Devon County Council

Pothole repair programme announced

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Tue, 08/19/2014 - 12:10pm

A £9.1 million programme to restore some of the roads damaged during the wettest winter on record has been announced by Devon County Council.

The County Council has developed a programme of almost 400 repair schemes, using the Pothole Repair Funding that Devon received from central Government, to improve the surface or drainage resilience of more than 80 miles (129 km) of roads in the county.

This is in addition to repair work which started in Devon in June using the £7 million Severe Weather Recovery funding, in response to the damage caused over the winter months to the...

Getting the most from our waste in Devon

Help the environment, save money and energy - all reasons why people in Devon are being encouraged to keep up efforts to prevent waste going to landfill.

At the moment, the recycling rate in Devon stands at 55% which puts it as one of the best performing councils in the country.

However, with a target of 60% by 2020, further work is essential to carry on the good work by householders.

One of the main benefits of recycling is the cost saving. Disposing of a tonne of waste costs around £115 per tonne, whilst recycling a tonne of waste can give an income of between £30...

Responses positive to library consultation

Devon County Council has described responses to its recent consultation on the future of Devon's library service as 'extremely positive'.

Never has the council had such a level of responses to previous library consultations, in terms of numbers and quality of feedback.

5,500 returned questionnaires; 2,500 attendees at local library drop-in sessions; 1,000 people at public meetings; as well as emails, letters and petitions that have been sent to the Council.

Results from them all are now being collated, digested, and deliberated over by senior Managers and...

Blue Badge holders warned of scam websites

Devon County Council is warning people to look out for websites that will charge them to apply for or renew their disabled parking entitlement.

Blue Badges are for free to apply for, or to renew online by people with eligible disabilities, but Devon County Council has heard from residents who paid £49 up front to renew their parking badges online, which were never received.

The Blue Badge scheme provides national parking concessions for those who have a permanent and substantial disability, which causes an inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking. People...

Positive response to library consultation

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Fri, 06/27/2014 - 10:46am

Communities say they are keen to work with Devon County Council to ensure their library service continues.

Towns and villages, which had feared a potential loss of their library services due to budget cuts, are saying that alternative solutions are achievable if people put their minds to it.

So far, more than two out of every three of the 2,500 people (67.7 per cent) responding to the council’s consultation agree with the proposals for their local library.

More than eight out of every 10 respondees agree that sharing library space with multiple services – the...

Exeter respite centre to remain closed

An Exeter respite centre is to remain closed because Devon County Council cannot afford the refurbishments it needs.

Haldon View Respite Centre, which is one of two County Council-run respite centres in Exeter for people with learning disabilities, is a large period building, that needs among its extensive repairs a complete heating system overhaul including asbestos removal.

However, Pine Park Respite Centre in Honiton will reopen this September after serious flooding last December left the building totally unusable, Devon County Council has confirmed.

With the...

Council to close half of day centres

Devon County Council is to stop providing direct residential care for older people in most of its homes so it can help more elderly people live independently at home or in supported accommodation, and in other residential homes.

Half of the county’s day centres will close with the rest being retained, supporting the most vulnerable and people with disabilities.

Devon already buys 90 per cent of the residential home places it needs from the independent and private sectors.

But it spends nearly 30 per cent of its £70 million residential care budget on providing places...

Spot checks carried out on Carmel school buses

Devon County Council has today (Monday 16 June) started its unannounced spot checks on school buses operated by Carmel Coaches.

Independent vehicle examiners inspected buses and coaches at the company’s depots in Exeter and Northlew last week. No major defects were found and no vehicles have had to be taken off the road.

It followed the decision last week by the Traffic Commissioner to revoke the licence of Carmel Coaches from July 31, a decision against which the company has said it will appeal.

Twenty two vehicles owned by the company have now been checked, with...

Is a road near you going to be repaired

Devon County Council is carrying out £7 million of repairs on roads damaged during the wettest winter on record.

The County Council programme of work is underway on almost 250 repair schemes, restoring nearly 40 miles (63km) of roads across the county.

Devon received £7 million of Severe Weather Recovery funding to help with much needed road repairs. This was a share of £183.5 million made available by the Department for Transport in response to the impact of the severe winter weather

Since the grant allocation was announced earlier this year, Devon’s highways teams...

Devon environment focus of new report

The State of the Environment in Devon and Torbay is the focus of a new report.

The online report, produced by Devon County Council on behalf of Natural Devon, looks at the current condition of the local environment and explores the fundamental relationship with nature for economic prosperity, health and wellbeing.

The full report is split into 13 subject areas which have a key influence on the overall condition of Devon and Torbay’s environment. These include everything from people and economy, to historic environment and land use.

It highlights many positive...

Pages