Teachers and staff in nearly 170 Devon schools are working over the Easter holidays to provide care and support for the children of key workers.
The Government ordered schools across the country to close their doors a week early for Easter because of the coronavirus crisis but asked staff to remain open for the children of key workers such as NHS staff, care workers, delivery drivers and those in the food industry.
Devon's schools have identified which pupils qualify and determined if their families wanted a place.
Devon residents including job seekers, students back from university, college leavers and former care and health staff are needed now to support the county’s most vulnerable.
Healthcare Assistants are a frontline role to support Devon's NHS and social care as coronavirus puts even greater pressure on existing services and staff.
Both temporary and permanent workers are needed to fill a variety of shift work, including evenings and weekends, in residential homes, hospitals and in people's own homes.
You may need to support people with their personal care needs...
Hundreds of council workers in Devon are operating as another emergency service during the coronavirus crisis according to county council leader John Hart, who has praised their dedication.
"I couldn't be more proud of the way staff have responded to the crisis in so many different ways over the past few weeks," he said.
"Team Devon is on the front line of the battle against this virus."
This weekend hundreds of extremely vulnerable people have been contacted by county and district workers as part of the 'shielding' effort to ensure everyone who has to stay home...
A new on-demand subsidised taxi service is being trialled by Devon County Council to help key workers travel to and from work.
The impact of the coronavirus has seen bus companies report up to a 90% reduction in passenger numbers, leading to a drastic reduction in services and many companies only maintaining critical routes.
In order to replace those journeys previously made by bus, the County Council is introducing the “Key Cars” initiative which provides key workers with lifts to work for a subsidised flat fare.
Devon County Council has launched the COVID-19 Prompt Action Fund to help provide valuable funding to organisations working in communities that have been affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
The scheme, which only launched this week, has had over 80 applications already.
The grants of less than £500 will help voluntary and community groups to tackle the social and economic impacts of the virus outbreak and help those who are most vulnerable in their communities.
The funding can be used to address issues such as:
Devon County Council has pledged that it will do everything it can to help local businesses through the coronavirus outbreak and ensure a strong recovery for the local economy.
The authority is encouraging businesses to visit the Heart of the South West Growth Hub to find essential information on available support and advice.
The Growth Hub, which is delivered by the County Council on behalf of the HotSW Local Enterprise Partnership, can help provide businesses with details of the Government’s proposals on Business Rate Relief and how eligible businesses can apply for...
Libraries Unlimited has announced that libraries across Devon will temporarily close from Friday 20 March, in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Across the county, library staff are trying to continue to provide library services in different ways.
In Exeter, they are trialling ‘books by post’. Others will be providing online sessions such as Bounce & Rhyme, reading groups, and story times. There will be IT help, provided remotely.
Staff will be checking in by telephone with customers who they know to be vulnerable and needing social contact.
In order to help residents parking outside their homes while working from home or self-isolating during the Coronavirus outbreak, the County Council’s parking enforcement teams will reduce enforcement on certain roads – although double yellow lines will still be enforced.
Changes to routine patrols will enable officers to concentrate their efforts on keeping key routes running normally.
Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Highway Management, said: “We must keep the network moving but we also recognise the concerns in residential areas where...
Devon County Council Leader John Hart today pledged the authority will do whatever it can to support residents and communities through the Coronavirus outbreak.
“This is an unprecedented situation and many residents will be deeply worried about themselves, their families and how they are going to cope over the coming weeks," he said.
“I want to assure everyone that the whole council is working flat out alongside our partners in the NHS, districts and others to make sure we put everything we can in place to help people through this.
Devon County Council is inviting applications for grants to expand its award-winning network of work hubs.
There are currently 15 work hubs across the county and Devon County Council has provided funding to help establish eight of those.
The authority is now inviting applications for grants to add to the network, providing facilities in areas without work hubs.
Work hubs provide flexible-term, value for money office space, equipped with facilities that modern businesses need. They are ideal locations for small businesses that may have started from home but are now...
