Eco Sleep London, a start-up from Plymouth has launched the UK’s first mattress company that ethically manufacturers mattresses and recycles customer’s old ones in a responsible way, ensuring none contribute to the 5.6 million that end up in UK landfill every year.

Founded by entrepreneurs Darren Lee from Plymouth and Mark Ward from Exeter, the Eco Sleep London collection is made in Britain. It uses100% recyclable materials, including re-engineered foam and use ‘EcoAdvance’ comfort technology.

As well as promising a super-comfortable space for sleeping, Eco Sleep London...

99% of bathing waters in England have passed water quality standards following testing at over 400 designated sites carried out by the Environment Agency (EA). The results, released today (19 January), show that for the 2021 bathing season 94.7% of England's beaches and inland waters gained an ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’ rating while 4.3% achieved the minimum ‘Sufficient’ rating. This compares with 98.3% passing the required standards in 2019, and is the highest number since new standards were introduced in 2015. For the first time ever, 100% of designated bathing waters in Devon and Cornwall...

Two more south west GP hubs have joined a clinical trial giving patients access to new COVID-19 antiviral drugs, which are designed to help people recover sooner, and reduce the need for hospital admission.

Symphony Healthcare Services, a network of NHS GP practices in Somerset and Devon, as well as Honiton Surgery in east Devon, have just been given the green light to start contacting COVID-positive patients and inviting them to take part in PANORAMIC. The two new sites join Newquay Health Centre in Cornwall, which began recruiting trial participants before Christmas.

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A new play co-created by people living in the South West shows the long history of LGBTQIA+ loneliness and belonging in the region.

Mistreatment and marginalisation from society has meant LGBTQIA+ communities have created their own spaces for solidarity, creativity, and dialogue.

The Beat of Our Hearts , written by South West-based playwright Natalie McGrath, will be staged as part of LGBT History Month in February.

Project lead, Dr Charlotte Jones from the University of Exeter, worked with organisations and individuals in the South West to develop and stage the...

Hundreds of families across the Philippines in desperate need of help in the aftermath of Typhoon Rai will be receiving essential supplies thanks to a grant of £25,000 to Plan International from the Freemasons. Freemasonry, through the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) and Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF), is responding with Plan International to support affected communities at this critical time. These funds will be used to provide hygiene kits, including soap, shampoo, towels, toothpaste and brushes to 851 families to help them keep clean and healthy in the aftermath of the...

Top 40 law firm Trowers & Hamlins has bolstered its Commercial Litigation team in Exeter with new recruit, Charisse Crawford.

Charisse specialises in private wealth disputes and contentious asset protection issues including trust disputes, removal of trustees, removal of executors, financial abuse claims and Court of Protection work, contentious deputyship and attorney issues, claims between unmarried partners and the preparation of cohabitation agreements, claims against estates including will validity claims, the doctrine of proprietary estoppel, claims under the...

A group of cat volunteers are celebrating the successful homing of the final group of kittens from a farm near Honiton.

Cats Protection’s Honiton Branch had a busy year, rehoming more than 40 cats during 2021 and neutering 163 cats by October. However, it has been the most recent humane trapping of a pregnant female cat at a farm outside Monkton that has been cause for most celebration.

Originally contacted when three young kittens and some feral adults were seen around the farm, the branch set humane traps and was able to catch the kittens and take them into care. Two...

Supplements are products that add nutritional value to your diet or improve health. They come in pill, powder, or liquid form. Supplements contain at least one dietary ingredient such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, botanicals, amino acids, or enzymes. Some of the most popular supplements also come in a multivitamin that can be purchased as a standalone supplement to avoid taking a lot of different pills each day. Supplements are meant to be supplementary but they aren’t a replacement for real food, or for a nutrient-dense, healthy diet. Supplements are meant to boost extra nutrients in the...

The British Heart Foundation shop in Exeter is urgently appealing for volunteers this New Year, as it gets back up and running, following the pandemic.

This January, the shop is encouraging the public to give the gift of time and get involved – whether that’s working the till, sorting donations or welcoming customers. The BHF has plenty of exciting volunteering roles available for those looking to support their local community, improve their wellbeing and widen their social network while supporting a good cause.   

The charity’s 712 nationwide shops are bouncing back...

Following the success of the inaugural Breakthrough Cider Maker Awards, entries are now open for 2022. These remarkable awards are free to enter and offer aspiring cider makers advice, guidance and guaranteed listings with the on and off trade.

The closing date for applications is 28th February.

Barny Butterfield, Chief Cidermaker at Sandford Orchards explains:”The Breakthrough Cider Maker Awards are nothing like any other cider competition. It’s the competition that I wish I could have won when I was starting out. Without a budget, without much help and support, it can be...