News
Residents Think Local for future plans
24-02-2010
By Jane Labous
LOCAL residents will be heavily involved with a new project by the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The AONB will be asking local residents to help them develop the association’s website – so that it gives more relevant information about North Devon’s historic landscape, nature and natural beauty.
The website will aim to encourage residents and visitors to “follow the road less travelled, leave the car behind, and explore the coast around them under their own steam”.
Newly-appointed Explore the Coast project officer, Clare Manning, plans to visit each parish in the AONB to ask for residents’ views on the website.
Ms Manning said: “I was brought up in North Devon and enjoy walking, nature and history. The AONB spans a large area – from Welcombe to Combe Martin and without a lot of time, it isn’t quick or easy to research the best spots and fully appreciate its heritage features.
“This website should provide a fast way to do just that – all with a few simple clicks of the mouse.
“I feel privileged to have such an interesting task of researching sites and routes across the AONB.
“I am looking forward to meeting many new people from all the communities and working with them to help us to identify which physical sites and landscape features to focus on.”
The website will explain the significant features of the landscape and provide links to new and existing resources, cycleways and walking routes, such as the South West Coast Path and Devon Public Rights of Way.
It will also include easy-to-use geographical and themed search and itinerary planning facilities, as well as downloadable features and interactive tools for all ages and interests.
The project is supported by the South West of England Regional Development Agency and part-financed by the European Agricultural Fund for European Development.
Ms Manning added: “This is a fantastic opportunity for North Devon and I hope the website will be well-used by the local community - including schools and community groups, as well as visitors and tourism businesses.”
If you live in the North Devon AONB and would like to help shape how your local parish should be interpreted, the format of interactive features, or are simply interested to know more, contact Clare Manning on 01237 423655.
You can also email clare.manning@devon.gov.uk or visit http://explorethecoast.blogspot.com/.
For more information about the AONB visit website www.northdevon-aonb.org.uk.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning
Don’t fall for tax scams - Torbay Council
24-02-2010
By Jane Labous
TORBAY Council has again warned against council tax scams.
It says it is “increasingly concerned” about a bogus caller – who contacts residents saying that they have refundable credit on their council tax account.
A spokesperson said: “They are asked to supply the caller with details of their
bank account.
“Customers have received telephone calls where the caller remained anonymous.
“However, in another incident the caller identified himself as a Michael Stevens.
"Unfortunately one of the Council Tax Payers gave their bank details, but becoming suspicious then came through our call centre to check out
if the call was genuine.
“We are deeply concerned that someone else could be duped by this unscrupulous scam.”"
Torbay residents are advised tp contact Consumer Direct South West, the government-funded telephone and email advice service, if they receive any unsolicited mail or phone calls.
Councillor Louisa Aiton, cabinet member for Community Safety and Community Engagement, said never believe an offer that is “too good to be true”.
She explained: "Always be suspicious if you receive any unsolicited phone calls or mailings stating that you are entitled to money.
“If you do respond you could be asked, like in these incidences, for your personal bank
details.
"One of the warning signs to watch out for is when you receive an unsolicited letter, phone call or e-mail.
If the offer seems too good to be true, then it probably is.
Councillor Aiton added: "It is disgraceful that anyone should be tricked into parting with money without getting anything in return.
We hope that through publicity, we will help prevent any more local people falling foul of these types of scams."
Devon and Cornwall Police said it is treating the incidents as potential frauds.
You can contact Consumer Direct South West on 08454 040506 or via www.consumerdirect.gov.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning
Zoo is first in world to breed exotic frog
24-02-2010
PAIGNTON Zoo has become the first in the world to breed an exotic frog from the Far East.
The alien-looking Mao-Son frog, known to experts as Hylarana maosonensis, is more commonly found in the mountains of Vietnam.
Mike Bungard, the Devon zoo’s curator of lower vertebrates and invertebrates, said it was amazing to have bred the species, especially as it appeared to be under threat in its natural habitat.
“Paignton Zoo is the only place that holds this species at the moment,” he said.
“In the wild, the population is healthy but the trend is declining.”
The froglets and adult frogs can be found in Paignton Zoo’s Amphibian Ark species rescue and reintroduction centre.
“Breeding frogs like the Mao-Son is great practice for our keeping staff – the learning curve has been invaluable,” said Mr Bungard.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Doc Martin helps launch meningitis campaign
24-02-2010
THE man who plays television’s Doc Martin has returned to Cornwall to help victims of meningitis.
Martin Clunes, who has spent four seasons filming the ITV programme in Cornwall, launched a fundraising and awareness campaign yesterday alongside two-year-old Marshall Janson.
Marshall, from Carharrack near Redruth, had parts of his arms and legs amputated after a devastating bout of the brain disease in December 2008.
The youngster was the star of the show when he and the actor met pupils and staff at Truro’s Bosvigo School to launch Colour My Friday, which aims to raise money for the Meningitis UK charity by encouraging schools across the county to hold non-uniform days.
Stunned silence was coupled with frantic head-turning from the 290 pupils when the pair made a special appearance during the school assembly.
But their excitement eventually got the better of them when many began to wave at the toddler.
Martin Clunes had been approached to help launch the Cornish-based fundraising campaign due to his close links with Cornwall.
And the former Men Behaving Badly star was delighted to help launch Colour My Friday, which will split proceeds between Meningitis UK and the Handstand Appeal for Marshall.
The actor, whose grandmother died from meningitis, said: “It is great that there is so much enthusiasm from these children for Marshall and for helping the charities.
“Marshall is such a nice fellow and so full of spirit, and meningitis is such a rotten disease. That’s why I agreed to be part of Colour My Friday.”
Bosvigo School was chosen as the launch for the event after five-year-old pupil Milly Minahan won a competition to design a charity Christmas card for the Handstand Appeal.
Organisers are now hoping the county’s estimated 80,000 schoolchildren will get involved in fundraising, which encourages pupils to donate money to wear bright colours on a designated Friday between now and May.
Kate Rowland, head of development at Meningitis UK, said: “We are really grateful to Martin for his support, which will hopefully raise the profile of the event and encourage schools to take part.
“With the support of schools throughout Cornwall, we hope Colour My Friday will raise valuable funds to not only help Marshall in the future but also take us one step closer to finding a vaccine to eradicate meningitis completely and prevent future heartache.”
For more information, visit www.meningitisuk.org or www.handstand.org.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Homeless people write and edit magazine
23-02-2010
By Jane Labous
A MAGAZINE written and produced by Plymouth's homeless people was launched on Monday.
The publication – called The Mag – includes real life stories, poems, celebrity interviews and other features.
It will be distributed across England, reaching 15,000 readers.
Daniel Lee Lewis, 18, from Plymouth, played a major role in writing and editing the magazine.
He said: “The whole process of putting this together has taught me about the importance of persevering.
“There’s been a lot of hard work involved and it has been stressful at times especially researching articles and making deadlines.”
Stonham, England’s largest provider of specialist housing, care and support, is coordinating the magazine project.
The organisation has more than 520 projects across England helping over 20,000 people each year.
Each edition of the magazine is produced by Stonham clients in different towns.
Project worker Sue Hawley said: “It’s been fascinating to learn just how much work goes into making a magazine.
“Some people involved dropped out but those who stuck with it to the end should be really proud of what they have achieved.
“My highlight was seeing The Mag roll off the press at the printers. It felt like a real triumph for everyone involved.”
This edition of the magazine includes articles on how being active and outdoors can help boost mental well-being, as well as an interview with former Stonham client turned actor, Lewis Barnshaw, who is from Plymouth and had a role in a Harry Potter film.
The publication is also available as an audio recording and large print version.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Bakery brings back Marmite pasties
17-02-2010
A POPULAR ingredient which its manufacturers admit divides public opinion due to its distinctive taste is soon to be added to one of the region’s best-loved delicacies.
Marmite pasties are to become a permanent addition to bakers Warrens’ shelves, after customers requested they reintroduce the yeast extract-flavoured pasties.
The Cornish bakery, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year, has announced the cheese and Marmite – and new flavour steak and Marmite – will be on sale at Warrens’ shops from this month.
Marmite was first added to Warrens’ pasties last year. Initially it was intended as a one-off but reaction from customers was so positive the decision was taken to stock them permanently for 2010.
Warrens product development manager, Jason Jobling, said: “Marmite is always going to be one of those products that divides opinion and so it came as a welcome surprise when we saw just how popular they have become.
“Although I have to admit to not being a huge fan of the spread by itself, I have to say the combination with the steak and the cheese really is something a bit special. I think they are some of our best pasty combinations – and that says something coming from a Cornishman.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Community battle pays off as work begins on new shop
17-02-2010
IT MAY not have looked like much, but a turf-cutting ceremony in a Westcountry village was a momentous landmark of the enduring community spirit which will lead to a new shop.
Villagers huddled against the cold at Spreyton, near Okehampton, to turn out for the start of work on the £80,000 project, which was granted permission last November.
Since the old shop closed two years ago, residents have been battling to have the facility restored – and soon the business will be owned by the community which fought for it.
The shop will be run by a team of volunteers, and villagers be able to have input into how it is run by buying a share for just £10. Shareholders will have a vote on key decisions and be able to have an account in the shop.
The shop is being built on land adjacent to the village hall, with parking facilities already in place. It will sell groceries and daily essentials, with an emphasis on produce from the surrounding area.
The ethos echoes the aims of the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, supported by independent financial advisers Worldwide Financial Planning, which encourages readers to rally together and make full use of what is available on their doorstep.
Yesterday, Roo Hayward Smith, chairman of the village shop committee, said: “For a lot of people, the turf-cutting was the culmination of two years of hard work. At times, some of us didn’t really believe it was ever going to happen.
“It’s quite momentous, and we wanted to mark that it’s all now going ahead.”
The committee has secured funding from a range of sources, including £20,000 from the Village Retail Services Association, which is funded through the Plunkett Foundation, and supports communities looking to start their own enterprise.
A further £23,000 came from the Greater Dartmoor Local Enterprise Action Fund, while other donations were made by the Co-op and community Finance Bank, West Devon Borough Council and Devon County Council. Spreyton’s residents donated £3,500.
