As temperatures drop, people living in Exeter and across Devon may be able to get extra help with their heating this winter thanks to a new scheme.
The CosyDevon service, which is operated by a partnership of some councils in Devon, including Exeter City Council, was one of only 20 bids that were successful in securing funding as part of the Government’s £25m Central Heating Fund. The Fund is designed to support local people living in homes that don’t currently enjoy the efficiency and comfort of gas central heating, which is much cheaper to run than most forms of electric heating...
Devon County Council is set to accept the Government ‘s offer to increase council tax by two per cent to help pay for adult social care.
The increase would raise just under £6.5 million extra this year.
That would help pay for the Government’s increase in the minimum wage which will cost the county council over £7 million more in care costs.
The two per cent council tax increase will be on top of any rise in the rate for general services which will be decided at the annual budget meeting next month.
The Government has set a ceiling of 1.99 per cent for...
Record numbers of older people worried about being alone over Christmas have already contacted older people’s housing and care charity The Abbeyfield Society as its Coping at Christmas campaign gets into full swing.
Since the campaign launch in November, Abbeyfield has handled hundreds of calls from isolated older people who face being alone over the extended Christmas period. As a result, over 400 older people who would otherwise have spent the Christmas period without company are being welcomed into Abbeyfield houses the breadth of the country to enjoy festive events ranging from...
A 15-strong team of knitters from law firm Stephens Scown LLP have been brandishing their needles in aid of the Exeter office’s chosen charity, Age UK Exeter. Stephens Scown’s knitting club has knitted as many little woolly hats as possible for the Exeter branch of Age UK, in support of the charity’s nationwide campaign “the Big Knit”. The club, comprised of 15 knitters of mixed experience, have knitted 375 hats in total. The hats will be put on Innocent Smoothies bottles, which will be sold from February 2016. 25p from each bottle sold will go directly to Age UK. Many of the members had...
Another victim in her 80's has been scammed by telephone fraudsters and persuaded to pass £6000 over because she was worried that her money in the bank was at risk.
Fraudsters will pretend to be calling from the Bank or from the Police and will be incredibly convincing that the elderly person's money is at risk in their own bank account. They will ask for bank details and encourage the victim to call their bank, whilst keeping the phone line open, fooling the victim into believing they are calling their own bank or the police.
Homeowners and private-rented householders in selected areas of Devon are being offered grants of up to £7,000 to help insulate their homes.
Teignbridge, North Devon and Torridge district councils are working with Cosy Devon and E.ON to provide new 'Pioneer Places' grants towards the cost of solid wall insulation. The funding has been awarded by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, with North Devon Council leading the project.
This month, letters will be sent to 13,000 prospective householders in selected areas of each district: Newton Abbot and Kingsteignton in...
Public transport system failing the oldest and most vulnerable in society says new report by The International Longevity Centre – UK and Age UK
The Future of Transport in an Ageing Society (1), a new report by think tank The International Longevity Centre – UK (ILC-UK) (2) and charity Age-UK, highlights the travel problems faced by millions of older people.
Despite free bus travel, one third of over 65s in England never use public transport. And over half either never use public transport or use it less than once a month.
Devon and Cornwall Police is supporting a fraud awareness campaign being launched across the region today.
The Home Office funded ‘Spot It, Stop It’ campaign aims to raise awareness of various scams people may fall prey to, particularly doorstep fraud and telephone and online scams.
There were 8,600 reports of fraud in Devon and Cornwall last year resulting in the loss of around £9 million.
Victims are usually aged between 61 and 90.
As part of the campaign the Home Office is surveying a cross-section of people over 60 to provide a snapshot of the awareness...
The Housing Service at East Devon District Council has found a way to maintain many of the support services for elderly and vulnerable tenants, which came under threat following cuts of around half a million pounds in funding from Devon County Council for the coming year alone.
The new scheme, which comes into effect on 6 April, has the approval of East Devon’s Housing Review Board and is aimed at minimising the impact of the cuts on over 1,300 elderly and vulnerable tenants in the district. It follows careful examination of the options and a comprehensive consultation exercise...
