THE EXETER DIGEST

Exeter Digest #21: Greener grass? - Council lottery - EDF secrecy - £2.2 million ECL loss

A bumper festive holiday edition also covers the nurses strike, South West Water’s ‘sustained poor performance’ and the university’s gender pay gap plus a Community Infrastructure Levy consultation.

TOP STORIES

IS THE GRASS REALLY GREENER IN EXETER CITY CENTRE?

Academic research placing Exeter retail area at top of green space table was nationally reported, locally misrepresented then repurposed as booster fuel by local politicians overlooking study’s social justice focus.

COUNCIL LOTTERY OPERATOR TO TAKE CUT FROM LOCAL CHARITABLE DONATIONS

Decision to promote gambling as “incentivised giving” plays down risks without assessing potential impacts or evidencing claimed benefits, disrupting relationships between community and voluntary sector organisations and supporters.

EXETER CITY FUTURES FALSELY CLAIMS DEVELOPMENT FUND DOCUMENTS DISCLOSED UNDER FOI LEGISLATION

Senior council director puts company on collision course with Information Commissioner’s Office as significant governance failings emerge after councillors and public kept in dark over Liveable Exeter financing scheme proposals.

FIRST DAY OF HISTORIC NURSES STRIKE GOES AHEAD AFTER GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO NEGOTIATE OVER PAY

Royal College of Nursing members out in force at Exeter NHS trusts alongside colleagues across the country as recruitment crisis threatens profession.

SOUTH WEST WATER PERFORMANCE REMAINS AMONG WORST IN SECTOR AS IT FALLS FURTHER BEHIND TARGETS

Regulator highlights “sustained poor performance” after serious pollution incidents nearly triple and Environment Agency condemns company in annual assessment.

EXETER CITY LIVING PUT COUNCIL AT “SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL RISK” AFTER £2.2 MILLION LOSS IN FIRST TWO YEARS

Missing business plan, lack of transparency and conflicts of interest among senior council directors prompt board resignations and governance review at council-owned and funded company.

UNIVERSITY OF EXETER LAGS BEHIND ON FEMALE PAY AND EMPLOYMENT TERMS

HESA figures show poor performance compared with Universities UK members and only incremental changes over past five years, mostly since staff began industrial action over pay, pensions and working conditions.

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ON THE AGENDA

COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE LEVY REVIEW

Exeter City Council is consulting on a partial review of the charges it levies on developers to pay for community grants, habitat impact mitigation and projects like Marsh Barton railway station.

Its decision to launch a public consultation as the holiday period begins follows an attempt by opposition councillors to prevent the proposals going ahead in their current form.

The council employed a firm of consultants to produce background and viability reports to justify its revised charging proposals which are incomplete and insufficiently evidenced.

The revised charging schedule will be submitted for public examination next year. Anyone wishing to speak at the examination hearing must notify the council in writing before the end of consultation period on 25 January.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

INFORMATION COMMISSIONER TO INVESTIGATE UNIVERSITY OVER STUDENT ACCOMMODATION NUMBERS REFUSAL

Compliance failure follows university admission that nearly 39,000 students based at Exeter campuses in 2021-22, suggesting around three quarters of city’s private rented housing stock occupied by students.

STAGECOACH ESCAPES MAJOR SANCTIONS OVER SERVICE FAILURES

Traffic commissioner decides four days of free weekend travel in Exeter Plus ticket zone is sufficient penalty for poor performance despite public inquiry hearing severe criticism of company.

UNIVERSITY OF EXETER STAFF STRIKE IN LARGEST WALKOUT IN SECTOR HISTORY

Dispute over pay, pensions and working conditions continues as universities generate record income.

MOTOR VEHICLE INFRASTRUCTURE CONTINUES TO DOMINATE DEVON TRANSPORT SPENDING

New active travel infrastructure to receive just 5% share of capital allocations this year and next, with new roads capital expenditure to increase from 74% to 86%.

LAST WORD

Exeter City Council’s announcement this week that its CEO Karime Hassan is leaving at the end of March came replete with a range of eyebrow-raising claims yet was missing key information.

We’re looking forward to examining the former and investigating the latter in the new year.

In the meantime, best wishes for the festive season to all our readers from everyone at Exeter Observer.

More stories
Exeter Energy heat plant indicative render north elevation

Exeter City Council disregards national planning policy and Environment Agency criticism to approve Riverside Valley Park flood zone heat plant plans

Five gas boilers to provide 80% of “low-to-zero carbon” Grace Road Fields plant generation capacity for distribution to institutional consumers through privately-run 13-mile underground network expected to take ten years to complete.

University of Exeter West Park redevelopment demolition block plan

West Park redevelopment demolitions to proceed to enable intrusive unexploded ordnance surveys before works can begin

Five year-old University of Exeter plans to provide 2,000 new student bedspaces in blocks up to nine storeys tall by demolishing up to 30 buildings on fifteen acre Streatham campus site about to take seismic step towards delivery.

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary Fire and Rescue Services logo

HMICFRS identifies sufficient Devon & Cornwall Police improvements to return force to routine monitoring

Inspectorate decision follows nearly three years of enhanced monitoring after force found inadequate in three of nine areas and requiring improvement in two more, but says “still work to do” in crime recording standards and investigations management.

Devon & Cornwall Police deputy chief constable Jim Colwell, previous chief constable Will Kerr and interim chief constable James Vaughan

Devon & Cornwall Police deputy chief constable Jim Colwell receives 18-month misconduct warning

Outcome of Independent Office for Police Conduct investigation delivered day before retirement of suspended chief constable Will Kerr announced, with Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez unwilling to say whether “golden handshake” agreed.

Newtown active travel scheme map

Newtown active travel scheme approved after four years of public consultations

Joint Devon County Council and Exeter City Council project includes road closure, car parking changes and contraflow Clifton Hill cycle lane.

On Our Radar
Summer at the Quayside illustration

TUESDAY 29 JULY TO FRIDAY 29 AUGUST 2025

Summer at the Quayside

A month of free family activities including weaving, felting, doodling and drumming.

EXETER QUAY

Exeter Street Arts Festival mural painting

SATURDAY 30 AUGUST 2025

Exeter Street Arts Festival 2025

The annual festival returns with street art, drumming, dance, workshops, walkabouts and live music.

EXETER CITY CENTRE

Burnet Patch Bridge spanning an eighteenth century cut in Exeter City Walls

FRIDAY 12 TO SUNDAY 21 SEPTEMBER 2025

Heritage Open Days 2025

Annual festival returns with free talks, tours and exhibitions at heritage sites in and around Exeter.

EXETER CITY CENTRE