The shop is expected to open towards the end of summer. The committee would like to hear from anyone keen to buy a share, make a donation, sell their produce or volunteer to help.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Charlie’s all set to swim the Blue Mile
15-02-2010
SIX-YEAR-OLD Charlie Hyland can’t wait until his ninth birthday, when he will finally be able to compete against other swimmers.
Until then, he must content himself with children’s galas at the Plymouth Leander swimming club, where he recently mopped up with seven gold medals.
But now, the youngster has a new challenge to stretch his abilities. Alongside his father, Spencer, he will take on the Blue Mile, a mile-long swim in the sea in Plymouth Sound on the weekend of July 3 and 4.
He will be among hundreds of swimmers from different age groups and walks of life to take part in the event, which is designed to raise awareness of the threats to the marine environment.
Participants will be able to sail or paddle around the course, or even take a mile-long stroll. It will link in to a whole plethora of interactive games and activities will take place on Plymouth Hoe, to highlight the plight of habitats under the sea. Registration is now open, at www.thebluemile.org.
Charlie, who lives in the city, will soon be in training, to adjust from swimming in chlorinated swimming pools to the wild, salty sea.
Mr Hyland, a plasterer, said Charlie had taken to the sport like, well ... a duck to water. He said: “We taught Charlie to learn to swim very young, because it’s the best skill you can give a child – it could save a life one day. But Charlie kept on with it. He loves the water.”
He now takes part in swim or dive training at least four times a week, and hopes he will one day follow in the watery footsteps of his sporting hero, Tom Daley. He already has his sights set on the Olympics in 2016.
Charlie said: “I love swimming. I go a lot, but I swim in the swimming pool. I’m excited about swimming out in the sea.”
Mr Hyland, himself a strong swimmer, said: “We’re very proud of him. When a six-year-old shows this kind of commitment, you just have to back it.”
He said Charlie, who hopes to raise money for St Luke’s Hospice, had not done much sea swimming, and would now train to adjust to the colder water.
He said: “I’ll do it with him, just for the safety aspect. He’ll probably be quicker than me, though. He’s getting faster and faster all the time.”
At the other end of the spectrum, Jim Passmore, 63, is one of the oldest to have contacted the website to express an interest before registration had even opened.
Mr Passmore, from Plympton, regularly swims in Plymouth Sound, and was taking on a mile-long route of his own, until the freezing winter weather banished him to a swimming pool.
The ex-Army man, who is now semi-retired, took part in a bracing Christmas Day dip at Devil’s Point, and is now looking forward to getting back into the brine – but he will undertake much of his training in the altogether warmer waters of Australia, where he will soon be holidaying for a month.
He said: “I love sea swimming – it’s so much better than swimming in pools. The freedom of it is just fantastic.”
For Blue Mile images and footage of Conrad Humphreys and other sports personalities talking about the event, visit www.westernmorningnews.co.uk.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
It’s up, up and away for hotel and county
10-02-2010
THE name of one of the region’s best-known hotels has received international recognition – at a ballooning festival.
John Armstrong, Cornish balloon enthusiast and co-owner of the Headland Hotel in Newquay, secured first prize at the International Festival of Ballooning in Switzerland.
Mr Armstrong’s balloon, The Headland Centennial, won the overall competition in Chateau-d’Oex, bearing the Cornish hotel’s name as it cruised to victory.
After competing in several precision flying events, Mr Armstrong scored very highly in the touch and go, to obtain maximum points and overall victory. While competing in Switzerland, Mr Armstrong also passed the monumental landmark of completing more than 1,000 hours as a hot air balloon pilot.
He said: “I was delighted to finally win this prestigious first prize, after 26 years of high alpine ballooning. The balloon artwork proudly states ‘Headland Hotel Newquay’, and I am thrilled to promote the hotel and Cornwall.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Lottery funds help marine conservation projects
10-02-2010
FIVE of Cornwall’s most important marine wildlife conservation areas are to get even more protection from an army of volunteers.
A grant of £103,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund will help pay for events and education programmes in conservation areas in St Agnes and Polzeath on the north coast, and Helford, Fowey and Looe on the south.
The Your Shore project, a Cornwall Wildlife Trust project, will see volunteer conservation groups either strengthened or re-established in each of the target areas.
Their task will be to focus on Cornwall’s diverse natural marine heritage, which is recognised as being of both regional and international importance. It contributes to the county’s appeal as a tourist destination, attracting more than 5.5 million visitors each year, but also requires protection.
Nerys Watts, South West head of the Heritage Lottery Fund, said: “Cornwall’s marine heritage will benefit through people’s increased understanding of the local environment, with children and adults encouraged to ‘look, learn and leave’ so as to conserve this special environment for future generations.”
Match-funding has come from South West Water and GE Money Volunteer Foundation.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Thinking local key to rural success
08-02-2010
By Andy Greenwood Chief Reporter
WESTCOUNTRY communities have been told to think “local” to maximise the benefits of a £105 million fund established to help rural areas.
The Rural Development Programme for England fund is designed to boost the value of the countryside and improve skills, as well as increasing access to services.
Local action groups (LAGS), who are administering the cash, were yesterday told they had a crucial role in ensuring the money is spent tackling key issues in villages and towns and maximising opportunities to improve the quality of life and safeguard and create jobs.
Rebecca Frost, programme manager for the RDPE Network, said: “Funded by the EU and UK government, the RDPE supports a range of schemes for land based businesses, farmers, growers, foresters and primary processors, rural tourism organisations, rural businesses and community organisations.
“Through small capital grants, strategic investment funding and action plans, the programme will aim to safeguard and enhance the countryside, helping communities to thrive in the process.
“Our second event was shaped by the LAGs and the organisations that they work with.
“It was about looking at recent activity, sharing examples of how the funding is working and also ensuring that LAGs are getting the support they need to help with delivery.
“It was also an opportunity to look at how this money can be spent to help bring our local communities out of recession by encouraging businesses to diversify.”
The groups, 63 of which cover England and represent public and private partners, and community and voluntary groups, have developed local strategies that set out the criteria for the types of projects that can be supported.
Rebecca Frost added: “The leader approach will provide a more integrated approach to making decisions on who gets funding.
“It will also help us focus on adding value to existing local assets and ensuring economic potential is retained, whether that is food produce or heritage features, for example.
“We are already seeing some really exciting projects coming forward.
“Now is the time for LAGs to make sure even more local individuals and organisations benefit by encouraging them to claim their share of the funding.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
From seed to plate, TV’s Charlie helps to educate
03-02-2010
THE biggest grow-your-own campaign ever was called Dig For Victory, but whereas most people in wartime Britain knew at least something about gardening, it’s a sad fact that many youngsters today haven’t a clue.
A Westcountry-based survey just published reveals that almost two thirds of children struggle to identify the origins of everyday food products they consume.
The survey, commissioned by Cornish Mutual, has inspired a campaign called Dig Down South West, which was launched yesterday at Highfield Farm, Topsham, by TV gardening expert Charlie Dimmock.
The Ground Force star told the WMN: “If you go to the supermarket with your mum and see food being bought in a packet, how do you know where it comes from?
“There is even an advertisement which is for milk – and the cow is a male!” she sighed.
“But it’s not all bad news – we are starting to realise that children DO like being outside, and they end up changing their parents. The parents feel guilty and start doing things like visiting farms.
“As a kid we always had vegetables on the plate and I wasn’t sure I liked them,” said Ms Dimmock. “But camping down at the bottom of the garden and stealing them and eating them raw? Fantastic! I’d eat them then.
“I’ve worked with quite a few schools and, once they start growing veg, children will start to eat them. OK, not all veg… But you do get to like them when you know them.
“Dig Down South West is a great idea,” she added, explaining that the campaign was aimed at primary schools across the region which have an interest in vegetable gardening.
The hope is to create 50 new vegetable gardens in schools across the Westcountry in a bid to encourage young children to take an active interest in growing their own produce.
Yesterday’s launch came after the new survey had established that some youngsters thought eggs came from sheep, bacon from horses, goats or peacocks and that cheese originated from butterflies, rats or mice.
Cornish Mutual’s managing director, Alan Goddard, said his organisation had traded in the region for more than 100 years and its core membership was farmers.
“We are concerned that society as a whole is disconnected with where its food comes from,” he said. “Where better to start that reconnection than with young people?
“They are increasingly becoming interested in where their food comes from and eating healthier things.
“We thought we could be of huge benefit to our members by supporting an initiative such as this.”
Topsham farmer Ian Shears already hosts regular school visits at his 118-acre mixed farm, and he told the WMN: “Traditionally this was the market gardening area of Devon – my grandparents could remember hundreds of people coming to work in the fields around here. We’re trying to recreate some of that now – and we’re working with local schools to try to encourage them to grow their own fruit and veg.
“Fifty years ago, everybody had a connection with a farm,” Mr Shears went on. “They’d have a grandparent or an uncle who farmed – but today that’s lost. So it’s great to get children on the farm and explain how the food is produced.”
Dylan, Rio and Jessica were three of the dozen or more children attending yesterday’s launch from Topsham School – aged between six and eight, they seemed only too keen to get their hands dirty.
“We’ve grown squashes and marrows before,” volunteered an enthusiastic Dylan.
“I think it’s a good idea we should learn about vegetables,” added Rio.
Jessica wasn’t entirely sure. “I don’t really like eating vegetables,” she said. “But getting my hands mucky doesn’t bother me.”
As for garden-loving Ms Dimmock? She is, of course, a full-on veggie enthusiast – but she does have one little failing in the great pantheon of garden-borne goodness.
“I’m not mad on broad beans,” she confided.
For more information about Dig Down South West, visit www.digdownsw.co.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Who needs flowers and chocolates?
03-02-2010
PASTY lovers are in for a treat this Valentine’s Day with their own tasty twist on the annual event.
This year, the West Cornwall Pasty Company has baked a special batch of heart-shaped pasties designed to share.
Exclusively handmade in Cornwall, the limited edition “Pasty to Share” is packed with tender beef skirt, potato, swede and onion before being lovingly finished off with a pastry heart.
Chief executive Richard Nieto said: “The Pasty to Share is ultimately designed to be halved and enjoyed by two people. It may not be the most obvious romantic gesture, but it’s certainly a tasty and unique one.
“So forget the customary flowers, chocolates and cards and spread the love this Valentine’s Day by sharing a pasty.” The unique pasty is available in stores from February 9.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Sales rocket as shoppers buy local
02-02-2010
By Graeme Demianyk
BUYING local is back in vogue as figures have revealed the number of shoppers buying locally produced food has doubled in the past three years.
