Exeter City Council

Wellbeing Support Fund launched in Exeter

A Wellbeing Support Fund has been launched in Exeter to support people who find themselves in financial difficulty due to the Coronavirus outbreak.

The scheme has been launched by Exeter City Council, with funding being provided by Devon County Council’s COVID19 Hardship Support Grant, to help individuals who are unable to access support from any other local or national initiatives.

Exeter City Council Leader, Phil Bialyk, said: “These are incredibly difficult times in so many different ways. We know that there are many people who may be struggling financially at the...

New customers allowed to join garden waste scheme

People in Exeter can sign up once again for the City Council’s Garden Waste Collection Scheme.

The Council had stopped new customers signing up for the scheme at the beginning of the Coronavirus outbreak. However it has now lifted the suspension and is taking on new customers.

Gardeners can choose either a 140 litre brown bin for £37.15 a year or a 240 litre bin for £48.80. Alternatively a bundle of five biodegradable sacks costs £11.

Things that can be put in the bin are:

  • flowers and plants
  • grass cuttings
  • leaves and bark
  • ...

Picnic at home to celebrate VE Day Anniversary

People in Exeter are being encouraged to have a ‘picnic in their parlour’ on 8 May to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of VE Day.

On Friday 8 March it will be 75 years since the Allied victory in Europe during the Second World War.

There were plans to mark the occasion with an event in the city centre but the Coronavirus outbreak changed this.

Now with people staying home and keeping safe as a result of COVID-19, Exeter City Council is instead encouraging everyone to ‘picnic in their parlour’ to celebrate a day that ended the conflict in Europe and ultimately lead...

Grants prove ‘lifesaver’ to Topsham group battling Covid-19

A Topsham group supporting vulnerable and elderly people during the Coronavirus pandemic has described the awarding of almost £4,000 from the Exeter Covid-19 Action Fund as “a life saver!”

The Estuary League of Friends was successful in applying for two grants to help people in Topsham, Countess Wear and Newtown.

The money will be used to maintain the charity’s lifeline Home Help service for 98 vulnerable and elderly people in Topsham and the surrounding area, providing help in the home so that they can live safely during the Coronavirus outbreak.

It will also...

Play areas get makeover whilst closed due to the Coronavirus outbreak

Some play areas in Exeter are being refurbished whilst the equipment is out of use due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the City Council has revealed.

Making the repairs now mean the areas will be ready for use once restrictions are lifted, limiting any future disruption.

Cllr David Harvey, Lead Councillor for Environment and City Management, said money left at the end of the last financial year had allowed them to refurbish two play towers at Anne Close.

“The towers were looking really tired and some of the timbers were rotting in places so the work that has been...

Hundreds of businesses not yet applied for Covid-19 funding

Hundreds of businesses in Exeter invited to make a claim for a grant to help them through the Coronavirus outbreak have yet to do so, Exeter City Council has revealed.

The Council is helping distribute £25 million of government funding in the form of either Small Business Grants or Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grants.

Last week, the Council wrote to 2,000 businesses in Exeter inviting them to make a claim.

And on Thursday evening, only around a third to a half of those businesses eligible had responded.

City Council Director Bindu Arjoon said they...

Bin crews praised for collections in Exeter

Waste collection crews in Exeter are receiving messages of goodwill from the people of the city, the man in charge of collections has revealed. He has also stressed how important it is for people to keep recycling during the crisis.

Crews collecting household waste and recycling for Exeter City Council have found Easter eggs left out for them as well as messages of thanks displayed in windows.

Speaking on BBC Radio Devon, Exeter City Council’s Cleansing and Fleet Manager, Simon Hill, said: “We’ve had some lovely feedback from our residents, some people have been clapping...

Coronavirus support service flooded with offers of help and support

A support service set up to help people in Exeter during the Coronavirus outbreak has been flooded with requests for help and offers of support.

In the first 36 hours since Exeter Community Wellbeing went live, a combined total of 250 requests for help and offers of support were received.

More than 100 volunteers have come forward to offer their services. These offers of support will be matched with some of the 150 or so people who have requested practical help in Exeter to deal with the outbreak.

Both the City’s top sports clubs have pitched in to aid the...

New support service launched in Exeter to offer help during coronavirus outbreak

A support service has been launched in Exeter to help people through the coronavirus outbreak.

Exeter Community Wellbeing has been set up to offer help and support to communities including those individuals who are self-isolating as a result of the virus.

At the same time a £1 million community action fund has also been launched by Exeter City Council and Exeter Chiefs Community Foundation to enable community groups and organisations to get rapid access to small grants to allow them to work on local projects to support those people and communities most affected by the...

Landmark in construction of Exeter’s pioneering Extra Care scheme

Councillors have celebrated the progress in constructing the UK’s first super energy efficient Extra Care scheme, which is on schedule to open in Exeter later this year.

The main structure is now complete for the development off Topsham Road, which will be the first Passivhaus standard Extra Care facility in the country.

Councillors toured the building while attending a ‘topping out’ ceremony, which traditionally marks the high point of the building being reached during construction.

The Extra Care home will have 53 apartments carefully designed to meet the needs of...

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