Local News

Winkleigh's much-loved fair returns

Winkleigh's much-loved annual Fair is now underway, with a packed programme of community events and celebrations continuing throughout the week following a successful opening ceremony held on Sunday in the Town Square.

The Winkleigh Fair is one of Devon's oldest surviving community...

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Police appeal following high value burglaries

Plymouth police are investigating a series of burglaries in the city where offenders have appeared to target owners and staff from the takeaway food industry and other professional individuals.

Detectives are linking 19 burglaries which have taken place since the start of the year, where the victims have mainly been either Indian or Chinese nationals.

The burglaries have...

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police appeal burglaries

Passengers urged to speak up against over-the-limit drivers

Transport Minister Robert Goodwill has urged car passengers to speak out against drink-drivers after one in four admitted to being too self-conscious to say anything.

Research for the THINK! Easter Drink-Drive campaign showed that a quarter of respondents admitted they had been in a car where the driver has been over the alcohol limit but said nothing because they were too...

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drink driving

Plymouth

MP urges Plymothians to nominate local good causes

Alison Seabeck MP is supporting the initiative of Lloyds Bank Community Fund and is asking for Plymothians to nominate local good causes.

Ms Seabeck said: “There are so many fantastic small charities and non-profit groups in my constituency of Plymouth Moor View. Over the years I have seen extraordinary commitment by volunteers to improve their neighbourhood and other people’s lives....

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Large fall in number of Job Seekers Allowance claimants

The number of people claiming Jobseekers Allowance in Devon has decreased by 8%, or 568 claimants, between February and March 2014.

The total number of claimants now stands at just 1.4% of Devon’s working age population, down from 1.6% in February 2014. This is roughly half the national rate of 2.9%.

Compared to March 2013, Devon’s claimant count last month was 3,108 claimants...

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jobs

jobseekers

Devon

Did you see the diving bunny?

A scuba diving Easter Bunny was the star of the show at Living Coasts last weekend.

The Easter Bunny swam with the penguins at Torquay’s coastal zoo in front of packed crowds.

Visitors played games of pebble bingo and noughts-and-crosses with the aquatic rabbit.

Living Coasts’ Clare Rugg explained: “We wanted to do something new and different for visitors. The English...

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aquarium

charity

zoo

Celebrations as Derriford Hospital's Stem Cell Transplant Unit is officially opened

Patients, staff and members of the Plymouth and District Leukaemia Fund (PDLF) celebrated last night (Monday 14 April) as they officially opened the new Bracken Ward and Birch Day Case Unit which is part of the Stem Cell Transplant Unit.

The official ceremony took place after the Annual General Meeting of the PDLF, with more than 60 people in attendance, and was marked by the pulling...

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Online egg hunt helps unlock secrets of camouflage

An online Easter egg hunt in which players act as ‘predators’ to find hidden bird eggs will help scientists better understand camouflage and its evolution.

The new game, called Egglab, is a type of citizen science – a genuine scientific experiment that anyone around the world with a computer, smartphone or tablet can take part in, with the aim of understanding how different types of...

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Certification is no fabrication for Plymouth welding firm

A METAL fabrication company in Plymouth is celebrating after achieving an internationally recognised quality mark. Celtic Welding, also trading under Westcountry Fabrication, has been awarded the ISO 9001:2008 by QAS International (Quality Management Systems) for its general fabrication and welding. The ISO takes the small Plympton-based firm a step nearer to achieving CE marking certification...

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Leading Devon museums part of national artist commissioning scheme

Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery and the Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter are to be part of a national programme of pioneering collaborations between artists, museums and audiences.

Thanks to major funding support from Arts Council England’s Grants for the Arts programme, New Expressions 3 (NE3) will bring together 15 museums from across England in partnership with the National...

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museums

Plymouth

PCC Tony Hogg reinforces determination to encourage greater reporting of sexual assault and rape

Devon and Cornwall’s Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Hogg has offered his backing to Totnes MP Dr Sarah Wollaston MP who has been criticised for the support she gave to the two men who alleged they had been assaulted by the former deputy speaker of the Commons Nigel Evans.

It has been reported in the national press that Dr Wollaston has been "vilified" for listening to the two young...

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