Friday 11 October 2024
 Primary school children get wise about farming
More than 1,600 primary school children from across Devon got ‘Farmwise’ on Tuesday and saw for themselves where our food comes from and how it’s made.
We invited Key Stage 2 primary school children from 40 primary schools, and they rolled up their sleeves and got stuck into a range of activities.
It’s the 11th time this annual event has been held and teachers and children tell us it’s the absolute highlight of their year.
The event is a collaboration between us, South West Norse, Devon County Agricultural Association, and Mole Valley Farmers and takes place at Westpoint.
Farmwise offers children a ‘beyond the classroom experience’ with the chance to engage in a multitude of sensory activities and experiences offered by a mix of producers and farmers, including tenant farmers from our Farms Estate.
You can read more about Trevor from the 'Sheep Show', the 'burping cows' exhibit, and chicks that hatched just a few hours before the Farmwise doors opened, in the full story on our news website.
 New funds confirmed to help households with the costs of energy and food
The government has announced further household support funding until the end of March 2025 to help households that are struggling with the costs of energy, food, water and other essentials. Our allocation this time is a little over £5 million.
Citizens Advice Devon will receive some of the funding so that they can continue to support people who are struggling with energy costs.
The Devon Community Foundation will receive some of the funding so that they can continue to provide grants to community groups who in turn, support people who might not otherwise be eligible for other support.
The allocation means we'll be able to continue providing help with food bills during the school holidays to families whose children receive benefits-related free school meals during term time.
We're working with district, borough and city councils to ensure that pensioners and households receiving welfare benefits will have access to the funding.
Early Help professionals, who work closely with families who need support, will be able to make referrals to the fund.
And we'll be helping care leavers with financial support towards their energy and food costs.
Find out more in the story on our news page.
Now that we’re into autumn, the risk of flooding from storms is more likely and it is important to be prepared. Recent polling suggests nearly 60 per cent of households at risk from flooding do not believe their homes could flood. But just because flooding hasn’t happened to you in the past, it doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future.
Flooding can sometimes happen with little or no warning, but there are steps you can take now to be prepared and to help reduce the damage and disruption it can have on your home, travel and work. You can check your flood risk on this map. If your community is at risk of river flooding you should sign up for Environment Agency flood warnings. You can find out who to contact in case of flooding on our website.
A new team to help our care experienced young people to navigate the mental health system has launched this week.
The Therapeutic Wellbeing Service for care leavers will support access to existing mental health services, identify gaps in provision, and advocate for young people in strategic meetings. It will also be able to offer some therapeutic support.
Care experienced young people had told us that they sometimes find the complexity of the mental health system challenging to navigate, which meant that young people couldn't always access support and services they needed. The new team will work with care experienced young people to help them get the help they need.
Young people were involved with the recruitment of the Therapeutic Wellbeing Practitioners and have helped influence what the new service looks like.
You can read more in the story on our news page.
With the increase in government-funded childcare, the demand for staff in the Early Years sector is growing. In response, we are working with training providers, like Realise, to offer pathways into early years careers.
Train4Tomorrow Skills Bootcamps are free to residents across Devon, aged 19 or over looking to kickstart their career, find a new job or upskill in their current role.
Bootcamps are designed with employers to build industry specific skills to support learners to progress into careers within Early Years.
They're delivered online for six to eight weeks and include paediatric first aid, which is essential to work in an early years setting, support with DBS application and safeguarding.
There are more than 70 places available for individuals looking to join the Early Years Sector and secure their next job role.
You can read more in the story on our news page.
We are running a series of simple surveys, each focussing on different areas of the Devon Local Offer website and how we improve the way you find information on there.
The most recent survey was on the information about the support that is available to parents, carers and young people. Thank you to everyone who took part, your feedback has provided some really useful insights into what information is most useful and highlights where there may be gaps.
Our next survey looks at information about ‘Learning and Education’.
Use the button below to take part and share your views.
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