Food and grocery analyst IGD reckons nearly a third of shoppers (30 per cent) specifically bought local goods in December, double the number in 2006.
Shoppers are motivated primarily by the belief that locally produced food will be fresher, with more than half saying that they had sought out local food because it did not travel as far.
Fifty-four per cent said that they wanted to support local producers and farmers, compared to only 28 per cent in 2006.
The number of shoppers who said they bought local food to keep jobs in the area more than quadrupled.
Sales of local food outstripped those of Fairtrade and animal-friendly products, according to the research, but ethically produced foods are still growing despite the tough economic conditions.
In the past month, 27 per cent of shoppers bought Fairtrade products – up from 9 per cent in 2006 – and 18 per cent bought items boasting of high animal welfare standards, up from 11 per cent.
Joanne Denney-Finch, IGD’s chief executive, said: “These figures prove what we have been saying throughout the recession – shoppers are looking for both value and values.
“They are not simply looking for cheaper food in tough times, they also expect the grocery industry to support their moral and ethical values.”
The findings are a boost for the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, sponsored by independent financial advisers Worldwide Financial Planning, which encourages readers to take advantage of the products and services on their doorstep.
Shoppers also indicated they would like to see more local food on the shelves, with 31 per cent saying they would like more local products available to them compared with 12 per cent in 2005. One in five (20 per cent) wanted a farmers’ market or farm shop to be established nearby, up from 15 per cent in 2005.
In recent years, supermarkets have introduced more local variation to the aisles, hoping to avoid criticism that their increasing dominance was leading to a uniform selection on the shelves.
Asda’s sales of products that have been sourced locally have risen by 300 per cent in the past three years and now account for more than 6,000 items.
The supermarket says that such goods go through regional hubs, rather than national distribution centres, to prevent food moving around the country unnecessarily.
Yet the growth of locally produced food is in contrast to the fortunes of organic produce. Sales of organic food have suffered during the recession as consumers became more price-conscious.
Tesco has 4,000 local lines, which are expected to generate £830 million this year. It is targeting £1 billion in such sales by next year and last week launched a campaign encouraging customers to buy local produce.
For more information on Think Local, visit www.wmnthinklocal.co.uk or e-mail us to tell us what you do to Think Local at thinklocal@westernmorningnews.co.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Firms to get help from food and drink academy
20-01-2010
THE region’s food and drink businesses will have access to specialist advice to help them grow, after the launch of a food and drink academy.
Industry body Taste of the West has set up the initiative as a meeting place for everyone involved in the production, processing and marketing of quality food and drink from the Westcountry.
Launched yesterday at the University of Exeter’s Reed Hall, the academy will run workshops, seminars and masterclasses to share knowledge and open up new routes to markets.
John Sheaves, chief executive of Taste of the West, said: “There are a lot of superb producers in the Westcountry keen to penetrate markets such as multiple retail, food service, hospitals and schools. This can be a real challenge for small and medium-sized producers. The academy will help them to rise to this challenge.”
A seminar programme, open to both members and non-members, will cover topics such as innovation and building a competitive advantage, as well as looking at issues on the horizon for the sector.
Mr Sheaves told an audience of producers and business advisers that the academy would help companies capitalise on changing consumer trends in 2010, where increasingly media-savvy customers are placing greater emphasis on ethical responsibility and accountability.
He said: “The concept we are developing is market-led, as opposed to some top-down Government initiative.
“This way round, we are putting producers’ needs first and the market’s needs first. By putting the two together, producers can find out and provide what the market requires.”
Mr Sheaves added: “The academy’s remit will be to look at five clear business priorities: business strategy and planning; sales and marketing; technical aspects; sustainability and routes to market.”
Workshops will take place in Exeter, Bristol and Bournemouth before June.
More information is available from Belinda Berwick on 01392 440745 or by e-mailing bb@tasteofthewest.co.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Country house to be restored after winning grant
20-01-2010
AN HISTORIC country house near Exeter is set to be restored after English Heritage approved a grant of £500,000.
Poltimore House is a Grade II*-listed Tudor building, with architectural features including an 18th-century rococo saloon and a 19th-century grand imperial staircase.
However, the house has been in a state of neglect since 1975, when it was sold by the NHS, which had used it as a hospital.
Now it is set to benefit from a complete roof repair – and the Poltimore House Trust is hoping it can be developed into a community centre for business, education, arts and conservation.
Dr Claire Donovan, secretary of the Poltimore House Trust, said: “Poltimore’s future has been transformed by English Heritage giving us this grant.
“A lot of people in our local community still have connections with the house.”
Andrew Vines, South West regional director of English Heritage, said: “The aim of this grant award is to provide the trust with a major opportunity to give the building a long-term viable future.”
The trust is also working closely with the University of Exeter to look at ways of involving local schools and the community in a project to explore Poltimore and its past. Dr Donovan said: “We will be looking at developing Poltimore for a range of business, arts and educational uses – all with an emphasis on the local community.
“If we were to focus on one sole commercial use, such as trying to develop it into a hotel, that would take it away from the local community and that is not what we want.”
It is hoped work may start in the summer.
The house starred on the 2003 BBC Restoration programme, winning the South West heat but missing out on a lottery grant bid in the first series of the show, fronted by Griff Rhys Jones.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local - use your local bus service
13-01-2010
CORNWALL Council has once again teamed up with bus operators First Devon & Cornwall and Western Greyhound to offer a special Sunday Saver bus fare for any single journey within Cornwall on Sundays from 10 January 10 - March 28.
The ‘Get Around for Less’ campaign is aimed at encouraging passengers onto the Sunday bus services at a quiet time of year. In order to promote the benefits of Sunday bus travel, a number of local attractions and businesses such as the National Seal Sanctuary at Gweek are offering discounted admission to people who can show a valid bus ticket for that day, giving the travelling public real value for money. Bus fares will be £1 adult, 60p child, £2 family (up to 5 people – no more than 2 adults) and Concessionary Bus Pass holders still travel for free.
The Sunday network of bus services is now quite extensive and this initiative stems from the need to ensure potential passengers are aware of this and to give an opportunity to use services at reduced fares.
The campaign first ran in 2009 and achieved a 57 per cent increase in fare-paying passengers and received a high level of support from local bus users. An email to the Council in January 2009 stated: “I just want to say that this is great for families like mine who can now afford to visit each other on a Sunday.”
Graeme Hicks, Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Planning, said: “The success of the ‘Get Around for Less’ campaign in 2009 speaks for itself. Many people took the opportunity to not only enjoy cheaper bus travel but take advantage of some really good value days out. It is also an ideal way for people who may not normally use public transport to give it a go and ‘Get Around for Less’”.
Western Greyhound’s Managing Director, Mark Howarth, said: “We are delighted to partner with the County on this beneficial project. We believe that this will build on the successes of last year’s experience to get people out of their cars and give public transport a try. There is now a much better Sunday bus network than for many years with regular headway buses on main routes. We all need to be doing all we can to reduce congestion and disbenefits to the environment.”
Marc Reddy, Managing Director of First Devon and Cornwall, added: “There are some fabulous places to go by bus in Cornwall, whether you want to hit the shops, go to one of the region’s many tourist attractions or just enjoy a day out in our beautiful towns and villages. Those seeking inspiration will find bus maps and days out guides on our website (www.firstgroup.com/cornwall). We hope people will make the most of this scheme and see what the bus has to offer them and their families.”
Adverts in the local press, leaflets and posters will be directing people to www.cornwallpublictransport.info where there is a list of businesses offering discounts and further ideas for days out – new businesses will be added during the campaign. You can also view and print maps and timetables and get further information on journey planning.
If you represent a business and would like to take part in the ‘Get Around for Less’ campaign, please get in touch with Lesley Barlow at the Passenger Transport Unit, Email. ptu@cornwall.gov.uk or Tel. 0300 1234 222. There is no fee to get involved and businesses can join at any point during January–March 2010.
It’s full steam ahead for heritage railway
12-01-2010
THE South Devon Railway celebrated its 40th anniversary last year by carrying a record-breaking number of passengers. The railway, which reopened as a private line in 1969, after more than a decade closed, celebrated four decades of steam journeys with a record-breaking 107,985 passengers.
Its seven-mile route passes through some of the Westcountry’s most beautiful rural scenery, through the glorious valley of the River Dart from Buckfastleigh to Totnes.
South Devon Railway chairman Alan Taylor said: “We’re all thrilled that 2009 has proven to be our best year ever, with a record number of passengers and a truly memorable 40th anniversary season which saw 10 different GWR engines running on the line. We even had marriage proposals from two couples travelling during our latest Santa and Mince Pie trains.”
South Devon Railway Company first opened on May 1, 1872, before it was amalgamated into the Great Western Railway in 1876. The railway was closed to passengers in 1958, but 11 years later the former Great Western Railway line re-opened – and is now one of Britain’s oldest heritage steam railways.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Teenagers set up Friday night youth project
11-01-2010
A GROUP of teenagers have set up a Friday night project to give young people in Bude something to do.
Friday Night Splash will start tonight and will be open from 7.30pm to 9.30pm. It will give 11 to 17-year-olds in Bude the chance to swim, learn breakdancing, listen to music and relax with their friends.
The scheme is the brain child of Becky Copplestone and Nikki Bromwich, both aged 15, who wanted to give the young people of Bude a place to go on a Friday night with something to do.
The girls have been joined by three 13-year-old boys, Will Stroudley, Ben Cushing and Taurri Spurgeon, who have decided to add breakdance to the Friday Night Splash project.
Becky said: “Most of the kids on my estate cause trouble on Friday and Saturday nights ’cos they are bored as there is nowhere to go. The police are always coming up here so I thought we need somewhere for us to go to, that we can afford, with something that we can do.”
Becky and the others have been working with Cornwall councillors, police and leisure management to get the project off the ground.
The group have also been supported by Community Action Through Sport (CATS) and Budehaven Community School, which helped them present the idea to Cornwall Council.
Sally Bain, Cornwall Council’s cabinet member for children, said: “I am delighted to support any such project that gives our young people the opportunity to take part in such exciting activities.”
