Majority of Britain’s youth can’t read a map

When traipsing through a busy city centre or strolling through rural areas, pulling out a huge paper map that takes 10 minutes to pinpoint where you are, is a thing of the past. It seems now that we no longer rely on once trusty maps but have near enough fully turned to digital navigation, as 85% of 18-24 year olds do not know how to read a map.

It was around six years ago that maps became available for mobile, revolutionising the way we navigated. Now, around 45% of 18-24 year olds utilise maps on their smartphone to navigate and a third (32%) are totally reliant on the internet...

Solicitors stand by for ‘D day’

Authored by Everys
Posted: Sun, 01/04/2015 - 6:37pm

As the Christmas and New Year celebrations conclude, solicitors around the region will be preparing themselves for the influx of calls they will receive regarding divorce.

Known as ‘D day’, this is first day legal offices open after the festive break and it is traditionally the busiest day of the year for divorce enquiries.

Zoe Porter has recently joined Everys Solicitors as its newest partner and has experienced 13 D days in her career.

She said: “A lot of couples drag themselves through Christmas before picking up the phone to their solicitor. The majority of...

Call for children to be taught lifesaving CPR

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Sun, 01/04/2015 - 11:20am

People in the South West believe children should be taught CPR in schools, according to new research by the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

The BHF polled over 2,000 people and found that 89% of people in the South West thought that children should leave secondary school knowing the life-saving skill.

More than 30,000 people have a cardiac arrest outside of hospital, but less than one-in-ten survive - partly because people don’t have the skills or confidence to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Survival rates in the UK are much lower than other countries...

Charity makes Tom's dream come true

Authored by Dream-A-Way
Posted: Sun, 01/04/2015 - 10:06am

Exeter based charity Dream-A-Way recently provided a holiday grant to young Tom from East Devon and were delighted to meet up with him and to hear about his wonderful holiday experience Tom flew to Rome with his carers in November for a 5 day holiday at the Star Hotel Metropole. Tom is an absolutely delightful young man and it was a real pleasure to spend some time with him and his lovely carers, Julie and Kate. He has no vision whatsoever and is autistic. Nothing though, has stopped him from researching foreign countries and cuisines and cultures.

He has found totally amazing ways...

Chiefs lose by a point to Gloucester

Match report: Exeter Chiefs 25 Gloucester 26

Unlike Game One of their Aviva Premiership existence, Exeter’s 100th top flight encounter failed to bring the same rewards for Rob Baxter’s side, writes Mark Stevens.

Back in September 2010, the Chiefs stunned the rugby world when they saw off visiting Gloucester 22-10 thanks to a Mark Foster try and the deadly boot of Gareth Steenson.

Five years down the line, Devon’s finest have grown in stature, forging themselves as one of England’s leading lights.

On this occasion, though, Steenson was unable to repeat the...

Exeter City lose in extra time

Match report: Exeter City 1 Accrington 2

Exeter City opened the calendar year with a disappointing defeat at home to Accrington Stanley, who came from behind to win 2-1.

Tom Nichols’ ninth goal of the season had Exeter in the ascendency at the interval, but Seamus McCartan had the visitors level midway through the second period.

Just minutes after Tom Aldred denied Nichols a winner with a goal-line block, the Stanley centre-half slotted in a rebound at the other end to secure the points in stoppage-time.

As in City’s previous home game against Cheltenham,...

Divorce Day warning from top city lawyer

For many people it will be a stressful start to the New Year, as thousands of people pick up the phone to a lawyer to start divorce proceedings.

The post-Christmas and New Year phenomenon is so well established in legal circles that it has become known as ‘Divorce Day’.

And one of the country’s top divorce lawyers is warning couples to steer clear of so called “DIY divorces” as the motivation to save money on divorce can actually lead to couples losing out significantly financially in the long term. Liz Allen from Stephens Scown LLP in Exeter has received the top ranking...

Assistant Chief Fire Officer recognised in New Year’s Honours

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Trevor Stratford has been awarded the British Empire Medal in the 2015 New Year’s Honours List for services to the Fire and Rescue Service.

The honour follows a year in which Trevor managed the fire service response to the flooding on the Somerset Levels and the impact of the severe weather at Dawlish last winter.

As Director of Operations at Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service, Trevor has responsibility for all operational and resilience matters across the organisation.

He said: “I am extremely proud to receive this award and...

MEI chief executive awarded MBE for services to education

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Sat, 01/03/2015 - 2:12pm

MEI’s Chief Executive Charlie Stripp, from Exeter, has been awarded an MBE in the 2015 Queen’s New Year Honours List in recognition of his services to education.

Charlie taught mathematics for 10 years in the state sector before joining Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) in 2000 to set up the pilot project that eventually became the Further Mathematics Support Programme.

He became MEI’s Chief Executive in 2010. Charlie is also Director of the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM), seconded from MEI on a half-time basis, and is...

Charity bookseller publishes first novel

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Sat, 01/03/2015 - 11:44am

Graeme Smith, a Maintenance Assistant from the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust Estates Department who is well known around Heavitree Hospital for his successful charity book stall, has just published his very first novel - The Awakening of Abraham Brown.

Over the past five years Graeme has raised over £10,000 for charity by wheeling out his charity trolley, stacked mainly with books and some bric-a-brac, into the main entrance foyer of Heavitree Hospital. Patients and staff kindly donate items to the stall each week, which supports two main charities, the Devon Air...

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