Devon

Nominate your mental health hero

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Tue, 01/06/2015 - 11:00am

Nominations are open to highlight mental health heroes in Devon.

The Deputy Prime Minister is calling on people to nominate unsung mental health heroes in their local area as part of his campaign to raise awareness of mental health problems. One in four people will experience a mental health problem this year but for many the stigma and discrimination that surrounds mental health will make it harder for them to speak out and seek the support they need. That’s why the Deputy Prime Minister is calling for nominations for local Mental Health Heroes to celebrate those from every region...

Who will win the National Venus Awards?

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Mon, 01/05/2015 - 11:16am

The Venus Awards National Final takes place on the 23 January.

The Devon Regional winners will compete against more than a hundred other Venus Award Winners from around the country. This sold out event is being held at the Audleys Wood HandPicked Hotel in Basingstoke.

Established in 2009 as the Langtry Manor Business women awards to reward local hard working women, they quickly expanded and rebranded as the Venus Awards and have recognised tens of thousands of inspirational women across the country.

Spearheaded locally by Celia Delaney of Speaking Success, the...

Work continues on Teign Estuary Trail proposals

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Mon, 01/05/2015 - 10:51am

A planning application could be submitted in the summer for a section of the Teign Estuary Trail from Kingsteignton to Bishopsteignton.

Early discussions have been held between Devon County Council and landowners along the 2.5 mile section of the route and, subject to satisfactory negotiations, the County Council is planning to put forward proposals next year.

Work is underway on preliminary designs and site visits will be arranged in the coming months.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member with responsibility for cycling, said: “We have set...

Thomas refuses to panic

Authored by Mark Stevens
Posted: Mon, 01/05/2015 - 10:50am

Haydn Thomas insists there will be no panic within the ranks despite Exeter Chiefs slipping to a third successive Aviva Premiership defeat on Saturday.

In what was Thomas' 200th appearance for the Devon outfit, it was former club Gloucester who took the spoils 26-25 in a highly entertaining encounter at a packed Sandy Park.

After back-to-back losses away to Sale Sharks and Bath Rugby, Rob Baxter's side were hoping a return to familiar home surroundings would provide the ideal catalyst for them to rediscover their winning formula.

Sadly, it was not to be as the...

Art branches out at Exeter University

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Mon, 01/05/2015 - 10:37am

A fascinating and unusual new artwork has been added to the University of Exeter’s Streatham Campus, in the form of a sculpture wound around the branch of a tree and suspended in mid-air. The sculpture, entitled White Entwined, was created by Devon artist Deborah Duffin. Organic in shape, it hangs from the tree like huge exotic flower, fading from pink to white and is made from a multitude of wire collected over many years. Duffin often uses recycled materials in her work and observes the natural world to inform her creative process. The explanation for her interest in creating a sculpture...

One in nine people fear missing rent or mortgage payments this January

Thousands of rent or mortgage payers across the South West might be facing a not-so-happy new year, as new research reveals one in nine are worried they will be unable to make payments this January.

Research from Shelter and YouGov paints a bleak picture for many this winter, with 65% of rent or mortgage payers in the South West revealing they are already struggling to keep up with their housing costs.

Shelter is warning that ignoring money worries rather than seeking advice could lead to people’s home being put at risk. Worryingly, over a quarter (27%) of people in the...

Majority of Britain’s youth can’t read a map

When traipsing through a busy city centre or strolling through rural areas, pulling out a huge paper map that takes 10 minutes to pinpoint where you are, is a thing of the past. It seems now that we no longer rely on once trusty maps but have near enough fully turned to digital navigation, as 85% of 18-24 year olds do not know how to read a map.

It was around six years ago that maps became available for mobile, revolutionising the way we navigated. Now, around 45% of 18-24 year olds utilise maps on their smartphone to navigate and a third (32%) are totally reliant on the internet...

Call for children to be taught lifesaving CPR

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Sun, 01/04/2015 - 11:20am

People in the South West believe children should be taught CPR in schools, according to new research by the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

The BHF polled over 2,000 people and found that 89% of people in the South West thought that children should leave secondary school knowing the life-saving skill.

More than 30,000 people have a cardiac arrest outside of hospital, but less than one-in-ten survive - partly because people don’t have the skills or confidence to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Survival rates in the UK are much lower than other countries...

Twelfth Night - time to recycle!

As Twelfth Night approaches, and thoughts turn to ‘un-decking’ the halls and taking down the tree, the Woodland Trust is urging everyone to help protect the UK’s woodland by dropping their Christmas cards off at their local M&S store.

For every 1,000 cards recycled in store, M&S will fund the planting of one tree.

The UK is already 8,135 trees richer thanks to customers’ efforts last year – when a staggering 8.1 million cards were dropped into M&S stores. This season, special card collection bins are already in M&S stores* - where they will stay until 31...

Police appeal for help to identify body

Police in Exeter are appealing for information to help identify a woman whose body was found in Topsham earlier today (Friday 2 January).

Police were called at around noon to the dock area near to St Margaret’s Church on Ferry Road, in Topsham, following the discovery of a woman’s body.

It is believed that the woman had been in the water for sometime but the death is being treated as unexplained.

The woman is described as being, approximately 60-75 years of age white, approximately 5’4” in height and medium to large build with blue/hazel eyes.

Her hair was...

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