Devon

‘Join the police to make a difference’ say officers in new phase of recruitment drive

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Mon, 01/10/2022 - 10:26pm

The government’s successful drive to protect the public by recruiting 20,000 additional police officers enters a new phase today (Monday 10 January) with the launch of a new advertising campaign.

More than 11,000 people have already joined the police as part of the recruitment drive, helping to cut crime by 14% (excluding fraud and computer misuse), remove 16,000 knives and dangerous weapons from the streets and tackle the scourge of drugs with the closure of over 1,500 county lines.

Two new adverts – featuring two serving police officers from different backgrounds...

Aldi donates 9,350 meals to charities in Devon over Christmas

Authored by Ellie Green
Posted: Sun, 01/09/2022 - 9:19pm

Aldi has supported local charities, community groups and food banks in Devon by donating 9,350 meals to people in need this Christmas.

The supermarket paired up its stores with local organisations to make the most of unsold fresh and chilled food after stores closed on both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, as part of its pledge to donate 1.8 million meals to families experiencing food poverty during November and December.

Around 550,000 meals were donated nationwide and more than 700 UK causes benefitted from the initiative over the festive period.

The...

Weather warnings make checking tyres an essential New Year resolution

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Sun, 01/09/2022 - 5:11pm

With the Met Office* issuing warnings for ice and snow, and the threat of flooding from the Environment Agency this week, 2022 has started with challenging driving conditions across the country. With millions of us making New Year’s resolutions, TyreSafe is urging motorists to pledge to check their tyres regularly to reduce the risk of an incident while out on the road.

Adequate tread depth is essential, especially when there is significant standing water. Tread clears water from between the road surface and the tyre - as much as a bucket full every seven seconds on a new tyre....

Where can I get boosted this “Jabuary”?

Cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 in Devon, Plymouth and Torbay are increasing rapidly in Devon, leading to a rising number of people in hospital with Covid and causing over 1,000 hospital staff to be off work.

The World Health Organisation recently warned that, while the Omicron variant does appear to be less severe compared to Delta, it should not be categorised as “mild” and still causes some people to die or become seriously ill and require hospital care.

However having the Covid-19 vaccination reduces your chances of becoming serious ill and clinics in Devon...

New Devon retreat venue to offer ‘rewilding burnout breaks’

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Fri, 01/07/2022 - 10:34pm

A new venue is to open in April hosting mindfulness retreats specifically for deepening a connection to nature and tackling the effects of stress and burnout.

Retreats incorporating nature’s ability to comfort and heal will take place at The Coach House on The Sharpham Estate , world-renowned for its high-quality cheeses and wine, making a stunning setting beside the River Dart near Totnes, South Devon.

Part of the estate is being rewilded and Coach House retreatants will be invited to uniquely experience and explore the fields being restored to nature, performing...

Olympian Sharron Davies launches new online training programme

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Fri, 01/07/2022 - 8:59pm

OLYMPIAN Sharron Davies has launched a new health and fitness programme to help people of all ages and abilities in the wake of Covid. The new website will go live in January 2022 and access to the programme will cost less than a cup of coffee a week. People are also being offered the chance to buy one and donate one subscription to charity.

Sharron Davies said: "It's been an incredibly difficult last two years. People have stopped going to the gym, had to work from home and at one point it seemed our only enjoyment was cooking a more exciting meal. Sadly statistics show us that...

RSPB appeal for volunteers in Devon to help with vital pin badge collections

Authored by News Desk
Posted: Thu, 01/06/2022 - 10:00pm

The UK’s largest nature conservation charity, the RSPB, is looking for volunteers across Devon, especially in the Plymouth area, that have a few hours to spare each month to help their cause.

As a vital fundraiser for the charity, pin badge collection volunteers play an important role in placing and checking on charity pin badge boxes in places like cafés, garden centres and shops in their local area.

Last year Covid-19 sent shock waves through the RSPB’s pin badge scheme, and in some areas reduced donations by 90% on the previous year’s income, affecting the charity’s...

Everyone is welcome at Race for Life in Devon

PEOPLE are being invited to kick start the New Year by signing up to Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life in Devon.

The charity’s much-loved events are returning to  Barnstaple, Exeter and Plymouth  and anyone who joins this January can claim a special 50 per cent off the entry fee as part of the half-price sale by using the code RFL22J50.

Every year around 35,100 people are diagnosed with cancer in the South West* and one in two people in the UK born after 1960 will get cancer in their lifetime.**  Money raised at Race for Life enables scientists to find new ways to...

RGB opens Surprise Supplies toall organisations

Since launching its Surprise Supplies initiative in May, RGB Building Supplies has donated building materials to support businesses that had to close for large parts of the pandemic, groups that went above and beyond to support members of their communities in the past 18 months, and charities who had struggled to complete projects without extra help.

For its last giveaway of the current campaign, RGB is inviting schools, colleges, community groups, care homes, charities and community interest companies to get in touch and explain how a donation of £1,000 worth of building...

Two of the many Pyworthy residents who are against yet another solar farm (Photo: Devon CPRE)

Countryside campaigners launch Crowdfunder to challenge the solar farm giants wrecking Devon’s world-beating farmland

In a call to arms on behalf of the environment, a small, independent Devon-based charity is taking on the might of international solar farm developers - by legally challenging a council's decision to allow an industrial-scale solar array to be built on 28 fields at Pyworthy in northwest Devon. Devon CPRE is fighting its biggest battle yet to save prime farmland that’s vital for food production and is one of the greatest ‘carbon capture’ resources we possess.

The charity is mounting a High Court challenge along with Pyworthy residents, including the actor John Nettles OBE who...

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