Friday 25 November 2022
Please pass this onto district, borough, parish and town councillors as appropriate. The bulletin can be shared as a link by clicking the 'View it as a Web page' link at the top.
The Chancellor's Autumn Statement last week, Thursday 17 November, outlined some of the detail behind the Government's plans to see us through the nation's current financial turmoil.
In Devon, we continue to face a black hole in our finances of £75 million caused by soaring inflation, surging demand for our vital services for vulnerable children and adults and rapidly rising costs.
Councillor John Hart shared his thoughts to help to understand its full impact on our own financial difficulties.
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Attention Members: Locality Budgets
Locality Budgets have now reopened.
This is the time for Members to consider focussing on projects that offer targeted support to local communities during the cost of living crisis.
There are many projects across Devon that are helping communities to build self-reliance, tackle hardship, such as food and fuel inequality, improve mental health and wellbeing and address loneliness and isolation. Projects include those that are providing a warm space and food alongside advice and companionship.
If any of you are ever uncertain whether a project which has been brought to you would be eligible, the Locality Officers are always available for discussion and advice. Equally, if you are aware of good work going on within your Division and want to be more proactive with the use of your budget, we are always happy to support you to achieve this.
Please remember that if you are aware of any applicants to your Locality Budget that are time critical for Christmas, they need to be submitted very soon in order for them to be processed in time.
Contact your Locality Officer via Teams or call:
- Ali Eastland 01392 383666
- Ali Boyd 01392 388135
Dates for the diary
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Tuesday 6 December at 2pm – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: Legal and Moral Duties – All Member briefing
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Just a reminder: Corporate Parenting Forum will NOT be on in December – it will start running before every full Council in 2023
Training available:
Equality Act 2010 - Your responsibilities as decision makers
The Equality Act places a Public Sector Equality Duty on local authorities. The General Duty states a public authority must, in the exercise of its functions, give due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other prohibited conduct.
'Due regard' means proper attention should be given by Members and officers to how things affect people in relation to protected characteristics and whether the General Duty is being met as best it can be.
Find further Information on the Equality and Diversity area of our website and the Local Government Association Equality, diversity and inclusion hub.
Outline business case submitted for reopening Tavistock to Plymouth rail line
We have submitted the Strategic Outline Business Case for the reopening of the Tavistock to Plymouth rail line. The submission to the Government’s Restoring Your Railway programme sets out the rationale for reopening the line between Bere Alston and Tavistock.
The scheme would reinstate approximately five miles of track and deliver a new single platform station at Tavistock, which would serve around 21,000 residents of Tavistock, Horrabridge, Lamerton, and Mary Tavy.
An hourly Tavistock-Plymouth service would stop at Bere Alston, Bere Ferrers and the west Plymouth stations, while maintaining the existing two-hourly service between Plymouth and Gunnislake.
Restored railway line and unique flood alleviation scheme receive industry awards
A £40.5 million scheme to reconnect communities by restoring regular trains services to a mothballed railway has celebrated double success at the ICE South West Civil Engineering Awards 2022.
The Dartmoor Line, between Okehampton and Exeter in Devon, won the prestigious Showcase Award at a gala ceremony in Bristol on Tuesday 22 November.
The project, which was a partnership between Network Rail, Great Western Railway and Devon County Council also won the Community Award in recognition of outstanding community engagement and the benefits it brings to rural communities on Dartmoor.
Free support for local businesses struggling with rising cost of living
We know right now that many businesses in Devon are struggling with rising costs, and that with the current climate following so quickly on the heels of the pandemic, some businesses, sadly, have closed.
Through the Heart of the South West Growth Hub, we are supporting local Devon businesses, helping them plan, adapt, and respond to their current challenges, as well as helping them find additional available support and business advice.
We've looked at the types of challenges that businesses are facing and have developed some new webpages to help, which we summarised in a special Connect Me bulletin.
Money off your electricity bill this winter
You could get £150 off your electricity bill with the Government's Warm Home Discount Scheme.
The money is not paid to you - it's a one-off discount on your electricity bill, between October 2022 and March 2023.
You may be able to get the discount on your gas bill instead if your supplier provides you with both gas and electricity, if you're elgible.
The discount doesn't affect your Cold Weather Payment or Winter Fuel Payment.
There are different ways to qualify for the Warm Home Discount Scheme, depending on where you live.
Free agricultural transition workshops for farmers and landowners
Free workshops to help farmers and landowners plan for changes to grant payments are currently running throughout the region.
These information workshops are being provided as part of the Future Farming Resilience programme, which has expanded this year with an additional £2.6 million of funding support from Defra.
Titled “Navigating the Agricultural Transition”, the sessions provide a comprehensive overview of the coming changes and the options available as the Basic Payment Scheme payments are gradually reduced before they stop in 2027.
Shop safely this Christmas
Check out these useful resources from our Heart of the South West Trading Standards team to help you stay safe from scams, avoid dodgy deals and learn about your consumer rights:
16 Days of Action
In England and Wales 1.6 million women experienced domestic abuse in 2020.
