Keep our reporting free for everyone to read Upgrade to paid EO Exeter Observer Local news that matters ON OUR RADAR An evening of poetry and music with Michael Murpurgo to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Farms for City Children. Leigh Curtis Exeter Cathedral is hosting My Heart Was a Tree on Tuesday 27 January, an evening of poetry and music celebrating the natural world to mark the 50th anniversary of Farms for City Children.…
HEADLINESDevon County Council funding cuts set to reduce core library opening hours by 30%Public consultation on changes explores possibility of closing some branches altogether despite claims to the contrary while Libraries Unlimited contract extension decision scheduled for six weeks before consultation ends. Read more.Exeter City Council adds 813 more student and “co-living” beds to city “housing” supply with Heavitree Road approvalComplex of seven blocks up to six storeys tall on site of police station and magistrates court to…
Devon County Council library service funding cuts are expected to reduce the core staffed opening hours of the county’s libraries from a total of just under 1,300 hours each week to just under 915 hours each week, a fall of nearly 30%.The cuts are expected to affect 43 of Devon’s 50 libraries, four of which are in Exeter.The county council has outsourced the provision of library services, which it has a statutory duty to provide, to Libraries Unlimited,…
An Exeter City Council decision to approve plans for an 813-bed student and “co-living” complex in Heavitree Road is to increase the number of beds in purpose-built temporary accommodation to nearly 3,250 in Newtown and more than 16,000 across the whole city.The plans for 399 student and 414 “co-living” bedspaces in seven blocks up to six storeys tall on the site of the former police station and magistrates court were submitted in May, following the eventual rejection of…
Exeter College and Petroc will merge in the new year to create what they say will be the largest college group in the South West with more than 16,000 students, nearly 2,000 staff and an annual turnover of £100 million.Following approval by each college’s board of governors, the new organisation – Exeter and North Devon Colleges Group – will begin operations on 5 January.Exeter College will keep its name and continue to provide sixth form education at its…
A five-day strike by resident doctors in England – formerly known as junior doctors – is taking place from Wednesday 17 to Monday 22 December after British Medical Association members rejected an offer from health secretary Wes Streeting as “too little, too late”.The strike involves resident doctors from the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust which operates hospitals across the county including Exeter Community Hospital in Whipton, Nightingale Hospital in Sowton and the Royal Devon and Exeter…
New Year’s Eve party - Exeter ObserverDemocracy doesn't work when people don't know Upgrade to paidEO Exeter Observer Local news that matters ON OUR RADARA movie-themed celebration to mark the tenth anniversary of independent cinema Studio 74 while welcoming in 2026.Leigh CurtisExeter Phoenix is holding a cinematic New Year’s Eve party with live music, themed bars and DJs on Wednesday 31 December.The party will take a trip to the movies to mark the tenth anniversary of Exeter Phoenix’s…
Exeter City Council has approved the construction of 54 more dwellings in the Topsham gap on the former Topsham Golf Academy driving range after previously approving plans which enabled the relocation of the driving range to privately-owned land in Ludwell Valley Park.The approval will extend Berkeley Park, a development of 61 luxury dwellings in Exeter Road that was approved by the city council in 2021 before another seven dwellings were added later the same year.The 4.7 acre driving…
Exeter Quayside Farmers’ Market returns to Piazza Terracina on Saturday 20 December for a festive edition with local produce, hand-made goods, hot drinks and more.Launched by Food Exeter in June, and attracting around 1,000 visitors on its first day, the monthly market aims to increase access to nutritious, healthy food for Exeter residents and visitors. Exeter Quayside Farmers Market mince pies. Photo: Martyn Windsor.The December market will host 30 local producers including Shillingford Organics, Dartmoor Chilli Farm, De-Bees…
Exeter City Council, in its roles as port and harbour authority, is responsible for eleven miles of waterways, including the historic Exeter Ship Canal, from Blackaller Weir to a mile out to sea, as well as numerous buildings and miles of estuary land.It must navigate relationships with a wide range of stakeholders including smaller harbours and quays, mooring associations, marine businesses, pubs, port premises tenants, fisheries, clubs and multifarious communities along the estuary’s length.Waterways user groups, advocacy organisations…
SPECIAL REPORTExeter City Council is about to seize the helm of Exe estuary maritime life: will it steer it onto the rocks?Charges for waterways access are set to be imposed from the quay and canal basin to the coast under proposed Harbour Revision Order powers after six years of rising costs propelled by pursuit of Port Marine Safety Code compliance.They risk driving away craft of all sizes, from kayaks to yachts, while redevelopment threatens canalside land – but…
Retirement home developer McCarthy Stone has made minor amendments to its application for full planning permission for a three-storey retirement complex on a former playing field in the heart of Heavitree.The application was initially submitted to Exeter City Council at the beginning of August, prompting dozens of objections.These included concerns about the need to preserve valuable green space and the prospect that the development would harm the character of the area, which includes a range of Georgian residential…