Coronavirus (Covid-19) update - 19 February 2021
Please find below our latest Coronavirus (Covid-19) update for East Devon residents and businesses with information we hope will be of interest to you.
In this issue...
- UK Food Action Week
- Census 2021
- Local Elections 2021
- New Additional Restrictions Grant
 To mark UK Food Action Week, which takes place in the first week of March, we have put together a little challenge.
We have put in a number of fake food graphics hidden in the pile of food recycling in Exmouth. And, we want to know how many you can find and share your answer on our Facebook page.
Did you know around a third of the food we produce worldwide is lost or wasted and it’s having a significant impact on climate change. In fact, it contributes a staggering eight to ten per cent of the total man-made greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
However, the best thing to do with food is eat it and enjoy it! Although, even the most diligent shoppers and best cooks will always have some unavoidable food waste.
Please make sure you use your blue food caddy to recycle your unavoidable food waste.
It is a very valuable resource which, once collected, we use to generate green energy and produce bio-fertiliser for farms in East Devon.
The census is coming
 The census is coming. By taking part, you can help inform decisions on services that shape your community, such as healthcare, education and transport.
The census is a unique survey that happens every 10 years. It gives a snapshot of all the people and households in England and Wales – the most detailed information about our society.
It’s important that you fill in your census questionnaire. Without the information you share, it’d be more difficult to understand your community’s needs and to plan and fund public services.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) runs the census in England and Wales and is independent from government. Your details are protected by law and information published is always anonymous.
Census Day is Sunday 21 March 2021. You can fill yours in online as soon as you get your access code in the post. If your household circumstances change on Census Day, you can let the ONS know.
Everyone should have the support they need to fill in the census. If you, or anyone you know, needs help, there’s a wide range of support services available.
If you need help or have any questions, visit www.census.gov.uk
Covid secure local elections to go ahead
 After much speculation the Government has announced that local elections will go ahead in May as scheduled.
This means that there will be elections for Devon County Council and for the Police and Crime Commissioner on 6 May.
The government has published a delivery plan which includes ensuring that all polling stations will be Covid-secure. Hand sanitizers will be available, everyone will be asked to wear face coverings and the number of people allowed into the polling stations at any one time will be restricted to ensure social distancing is maintained. Voters will be encouraged to bring their own pen or pencil to mark their ballot papers.
As in all elections, voters will have a choice between in person and absent voting. The deadline for receipt of applications to vote by post is 5pm on 20 April and the deadline for receipt of proxy applications is 5pm on 27 April.
Currently lockdown restrictions prevent political parties from door to door campaigning or leafleting but the government says it will issue new guidance nearer the elections.
 If you want to stay up to date with the latest news about grants for East Devon businesses, or other news about business opportunities, funding and training, you must subscribe to East Devon Business news
New ‘Additional Restrictions Grants’ for East Devon businesses
A new round of grant funding for East Devon businesses affected by national restrictions from 5th January to 15th February has been launched this week.
Round 2 of the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG2) is for businesses with fixed costs from any sector which have been severely financially affected by the latest lockdown. It is not for those businesses which are able to claim the Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed) Addendum.
To be eligible for ARG2:
- Businesses which do not pay business rates must have been legally required to close between the 5th January and 15th February 2021
or
- Any businesses not legally required to close which can demonstrate a 30% drop in turnover and can prove fixed costs of at least £250 per month.
East Devon District Council has streamlined business grant applications for ARG2. Businesses which previously received an ARG1 payment for national restrictions from 5th November to 2nd December will automatically receive an access code to use when completing the short form. The ARG2 is due to close to applications on 5pm on Thursday March 11th.
These are a series of courses, by Learn Devon, aiming to help those back in to employment or find alternative career paths in case you are working or come across individuals this would help, they are all totally free.
To sign up, email tavistock@learndevon.co.uk or call 01822 613 701.
 Funding for community projects
Projects that support the wellbeing of people, the environment and communities in the South West, are now being funded by South West Water.
Community groups can apply for up to £1,000 in funding while registered non-profit organisations can apply for funding up to £5,000.
There will be £100,000-a-year funding available for neighbourhood community groups which inspire physical activities, education, health and wellbeing and deliver positive environmental outcomes.