Running annually from 25 November until 10 December, the 16 Days of Action campaign is a global call from individuals, organisations and communities for an end to gender-based violence and for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.
To mark the campaign, organisations and community groups across Devon are hosting a series of events and activities to bring communities together to stand against violence against women and girls, celebrate the strength of victims and survivors, and shine a light on the support available.
Free holiday activities with hot meals now available for children during the Christmas 2022 holidays
School holidays can be particularly difficult for some families because of increased costs, such as food, especially now, when costs of living are so high, and rising.
So, we have arranged a programme of funded holiday-time activities, with hot meals, to run for up to four days over the Christmas 2022 school holiday period.
To see the full programme of available activities, and to book a place through our providers, please visit our website.
We’ve teamed up with John Lewis on our own Christmas advert
We and John Lewis, Exeter, have teamed up in celebration of fostering and children in care.
Often poignant, the John Lewis Christmas advert this year focuses on children in care and follows the preparations by a foster carer ahead of the young person’s arrival.
The advert prompted our fostering service to respond with an advert of our own, featuring Al, who works for our fostering service, learning to skateboard.
The video, posted on the Council’s corporate social media accounts, has already had more than 2,500 views.
Our new Fostering Devon website is live!
This week, we are proud to launch our brand new fostering website which showcases fostering to the wider public and also represents an improved resource bank for our current foster carers. By creating this new bespoke website we hope to continue to inspire people to become foster carers and support those children currently in our service as best we can. It would be fantastic if you could take the time to look through our website and help to continue to spread the message of our team and fostering as a career.
No Label No Limit for young women in Devon schools
A Heart of the South West Careers Hub programme has been launched across 14 schools in Devon to help raise the confidence and aspirations of 500 young women.
The No Label No Limit programme is a personal development programme, inspiring and empowering young women in year nine and 10 to reach their potential.
Devon Youth Justice Service is ‘Good’
Our practitioners at the Devon Youth Justice Service, a service we manage on behalf of agencies including the police, probation service and NHS, have been called our ‘greatest asset’ by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.
Inspectors gave the Service an overall rating of ‘Good’ following their inspection in September. They published their findings on Tuesday 22 November, and they concluded that the Service is either ‘Outstanding’ or ‘Good’ in almost every category.
His Majesty’s Inpectors noted that planning to support children so that they do not commit further offences is one of our strengths. They found timely plans in place that clearly identified what work needed to be carried out to achieve positive outcomes for children.
North Devon primary praised for ‘Good’ learning and care for pupils
A North Devon primary school has been rated Good across the board after making major improvements in every area of education and learning.
We supported Carers Rights Day
New figures suggest that there are now more than 135,000 people in Devon who are unpaid carers.
Worryingly though, only a minority are accessing vital information and support that is available to them.
Earlier this week, Thursday 24 November, was Carers Right Day - a national event, which is run annually, to ensure unpaid carers are aware of their rights, to let them know where to get help and support and to raise awareness of the needs of carers.
We created a special Connect Me bulletin with events, information on rights of carers, and what support is available.
Further information and support can also be found by visiting:
www.devon.gov.uk/care-and-health/carers or www.devoncarers.org.uk
Atkinson sunflower
This sunflower was made by young people and staff at the Atkinson Secure Children’s Home, Exeter. The colours used represent the Ukrainian flag.
The young people in the home have helped to make this as a symbol of the plight faced by the Ukrainian people.
Carers urged to have COVID-19 and flu jabs
Unpaid carers - people who provide care for someone else on a voluntary basis - are being asked to take up a free seasonal flu jab and autumn COVID-19 booster.
The NHS in Devon is asking people aged over 16-years-old who provide care, unpaid or paid, to consider whether they would be putting the person they care for at risk should they catch flu or COVID-19.
Coronavirus advice in Devon
Please support the NHS by having the seasonal COVID-19 booster and flu vaccination if eligible, by staying away from hospitals, care homes and other healthcare facilities if you have symptoms of flu or COVID-19 and by using the most appropriate service for your needs.
Local pharmacies can help with minor ailments and you can call NHS 111 or visit the NHS 111 website for more urgent needs.
Find current COVID-19 local data on our dashboard.
Vaccines are available for people aged five years and over, but please check your eligibility on the NHS website before attending.
Reminder: if you feel unwell don't come into an office
Our Strategic Leadership Team advise anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 or who develops symptoms to stay at home and avoid contact with others – in the same way you would if you had the flu or vomiting and diarrhoea.
If you are well enough and can do so, please work from home.
Members' area
Don't forget your Members' Area SharePoint site is your one-stop-shop to access resources to aid you in your role as a Devon County Councillor. Key documents from the Council's various service areas, including induction resources, are posted in the Document library, and the Who's who? highlights the best person for you to contact to help answer any queries you may have.
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