News
The independent public interest journalism Exeter needs
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 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.
Royal Devon NHS Trust resident doctors stage five-day strike from 7am Friday
Twelfth round of industrial action in long-running dispute over pay and employment conditions to go ahead following failed talks between British Medical Association and health secretary Wes Streeting.
New Heavitree Road police station student accommodation and “co-living” complex proposals submitted to Exeter City council
Application for full planning permission for 813-room scheme in seven blocks follows decision to reject previously-proposed 955-room scheme in two blocks which was subsequently upheld at appeal.
Features
Stories that explore key issues behind the headlines
25 stories for the 2025 summer recess
Catch up with a curated selection of Exeter Observer stories from the past twelve months while the team takes a short break from publishing to carry out essential maintenance and development work.
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.
Proposed Mary Arches “co-living” blocks condemned as “slums of the future”
Eutopia Homes seeks full planning permission for 300-bed seven storey development at quadruple recommended local plan density without providing promised “research-based evidence for the need for co-living” on city centre car parks site.
Comment
Analysis and opinion that cuts through the noise
Labour councillors dive deeper into denial in decision to abandon Northbrook pool
Exeter residents mourn as council suppresses destructive consequences of creating St Sidwell’s Point complex that looms in leisure service shadows like a leviathan.
300-bed “co-living” blocks to trump social housing vision for Mary Arches car parks
More people could be crammed into Eutopia Homes complex than current car parking spaces after Exeter City Council commits to “homes for the people of Exeter” on Liveable Exeter North Gate site.
Devon & Torbay CCA sets sail for regional democratic deficit with £500,000 crew
Combined county authority throws public accountability overboard as future regional strategic governance body ratifies constitution at inaugural meeting but fails to explain why so many staff needed to deliver so little at such colossal cost.
Special Reports
In-depth insight about what's going on in Exeter that you won't find anywhere else
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.
Exeter City Council fields false prospectus in determination to close Northbrook pool
Ian Collinson reports double down on misrepresentation, material omission and flat denial as council plans to rend more of city’s fabric from its roots.
Campaigners compel Exeter City Council to reconsider Northbrook pool closure with 2,250-strong resident petition
Pressure on council intensifies after freedom of information request responses confirm £3.5 million budget cuts included potentially unlawful decision to close swimming pool without public consultation or impact assessment.
South West peninsula devolution in disarray as Devon, Exeter, Plymouth, Torbay & Cornwall seek conflicting goals and seven Devon districts left out in cold
Contempt for local democracy laid bare by unlawful County Hall failure to publish plan to postpone local elections while Westminster looks set to back local Labour bids for disproportionate influence in regional governance reorganisation.
, updated
On Our Radar
Community and culture highlights curated by the Exeter Observer team
SATURDAY 16 AUGUST 2025
Quayside Farmers’ Market
Monthly market offering local produce, hand-made goods, plants, cakes and more.
EXETER QUAY
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
