Residents' Update: keeping you informed

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The latest information and guidance to support you and our communities

Household support fund reopens next week

Do you need help with food and utility costs this winter?

Our household support fund, designed to help local residents struggling to make ends meet, is reopening for new applications on Tuesday (18 Jan).

Demand was so great at the end of last year that we temporarily closed the fund to ensure we had enough money to fulfil all the applications submitted.

About 700 applications have been made to the fund and we've paid out £100,000 to residents in need of support to households to cover essential living costs such as food, clothing, bedding, energy and water bills.

We're working with Citizens Advice Teignbridge to get the money to the people the district who need help as quickly as possible.

Unable to pay for winter clothes or blankets

When the fund reopens on Tuesday, residents can apply for help by completing the simple online application form which will go live on our website on Tuesday.   Anyone unable to apply online can call Citizens Advice Teignbridge on 01626 326123 or call our Customer Support team on 01626 361101 (Monday - Thursday 8.30am - 5pm. Friday 8.30am - 4.30pm).                      

Anyone is eligible to apply if they are over 16, living in Teignbridge and unable to meet their immediate short-term financial needs.


Get boosted now

Changes in isolation rules

The government yesterday announced that from Monday (17 January) people with COVID-19 in England can end their self-isolation after five full days, as long as they test negative on day five and day six.

People who still test positive on their rapid lateral flow tests (LFTs) must stay in isolation until they have had two consecutive negative tests taken on separate days.

The government advises anyone leaving self-isolation on or after day six to wear a face covering and limit close contact with other people in crowded or poorly ventilated spaces, work from home if they can and minimise contact with anyone who is at higher risk of severe illness if infected with COVID-19.

Self-isolation rules for contacts of people with Covid

If you're fully vaccinated  you don't have to self-isolate, but you should take daily Lateral Flow Tests for seven days (or until 10 days since your last contact, if this is earlier).  If any of the LFTs are positive, you need to self-isolate from the date of the test but no longer need to take a PCR test to confirm the result.

Close contacts of positive cases who are not fully vaccinated still have to self-isolate for the full 10 days.

Covid Testing changes

Rules around testing changed earlier this week with people in England without COVID-19 symptoms no longer needing a PCR test to confirm a positive lateral flow test. 

Still confused?

The rules seem to be changing almost daily at the moment so if you need a bit of help trying to figure out what you should be doing, Devon County Council has put together a helpful guide to which test you need.  


Walk-in Covid-19 vaccinations Newton Abbot

Pregnant women urged to have vaccine as cases rise

pregnant woman pixabay

Cases of COVID-19 are at their highest in Devon this month since the pandemic began, leading health experts to renew their calls urging pregnant women to have their vaccine.

Pregnant women with COVID-19 have a higher risk of intensive care admission, however research by the UK Obstetric Surveillance System found that no fully vaccinated pregnant women were admitted to intensive care with COVID-19 in England between February and the end of September last year. During the same time period at least 55,000 pregnant women had received one or more doses in the UK.


Recycling lorry

Sunday working to catch up 

Unfortunately, we have increasing numbers of waste and recycling staff isolating due to Covid at what is our busiest time of year. We are doing everything we can to catch up and have crews working on Sunday to help us get back on track. You can find information on the issues that have led to collection delays on our website.

Thank you for your patience regarding the current delays to collections, and please continue to put your  waste and recycling out as scheduled and we will collect it as soon as possible. We are really sorry for the inconvenience caused by the current delays.

We're recruiting

Fancy joining the team?

We've recently increased the pay of our waste and recycling team so if you enjoy working as part of a team and can stay calm under pressure, now's the time to join.

We're still looking to recruit HGV (Category C) drivers and loaders.

If you know of any Category C HGV drivers looking for work, please ask them to get in touch via our recruitment website or they can call Mark Pepper (01626 361101) for an informal chat.


Emma Twamley

Cultural consultant joins the Newton Abbot regeneration team

A specialist cultural consultant has joined the team driving forward the multi million pound regeneration of Newton Abbot town centre with engagement on implementation plans gathering pace with traders, cultural and community groups in the coming weeks.

Event and festival director Emma Twamley, who masterminded and directs the award-winning Glas-Denbury Music and Arts festival, will bring her cultural knowledge and experience to help drive the delivery of the project’s cultural, artistic and community aspects of the markets quarter vision.

She will work alongside council officers and leading independent consultancy Quarterbridge which has Europe-wide expertise in delivering retail and food hall projects and has successfully delivered market hall schemes across the UK.

