Big Lottery funding of nearly £378,000 over four years has been awarded to St Petrock’s, just at a time when Exeter’s charity for people who are homeless is reporting a 29% increase in demand for its services over the last year.

“This is very good news and we are very grateful to the Big Lottery for this award,” said Mel Hartley, Project Manager at St Petrock’s. “It has certainly come at the right time with homeless figures rising and more people struggling to keep a roof over their heads. This funding will support a number of our housing projects and help us to provide a fast...

So I was at the Devon County Show today and I struck up a conversation with one of the traders. It turned out we both hailed from the same place. He eventually asked me what I did for a living and when I said media and marketing he responded with: “Okay, give me your top three marketing tips”, which I did. And whilst they are fresh in my mind I thought I’d share them through my blog. Tip 1 Look for referrals: I asked him what he did to encourage his satisfied clients to encourage others to buy from his business and, apart from some passive email marketing, the answer was not a lot. However...

Haydn Thomas has joined Exeter Chiefs team-mate Tom Johnson in the England squad preparing to tackle a star-studded Barbarians line-up at Twickenham this Sunday (1pm).

The 30-year-old scrum-half, together with Sale’s Kearnan Myall, have both been added to Stuart Lancaster’s 25-man squad as nine of England’s summer tourists will be in action for either Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints on Saturday in the Aviva Premiership final.

Thomas is in contention for a first appearance in a senior England shirt, while 6ft 7in lock Myall, 26, has featured for England Saxons since...

Here at The Plum Consultancy we were recently discussing the Giving Pledge initiative founded by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, in which the world’s wealthiest individuals pledge to dedicate the majority of their wealth to philanthropy. This elite set has recently been joined by the first person from India - Azim Preji, the chairman of the Technology company Wipro whose net worth is estimated at $16 billion. This is welcome news as the divide between rich and poor continues to grow especially in countries across Asia.

‘Corporate responsibility’ has also become high on the world’s...

WESC Foundation is calling for entries to its sponsored walk - Walk For WESC - which takes place on Sunday 7 July at 2pm at Ugbrook Park in Chudleigh, Devon. The Exeter-based charity provides learning, care and therapy for more than 100 children and young people with sight loss and complex needs at its campus on Topsham Road. The event, sponsored by Savills in Exeter, includes a fancy dress competition for dogs and their owners and has three routes with stunning views around the impressive country grounds. “We wanted to do something fun to raise funds for the children we care for and this...

At least 91 people, including at least 20 children, were killed by the devastating tornado that tore through suburbs of Oklahoma City on Wednesday. 120 people are reportedly being treated in hospital, and two dozen children remain missing.

The most badly affected area was Moore, south of the city, which saw houses flattened, and a school and medical centre completely devastated.

Plaza Towers Elementary school took a direct hit: the storm tore off the building's roof and knocked down walls. "The school was flattened. The walls were pancaked in," Oklahoma's Lt Gov Todd Lamb...

The privacy management of 16 popular social networking sites, including Facebook and Twitter, is “seriously deficient,” according to a study being published in the June issue of Computer magazine.

Researchers from UK-based Security Lancaster , an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research at Lancaster University, found a disconnect between privacy statements and the site’s actual privacy controls.

“Although social networking sites continue to attract millions of diverse users worldwide, they remain plagued by privacy compromises that breed user dissatisfaction...

It’s National Vegetarian Week this week and there really is no better time to watch what you put on your skin. Lush’s fresh handmade cosmetics are full of fresh fruit and vegetables and made with the finest natural ingredients (organic where possible) and essential oils, are not tested on animals and look good enough to eat. They are 100% suitable for vegetarians, as accredited by The Vegetarian Society, and 80% are also approved by the Vegan Society - not just for this week, but all year round.

Choose from the delicious products below to create your own veggie recipe for beautiful...

As part of "Global Days of Action" to support Guantánamo hunger strikers, on Friday 17 May in Chicago, demonstrators marked the 100th day of another hunger strike at the Guantanamo Bay detention center, where inmates have been protesting their indefinite detention by the U.S. government on terrorism charges.

Protesters, dressed in orange overalls, went outside the Federal Plaza and began a march through the Loop and ending at Daley Plaza. Organised by The Chicago Coalition to Shut Down Guantánamo (World Can't Wait Chicago, White Rose, IL Coalition Against Torture, Witness Against...