News in Honiton

BIG WELL DONE to these five youngsters who completed the Beavers 35th Challenge to celebrate the Beavers Scouts' 35th Birthday.

They were the only ones to complete the challenge, which had lots of wonderful and different elements. Wearing 35 items of clothing in one go was a brilliant challenge.

The UK Parliament team were so impressed with what we did for UK Parliament last year that they sent us some tee shirts for the Beavers as a keepsake.

Our MP Neil Parish popped to the Scout Hall recently to sign them for us.

Police have confirmed that a man died in the accident on the A30 last Friday, and they are appealing for witnesses.

It happened at Daisymount Cross at about 12.20pm on Friday, July 9.

The A30 has been closed in both directions between Daisymount and Honiton after a serious accident.

The road is likely to remain shut for several hours.

The Children's Hospice South West (CHSW) charity shop in Honiton has issued an urgent appeal for donations of summer clothing.

The shop in the High Street has experienced a surge in demand for good quality second-hand clothing since reopening in April, and is asking people to consider donating any unwanted items.

Devon's ambulance service has seen a big increase in demand following the easing of lockdown restrictions – and has had its busiest week on record.

The South Western Ambulance Service responded to 22,041 incident during the seven days up to Sunday, July 4.

Devon County Council will face 'considerable financial risk' in the near future, according to its treasurer.

The biggest risks highlighted, apart from the ongoing effects of the pandemic, were the government's spending review, social care, and Devon's special education budget.

Labour has taken a seat on East Devon District Council for the first time in 20 years, after the by-election victory of Honiton's Jake Bonetta.

He won the Honiton St Michael's seat with 807 votes. Conservative Jenny Brown was second with 522 votes whilst Liberal Democrat Jules Hoyles received 63. The turnout was 25 per cent.

Honiton town councillor Jake Bonetta has been elected as the new district councillor for the St Michael's ward.

A by-election was held yesterday to replace the former St Michael's district councillor Luke Jeffery, who stepped down to focus on his university course.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has urgently suspended a patient transport service run by Honiton-based Devon Freewheelers, after finding serious concerns during a recent inspection.

The patient transport service, using ambulances, was separate from the Devon Freewheelers' Blood Bikes service and other activities. It had been registered with the CQC since February 2020.