Any young person aged 11 to 17 is welcome to attend Friday Night Splash and admission is £1. For further information contact CATS on 01288 357505 or cats-bude@btconnect.com
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Muse win album artwork award
05-01-2010
DEVON band Muse has won an award for the cover of its vinyl album The Resistance.
The Best Art Vinyl 2009 award recognised the “intense” graphic work used on the album cover of The Resistance, designed by London-based La Boca.
Muse topped a list which included the Manic Street Preachers’ Journal for Plague Lovers in second place, Fever Ray’s eponymous album in third place and Massive Attack’s Splitting The Atom in fourth.
Andrew Heeps, Art Vinyl’s director, said the awards were “a great way to celebrate the unsung heroes behind the art and design of some of our favourite bands and artists”.
Muse, from Teignmouth in Devon, combines progressive rock with classical music and electronica and is signed to Warner Brothers.
Its members are Matt Bellamy on vocals, guitar and piano, Christopher Wolstenholme, who plays bass and sings backing vocals, and Dominic Howard on drums.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Fishy puzzle for the youngsters
05-01-2010
NEWQUAY’S Blue Reef Aquarium is taking the game of “guess the number of sweets in the jar” to a whole new level.
The aquarium is asking visitors to guess the number of fish in its tanks a part of its annual stock-take.
This weekend, Blue Reef is inviting visitors to volunteer to help spot and record the number of certain species – including seahorses, sharks, rays, octopus and lionfish.
Experts at Blue Reef will then do an official check – and the child who most accurately reports the population of each of the animals will win a year’s free family membership to the aquarium.
Blue Reef’s Jenni Collins said: “January has traditionally always been the time of year when we do an official check on all our stock numbers.
“We thought it would be a good idea to involve the visitors in the whole process as well and turn it into a fun activity that everyone can take part in.”
Visitors will be given sheets and clipboards and challenged to count the fish, shellfish and other creatures in selected tanks of the aquarium’s 40 displays.
The experts keep track of the aquarium’s stock throughout the year, explained David Waines.
“We keep records of all births, deaths and transfers, so we have a pretty accurate idea of what is in the displays year-round. When we do the stock-take it’s a question of going round and checking our records again and the two always tally pretty well.” Mr Waines added: “We’re hoping that this challenge will give visitors a new way of looking at the displays – and hopefully they’ll spot more interesting things because they are really looking.”
But if you’re thinking about having a go, beware – it is not as easy as it looks.
Ms Collins said some species might be hard to find – particularly the elusive hermit crabs.
“Obviously some creatures will be rather easier to count than others,” she said. “The sharks are usually fairly straightforward, although there are a number of species that like to spend much of their time either hidden among the rocks or under the sand.
“Seahorses can be a little tricky and hermit crabs are always something of a ‘guestimate’ as it’s difficult to tell which shells are inhabited and which are vacant!”
The stock-take takes place on Saturday and Sunday.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Eden provides inspiration for return of the Triffids
22-12-2009
THE EDEN Project has ben used to imitate a jungle setting for a big-name BBC science fiction remake.
For decades the classic story The Day of the Triffids has thrilled sci-fi lovers through film, television and radio versions.
And scenes in the latest television adaptation starring a galaxy of stars were shot at the Bugle tourist attraction earlier this year when it was chosen as a stand-in for the Congolese jungle. The cast includes Joely Richardson, Brian Cox, Vanessa Redgrave, Eddie Izzard and Dougray Scott.
The scenes shot at in the project’s Rainforest Biome are flashbacks of the young Bill Masen’s first encounter with the deadly triffids.
As well as being a filming location, Eden also served as inspiration for production designer Joel Collins, whose previous credits include The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Son of Rambow.
When designing the triffid itself in March last year, Joel came to Eden looking for inspiration and found it in the sinister visage of one of the project’s plants.
Susan Hill, Eden’s marketing director, said: “We’re really looking forward to what promises to be a great piece of sci-fi action and to see how the Eden Project jungle handles one of its most high-profile roles to date. With the biggest tract of rainforest outside the tropics, Eden was the natural choice for the producers and we enjoyed hosting a ‘triffidly’ exciting day of filming.”
The Day of the Triffids will be aired on BBC One on December 28 and 29 at 9pm.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Village in the hunt for link coordinator
15-12-2009
By Jane Labous
IMPROVING links between the local church and local families is a big priority for Fremington in North Devon – so much so that a new children and families coordinator is now going to be appointed in the parish.
The Rev Paul Hockey, vicar of St Peter’s Church in Fremington, explained that the community is following the lead of other churches in the South West – including Emmanuel Church in Plymouth – by introducing such a post.
“Over recent years the church has done a lot to establish positive links in Fremington with children, young people and their families,” said Mr Hockey.
“It is hoped that this exciting new appointment will strengthen and develop these links.
“The project is going to cost the church around £25,000 a year.
“So it is hoped that some grant funding can be found in addition to lots of local fundraising events.”
St Peter’s Church runs youth groups for children of all ages in the local community, from babies and toddlers to 18 year-olds.
The new children and families coordinator will help train volunteers to run these groups – which include Splash for five to seven year-olds, XStream for eight to 11-year-olds and Spy for 11 to 18 year-olds.
Mr Hockey said: “The work will be with children and families with whom we have quite strong and varied contact through school, but also through the church-based groups.
“The coordinator will recruit and train volunteers who will help out, as there’s too much going on for one person.
“They’ll also work in a pastoral sense giving support to the families as well.
“It’s crucial to have this support because some of the people who are currently running the youth groups are getting on a bit and are looking to retire.
“Unless we find new people to run them, the groups will fold, and this would be a shame. So it’s important to find and train new leaders.”
The community is hoping to receive funding for the three-year scheme, and Mr Hockey said several grant schemes are being looked into.
He said: “This is a really exciting project and we are getting a lot of interest and support from people of all ages in our church and local community.”
The church is now looking for applicants for the post and anyone interest can call the Rev Paul Hockey on 01271 373879.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Doggie Christmas treat is a winner for Milly
15-12-2009
THE festive season has come early for Milly, the Chesapeake Bay retriever – she can’t get enough of these Devonshire made Christmas trees. Which is not surprising – they’re made of spicy dog biscuits.
The gourmet dog treats are the creations of the Klassy Canine Bakery, based in Tiverton, and are part of a growing range of pet food that contains no artificial flavourings or preservatives.
“A lot of dog food does contain all sorts of ingredients that might not be too good for your pet,” says bakery owner, Sue Mathias. “The result is you can get lots of hyper-dogs running about – which is not what you want at Christmas.
“Our dog treats are made from organic flour and are human quality ingredients,” said Sue who moved back from the US two years ago with her husband Neal.
“In America it’s a big thing to have dog bakeries,” she told the WMN. “So, when we moved back home we thought we’d see how the idea went down here – because, obviously, the British are well known for their love of dogs.
“And we’ve not been disappointed – these treats are proving very popular. The Christmas trees do have a real Christmassy flavour – they’re made with lots of spices like cinnamon, ginger and ground cloves.”
The Klassy Canine Bakery also produces a festive variety pack, complete with angels, snowmen, reindeers, Christmas trees and stars.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Town rewards its regulars
08-12-2009
By Jane Labous
A LOYALTY card scheme is set to bring new business to the seaside town of Looe.
The South East Cornwall town is the latest in the county to launch a loyalty card scheme for residents and regular visitors.
The town’s chamber of commerce hopes the scheme will help businesses in the town – particularly during the festive season.
Derek Braithwaite, from the chamber, said the scheme had been inspired by the experiences of other towns in the UK – including Newquay, which introduced its loyalty scheme, Newquay First, earlier this year.
Mr Braithwaite said: “We started looking at this a few months ago to see how the loyalty card scheme worked in other towns, and the feedback I got was that it is a real incentive.
“The card will give something back to the people of Looe who have kept loyal to local shops, rather than taking their business elsewhere in difficult times.
“The other purpose is to hopefully make more visitors decide they want to do their shopping in Looe, not just for Christmas but into the New Year.
“The majority of shops here are independent traders so Looe offers more than more people might think.”
The scheme echoes the ethos of the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, sponsored by independent financial advisers, Worldwide Financial Planning.
Residents can pick up a free loyalty card which will make them eligible for discounts in shops, hotels and restaurants taking part in the scheme.
The loyalty cards will be available from all participating traders, the tourist information centre, post office and Guildhall.
Stickers are also being issued to go in traders’ windows so people know where they can bag a bargain.
The chamber of commerce hopes the scheme will mean the historic seaside town keeps its local shops.
“The more trade we can bring in, the more we can preserve the local character of the town,” said Mr Braithwaite.
Acting chamber chairman Sarah Lee added: “Looe has always offered value for money. We recognise that in the current economic climate times are hard for many people, so we want to help businesses to help the people of Looe and visitors to get an even better deal – that’s where the loyalty card comes in.”
Traders in the town who choose to take part in the scheme can decide which products are discounted and by how much, and they are already lining up to back the scheme.
Elaine Libby runs Patsy’s Florist in West Looe and said she thoroughly supports the scheme.
“We’re joining up – it’s great for all the shops and the visitors,” she said.
Jayne Fox, owner of clothes shop Ginger in the heart of East Looe, said: “It’s our way of giving something back to locals who’ve helped everybody by continuing to shop in Looe.”
Sarah Hall, from Squid Ink restaurant in East Looe, added: “We signed up without hesitation, because it provides a recognisable vehicle for us to tell locals and visitors we really value their custom and want to reward their loyalty and help strengthen the community of Looe.”
Mr Braithwaite added: “Everyone loves a bargain and people are willing to travel an extra mile to get that bargain.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Sights and smells bringing the past to life
08-12-2009
THE evocative aroma of the traditional Victorian Christmas gently pervades the high ceilings of the gleaming kitchen at one of Cornwall’s most historic houses.
Christmas puddings, iced biscuits and orange pomanders create tantalising scents to delight the senses at Lanhydrock House, Bodmin, North Cornwall.
This year the National Trust, which runs the popular tourist attraction, is inviting members of the public into the kitchen to try their hand at making a few festive treats.
The kitchens, including the dairy and bake house, will have food for visitors to nibble, make and enjoy.
Sarah Merriman, visitor services manager at Lanhydrock, said the Festive Food Trail will run until December 31, excluding Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
She said: “The trail brings the food back into the historic kitchens and visitors can have a go stirring up the Christmas pudding, icing the biscuits and making orange pomanders to take home.
