Local News

More than a thousand schoolchildren will be heading to Exmouth seafront this summer to learn how to enjoy the water safely and the role they can play in protecting the coast.

Officers are appealing for information regarding the whereabouts of a 36-year-old wanted man from Exeter.

Exeter City Council’s Live and Move team is consulting with households across the city, as part of its annual Local Active Lives Survey.

MPs and councillors are calling for an urgent rethink on removing payments for coastguard rescue officers (CROs) fearing it could have dire consequences for coastal communities across Devon and Cornwall.

Thousands of young people across England will get protection against meningococcal B disease (MenB) through a one-off vaccination programme launching ahead of the 2026 academic year. 

As part of an annual tradition, the city of Exeter will be marking Armed Forces Day with a large number of service military, associations and cadets marching through the city.

A strategy for specialist and supported housing in Devon is to be developed over the next 10 months.

Over 200 people have applied for just three funded social work apprenticeship places at Devon County Council, in a striking show of demand at a time when many councils across the country are struggling to recruit and keep social care staff.

Devon’s Liberal Democrat MPs are to lobby the government in a bid to scupper plans for a tourist tax which some industry insiders say could wash out the summer season for seaside resorts.

The University of Exeter has secured £6.4 million in Government funding to expand advanced engineering and computing education, supporting the development of the next generation of highly skilled graduates needed by the UK’s defence, security and technology sectors.

Residents are being urged to take extra care when clearing out sheds, garages and lofts after Brunel Road Recycling Centre in Newton Abbot was closed and evacuated on Wednesday 3 June following the discovery of a suspected grenade.

Four men have been jailed for their roles in the “senseless” killing of 24-year-old Denva Smith in Exmouth last summer.

Representatives of Exmouth Town Council gathered on Cranford Avenue to pay tribute to retired County Councillor Christine Channon, recognising her remarkable 30 years of service to Exmouth and, in particular, the Littleham community.

Residents are being asked for their views on plans to replace two ageing bridges on one of Exeter’s busiest routes with new crossings that could serve the city until the end of the century.

Devon’s towns, cities and villages are being offered help from National Grid to create or improve green spaces that can be enjoyed by communities.

Devon County Council’s Leader, Councillor Julian Brazil, has asked officers to explore whether any legal options are available to the authority in relation to ongoing concerns about sewage discharges and water quality in the county.

A 70-bed care home is to be built on the site of a former Devon school despite locals warning that it will be ‘massive’, ‘unsustainable’ and a burden on under-pressure health services.

A project to transform a tumbledown farm building near Sidmouth into a modern home has been turned down.

The Acute Hospital at Home (or virtual ward) team at the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is celebrating winning an HSJ Digital Award for pioneering a system to provide patients with 24/7 heart monitoring in the comfort of their own home.

Libraries in Devon are inviting children to join The Summer Book Quest over the summer holidays. The Summer Book Quest: Mission to Wayfarer Island follows a group of friends as they set out to help an explorer on an exciting, transport-themed adventure. Children can participate with a mix of activities and reading, and receive a special medal upon completion.

The race is on to finally crack a secret code hidden on the side of a Great Western Railway train for the past four years.

A convoy led by the World Extreme Medicine Fund (WEMF) has successfully delivered ten anaesthetic machines from Devon, UK to Kropyvnytski Hospital in Ukraine, helping support intensive care treatment for patients suffering severe infection and trauma-related complications caused by war injuries.

The warmer weather over the past few weeks means Devon’s annual surface dressing season is now underway.

Citizens Advice services across Devon will provide emergency funds and support to break the cycle of poverty for around 4,000 households most in need as part of a £1 million initiative.

An East Devon resident repaid in full more than £25,000 of falsely claimed Council Tax Reduction, alongside a £1,000 penalty, following a fraud investigation into an undeclared change in household circumstances.

Police have launched an investigation after a banner promoting Exmouth Pride was torn down, marking the third consecutive year that event signage has been targeted

Police are reminding youngsters and their parents about the dangers of entering derelict sites and abandoned buildings.

Council Leader Phil Bialyk has welcomed a £2.7m investment to transform Exeter Central – one of the busiest railway stations in the South West.

Residents with a passion for their community are being invited to apply for the new Independent Chair role for the Pride in Place Neighbourhood Board in Heavitree and Whipton.

Exmouth RNLI were tasked on Thursday 4 June at 9.11am by H.M. Coastguard, launching our inshore, D-class lifeboat, George Bearman II, shortly after. Our volunteer crew of three headed off in windy conditions, generating 2 metre swells, towards the reported location of the incident in the Exe estuary.

