Men and women in the South West are being challenged to lay off the booze in January to raise money for Cancer Research UK. The charity is launching Dryathlon, its New Year fundraising campaign, and urging people across the West to sign up now before the festive season gets into full swing. Dryathletes pledge to drop the drink for a month and either get sponsored or donate the money they would have spent on alcohol to the charity. Supporters can register as individuals or set up a team and get their friends, family and colleagues involved to motivate each other along the way. And for those...
The government has announced plans to give police powers to disclose certain details of people’s criminal pasts to forces across England and Wales next year.
The Home Office led scheme gives people the ‘right to ask’ police if their partner has ever had convictions for domestic abuse and allow police to disclose details of a criminal in certain circumstances.
All requests must go through a panel of Police, Probation services and other agencies to ensure that the information is only passed on where appropriate.
The scheme also offers support to victims to help during...
Special prayers and collections will be held at churches across Devon this Sunday as congregations respond to the call to help those affected by the devastating Philippines typhoon.
The typhoon, one of the strongest storms to ever hit land, has torn apart the lives of more than 11 million people in the Philippines who are now in urgent need of food, water and emergency shelter.
Within the first 24 hours of The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) launching an appeal on Tuesday - including TV appeals fronted by presenters Myleene Klass and Kirsty Young - the total reached £13...
The UK's inflation rate fell to 2.2% in the year to October 2013 as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI).
The figure is the lowest for more than a year and is down from 2.7% in September, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The ONS reports that the largest contributions to the fall in the rate came from a drop in prices in the transport sector (notably motor fuels) and in education where the impact of rising tuition fees was felt less acutely than a year previously.
Food inflation fell from 4.8% to 4.3% and some air...
The UK’s economic recovery appears to have strengthened during the third quarter of 2013, based on a wide range of indicators, according to a review by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Estimates of output in the services and construction industries both show an acceleration between the second and third quarters, while retail sales volumes grew at the fastest quarterly rate since the start of 2008. The labour market continued its recent improvement, with employment and hours rising and unemployment falling. Following a period of relatively flat output growth during 2011 and...
A teenage girl in Kent and A 50-year old man in Watford have been killed by falling trees from last night’s storm.
A Man and a Woman have also been killed in a suspected gas explosion caused by a fallen tree in West London. The 17-year old Bethany Freeman was hit by the tree as she was sleeping in abuilding adajecent her family home in Edenbridge at 7:20am this morning. The man was in a traffic accident where a tree came down on a car in Hertfordshire at 6:50am this morning. He was pronounced dead at the scene and his next-of-kin informed. The storm also saw a 14-year old boy,...
Figures released on Friday (25 October) by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show ecomonic growth of 0.8% in the third quarter of the year.
The gross domestic product (GDP), which is the main indicator of economic growth, saw an increase of 0.8% between July and September compared to the previous quarter - the best quarterly performance since 2010.
The ONS reports that output increased in all four main industrial groupings within the economy in the third quarter of 2013 compared with quarter two. Output increased by 1.4% in agriculture, 0.5% in production, 2.5% in...
Much more needs to be done to improve UK children’s health, and acting early will save taxpayers’ money, the Chief Medical Officer has said in a frank assessment of the state of the health of the nation’s children.
Her latest report - which has the backing of several children’s charities - calls on government, the whole health service, social care and education professionals to take action and make improvements now. It highlights a strong economic case for doing more, sooner. For example, reducing obesity by just one percentage point among children and young people could lead to...
Exeter's very own Bike Shed Theatre has been revealed as the first ever winner of the My Theatre Matters! UK's Most Welcoming Theatre Award. In Association with Classic FM, the award was presented at the annual UK Theatre Awards at London’s historic Guildhall on Sunday 20 October 2013.
Nestled at the end of an alley in the heart of Exeter, you'll find the Bike Shed Theatre. With a 60 seat subterranean auditorium and adjacent vintage cocktail tavern, the venue has performances nearly every night of the year. Championing new work and innovation, the theatre has gained national...
House prices in the South West rose by an average of 2.6% in the year to August 2013 according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The average price of a house or flat in the region now stands at £230,000.
The 2.6% rise is lower than the overall UK figure of 3.8% and the 4.1% for England which are both skewed by a considerable rise in London of 8.7%. The South West figure shows the fourth highest regional rise in the UK, behind only London, the East Midlands and West Midlands.
House prices across the whole of the UK reached a new record...