“It’s a taster of how we’ll be showing off our much-loved kitchens next year, and Christmas with all its fabulous smells is the perfect time of year to excite the senses.”
Visitors will enter the kitchen where fresh ingredients were dropped off from the home farm, and follow through the different kitchen offices to the dining room, decorated specially for a family Christmas meal.
There will be something for everyone to try every day, and a team of volunteers from Living History re-enactment group will bring the whole place to life this weekend at a special event.
On Saturday and Sunday only, visitors can meet the butler and cook, or learn about the plants used at Christmas from the Victorian gardener.
Ms Merriman said: “Lanhydrock is one of the best-loved Victorian houses in the National Trust, and people always remark on how real and home-like it feels. Those coming to see the food trail will be amazed at how much the past has been brought to life by the tastes and smells, as well as the sights, of a Christmas kitchen.”
Lanhydrock, home of the Agar-Robartes family, was gifted to the Trust by Gerald, 7th Viscount Clifden in 1953.
It is one of the Trust’s most visited properties nationwide, attracting over 212,000 visitors in 2009.
The Festive Food Trail runs from 11am-4pm. Entry for adults costs £4 and for children (over-5s) £2 (including National Trust members). Lanhydrock’s gardens, shop and refreshments are open daily throughout December from 11am-4pm. Free entry. Local music groups will be singing carols on December 12, 13, 19 and 20 from 2pm or 2.30pm at Lanhydrock Church. For more information about events at the house, ring 01208 265950.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Scheme bags first paid jobs for two gardeners
08-12-2009
By Ryan Hooper
TWO people who have never been employed before now have paid jobs thanks to a vegetable bag scheme run by a day care service and the Eden Project.
The group has been growing a range of vegetables at Eden’s Watering Lane Nursery in Pentewan, near St Austell, for the past six months and selling them to Eden Project employees as well as Cornwall Council’s Adult Social Care department and the friends, family and carers of those working on the scheme.
The success has meant James Kirwin and Darren Schmieden, both from the St Austell area, can now be given paid employment growing the vegetables and packing the bags.
Darren said: “Working here has really helped me develop my gardening skills and I’m enjoying growing vegetables for the bags.”
The care service, People and Gardens, was established 10 years ago by Ken Radford and aims to enable participants whose lives have been affected by mental and physical challenges, ranging from autism to Down’s Syndrome, to play a greater role in their communities.
Mr Radford said: “We’re really pleased to be in a position to give James and Darren jobs.
“They’ve worked brilliantly over the years and can be proud of what the team has achieved with the vegetable bag scheme.
“People and Gardens is about changing the lives of people who, through no fault of their own, are disadvantaged.
“The project is based on the credibility of what our guys achieve and many of them have made great strides since we first met them.
“We’re about encouraging participation, presence, choice, competence and respect and hopefully we achieve these aims, as well as providing our customers with fresh, local vegetables every two weeks.”
People and Gardens’ vegetable bag scheme was started to create jobs for some of the participants.
The group was initially based at the Lost Gardens of Heligan before moving to Eden’s Watering Lane nursery, where participants work closely with Eden’s own skilled horticulturists.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Green energy can be beautiful...
07-12-2009
PART of the fight to win the battle of hearts and minds regarding green energy is convincing people that schemes are not ugly.
Try to erect a wind turbine, worse still, several wind turbines, and chances are you will be faced with an aesthetically charged mob wanting to ruin the blot on the landscape you intend to create. Ditto energy-from-waste plants.
There are other objections, of course, and it would be wrong to over-simplify the issue, but one of the recurring themes is simply “the look” of what is proposed.
But do green power schemes have to be ugly? Not if these photographs are any indication.
These were the finalists during a new category at the South West Green Energy Awards. Held in Bath at the beginning of November, pioneering green projects across the region were praised at the gala dinner, with awards presented by television presenter Jonathan Dimbleby.
Organised by RegenSW, they recognise the increasing importance that renewable energy and energy efficiency play in the South West in providing solutions to the threat of climate change.
Included for the first time was Sustainable Energy Photo of the Year. The criteria was to choose not just the best photograph visually, but also that which put across its green message the most effectively.
Judges chose from a shortlist of 10 pictures showing green power across the South West.
In the end, the winning photograph and the runner-up were taken by the same person, Liz Eve.
The winning shot showed the solar panels that power the Clifton Lido blue water swimming pool, which won Best Small Renewable Energy Scheme in the awards. Ms Eve, a professional photographer working in Bristol for the Fotohaus company, wrote on her blog: “This summer, an architect I work with asked if I had an image to enter into the RegenSW Green Energy photo award.
“This award particularly interested me as images depicting the idea of sustainability regularly struggle to avoid cliché and often find it difficult to be interesting or enlighten viewers about the processes happening within them.
“I was also keen to be involved in creating images that would excite people about renewable energy.
“I had already photographed the Clifton Lido for the developers who had carried out a project to restore the old Victorian lido that had existed on the site.
“Although I had some striking images that captured the architectural features, the lighting at night and visitors enjoying the ambience of the place, I had not concentrated on the solar tubes that heat the water in the pool.
“I had pre-visualised the image as being very simple. In actuality, on site I had to deal with other elements such as blinds and a safety railing making it harder to get a clean simple image.
“The sun also decided to start hiding behind the clouds so in the end, I spent an hour up on the roof catching images when the sun was out and when swimmers were passing through the part of the image that looked right.
“I was delighted to win the competition, but it was just the icing on cake as the experience of doing the research, taking the photographs, meeting some interesting people and coming out with some fresh new images was fantastic in itself.”
Ms Eve also took second spot with her picture of the hotel and mill at Gants Mill in Bruton, Somerset, where a hydro-electric turbine produces up to 12kW, enough to power all the lights and feed into the National Grid.
“The hydropower installation at Gants Mill interested me as I wondered how I would convey the idea of power being produced by the running water,” she said.
“I had an idea that would involve a bit of work and the co-operation of the owner Brian Shingler is a keen promoter of hydropower and was extremely helpful to me.
“I decided to produce a dusk photograph of the mill, giving the idea that running water was producing power that in turn would light up X number of bulbs.
“The main challenge was in getting enough light on to the water and outside of the building to show what was going on there. I ended up painting in detail during a long exposure using a high power torch.”
The third place picture was taken at Bradworthy, North Devon, by David Moore. It shows one of the tall wind turbines at night surrounded by stars, unaffected by artificial street lights.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Resort gets £50,000 to deal with empty shops
07-12-2009
TORBAY is to get more than £50,000 to help banish the blight of empty high-street shops.
The Bay is among 50 areas to receive a slice of £2.6 million of Government cash to bring vacant premises back into use.
The Government says boarded-up shops hit by the recession, affect both consumer and business confidence.
Each council will receive a grant of £52,632 to use on improving town centres and changing the use of empty shops such as meeting places or galleries for local artists.
Communities Secretary John Denham said: “We know that the downturn has really hurt some English high streets, especially where there was already high deprivation.
“But the real help we are giving now is making a difference in keeping town centres vibrant.”
The new funding brings to £5.6 million the funding allocated to help councils revitalise empty shops. The Government has already changed planning rules to make it easier to use vacant shops for a range of other purposes.
Other measures include the promotion of special temporary community leases called “meanwhile uses” that allow local groups to temporarily use a vacant property rent free while the landlord seeks a permanent new business.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Model village a winter wonderland
02-12-2009
AS TEMPERATURES plummeted across the country, the snow began to fall in Torquay yesterday.
The annual winter wonderland was created using gallons of fake snow at Babbacombe Model Village.
An industrial-sized hose was used to spray the £20,000 layer of white and transform the miniature world into a Christmas landscape.
Staff have also created a special ski lodge with white slopes as well as an ice cave and Santa’s snow-bound log cabin.
A spokesman said: “The village has been transformed into a beautiful, snowy landscape. It looks like a picture-postcard.
“It creates a magical atmosphere from dawn until dusk and the whole place sparkles with tens of thousands of magical lights.”
The Winter Wonderland Snow Spectacular run from Saturday until January 3.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Newcomer will join the traditional Nativity play
01-12-2009
A POPULAR Westcountry nativity play loved for its traditional values has been boosted by the arrival of a baby donkey.
Thousands flock to the seasonal Nativity plays at Pennywell Farm, near Buckfastleigh, South Devon, each Christmas because they allow children of visitors to take part.
The traditional Nativity play is so popular at capturing the spirit of Christmas, people flock from all over the world to see it.
This December as many as 10,000 people will take part in the theatrical enactment of the birth of Jesus. Performed in a barn, the story is brought to life with help from the farm’s animals, decorations and lighting.
The experience lasts about two hours with children taking part in the play, singing carols and visiting Santa and his two reindeer. The plays regularly attract visitors from Holland and Germany, New Zealand, Canada, and America because the plays enable both school and family groups to relive the traditional Nativity story.
Now the donkey colt Harry has arrived just in time to star alongside baby Jesus and host of other animals. At just a week old leggy foal, Harry, stands alongside his nativity co-star, Ben the baby lamb.
Chris Murray, who owns Pennywell Farm, with wife Nicky, said it was perfect timing. “He is just in time for the Nativity play. He wasn’t planned, but his timing is perfect.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Work under way on pioneering Wave Hub
01-12-2009
WORK on a pioneering project to reap energy from the power of the sea has officially got under way.
The Wave Hub project will create the world’s largest test site for wave energy technology 10 miles off the coast of Hayle in West Cornwall.
Yesterday, the first step was taken in the scheme to create a grid-connected socket on the seabed to which wave power devices can be connected and their performance evaluated.
The £42 million project has been developed by the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA) and is a cornerstone of its strategy to develop a world class marine energy industry in South West England.
A two-week operation has started to drill a 200m duct through sand dunes at Hayle where Wave Hub’s sub-sea cable will come ashore.
The cable will be threaded through the duct and connected to a new electricity sub-station that will be built next year, allowing Wave Hub to be connected to the National Grid.
Guy Lavender, Wave Hub’s general manager who takes up his post in January, said: “Our contractors have spent the past two weeks setting up on site and are now ready to start. This is a crucial part of our shoreside works and means we’ll be ready to receive the cable connecting Wave Hub to the shore when it is laid next summer.
