awareness call for pancreatic cancer in SW

Only 7% of people in the South-West of England know a lot about pancreatic cancer, according to a national awareness survey commissioned by Pancreatic Cancer Action.

Nationally, the figures are even worse, with 5% claiming they know a lot about the disease.

Across the nation this year, 9600 men and women will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and 8,800 will die of the disease. In the South West, 963 people were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Of that number, only 48 survived.

It is the UK’s fifth worst cause of cancer death, with a survival rate of just 5% - the...

Pages