Devon

County Council welcomes funding for public health

Devon County Council has welcomed an announcement from the Department of Health that it will receive £20.7m to deliver its public health responsibilities from this April.

As part of the NHS health reforms, from 1st April the council will be required to deliver services that improve the health of Devon’s population, prevent ill-health and reduce current inequalities that exist from region to region. This includes stop smoking advice, drug and alcohol services, sexual health clinics and providing advice and intelligence to health providers. To support this function, the public...

BBC Radio Devon’s ‘Test the County’ quiz packs at libraries

Devon County Council has teamed up with BBC Radio Devon to help make it easier for residents to take part in the station’s big ‘Test the County’ quiz and raise money for BBC Children in Need.

This year quiz packs, which cost just £6, are available to purchase from all 50 of Devon County Council’s Libraries, as well as by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope and a cheque to Radio Devon.

Test the County will start at 7pm on Thursday 17th January 2013 with the questions asked live on the radio by Judi Spiers.

Those taking part will be playing against teams all...

Engagement is at the heart of local decision making

Devon County Council’s Leader John Hart says the Council wants to engage better with people and give communities more choice and control over the way local services are shaped and delivered.

It has a new draft strategy, setting out how the Council will go about its business of engagement, and is inviting people to tell them what they think about it and how it might be improved upon.

Engagement, with the public and communities, businesses, other public and statutory authorities, voluntary sector organisations and a whole host more, is at the heart of the Council’s decision...

ESW pleads for equality in school academy admissions

Equality South West has said it is "unacceptable" for academies to pick and choose pupils.

A report, released today by the Academies Commission, reveals evidence that some academies secretly attempt to select and exclude pupils.

ESW's Colette Bennett said: "If academies are picking and choosing their students , then the potential for discrimination is huge. Even if it is unintentional, things such as unconscious bias may lead to children being excluded on the basis of their or their parents' skin colour, their religion or the fact that they are disabled or gay.

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Building UK's biggest prison: a titanic waste of money

Government plans to build Britain’s biggest prison are a titanic waste of money that will do nothing to cut crime, the Howard League for Penal Reform said today (10 January).

In a move which echoes the ill-fated Titan jail proposal of the last decade, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has announced that it is to start feasibility work on a new prison that could hold more than 2,000 prisoners.

The project - combined with the planned construction of four new mini-prisons - follows the opening of the G4S-run Oakwood Prison near Wolverhampton, which has been dogged with problems...

Big retail brand to support three new charities

John Lewis in Exeter has announced the next three charities it will be supporting as part of its Community Matters Scheme.

It has been revealed the chosen charities selected by Partners are SOCOPS, ABF The Soldiers’ Charity and Nightstop Devon.

SOCOPS (Social Opportunities) is a charity group created in 2005, by parents with children on the Autistic Spectrum.

They decided to set up a youth club in Exeter providing social opportunities for their children and others with the same condition as they felt the children were missing out.

It is now a registered...

Fire Service devise plan to manage £5.5m budget cuts

Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service has announced a range of proposals to save £5.5 million following a reduction in the Government’s grant settlement.

Elderly Exmouth woman led to safety by fire crews

Fire crews received a phone call on Wednesday evening from the resident of a property in Gibson Close, Exmouth, whose kitchen was on fire.

The smoke alarm was sounding and there was smoke within the property.

Two fire appliances from Exmouth were mobilised. On arrival crews found a fire within the ground floor kitchen area. One elderly woman was led to safety by fire crews.

Crews extinguished the fire using two breathing apparatus wearers, one hose reel jet and ventilated the property using a positive pressure ventilation fan.

The cause of the fire was...

Essential work to start on Exeter High Street next week

Essential work to address persistent drainage and subsidence problems in Exeter’s High Street is scheduled to start next week, Wednesday 16th January until Thursday 28 March.

New work, to be completed before Easter, will see new gullies and pipework installed along the length of the road from Queen Street to Broadgate.

Previous work to resolve 'settling' of the road and drainage problems have proven short-lived and the existing gully system is failing to adequately handle surface water, causing further damage to the road's substructure. The City Centre will remain open for...

And the winner in The Exeter Daily £250 Prize Giveaway is...

The Exeter Daily is very pleased to announce that the winner in our £250 prize giveaway is Rev Mike Partridge from Pinhoe. Mike is Team Rector for Pinhoe, Broadclyst, Clyst Honiton, Rockbeare and Sowton Churches.

When asked what he will do with the money he said that he had not yet decided, but it would be something special, as his wife Rachel had been under going treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. He also told us that his favourite place in Exeter is Cathedral Green "It's so peaceful there but at the same time you are surrounded by other people. There's nothing quite...

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