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Martin Redfern
Rough sleeper at Exeter Guildhall
Devon County Council has paused its plans to cut a £1.5 million homelessness prevention budget following a campaign led by YMCA Exeter.
It intends to reconsider its approach, which prompted widespread criticism from district councils, local charities, homelessness prevention service providers and the public, before making a decision about the future of the funding in December.
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Exeter City Council has been awarded £20 million of government PRIDE IN PLACE funding to be spent over the next ten years in Heavitree and Whipton. It says it will set up a dedicated board with Exeter MP Steve Race to “bring together residents, councillors, local organisations and partners to identify priorities and guide how the funding is used”.
An Exeter City Council bid to become 2029 UK CITY OF CULTURE has failed, as have rival bids by Plymouth and Bristol. The council announced its intention to submit a bid in late January at a promotional event which opened with a speech from council CEO Bindu Arjoon just two weeks after she presented a report claiming the council did not have sufficient capacity to hold this year’s local elections. The council’s previous city of culture bid also failed. The repeatedly-delayed replacement for Exeter’s cultural strategy, which expired two years ago, is currently scheduled for adoption in August.
Hire-by-the-hour car club CO WHEELS, which operates in 63 towns and cities in England and Scotland, has launched a scheme in Exeter with five low-emission hybrid vehicles located in Southernhay, Powderham Crescent, College Road, Polsloe Road and Bartholomew Street West. Devon County Council has been trying to procure a new countywide car club provider since the collapse of Exeter-based shared mobility provider Co-Cars, which ceased trading in July 2023 along with shared bike scheme Co-Bikes.
SATURDAY 9 MAY 2026
Exeter Pride returns for a celebration of LGBTQ+ diversity and visibility with a parade, music, cabaret, marketplace and more.
EXETER CITY CENTRE
Our guide to casting your ballot in person, by post and by proxy as well as voter ID requirements and regulations for casting postal votes.
Send us campaign materials as this year’s contest enters its final week so we can fact-check candidates’ claims and hold them to their pledges after the votes have been counted.
Council leader Phil Bialyk celebrates rapid Exeter population rise but fails to mention think-tank findings on falling disposable incomes, declining living standards, low wages and unaffordable housing – or impact of student numbers on population figures.
Secretary of State Steve Reed withdraws decision following legal advice in face of Reform UK High Court challenge, leaving city council leader Phil Bialyk facing electoral oblivion.
Labour councillors plumb new depths to cling to power – and personal financial gain – as government-backed contempt for democracy enables seven of eight executive members to avoid ballots in their wards until council abolition in 2028.
Charges for waterways access are set to be imposed from the quay and canal basin to the coast under proposed Harbour Revision Order powers after six years of rising costs propelled by pursuit of Port Marine Safety Code compliance. They risk driving away craft of all sizes, from kayaks to yachts, while redevelopment threatens canalside land – but it’s not too late to change course.
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