One of the leading law firms in Devon and Cornwall has won two prestigious awards for its work, as well as reaching the shortlist for another national award. Stephens Scown LLP has won Property Law Firm of the Year and Deal of the Year at the Insider South West Property Awards 2014, which were announced at an event in Bristol on 16 October. The Deal of the Year award was for the firm’s work with Wolf Minerals on the development of its Drakelands Mine near Plymouth. The judges called it the "most complicated deal by a country mile". Stephens Scown has also reached the shortlist for the...
Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service is to receive a share of a £75 million Government fund to improve frontline services to the public.
Fire and rescue authorities could bid for funding to deliver efficiencies and transformational change.
The Service was the lead partner in a successful bid for £374,100 with Kent and Essex fire and rescue authorities to establish a procurement hub which will create new opportunities to buy collaboratively.
The Service was also a named partner in three other successful bids:
As old as time and as modern as the hour, the music of Tarras is impossible to pigeonhole. It draws heavily on the roots of folk and traditional music but reinterprets those themes with a freshness that is entirely contemporary.
Through driving rhythms and soaring melodies, the sound of Tarras expresses the essence of an ancient countryside and a people who still confront the same human challenges as generation upon generation over the centuries.
Normally a six-piece band with drums- the group have launched an all-venue friendly Acoustic trio version (Tarras Minor) using...
Stagecoach South West has announced extensions to their Exeter ticket zones.
The changes will take effect from Monday 27th October and will result in significant reductions in daily and season ticket travel costs for, amongst others, residents of Cranbrook and Cullompton.
The Exeter Megarider zone is being extended to include the new town of Cranbrook, with the cost of a daily ticket falling from £5.50 to £3.60 and the cost of a weekly ticket reducing from £20 to £14, savings of 35% and 30% respectively.
The Exeter Megarider Plus zone is being extended to include...
Pumpkin kits are on their way to local businesses as part of a competition to help raise funds for Children’s Hospice South West.
For the second year running, the Mercure Southgate Exeter is holding a pumpkin carving competition, inviting Exeter residents, businesses, hotel guests, spa and leisure club members to get creative for charity.
Hotel manager Fiona Darde said: “We’re looking for people to get creative and help raise money for Children’s Hospice South West. Last year we had a fantastic response, ranging from quirky and fun to truly inspiring and scary.
A survey by an Exeter hearing centre revealed 40 per cent of people feel embarrassed or anxious about hearing loss.
Specsavers Hearing Centre Exeter conducted research at the Exeter 50+ Show, polling visitors at the annual gathering about their perceptions of hearing loss, which affects one in six people in the UK.
Results also revealed 78 per cent of people feel unable to join in conversations in some social situations due to background noise, while 29 per cent of people have pretended to know what someone was saying despite not being able to hear them.
A wishing well has been hand crafted and donated by local contractor, Build Care Plus Limited to Princesshay’s charity of the year Dream-A-Way.
The wishing well is located in the centre of the main thoroughfare in Princesshay and has proved a big hit with shoppers of all ages.
Jeff Merrett MBE, Chairman of Dream-A-Way said: “We’re extremely grateful to Build Care Plus for creating and donating the wishing well.
"We hope visitors to Princesshay will enjoy the new feature and we’d like to thank those who have already donated. Those looking to exchange their pennies...
Network Rail has announced plans for tackling the problem of continual flooding at Cowley and Stafford bridges in Exeter.
This solution involves the removal of three weirs close to the bridges to lower the water level in this part of the River Exe.
Flooding at these bridges is a long-standing problem that has had a devastating impact on the nearby railway line and on the local community. In total, it has resulted in four weeks of disruption over the last two years, meaning numerous delays and closures on this part of the Great Western Main Line; loss of profit for...
Who really benefits most from welfare spending? A lot of people think that it’s the unemployed. So then, what percentage of welfare spending do you think goes to the unemployed, through Jobseekers Allowance - 50%, 25% or 10%?
The answer, according to the Department for Work and Pensions Annual Report for 2013-14, is just 2.34%. Of an overall annual expenditure of £163 billion, Jobseekers Allowance gets £3.81 billion. However, over half (50.93%) of DWP benefit money goes to those who receive the State Pension - £83.14 billion.
The number of officers at public-sector prisons in the South West region has been cut by 37 per cent in less than four years, figures obtained by the Howard League for Penal Reform reveal today (Monday 20 October).
Research published by the charity shows that, across England and Wales, there were only 14,170 officer grade staff working in prisons run by the state at the end of June 2014. There were more than 24,000 at the end of August 2010.
This includes 1,375 officer posts that were lost when 15 public-sector prisons were closed during the period.
