Devon

Night shelter opens for the homeless

People sleeping rough over the winter nights can now come inside thanks to the creation of a new Night Shelter.

The 26-bed shelter has being provided by the City Council and run by local charity Julian House. Renamed The Junction - the former Spice Island restaurant in Magdalen Street will provide overnight sleeping accommodation for homeless people between November and the end of March.

The shelter opened on Thursday 1 November.

Funding for the facility has come from a successful application to the Government’s national initiative to reduce the number of rough...

Simpkins Edwards Really Big Quiz 2018

Event Date: 
14/11/2018 - 6:45pm
Venue: 
Barnstaple Hotel

Taking place at the Barnstaple Hotel on Wednesday 14th November from 6.45pm, the annual Really Big Quiz brings the region’s brightest professional brains together to compete for the coveted title of Barnstaple’s and North Devon’s brainiest ‘eggheads’. The event raises vital funds for the Mayor of Barnstaple’s chosen charities, which this year include Over & Above: The North Devon Cancer and Wellbeing Centre Appeal, and Families in Grief. Having raised more than £24,000 over the past eight years, Simpkins Edwards is hoping for a record-breaking evening that could push the total raised...

Chiefs side to face Bath Rugby

Authored by Mark Stevens
Posted: Fri, 11/02/2018 - 12:31pm

Ricky Pellow says Exeter Chiefs must make the most of home advantage in this next fortnight, if they are to keep alive their dreams of retaining the Premiership Rugby Cup. The holders kicked off their campaign with a 22-22 draw away to Newcastle Falcons last Sunday, a result which - according to skills coach Pellow - offered both positives and negatives for the Devon club when he was picked through by the coaching team this week. Down 22-10 entering into the final quarter at Kingston Park, the Chiefs dug deep into their reserves to fashion a determined fightback that yielded two tries and...

EDGT receives donation from Western Union of Unitarians

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 8:58pm

“Saints’ Rest” – the Dissenters’ graveyard located in Magdalen Street - closed its gates to new burials 164 years ago.

More recently it has been the subject of a four-year restoration project carried out by volunteers of the Exeter Dissenters’ Graveyard Trust (EDGT).

In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries the graveyard was the final resting place for members of Exeter’s Unitarian congregation who worshipped at George’s Meeting House in South Street – now a public house owned by JD Wetherspoons.

Although there is no longer an active Unitarian Meeting...

Charity calls for urgent action as deaths from pancreatic cancer increase by 12% in just 3 years in the South West

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 8:47pm

Pancreatic cancer mortality rates in the South West have increased by a shocking 7% in just 3 years, with 946 people passing away from this terrible disease in 2016.

UK charity Pancreatic Cancer Action are asking people to take action and Turn it PurpleTM this November to help improve these dire statistics.

Nationally, almost 10,000 people are diagnosed every year with pancreatic cancer in the UK and almost 9,000 people die. Pancreatic cancer has the worst survival rate of all common cancers with less than 7% of patients surviving past 5 years[1]. This compares with 98%[2...

“Together we’re having new experiences”

Authored by Hospiscare
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 4:01pm

Noreen Raleigh, 65 from Exeter, has been a volunteer Care Navigator for two years and it all started when she and husband Peter were supported by Hospiscare.

Noreen says, “We were lucky enough to be helped by this wonderful charity. While Peter was ill I saw that a terminal diagnosis is difficult enough when you’ve got a partner, imagine if someone was going through it by themselves. I remember thinking at the time, if I can support others through this process then that’s what I want to do.

“Around a year after Peter died I started volunteering as a Hospiscare Care...

Transport Secretary welcomes
progress on Dawlish rail project

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 3:48pm

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling yesterday welcomed the progress of the project to upgrade the rail line between Dawlish and Teignmouth.

Backed by £15million of government funding and supported by world-leading engineers, Network Rail continues to carry out detailed studies into the unique landscape around the line and how best to protect it from extreme weather.

Network Rail is due to publish options for a permanent solution next summer.

In the meantime, essential work to immediately protect the sea wall and rail line will begin in November 2018.

The work...

Council’s special parking offer designed to be a winter shopper winner

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 11:49am

Anyone planning to start their Christmas shopping early will be able to take advantage of East Devon District Council’s five-month winter parking special offer, which starts on 1 November 2018 and runs until 31 March 2019.

The daily parking tariff of £2 offers unbeatable value as it enables shoppers to take their time when making purchases, as the ticket will cover them for the entire day, from whatever time they choose to arrive until midnight.

East Devon’s temporary tariff will not only support local shops over the run-up to Christmas, but will also help boost trade...

Annual awards are a chance to nominate Devon's recycling heroes

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 9:55am

Devon residents and communities are once again being called on to nominate their unsung recycling heroes, whose efforts have helped the county remain one of the greenest in the UK.

The Sixth Recycle Devon Thank You Awards will be held on Friday 22 March 2019. Nominations for the eight categories, including those for schools, businesses, and community groups, can be submitted on the Recycle Devon website from 17 October to 30 November 2018. Every year the awards go from strength to strength with more than 60 nominations for the 2018 awards. The Thank You Awards are organised by the...

Pioneering South West school praised for helping pupils make “life-changing” progress

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 1:04am

“Inspirational” staff at a pioneering South West school have been praised for helping pupils make “life-changing” progress.

The work of teachers and workers at the Exeter Mathematics School is “wonderful” and “transformational”, according to parents and young people, and inspectors have heaped praise on the way they keep pupils safe and help those in difficulty.

Staff step in to support students when others have failed them, according to Ofsted. A “tenacious and resourceful approach” helped get financial support and accommodation for a student who was found to be homeless...

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