Read more


Calculator, spreadsheet, pen

Don’t miss out on Covid business grants

Businesses affected by Covid have a month to apply for grants designed to help them bounce back from the impact of the pandemic and adapt and grow their business.

Applications for both the GAP Grant Scheme and the Small Firms Employment Fund (SFEF) must be received before 18 February.

The £10,0000 to £50,000 GAP Grants are designed to assist businesses facing severe financial difficulty due to cash flow issues caused by Covid-19. GAP funding will additionally award businesses which have an adaptation and growth plan that was impacted by Covid-19. 

The SFEF helps businesses of 10 employees or less buy products or services that will enable them to create a new job. Organisations are able to apply for grants of £5,000 to £25,000.

Applications for both grants will be considered on a first-come-first-serve basis so eligible businesses should apply as soon as possible so they don’t miss out.


Air source heat pump being installed at The Lido

Work to decarbonise buildings progressing well

Work to reduce decarbonise Newton Abbot Leisure Centre, Forde House, Teignmouth Lido and Broadmeadow Sports Centre is making good progress, and when complete is expected to reduce our carbon footprint by the equivalent of taking 187 cars off the road.

Ground works have started at Newton Abbot Leisure Centre and the air source heat pumps are due to be craned into position by the end of the month, when work to install the pipes and solar panels will start.

At the Teignmouth Lido the heat pumps have already been craned into position and work to install the internal heating system is underway.

At Broadmeadow Sports Centre, the sports hall scaffolding is almost complete ahead of the roof replacement and insulation work, and the first phase of LED lighting has been completed.

The first and second floors of Forde House have been vacated with staff temporarily relocated to the ground floor and Old Forde House.  New low-carbon heating and ventilation systems are being installed.


Stop Abuse Together

New Stop Abuse together campaign

An estimated one in 10 children in England and Wales will experience sexual abuse before they turn 16. That’s equivalent to three in every classroom. Most children won’t tell anyone at the time of their abuse.

That’s why the Government has launched a new Stop Abuse Together campaign website. The campaign aims to empower parents and carers to take steps to help keep their children safe from abuse. The website enables parents to:

  • Learn about the potential signs of abuse
  • Build trust by speaking to their children regularly, which can help prevent abuse
  • Find further support, including through the NSPCC helpline 0808 800 5000.  

Lord Lieutenant presentation to Westbank

New Year's honours for Teignbridge residents

Congratulations to two Teignbridge residents, Brian Smith and Dr Jill Diprose, who have both been recognised with a British Empire Medal in the New Year’s Honours List.

Brian Smith was honoured for services to the community in Newton Abbot, particularly during Covid-19 and Dr Jill Diprose received her award for services to families of children with special needs in Dawlish.

Congratulations are also due to to Westbank Community Health & Care which received the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service from Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Devon (pictured above)


Covid Oubreak Management Fund Small Grants

The deadline application for Devon County Council-funded grants of up to £300 for voluntary and community organisations is Friday 21 January 2022. 

The grants, available through Devon Voluntary Action, are aimed at communities across Devon to support people who have been disproportionately impacted by Covid-19 and enable action research on identifying and tackling rural health inequalities in Devon.


The Queen's platinum jubilee logo

Queen's Platinum Jubilee Activity Fund

Sport England has launched its £5 million Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Activity Fund, which will provide grants of between £300 and £10,000 for not-for-profit organisations across England for local projects which bring communities together and provide opportunities for people who may be less physically active.

Grants can be used to fund things like coaching, equipment, minor facility alterations or volunteer training.

Projects which attract funding should add value to the local community, be able to start within six weeks of the award, engage with people living in areas of disadvantage and support people who may otherwise have less opportunity to be active.


alice cross logo

Alice Cross newsletter

The latest Alice Cross newsletter, covering January and most of February. has been published.  Due to Covid cases in the area, Alice Cross has scaled back some of its events.  New courses starting this month include Computing for Beginners  and Zumba Gold


GWR logo

Temporary timetable changes extended

The changes in Monday to Friday timetables implemented last week by GWR are being extended for at least a further week with some minor alterations. 

GWR is also rolling forward the timetable from Sunday 9 to Sunday 16 and Sunday 23 January.

More changes are also being made to those introduced on Saturday 8 January and which will apply on Saturday 15.

Up to date timetables can be viewed on GWR’s train timetable web page. 

Travellers are advised to always check the timetable for the very latest position before setting out.


Keep telling us your test results and help beat Covid-19

Government coronavirus guidance

How to stay safe and help prevent the spread

Face coverings 

Vaccination guide for adults

Guide to booster vaccinations

Testing for coronavirus

Households with possible coronavirus infection

Coronavirus cases


Job vacancies
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