“We want South West England to be a world leader in the development of marine renewables, an industry which could be worth £2 billion a year to the UK by 2050.”
An independent economic impact assessment has calculated Wave Hub could create 1,800 jobs and inject £560 million in the UK economy over 25 years. Almost 1,000 of these jobs and £332 million could be generated in the South West.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Work under way on pioneering Wave Hub
01-12-2009
WORK on a pioneering project to reap energy from the power of the sea has officially got under way.
The Wave Hub project will create the world’s largest test site for wave energy technology 10 miles off the coast of Hayle in West Cornwall.
Yesterday, the first step was taken in the scheme to create a grid-connected socket on the seabed to which wave power devices can be connected and their performance evaluated.
The £42 million project has been developed by the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA) and is a cornerstone of its strategy to develop a world class marine energy industry in South West England.
A two-week operation has started to drill a 200m duct through sand dunes at Hayle where Wave Hub’s sub-sea cable will come ashore.
The cable will be threaded through the duct and connected to a new electricity sub-station that will be built next year, allowing Wave Hub to be connected to the National Grid.
Guy Lavender, Wave Hub’s general manager who takes up his post in January, said: “Our contractors have spent the past two weeks setting up on site and are now ready to start. This is a crucial part of our shoreside works and means we’ll be ready to receive the cable connecting Wave Hub to the shore when it is laid next summer.
“We want South West England to be a world leader in the development of marine renewables, an industry which could be worth £2 billion a year to the UK by 2050.”
An independent economic impact assessment has calculated Wave Hub could create 1,800 jobs and inject £560 million in the UK economy over 25 years. Almost 1,000 of these jobs and £332 million could be generated in the South West.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Work under way on pioneering Wave Hub
01-12-2009
WORK on a pioneering project to reap energy from the power of the sea has officially got under way.
The Wave Hub project will create the world’s largest test site for wave energy technology 10 miles off the coast of Hayle in West Cornwall.
Yesterday, the first step was taken in the scheme to create a grid-connected socket on the seabed to which wave power devices can be connected and their performance evaluated.
The £42 million project has been developed by the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA) and is a cornerstone of its strategy to develop a world class marine energy industry in South West England.
A two-week operation has started to drill a 200m duct through sand dunes at Hayle where Wave Hub’s sub-sea cable will come ashore.
The cable will be threaded through the duct and connected to a new electricity sub-station that will be built next year, allowing Wave Hub to be connected to the National Grid.
Guy Lavender, Wave Hub’s general manager who takes up his post in January, said: “Our contractors have spent the past two weeks setting up on site and are now ready to start. This is a crucial part of our shoreside works and means we’ll be ready to receive the cable connecting Wave Hub to the shore when it is laid next summer.
“We want South West England to be a world leader in the development of marine renewables, an industry which could be worth £2 billion a year to the UK by 2050.”
An independent economic impact assessment has calculated Wave Hub could create 1,800 jobs and inject £560 million in the UK economy over 25 years. Almost 1,000 of these jobs and £332 million could be generated in the South West.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Public invited to help idea grow
30-11-2009
By Ryan Hooper
GREEN-FINGERED volunteers with a taste for organic fruit and vegetables are backing a project to grow their own produce for their community.
Dozens of residents from South East Cornwall have declared their interest in getting involved with the Trevalon Community Supported Agriculture scheme, which will see 18 acres of land made available to growers.
Trevalon, a farm at Herodsfoot between Liskeard and Looe, was bought as a not-for-profit company four years ago and is held in trust for the benefit of the community.
But at a meeting at Liskeard Public Hall last week, Mark Simon, who manages the land, discussed his vision for encouraging the public to help farm the land and reap the benefits.
He said: “This is an exciting project which I am hoping people really want to get involved in. It would be great if we could get people, from all different backgrounds, taking part in this idea.
“We are keen to involve the public in the running of the farm and are in the process of setting up a Community Supported Agriculture scheme, community garden and orchard.”
Community Supported Agriculture schemes (CSA) are not uncommon in the Westcountry.
There are more than a dozen such schemes across the region, where farmers and members of the community work together to produce fresh food from a local source.
Many deliver weekly boxes of produce to members and surplus produce is sometimes sold locally at a profit.
Last week’s meeting allowed those with an interest in giving time to the project to discuss how their own skills might help push the project forward.
Mr Simon grows fruit and vegetables on three acres of land at Trevalon, supplying 80 vegetable boxes a week to customers across the area.
The farm has a number of vegetable plots, meadows, polytunnels and grassland, as well as an orchard and stream, while a spring produces thousands of litres of water a day.
Members of the public also suggested keeping bees and poultry, with one condition – that everything on the farm is organic. A soil expert told the meeting the soil at Trevalon was particularly fertile, and perfect for the CSA scheme.
Mr Simon suggested applying for planning permission for a wind turbine on the site, which would enhance the scheme’s green credentials.
A spokesman for the Soil Association, Molly Conisbee, said CSAs were particularly prominent in the Westcountry.
She said: “In largely rural areas like Cornwall, there is a strong sense of community so CSAs tend to take off. The benefits of these schemes include the reduced food miles, more sensitive farming, and the fitness aspect.”
Trevalon CSA are sourcing funding and members who could contribute labour or expertise. Visit www.trevalon.co.uk or www.soilassociation.org, or contact Trevalon on 01579 326 144.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Off-road cycling gets £7.5m funding boost
30-11-2009
PEDAL power is expected to bring a massive economic boost to the Westcountry, as a £7.5 million investment into adventurous off-road cycling is approved.
The 1SW project is among a number of large-scale initiatives which are aiming to turn the South West into the UK’s top destination for cycling.
In the last survey in 2006, cycling was worth £129 million a year to the South West, accounting for 2,000 full-time jobs – and supporters believe upgrading facilities could significantly increase the value.
The Forestry Commission-led 1SW scheme, which is supported by a number of agencies, will have a range of benefits. As well as the knock-on effects for tourism businesses, it is aimed at boosting health and improving the green credentials of the region.
The latest investment, of which £4.6 million has come from the Rural Development Programme for England, will help create trails, sites and information to enhance the cycling experience.
Developments will include purpose-built adventurous cycling trails, bike hire centres, cafes and areas to develop bike-handling skills. Across the South West, six cycling “hubs” will be established, including at Haldon Forest Park in Teignbridge, Plym Woods at Plymouth and Lanhydrock and Cardinham Woods, both in North Cornwall.
1SW project manager Paul Hawkins said the landscape of the region was perfect for the sport, and would help in the aim to create the best cycling destination in the country.
“Off-road cycling in woodlands is enjoyable whatever the weather and provides a fun alternative to beach based activities, particularly outside of the main summer months,” he said.
Stuart Parry, from Era Adventures, which organises adventure activities from its base at Polzeath, near Wadebridge in North Cornwall, said: “There is a need for more opportunities away from the coast, particularly when the surf is flat and the rain starts.
“We are very excited at the opportunities 1SW will provide for tourism businesses like us across the region and are keen to expand our offer to include more cycling and cycle training.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
When fate – and Jamie Oliver – came knocking
25-11-2009
UNTIL not very long ago, Bill Lugg was a successful plumber. Now he devotes the three-dimensional area of his agile brain to the potential benefits and opportunities offered by the carcasses of the ever-productive and ultimately delicious pigs.
His is the name on the official entry form for the TOTW producer of the year competition, but judges got the impression that his wife Sally was every bit as instrumental in the success of their Primrose Herd business.
Basically, the couple keep their own pigs just a couple of miles from Redruth, and they buy in animals from other known and trusted producers farming in the local landscape.
Then what they do is add all-important value by jointing the carcasses and making their own-brand items like delicious bacon, sausages and even that elusive Westcountry delicacy the hog’s pudding. Having done that, they distribute the produce to an impressive list of Cornish catering establishments and farm shops and also sell at local farmers’ markets.
“My father kept pigs at Callington, but he died during foot and mouth and my mother was left with the herd,” recalls Mrs Lugg, who was a bank manager at the time.
“We’d got these rare pigs and nobody to look after them. We took them on, but it was a bit of nightmare.”
Armed with an undoubted passion for pigs, she eventually left her job to begin developing the Primrose Herd business. It wasn’t too long before juggling family duties with a burgeoning pork empire became a struggle – then Jamie Oliver’s 15 restaurant opened and things really took off.
“When they put in a big order, that was a pivotal moment,” says Mr Lugg, who gave up his plumbing work to join forces with his wife.
One new chiller-van and many new regular customers later, the business is now getting through around 750 locally bred pigs a year and things are growing – which isn’t surprising given the excellent quality of the meat and products the man-and-wife team produce.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Need to diversity led to ice cream alternative
25-11-2009
WHEN you think about it, making ice cream from sheep’s milk probably isn’t the first thing that comes to anybody’s mind – let alone that of a traditional Westcountry farmer. But it’s an idea that David Baker had years ago and from it has developed one of the most impressive food businesses in the South West.
“We grew wheat, barley and oats and kept 400 ewes,” said Mr Baker when we met him at his Rodhuish farm, near Minehead. “By 1988 we were suffering from continually dropping returns – being squeezed by rising costs and static output.”
That was when he had the idea of producing an ice cream for people with intolerances to cow’s milk.
“When we started we milked the sheep ourselves – about 120 ewes. We did this for about two years, after which we decided to concentrate on producing and selling ice cream.”
That was made possible by the fact that Mr Baker’s neighbour, Andrew Speed, had started milking sheep – and he now supplies Styles’ raw product.
Since that development, Mr Baker has shown an entrepreneurial eye for the development of his business. “We bought a 1930s ice cream trike to show off the ice-cream at a trade show being held in Hyde Park.
“When we arrived home our local village had a fete at which they asked to us bring the trike... And so Styles Ice Cream direct retailing was born.
“This has been the main thrust of the business for 19 years.”
Now their 30 mobile units attend some 300 shows a year and Styles also has several fixed sites, as well as delivering to around 240 outlets, including Waitrose. Even the royal palaces are interested in supplying their goods.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Farmer’s ready with pasty staples at the drop of a ha
25-11-2009
IMAGINE the scenario: a region is world-famous for a certain dish and a local company grows massively successful manufacturing it. The only trouble is that the bulk of the vegetables required are grown hundreds of miles away and have to be imported at huge expense.
