Exeter

Council pays tribute to Hazel Ball

Staff and Councillors at Exeter City Council have been saddened by the news of the death of one of its former directors, Hazel Ball.

Hazel died on Saturday morning following a short illness.

She retired from the City Council in 2012 as Director of Community and Environment . She spent 35 years working for the local authority, joining in 1976 and working up through the ranks. She became Head of Environmental Health Services in 1996 and then a Strategic Director in 2001.

Council Leader Pete Edwards paid tribute to Hazel. "I am very saddened by this news," he said. "It...

Exeter Prison ‘dangerously overcrowded’

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Tue, 06/30/2015 - 7:17am

EXETER Prison could be sacrificing rehabilitation and support with “dangerously overcrowded” cells and reduced staff, according to a business which provides prisoners with phone access.

According to figures released by the Howard League for Penal Reform, Exeter Prison is the fourth most overcrowded prison in the UK – and the number of staff there has been slashed by nearly a third.

Many inmates are sharing cells designed for one person, raising concerns around the safety of prisoners and the number of inmates released early to create space.

In a 2013 inspection,...

Families for Children Devon Adoption open morning

Event Date: 
04/07/2015 - 10:00am
Venue: 
Buckfast Abbey

Families for Children Devon Adoption's office is open on one Saturday of every month where you can talk with specialist adoption social workers and experienced adoptive parents about all aspects of adoption.

Their next open morning is on July 4th from 10am to 12 noon.

10am – 11am Presentation with the chance to hear from one of our adopters 11am – 12 noon Staff and adopters available for individual questions and discussion

Tea/coffee and biscuits will be available.

You can book a slot by calling 01364 645480 or email enquiries@familiesforchildren.org.uk , or...

Classpeople strengthens team with senior appointments

Classpeople, the leading independent education recruitment specialists in the South-West, today announced two further senior management appointments. The appointments have been made to strengthen the team in line with development plans for later this year.

Andy Taylor, a self-confessed fitness fanatic, who has eight years’ experience in financial management and has ACMA (Associate Chartered Management Accountant) status, joins Classpeople from Markey Construction. He takes on the brand new role of financial controller servicing all of the Classpeople branches.

Lynis Bassett...

Suspect packages made safe

Following assessment by bomb disposal experts, the devices found on York Road and King William Street in Exeter this morning, Monday, June 29, have been made safe.

The scene cordons on both King William Street and York Road are now being reduced to the immediate scenes of the incidents as a result.

Road closures around the city centre will begin to be lifted shortly, although traffic congestion in the run up to rush hour is expected to take some time to be cleared.

Police would like to thank all residents for their patience and co-operation throughout today....

Chat rooms can boost success in learning English

Chat rooms play a positive role in motivating students and encouraging an independent approach to learning English as a foreign language. Innovative research highlighted in a new book Using Technology in Foreign Language Teaching shows the advantages and disadvantages of utilising IT in teaching English in countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iran and Malaysia. The current interest in combining different teaching methods with technologies that promise to motivate learners to respond effectively has meant that many language-teaching institutions strive to...

Spacex crowdfunding success

Spacex, Exeter’s contemporary visual arts organisation, has successfully raised £10,000 to support its new artists residency programme.

Hundreds of people have donated money to the campaign, and in return will receive artworks, posters and publications.

Mark Waugh Chair of Spacex said: "We are thrilled by the enormous response to our crowdfunding campaign, which shows that the public wants to support the dynamic evolution of Spacex as it explores new ways to fund original and challenging visual arts in Exeter.

"We are also indebted to the great generosity if the...

Suspect packages: One device made safe

Following assessment by bomb disposal experts, the device found at King William Street in Exeter city centre found earlier this morning (Monday 29 June) has now been safely dealt with.

The device at York Road is expected to be dealt with later this afternoon following further assessment by bomb disposal.

The scene cordons on both King William Street and York Road are now reduced to 100 metres as a result.

Road closures around the city centre remain to ensure the matter can be safely resolved and the police led multi-agency response to the incident continues....

Singers wanted for Open Mic UK 2015

Open Mic UK’s 2015 auditions begin in two months.

The national music competition Open Mic UK is the biggest search for unsigned artists in the UK and it’s calling all singers, singer-songwriters, vocal groups, rappers and solo artists to get involved in their singing auditions which begin in August. With over 9,000 people entering last year, and a fifteen-date audition tour in place this year, 2015 is definitely the year to enter!

Open Mic UK focuses on developing acts with music industry feedback and live performance experience, and in addition there are thousands of...

Yazzy Crowned Future Music’s Songwriting Competition Winner!

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Mon, 06/29/2015 - 12:40pm

Earlier this year Future Music launched a brand new Songwriting Competition to find the best songwriters in the UK and it has found its first winners! Joining a long line of prestigious Future Music competition winners, Yazzy from Westwood Ho, Devon has been crowned the winner of the national Songwriting Competition at Dingwalls in London!

Yazzy, who is 16 years old, was crowned champion in front of a capacity crowd and a prestigious music industry judging panel at the world-renowned music venue Dingwalls in Camden, London on Sunday night. Her original song called “Someone Could Be...

Pages