Devon

Former councillor awarded Freedom of the City

Long serving former Exeter City Councillor, Yolonda Henson has been awarded the Honorary position of Freeman of the City.

The award is recognition of her unstinting duty of public service over a total of 32 years elected service on the City Council. This includes a number of years as Leader of the Conservative Group, as well as Mayor of the City in 1992. Throughout that time, she has always put the interests of the residents of the City and the future of the City itself, first.

Yolonda most recently served the residents in the Polsloe ward on the City Council but was...

Big increase in private tenant repossessions

Local charity, Exeter Citizens Advice Bureau, is reporting a worrying 34% increase in private sector tenant repossession cases.

This is in comparison with the same period last year and shows that pressure on household budgets continues to hit hard.

Across all housing sectors, where a CAB adviser has assisted clients facing repossession, clients have avoided repossession in 80% of cases.

Exeter City Council has provided financial support for this essential service.

Steve Barriball, Exeter Citizens Advice Bureau Chief Executive, said: “We have at least one...

Cash boost to tackle homelessness in Exeter

Homeless people across Exeter and parts of Devon have been given a boost with the awarding of crucial funding to tackle the ongoing problem of homelessness.

Quarter of a million pounds has been awarded from the government’s Help for Homeless fund.

The successful bid was lead by Exeter City Council and includes Exeter, Teignbridge, East Devon, Mid Devon and Torbay.

An additional combined total of £35,000 will be donated by the local authorities involved in the project.

The new funding will provide:

  • Three specialist case workers managing complex
  • ...

Crime continues to fall across the region

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Fri, 01/23/2015 - 12:23pm

The latest figures for 2014 show that crime continues to fall across the region.

Recorded figures for January to December 2014 showed a decrease of 3.2% or 2,747 fewer offences compared to 2013, with reductions across a number of crime groups.

The updated picture shows the Force continues to see reductions in public order offences (down by 14.8%), theft (-10.7%), Burglary (-5.7%), and criminal damage has fallen by 5.9%.

In line with the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, there are certain types of crime that the Force want to see a rise in the reporting of...

Pupils succeed at British Physics Olympiad

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Fri, 01/23/2015 - 11:16am

Twelve Exeter School pupils have scored top results in the challenging British Physics Olympiad, competing against over 1,900 pupils nationally.

A total of one Silver award, four Bronze awards and seven Commendations were awarded.

Physics teacher Dr Houghton said all those who entered should be congratulated on their achievement.

“This comprises an extremely difficult test paper, much more challenging and less predictable than an A2 paper,” he said.

“Only those who have already achieved a good grade A at AS are considered for entry, and award boundaries are...

Toddler time at Knightshayes

Event Date: 
12/02/2015 - 11:00am
Venue: 
Knightshayes Court, Tiverton

Staff and volunteers are preparing for toddlers to take over the Knightshayes for its first ever Toddler Time on Thursday 12 February.

Between 11am and 3pm the National Trust property on the outskirts of Tiverton, is opening its doors to tiny explorers and their families. Each Toddler Time has a seasonal theme, with sensory activities for little ones to enjoy.

This February, the under-fives can discover the wonder of the weather, with messy play activities exploring ice, snow and muddy puddles. Children can take part in crafts, explore the gardens, listen to stories and...

Upskill struggle could be eased by online education

Employers could face an upskill struggle when recruiting for the roles available in a changing job market, set to grow by around 37% in the South West, according to CBI predictions.

The National Careers Council says over half of employers are not confident they will find sufficient recruits for jobs on offer. Growth is expected in sectors such as computer technology, tourism and healthcare, with decline anticipated in areas such as call centre, secretarial and banking employment.*

Graduates will be in higher demand as the job market picks up, with 30% of employers expecting...

Hostile takeover research wins ethical Hutton Prize

A University of Exeter Law postgraduate student has been awarded the Hutton Prize for Excellence, which encourages the next generation of young professionals to put ethical conduct at the forefront of business, government and the professions.

Hadrien Chautard has been studying the LLM International Commercial Law programme and is the second postgraduate Law student in a row to win the Hutton Prize. As this year’s winner of the best dissertation demonstrating a commitment to ethical conduct and practice, Chautard won the prize which is a medal containing one troy ounce of solid gold...

Collapse closes Exmouth Esplanade

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 01/22/2015 - 3:56pm

The Esplanade in Exmouth will be closed for several days due to a problem with the road surface near to the Premier Inn Hotel site.

A spokesperson for Devon County Council said: "A hole appeared in the road whilst work was going on at the Premier Inn site revealing a sewer pipe around five metres underground.

"The road is closed to traffic but should partially re-open on Monday with two-way traffic lights and then be fully open by Wednesday next week."

Devon delivers fire training in Mauritius

A new Incident Command training has been delivered by Red One to the Mauritius Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) via Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service (DSFRS) Academy Incident Command School.

The risks in the Mauritius area range from an international airport, shipping, major flooding, motorways, industrial manufacturing companies and a number of high-rise buildings in the commercial centre. However, the majority of fires attended by MFRS are bush fires and sugar cane field fires, which account for nearly three-quarters of their daily calls.

The Mauritian...

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