That was the case when Ginsters was expanding its hugely successful pasty business. Not so many years ago, anyone who wanted industrial quantities of potatoes and onions had no choice but to go to growers in eastern counties like Lincolnshire.
But back in 2003 a Cornish farmer got to hear of this dilemma and stepped in to breach the gap. Today Jeremy Oatey of Hay Farm is able to talk of agricultural concepts that would have been totally unknown to farmers even 30 years ago.
“The days of growing stuff then trying to sell it have gone,” he muses. “Now we grow knowing exactly who is going to buy our crops.”
The real magic of what Mr Oatey has done is to bring other farmers on board with contracts to grow crops so that, collectively, they can deliver the vast quantities that companies like Ginsters require on a daily basis.
“Because we didn’t have enough land ourselves to grow all the potatoes required, we started offering contracts to other growers to keep it local – because that is part of the Ginster philosophy,” said Mr Oatey.
And Hay Farm has moved on since the days when it just provided raw potatoes. Peeling spuds is one of the great Holy Grails of the industrial vegetable world and now Mr Oatey’s business can offer its large customers a peeled local product.
In a truly eye-watering development in the unit next door, the firm is doing the same for local grown onions. Until recently, onions were never grown on a large scale in Cornwall, but Hay Farm has been experimenting to change all that.
To give some idea of the scale of this operation, they deliver some 5,000 tonnes of Cornish potatoes to Ginsters each year on a 24-hour-a-day, seven-days-a-week basis. This truly is food in the landscape on an industrial scale.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Producers who put landscape at the heart of business
25-11-2009
THE Westcountry has always been excellent at producing food in its landscape, since geological and meteorological fates combined to locate our peninsula in a temperate zone warmed by kindly oceanic currents. But this good fortune wouldn’t be worth as much as a hill-of-beans if people weren’t making the best of it.
Over the centuries our fertile lands and seas allowed for an impressive economy to develop – to some extent, meat and dairy products built many of our market towns – just like fish built many of our harbours. The food that has been grown or gleaned around the peninsula has shaped the way it looks today.
But using the landscape to advance an economy around food had always required a certain sort of person. Which, in a nutshell, is why Taste of the West (TOTW) has designed a competition called Food Producer of the Year, sponsored by Mole Valley Farmers.
For the 2009 event, I was invited to join a team of judges, and over the past month we have been mulling over the attributes of producers who have, to some extent, utilised the Westcountry landscape to create businesses. And so we have seen egg producers, cake makers, syrup concoctors, ice-cream makers, bacon smokers, vegetable growers and pig breeders.
In the end we came down to a list of three finalists, details of whom you’ll see elsewhere on this page.
But first I asked TOTW chief executive John Sheaves if he agreed with this series’ central premise that the Westcountry’s natural landscapes were a vital ingredient when it comes to achieving results.
“The landscape certainly has the potential to make a huge difference,” he agreed, forestalling my next question by explaining why this country didn’t historically go down the sensible route of linking the natural attributes of landscape and environment to food production.
“The way our food industry has been driven was based on the fact that producers were told to have their foot full down on the gas pedal,” he went on. “The mantra was to produce more and more without any real regard for the landscape.
“We decided after the Second World War that never again should we have food queues. In Europe they didn’t quite feel that – they still, to some extent, had peasant- based rural economies. Over the years countries like France and Italy were able to protect that, while we drove our agrarian economy down another route.”
The French, for example, were famously quick to legally protect the term “champagne” as being only applicable to a fizzy wine produced within the region of that name.
Imagine if we had done the same for “cheddar cheese”.
“There is European protection now and we do have some notable products under that,” said Mr Sheaves. “But perhaps we haven’t got that real sense of ‘terroire’.
“However, what we’ve seen over the last 10 years is a desire by consumers to reconnect with producers.
“Consumers want to understand the real value and integrity of products. “Although we haven’t got a name for that connection, the ethos is there and well founded,” he added. “The next stage is fulfilling that model on a bigger scale in terms of volume.
“Generally, consumers understand if they’re buying a South West product there is a connection with the land. But we’ve got a long way to go.
“Yes, we are now supplying what the rural consumer desires. You can go to just about any postcode in this region and there will be a farm shop or a farmers’ market somewhere near. But our real challenge is to provide the same for the urban consumer.”
Turning to the competition, Mr Sheaves commented: “Our three finalists have realised what products will work commercially and to some extent the part the landscape can play.
“The farming fraternity is a pretty determined bunch and pretty resourceful when push comes to shove,” he added. “In face of difficulty, farmers and producers often find creative routes out of a sticky patch.”
They’ve probably been doing so since Neolithic Man first swapped a leg of wild Dartmoor bison meat for a skin-full of fermented apple juice.
It’s about seeing an opening, about entrepreneurial get up and go, but neither quality would be worth that proverbial hill of beans if the landscape hadn’t produced the opportunity in the first place. Recognising the natural benefits of your local environment is just as important today as it was 8000 years ago.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
West photographers dominate national landscape awards
25-11-2009
THIS evocative picture of a rugged Dartmoor peak basking in the late afternoon sunshine has scooped a Devon-based photographer a top award.
Adam Burton’s image of Belstone Tor, entitled The Golden Hour, was one of a series produced by the region’s photographers which won prizes at the Landscape Photographer of the Year Award 2009.
The 37-year-old, who lives in a small village near Crediton, was named best image by the Dartmoor National Park as part of the National Parks Authority’s sponsorship of the contest.
Mr Burton said he was delighted. “Dartmoor is like a wilderness and that really draws me in,” he said. “There’s not many places left in the South which are rugged and remote in the way Dartmoor is.
“I loved doing the photo because it is a part of Dartmoor which is relatively un-photographed. It’s also close to where I live and it’s rewarding to find a place like that so near.”
Mr Burton had a number of other images included in the award, such as a stunning photo of a sweeping Dartmoor vista entitled Visions of Light.
Another Westcountry winner was Alex Nail from Tavistock, who was highly commended for two images in the Classic View category, including one image that very nearly won first place. He was also commended for a further three images.
In total, Mr Nail had five images shortlisted for the award, a feat which has never been achieved before.
Exeter-based Alex Varey also won a first prize in the Unusual Phone View category for his misty photograph of London which was taken on his mobile.
The Landscape Photographer of the Year Award ceremony will take place on December 10 at the National Theatre in London.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Boathouse brings joy to RNLI crew
24-11-2009
By Jane Labous
A LIFEBOAT crew is celebrating a new station which will improve conditions for rescuers and those they rescue at sea.
Exmouth’s inshore lifeboat George Bearman has been operating from the old inshore lifeboat station for 106 years.
However, until now, if the lifeboat crew arrived at the old inshore lifeboat station and the all-weather lifeboat was also needed, they would have to “dash from one place to another”, according to members of the crew.
The new boathouse can house both the inshore lifeboat and the service’s all-weather boat.
It has comfortable facilities, temperature-controlled changing rooms for equipment and a mechanics’ workshop situated between the two boathalls.
Lifeboatman Robert Thompson, who has been a member of the crew for 13 years, said hot drinks and warm showers would be a welcome change.
“It was sad to leave there in some ways because of all the history associated with the old station, but to have both boats housed under one roof is going to be so much better,” he said.
“The amount of times we would come back cold and wet from a rescue in the middle of the night, the toilets next door were locked up and there was no shower facilities.
“With the new boathouse, we’ll be able to be have showers and make hot drinks – a lot more comfortable, not just for us but for anyone we rescue too.”
Tim Mock, coxswain and mechanic at Exmouth RNLI, said: “It is a very proud moment in my career to be involved in a new state-of-the-art boathouse. To have been involved with the concept, design and build phase was challenging but equally rewarding.”
Kevin Riley, lifeboat operations manager at Exmouth RNLI, said he was pleased with how the day went.
“I know we have one of the best boathouses in the country and one the crew and town needed to allow us to be operational 24 hours a day – and provide the service of saving lives at sea 24/7 every week of the year,” he said.
“To have our volunteer crews out of those cabins and into these new facilities is such an asset.
“All this would not have been possible without the generous donations from the public, whether that be pennies in the tin or tens of thousands of pounds, we should all be very proud of what has been achieved.
“The official opening of the boathouse is planned for 2010. No official date has been declared at this time. It’s important for the crew to settle in to the new building first before announcing a date.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Blacksmiths hammer out day of celebration
24-11-2009
BLACKSMITHS from across the country gathered in Devon to celebrate their patron saint.
The blacksmiths celebrated St Clement’s Day at the National Trust’s Finch Foundry in Sticklepath, a 19th-century working forge powered by three waterwheels driving a tilt hammer and grindstone.
St Clement’s Day has been marked by the trade since medieval times, when members of the Worshipful Company and Guild of Blacksmiths paraded through the streets.
The tradition died out in the 1940s and was not marked again until the mid-1990s, when it was brought back to life in the Westcountry.
The blacksmiths marked the day with firings of the anvil, using gunpowder, and produced a range of test tools.
They also recreated the atmosphere of a Victorian working forge by demonstrating the foundry’s water-powered trip hammers.
Roger Boney, custodian of Finch Foundry, said the event had been the best yet.
“We had around 30 blacksmiths from all over the country,” he said.
“Despite the appalling weather, it was very well-supported by the public, which was lovely to see.
“St Clement’s Day is the main highlight in our calendar at Finch Foundry.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity to see and meet blacksmiths demonstrating their craft in such an historical setting.”
Finch Foundry originally produced sickles, scythes and shovels for Dartmoor farmers and miners – in its heyday, the foundry produced up to 400 tools every day.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Celebrating cream of region’s tourism
24-11-2009
By Jane Labous
THE Eden Project was last night crowned the best tourism business in the South West.
The Cornish attraction picked up the Winner of Winners award as the cream of the region’s tourism businesses were recognised at the South West Tourism Excellence Awards.
Held at the Saunton Sands Hotel in North Devon, they recognised the achievements of a number of businesses and individuals in the tourism industry across the region.
The awards allow businesses to showcase their quality to customers and, according to organisers, help build morale among staff and gain recognition in the community.
Entrants must demonstrate outstanding levels of customer service and exemplary facilities, along with a commitment to sustainability and recycling.
Alistair Handyside, chairman of South West Tourism, congratulated the winners.