Paddling pools at Heavitree Pleasure Ground in Exeter will reopen this weekend (Saturday 6 June).

People and organisations in Exeter that have gone above and beyond for the city have been honoured at the Lord Mayor of Exeter’s Commendation Awards.

East Devon District Council (EDDC) has agreed the next steps for Connaught Cliff and the Millennium Walkway in Sidmouth, regarding repair work in the Jacobs Ladder area.

People living in Exeter are more active than anyone else in the country….and that’s official!

Lieutenant Commander Chris Gayson, 42, from Somerset, Lieutenant Lily-Mae Fisher, 31, from Surrey, and Petty Officer Owen Green, 24, from Hampshire, were all serving members of the Royal Navy and dedicated their careers to protecting and serving their country.

Did you know that today (4th June) is Devon Day? Here in the UK there are no celebrations. However in Devon, Alberta Canada there is a festival offering a full weekend of activities, including community events, markets, and family-oriented attractions. So why don't we mark this day?

Wales & West Utilities is set to start work to upgrade the gas pipes in the Salterton Road area of Exmouth.

Sidmouth Town Council earlier this year confirmed that The Red Arrows will be in attendance for the annual Sidmouth Regatta Airshow. Now it has been confirmed that among other aircraft joining them there will be a historic Fairey Swordfish of the Navy Wings flight.

Exeter residents are being reminded to have their say on two major strategies that will guide the city’s cultural development and future of the city centre in the coming years.

Devon’s new EHCP Funding Framework is now moving into phased implementation, following formal agreement through the relevant SEND governance routes.

Exeter College has opened its new Centre for Law and Social Sciences, transforming the College’s city centre Hele Road campus and creating a modern learning environment for students studying A Level Geography, History, Law, Politics, Sociology and Psychology.

The British Medical Association (BMA) is taking strike action involving resident doctors at a number of NHS trusts, including the Royal Devon, from 7am on Monday 15 June until 7am on Friday 19 June 2026.

There’s good news for Ukrainian residents living in Exeter, with the announcement of a new community connecting service.

Devon County Council’s Leader has said that the privatised water industry is not fit for purpose, that it’s broken, and that the public are suffering as a result of it.

Three members of the Royal Navy have died after a Merlin Mk4 helicopter crashed during a training exercise near Okehampton.

Police are investigating a serious road traffic collision near Dawlish on Monday 1 June and are appealing for any witnesses to come forward.

Devon & Cornwall Police has today welcomed a report recognising the Force’s improvements on how it responds to calls for service and continues to prevent crime effectively.

South West Water has been fined £1.85 million after supplying contaminated drinking water during a major cryptosporidium outbreak in Brixham that left hundreds of people ill in 2024.

The University of Exeter has maintained its position of 11th in the latest national league table.

Devon & Cornwall Police will be raising awareness around the link between sporting events and an increase in domestic abuse during this summer’s FIFA World Cup.

A drinks can recycling scheme has had incredible year, breaking all previous records and raising thousands of pounds for good causes.

The number of affordable units in a massive new housing complex on the site of a former Exeter police station is to be cut.

Exeter Respect Festival is set to bring entertainment and education to Belmont Park from 6–7 June as it returns for its 29th year.

Keep Britain Tidy launches hunt for new Litter Heroes Ambassadors as successful programme is set to expand.

An independent review has praised Devon County Council for major improvements in its culture and leadership.

This year marks 20 years of Bikeability cycle training in Devon, and it’s a double celebration as Devon County Council has been awarded just over £1.3 million from Active Travel England to continue delivering the training over the next three years.

It’s the start of a month-long celebration of arts, culture and creativity, as June Boom brings an exciting programme of events to venues across the city.

People living on an Exeter housing development where sewer works have been left unfinished are facing a bill of around half a million pounds.

A furore over sex education items being laid out on a stall during a ‘family-friendly’ public event at Exeter Library has spilled over into the council chamber at County Hall.

A Dartmoor youth hostel which has been providing rooms for nearly 100 years is to close at the end of June.

Exmouth RNLI supporter and superfan, Ivie Simkiss-Cowtan, aged 8, has been running every day in May as part of the RNLI’s Mayday Mile challenge. Today, she ran an extra special mile with Exmouth RNLI volunteer crew members, exactly 5 years after she first completed a mayday mile, aged only three!

It’s 50 years since one of the region’s most loved long-distance walking trails, the Two Moors Way, was first launched. The outstanding trail links the South West’s two National Parks, Exmoor and Dartmoor.

Empty shops in the centre of Exeter could be put back into use as part of a project to make the city centre more ‘animated’.

