Devon

People with dementia gain from learning self-management skills

People with early-stage dementia benefit when they are empowered to manage their own condition, a study led by researchers at the University of Exeter has found.

Research involving Bangor University and published in the journal International Psychogeriatrics, found that attending weekly ‘self-management’ group sessions which encouraged socialisation, discussion, problem solving and goal setting fostered independence and promoted social support amongst people with dementia.

The groups, led by trained facilitators, were focused on providing people with a better understanding...

Prue Leith heads to Budleigh Salterton

Cook, restaurateur, food writer and novelist Prue Leith will be taking part in a special event in Budleigh Salterton to discuss her latest novel, The Food of Love. Much loved food writer and catering specialist, Prue has played a key role in the revolution of Britain’s eating habits since the Sixties. Having published twelve cookbooks, she gave up writing about food in 1995 to concentrate on fiction. The Food of Love is Prue’s sixth novel and the first in a trilogy detailing the change in food, farming, cooking and the restaurant trade since World War Two. A tale of prejudice and ambition...

Stagecoach expands Smart ticketing across SW

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Tue, 01/19/2016 - 12:01pm

Stagecoach South West confirmed today that it is expanding its smart ticketing scheme across the region.

From Monday (18th January), all Megarider tickets* bought on board Stagecoach South West buses will be stored on StagecoachSmart cards. Drivers will issue customers with a smartcard, which will store their ticket electronically, instead of using a paper ticket.

The expanded smart ticketing scheme offers customers a more convenient, simple and greener approach to buying and using their bus ticket.

Stagecoach South West introduced smart ticketing in 2012. Until now...

ZERO shortlisted for sustainable innovation grant

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Tue, 01/19/2016 - 10:28am

Exeter-based heating solutions company ZERO stands to win a grant of up to £150,000 as one of the shortlisted companies competing to win the Shell Springboard Award for 2016.

Launched in 2005, Shell Springboard provides funding to UK entrepreneurs at the cutting-edge of the low-carbon economy. This year, funding awards of up to £150,000 are available for small enterprises with innovative, commercially-viable business ideas that reduce carbon emissions.

ZERO has been shortlisted for a heating innovation project that the company has been developing over the past few years....

MP urges Devon businesses to back vital mentoring programme

A Devon MP is appealing to local businesses to support the next phase of a project helping young people who are out of work to kick-start their future.

The Business Powering Employment Programme (BEEP) gives 16-24 year olds in Devon the confidence and skills to secure jobs and training opportunities.

BEEP helps young people learn through performance coaching techniques and then on-going support from a mentor. Over 95 per cent of those who have been on the programme have gone on to secure work and training opportunities.

Now more businesses across Devon are needed if...

A396 roadworks to cause weeks of disruption

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Tue, 01/19/2016 - 8:13am

Work to replace a safety barrier and road surfacing on the A396, north of Cove, Tiverton, will begin on Monday January 25 and last 16 weeks.

The works will seriously disrupt traffic travelling between West Somerset and Mid Devon.

Throughout this period a mixture of traffic management will be used including traffic signals with a convoy vehicle and road closures.

During periods the road will be closed to traffic entirely. During the times that the road is closed, traffic will be directed to a designated diversion route which will be towards Tiverton, via the A361,...

Easier diagnosis for fungal infection of the lung

A new clinical imaging method developed in collaboration with a University of Exeter academic may enable doctors to tackle one of the main killers of patients with weakened immune systems sooner and more effectively.

The spores of the fungus Aspergillus fumigatus are tiny, everywhere in the air and breathed in by humans every day.

They do not usually cause a problem for healthy people as their immune systems kill the spores before they can grow and infect the body. But in patients with an immune system weakened by leukaemia or bone marrow transplantation, the fungus faces...

Exeter School in top 1% of JustGiving donors

Exeter School succeeded in raising over £6,000 for charity during the autumn term and was placed in the top 1% of donors on the JustGiving website.

The school’s charity fundraising day which took place in September raised over £2,000 for local charity, Hospiscare, as well as the Karen Hill Tribes Trust run by alumnus Will Harnden.

In the Junior School, pupils raised money for Papyrus, the national UK charity dedicated to the prevention of young suicide, Children in Need and the Exeter Foodbank.

Senior School charities included the Tearfund Appeal for Refugees,...

Top 5 reasons student housing investment in SW is successful

In the first half of 2015, £3.8 billion was invested in student property in the UK and it’s predicted that this will rise to £5.7 billion by the end of the year - nearly equal to the last three years combined.

As the market goes from strength to strength, the demand for growth continues to increase. There are rising numbers of UK students, and figures are predicted to double in the next decade. A huge number of international students are also attracted to our educational system; 18 percent of the UK student population are international and a 50 percent growth has been seen over the...

Community projects invited to apply for award

Community organisations across Devon are being invited to apply for the 2016 Prince of Wales Award, organised by the Devon County Agricultural Association on behalf of HRH the Prince of Wales to recognise small scale projects geared to local sustainability.

The winning entry will receive £1,000 to boost its funds, as well as a certificate signed by Prince Charles, to be presented at the DCAA’s flagship event, the Devon County Show, which will be held this year from May 19-21.

DCAA Chief Executive, Richard Maunder, emphasised that applications would be welcomed from local...

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