children

Child arrests by Devon and Cornwall Police reduced by 75 per cent in a decade

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Mon, 08/23/2021 - 6:14am

Arrests of children by Devon and Cornwall Police have been reduced by 75 per cent over the last decade, figures reveal today (Monday 23 August) in another major step forward for a successful Howard League for Penal Reform campaign. Since 2010, the Howard League has been working with police forces across England and Wales to reduce child arrests, helping to ensure that hundreds of thousands of boys and girls do not have their lives blighted by a criminal record. Data provided by police forces show that arrests of children aged 17 and under were reduced by 13 per cent last year – from 72,...

Founder of Sofee playing with her child on a Sofee play sofa.

Motherhood the key to invention of product unique to the UK by local woman

Authored by Sofee
Posted: Tue, 08/17/2021 - 9:01am

A Devon mumpreneur has just launched a multi-purpose play sofa after being inspired by her children -and it’s already attracting rave reviews.

Emily Roffe-Silvester, who lives in Mid-Devon, created the Sofee play sofa after watching her two young children trying to build a rocket while they were confined to the house during the pandemic. She said: ‘My children love building dens and forts out of cushions and sofas and it was seeing their frustration at not being able to build something sturdy enough to hold shape that made me realise we needed a play sofa. I wanted to create...

Go batty at The Donkey Sanctuary this summer 

The Donkey Sanctuary Sidmouth will host East Devon’s new travelling creative space – the Creative Cabin on Monday 9 and Tuesday 10 August, offering visitors free hands-on activities and the chance to learn all about one of the UK's rarest bats - the grey long-eared-bat.

Activities at the 'Completely Batty' event include making flying bat models and bat masks, as well as putting together wildflower ‘seed bombs’, to create wildflower gardens at home.

Visitors will also be able to join a Bat Discovery trail around the sanctuary with the charity’s Ecology and Conservation...

Healthy meal boxes delivered to families with young children across Devon

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Fri, 06/04/2021 - 4:43pm

Thousands of meal boxes have again been delivered to families with young children this half term holiday week, in an initiative to help those who are struggling during the coronavirus pandemic.

Devon County Council first ran ‘The Goodie Box’ initiative during the Easter holidays, with incredible success. The boxes included ingredients and simple recipe ideas, and they were delivered to families’ front doors. Families loved them.

The council has done it again this holiday, and the boxes have included fresh and store cupboard ingredients for dhal curry and flatbreads;...

Exeter children urged to write poems to tackle food bank stigma

CHILDREN in Exeter are being called to pen a short poem about hunger and what it means to them, as part of a national competition run by anti-poverty charity the Trussell Trust, which supports a network of food banks across the UK.

The charity is calling on youngsters, aged nine and under, to create and draw a hungry character and tell its story in the form of a short poem – as part of its Bye Bye Hunger competition.

The top twenty entries will be published in a poetry book and one star prize winner will see their character brought to life in the Trussell Trust campaign...

Emergency foster carers needed for Devon’s most vulnerable children

Emergency foster carers needed for Devon’s most vulnerable children

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 05/20/2021 - 5:32pm

Devon County Council’s fostering service, Fostering Devon, is calling for people to consider offering emergency foster care to vulnerable children.

The new ‘Emergency Bed Scheme’ provides rapid support for children and young people, aged between 0 and 18 years old, who are unable to remain living in their current home and need an immediate place of safety at a time of crisis.

Foster carers providing emergency placements must have no other children at home so that they can accept any child or young person that needs a bed for up to seven nights.

The scheme is run...

young family eating out

Top tips for eating out with kids

Authored by Marc Astley
Posted: Thu, 05/20/2021 - 12:01pm

I don't know about you, but I am so excited about being able to go to restaurants again! The great British weather isn't really made for eating outdoors, so having the luxury of knowing we can definitely eat indoors is going to be bliss!

Even though we are all pretty excited, the thought of eating out with kids can fill some people with fear! Especially after all of the lockdowns, where some of our children's manners or eating habits may have been allowed to slide a little.

I always try to be as prepared as I can to eat out with my littles ones, so today I thought I...

What about children in Devon's separated families who want to hug BOTH their parents? 

What about children in Devon's separated families who want to hug BOTH their parents? 

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Mon, 05/17/2021 - 11:20pm
Free one hour co-parenting Zoom support meeting

As hugs return to our lives, a leading national charity whose HQ is in Exeter is urging separated families across Devon to ensure the children get the chance to hug both their parents.

For over a year, separated families have adapted parenting arrangements as best they could. Restrictions meant many children didn’t see one of their parents for many months on end, and for some even longer. Temporary arrangements were made, with thousands of children making do with using video conference apps.

“Now is the time to rebuild co-...

May opening for The Donkey Sanctuary Sidmouth 

May opening for The Donkey Sanctuary Sidmouth

The Donkey Sanctuary Sidmouth will reopen to visitors on Monday 17 May, with the launch of a new family activity trail.

The new trail, 'An Adorably Curious Adventure', gives visitors the chance to explore the sanctuary and discover the A-Z of fun donkey facts, while completing trail activities along the way.

John Crouch, Visitor Engagement Manager at The Donkey Sanctuary, said: "We have all been looking forward to this day for some time, welcoming back our loyal supporters and visitors. The sanctuary always comes alive when it's open, there is always such a nice...

Devon adoption agencies need families for brothers and sisters who need to stay together

Just under half of children waiting for adoption are in family groups of two or more with 20 groups waiting in Devon

Latest figures show there are currently 2,020 children waiting to be adopted in England and, of those, 44% are in family groups of two or more. Groups of children wait an average of 17 months to be adopted, which is 36% longer (135 days more) than individual children. More than half of these groups (56%) even wait more than 18 months for their new family. For many potential adopters, this is due to groups being slightly older and worries about financial affordability,...

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