More and more children in Exeter are being drawn into crime, putting their own futures in jeopardy, according to the city’s MP.

Students and staff at Sidmouth College are celebrating after the school was found to have met the ‘expected standard’ across all areas following a visit from Ofsted, with inspectors highlighting positive relationships, an ambitious curriculum and strong foundations for learning.

Sites across the centre of Exeter are set to be used to showcase work by international artists which reimagines how people can respond to current social, ecological and technological crises.

To ensure the voices of Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly residents are heard on proposed police force mergers across England and Wales, Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez has launched her own survey. 

Cold callers may be operating in East Devon and surrounding areas. They are claiming to be working on behalf of Exeter City Council who have asked them to cut back vegetation that’s ‘a danger’. They may start work without the homeowner’s consent before asking for money.

A new community building and GP surgery for South West Exeter is progressing towards completion, with the finishing touches now being applied to the roof.

The number of people killed or seriously injured (KSI) on Devon and Cornwall’s roads has dropped to the lowest ever level in recent reporting history, new figures reveal.

Two councillors with strong community roots have been appointed to lead Devon County Council’s civic duties for the coming year.

Drivers in Exeter are paying more for their petrol than those elsewhere in the South West, according to one local MP.

Business-minded students at the Deaf Academy in Exmouth have won a regional award for enterprise and praise from HRH The Princess Royal after publishing their own accessible comic book that includes British Sign Language (BSL).

The Royal Devon Healthcare Trust know carers play a vital role in supporting patients across acute and community settings. As they develop their Family, Friends and Carers strategy, they are inviting carers to get involved in one of two ways;

The Pothole Posse volunteers in Sidmouth have reached their 500th pothole repair. The honour of 500th repair went to the holes outside The Beacon Medical centre

A new talking compacting bin has been installed in a layby near Upottery, and will be monitored as a trial, with the aim of rolling out further bins in the future.

A new, more open approach to recruiting foster carers in Devon is beginning to make a difference, with more people coming forward to find out about how they could change a child’s life.

The Red Arrows will swoop over Torbay at the weekend flying just seven of their trademark scarlet Hawk aircraft instead of the traditional ‘Diamond Nine’. The Royal Air Force’s elite aerobatic team will fly with fewer aircraft for almost all of their 2026 displays in an effort to preserve their ageing machinery.

The grants offer up to £350 per project from a total citywide budget of £39,000. Each ward has £3,000 available to support local community initiatives until April 2027.

Footballers from across Exeter’s diverse range of communities will come together next month for an annual five-a-side tournament in support of ‘Kick Racism Out of Football’.

The UK Health Security Agency has raised its South West heat-health alert from yellow to amber, warning high temperatures pose a greater risk to vulnerable people and urging health and social care services to prepare as conditions continue to heat up.

The Teignbridge Local Plan 2020-2040 has been formally adopted by councillors at Teignbridge District Council’s annual meeting. The plan sets out planning policy and allocates land for development across Teignbridge, outside Dartmoor National Park.

Last week, Devon & Cornwall Police supported national ‘Sceptre’ knife awareness campaign, engaging with knife retailers to check knives are not being sold illegally and with the public around the risks of carrying knives.

Cllr Gemma Rolstone has become Exeter’s new Lord Mayor, with Cllr Lucy Haigh appointed Deputy Lord Mayor. During her year in office, Cllr Rolstone will raise funds for Baby Bank Network Exeter, supporting families facing financial and emotional hardship

The English Riviera Airshow returns to Paignton seafront this weekend (Friday 29, Saturday 30 & Sunday 31 May), with tens of thousands of visitors expected to flock to Torbay for one of the region’s most spectacular weekends of the year.

Donna Manson, Chief Executive of Devon County Council, visited Isca Academy in Exeter to meet students and staff. Guided by student leaders, she toured the school and spoke with Year 11 pupils about their studies and exam preparations.

Sidmouth College’s Student Council welcomed local MP Richard Foord for a Q&A session. The Liberal Democrat MP for Honiton and Sidmouth spent an hour discussing issues affecting young people and the wider community with council members attending during half term.

Year 6 pupil Polly from Exwick Heights Primary School raised £768 for Devon Wildlife Trust by completing her first triathlon. An Earth Councillor at the school, she took on a swim, cycle and run challenge, more than doubling her fundraising target.

“Ofsted says Devon County Council is making progress in improving children’s services. Inspectors praised major service changes and the appointment of more permanent leaders and managers, bringing greater workforce stability.”

The battle lines around a possible monster site that could accommodate up to 700 homes in Exmouth are emerging as objectors believe early proposals are in “direct conflict” with policies.