Breathtaking Connaught Gardens, with clifftop views over Sidmouth sea, can now host weddings
Connaught Gardens is now licensed to host legal wedding ceremonies and will be open for business as soon as Government restrictions allow.
Man, 25, who lost everything in first lockdown forced to live in tent for two months
Jackson said: “The staff at East Devon District Council were amazing and it was them who put me in touch with the Amber Foundation."
East Devon District Council also produce regular newsletters and news on different topics, in the last week we have issued the following which may be of interest:
Over the next fortnight the following East Devon District Council virtual meetings are taking place:
- LED Monitoring Forum on Tuesday 23rd February at 9.30am
- Strategic Planning Committee meeting on Tuesday 23rd February at 2pm
- Licensing and Enforcement sub committee on Wednesday 24th February at 9.30am
- Arts and Culture Forum on Wednesday 24th February at 10am
- Full Council on Wednesday 24th February at 6pm
- Car Parking Task and Finish Forum on Wednesday 3rd March at 10am
- Cabinet on Wednesday 3rd March at 6pm
- Scrutiny Committee on Thursday 4th March at 6pm
The meetings can all be viewed on our YouTube channel by searching for 'East Devon District Council' or by subscribing.
 Recycling is not just for the kitchen but bathroom too!
 You can recycle in the bathroom too. Please remember to recycle all your bathroom and shower items. Aerosols, cardboard tubes and boxes and plastic bottles are all valuable materials which can be recycled. Please put trigger spray bottles in your green recycling sack with your other mixed plastics. Some trigger spray mechanisms have small metal components but these will be separated out during processing.
Thank you for helping us to recover valuable resources.
For more information relating to recycling and disposals, please visit our website.
The Recycling Team
#EDDCrecycling
A keen recycler has recently asked us the following recycling question:
'Can bottles with spray heads be recycled with the spray head attached?’
The answer is yes!
We know the heads can be difficult to remove, so please just put the whole thing in your green recycling sack. The different components which make up the whole bottle, will be separated during processing and as much as possible will be recycled.
Thank you for recycling and helping us to recover the maximum amount of valuable resources we can, to benefit the environment and the economy.
 A screen shot of a short.
CREATIVE CABIN SHORT 4: Ruth Worsley ‘Hunting for Brown Hairstreak butterfly eggs’
Ruth Worsley, creative community engager and project volunteer Graham Jones go in search of the eggs of a very rare UK butterfly.
Working with SW artists, rangers and practitioners, CREATIVE CABIN SHORTS connect to nature and the landscapes around us. Dedicated to all the extraordinary employees across Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundation Trust and Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust, NHS staff and key workers across the region. Delivered in partnership with Wild East Devon, East Devon District Council, and Blackdown Hills and East Devon AONB's
See more Creative Cabin Shorts
TOP CULTURE PICKS
Every Thursday, THG’s guest editor, art historian John Francis gives his weekly pick of the best online exhibitions and reveals fascinating details about the artists.
This week’s pick features the Hauser & Wirth gallery in glamorous Gstaad and a new exhibition by one of the most influential artists of the 20th Century : Louise Bourgeois.
See more Culture Picks
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 Spring Colour #noticenature
 Whether you’re out on your daily exercise or even looking out of a window, noticing nature can give us such a boost. Especially now natural colours are starting to make a comeback with the early onset of spring.
Verges and bare hedgerow bottoms will begin to see some colour returning in the coming weeks with clumps of Cow Parsley and Goosegrass, and shoots of grasses and nettles.
The stunning Snowdrop will also start to emerge. Did you know that Snowdrops are thought to look like 3 drops of milk hanging from the stem? This accounts for its Latin name Galanthus which means ’milk-white flowers’.
February is also a good time to admire and appreciate trees in their bare form, especially on a frosty day. Look for the incredible shapes and sizes that they have grown into. Notice the twisting, interesting branches before leaves cover up their intricacies. A mature Oak tree can grow and shed 250,000 leaves and produce 50,000 acorns a year?
To keep in touch with the Wild East Devon Team follow them on Facebook and Twitter
 Trusted sources of advice and information
Please make sure that you only follow advice from trusted, official sources:
Next edition
We plan to send out our next bulletin on Friday 5 March 2021.
Please forward this email to anyone you think would find it useful and encourage them to sign up.
You can also can share this update on social media and in any online groups you're part of by using this link to the update on our website.
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