“Winning at the regional awards is a great achievement for any business, especially so in these economic times,” he said.
“These businesses have shown customer care, staff training and continued investment have not faltered but have grown and they are committed to exceeding visitor expectations.”
Categories included awards for large hotel of the year and self-catering holiday of the year and are split into a selection of winners and a smaller number of finalists.
Among the winners were Totnes Rare Breeds Farm and Escot, in Ottery St Mary, which both won silver awards in the Small Visitor Attraction of the Year category.
Woodlands Country House, at Treator, near Padstow, North Cornwall, won a gold award in the Bed and Breakfast of the Year category.
The Salty Monk in Sidford, near Sidmouth, East Devon, and Coswarth House, in Padstow, both scooped silver.
The Thurlestone Hotel near Salcombe in South Devon won gold in the Large Hotel of the Year category, while St Michael’s Hotel & Spa in Falmouth won silver.
The Globe Hotel in Topsham, Exeter, won silver in the Sustainable Tourism category.
The 15 Gold Award winners at this years awards will all now go on to represent the region at the National Enjoy England Awards for Excellence in 2010.
The Eden Project’s Winner of Winners award recognised the “inspirational role” the venue has played in the tourism industry, as well as its superlative visitor experience, said organisers.
Eddie Bent, managing director of E-Strategy, said: “We have a great variety of winners this year and received a very high standard of entries all round which made the judging process even harder.
“I would like to congratulate the winners and finalists who are the exemplars in their field and deserve this regional recognition.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Bag week aims to reduce waste
23-11-2009
By Natalie Clark Medina
A WESTCOUNTRY community has continued its campaign to reduce plastic waste, locally and nationally, with a bag awareness week.
Transition Town Totnes’s Bag Week hopes to encourage a more concerned and responsible attitude towards plastic bags and waste, as well as other energy resources.
The action group organised several events including a film night and bag-making workshop as part of its awareness week, which aimed to highlight how we are all responsible for plastic waste and what can be done to reduce the single use plastic bags.
Shoppers have been asked to bring their own bags to help reduce the number of plastic bags being used.
Many of the town’s shops agreed to support Bag Week and requested a charitable donation for plastic bags.
Friends of the Earth highlighted the excessive use of plastic bottles for water during the week.
Jacqi Hodgson, Bag Week co-ordinator, said: “One of the problems is that plastic bags are a part of our lifestyle and it’s very difficult to break such a convenient habit.
“Every year, 13 billion plastic bags are given away in the UK alone.
“But there is a very high environmental cost to this habit, not only are we adding to the huge waste mountain, we are throwing away a very valuable resource. This week we want everyone to become far more plastic bag conscious and bring a reusable bag when they go shopping; every bag reused is one less for the dump.”
The film night on Thursday began with the Story of Stuff, a short film about over-consumption within society, followed by an open discussion.
The award-winning film BBC’s Message in the Waves by Rebecca Hosking, that shows how the people of Modbury became the first plastic bag free town in the UK, was also shown.
On Saturday, Transition Town Totnes hosted a workshop called Bags of Change – New Patterns for Waste, where people could come and make their own bag at Birdwood House.
Ms Hodgson said: “The aim of the workshop is to stitch together an inspired view of waste.
“It’s a small beginning we can all make.”
Information about TTT events are posted on its calendar at www.transitiontowns.org/Totnes
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Recharge for the battery hens
23-11-2009
By Andy Greenwood Chief Reporter
A WESTCOUNTRY charity which gives former battery hens a new lease of life is set for a record breaking year.
Jane Howorth started taking in the rescued chickens in 2003, and alone looked after more than 500 birds in the first few months.
That rocketed to almost 5,000 in the following 12 months and doubled again to 11,500 in 2005 when she founded the Battery Hen Welfare Trust and its network of volunteers grew.
Last year the charity, based in Chulmleigh, North Devon, rescued more than 61,000 hens with a nationwide network of 22 re-homing centres which stretches from Scotland to Cornwall.
It’s likely to exceed that figure again this year having already rescued some 59,000 birds.
“We are making a difference to a significant number of birds and giving them a second chance,” Ms Howorth said.
“I feel we are reaching out to a large number of people and actually educating them about what wonderfully sentient creatures chickens are and also how the consumer holds the key to their welfare, not the industry.
“Farmers have always produced the eggs we want to buy and it is squarely on our shoulders to say we want hens to be free ranging and can we have more free range eggs.”
Volunteer Michelle Boulton, from Slaughterbridge, near Camelford, North Cornwall, has helped to re-home nearly 3,000 hens since joining the trust 12 months ago.
She works alongside Dave and Amanda Neale, of the UK branch of Animals Asia Foundation, based in Menheniot, near Liskeard, for each of the rescues.
“It is hard work but very rewarding,” she said. “It is nice to save the hens from slaughter although it is a little heartbreaking when you have to leave some behind.
“All sorts of people re-home the hens from families who take three as pets to smallholders who can take a few more.
“They can live for another three, four or five years. They have laid all those eggs for people and it is time to give them something back.”
The charity, the UK’s first for battery hens, has attracted a number of well-known patrons, including chef Jamie Oliver, actress and presenter Amanda Holden, and poet and broadcaster Pam Ayres. Last year, Ms Howorth was named Campaigner of the Year at the House of Lords in the International Fund for Animal Welfare’s Animal Action Awards.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Flower power brings wow factor to historic great hall
23-11-2009
A SPECTACULAR symbol of Christmas has been lovingly crafted at the National Trust’s Cotehele House near Saltash in South East Cornwall.
Each of the 30,000 flowers that make up the Christmas Garland, which hangs in the great hall of the historic house, has been placed individually, honouring a tradition which goes back 55 years.
Work on the garland started two weeks ago, with a team of volunteers working around the clock to finish on deadline.
“It has gone brilliantly,” said the National Trust’s Claire Bolitho yesterday. “It is absolutely stunning this year. We were a bit concerned that after last year, when we had a shortage of flowers, that we may have had the problem again, but we have had more than we needed.
“It looks stunning and it is amazing to see the expression on visitors faces when they see it for the first time.”
Only four volunteers at a time can work on the garland, which, at 60ft, is thought to be the biggest across the National Trust’s property portfolio and is created in situ. The thousands of flowers used are from the gardens at the Tamar Valley property and include ornamental grasses, everlasting sand flower, straw flower, paper daisy, paper rose and statice. It took the garden team and volunteers more than 600 hours to pick them all.
It was feared that this year’s wet summer could leave the garland without enough flowers, a situation Cotehele faced last year, when the main ingredient – statice – faired very badly. With the normal 5,000 flowers reduced to just a few dozen bunches, staff turned to grasses to fill the gap. But head gardener Dave Bouch says such a situation is not unusual, and simply makes for a garland which reflects the year’s growth.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Budding authors win £1,000 bursaries from literary fun
22-11-2009
TWO budding authors from the Westcountry have been awarded £1,000 each from the Winston Graham Historical Prize for Literature.
Western Morning News Living Cornwall editor Simon Parker, Peter Rothwell, from North Devon, and Dr Clare Hobba, from St Albans, were selected from six finalists for the bursaries which are intended to help them develop their manuscripts with a view to getting them published.
The prize was launched last year during Winston Graham’s centenary celebrations. Funded by the author’s generous legacy to the Royal Institution of Cornwall (RIC), it was open to all writers for an unpublished work of historical fiction.
The judging panel was chaired by Winston Graham’s daughter-in-law, Peggotty Graham. A leading academic, she presided over a distinguished judging panel that included travel writer and novelist Philip Marsden, Winston Graham’s former editor Marjory Chapman, Orange Prize winner Helen Dunmore and crime writer Jessica Mann. While the panel did not feel that the advertised prize of £5,000 could be awarded to one of the shortlisted submissions, they did feel that three entries merited the £1,000 bursaries.
“We were looking for a strong setting, a persuasive plot, three-dimensional characters and a good writing style,” said Ms Graham.
“All the manuscripts we read were very good in parts with some beautifully crafted descriptive passages and some good accounts of action.”
Mr Parker said the prize had galvanised him into submitting a completed manuscript.
“I’m delighted to be awarded the bursary because it will motivate me to carry on and fine-tune what I’ve done,” he said. “The judges have been really helpful.”
Mr Rothwell, a retired art lecturer, said: “It was a bit disappointing to have got this far and not have an outright winner but I’m very pleased to be told my manuscript has got real potential. I’m going to polish it and re-submit it for the prize when it’s held again.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
£30m hotel estate and spa names head chef
20-11-2009
A CORNISH chef once responsible for preparing food fit for royalty is to be the head chef for a £30 million hotel estate and spa, due to open in the New Year.
Tom Bradbury is due to start work on the menu for the fine dining restaurant at The Cornwall, at Tregorrick, near St Austell – even though the 43-acre property will not open its doors to customers until the end of February 2010.
Mr Bradbury, who is originally from St Austell, attended catering college in the county before making his name creating dishes for top celebrities in London.
He returned to Cornwall where he worked in Fowey and Carlyon Bay, before most recently becoming head chef at Watergate Bay Hotel.
The Cornwall’s general manager, James Harding, said he was very pleased with the appointment.
He said: “James’ reputation speaks for itself.
“He has cooked for Royalty and A-listers, but he will be creating fine local dishes at The Cornwall.”
Although the chef has yet to finalise his menu, locally-sourced produce and suppliers will feature prominently.
The Cornwall is due to officially open on February 24, with construction company Sir Robert McAlpine is scheduled to leave the site on December 11.
It is expected to create an initial 70-80 jobs.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Model of French statue presented to D-Day hero
20-11-2009
A BAGPIPER hailed a D-Day hero met French officials as he was presented with a model of a statue they plan to build in his honour.
Bill Millin, from Dawlish, is to be immortalised in a life-size statue near where he braved German bullets to pipe the Allied troops ashore during the Second World War invasion of Normandy.
The 10ft bronze image of the 86-year-old has been commissioned by the mayor and people of Colleville Montgomery, which he helped to liberate from the Germans in 1944.
A group of French officials, including the sculptor, visited the South Devon resort to show him the wooden model of the statue.
Mr Millin, who is originally from Glasgow and is recovering from a recent stroke, turned out in a kilt to mark the occasion.
He said: “It is a good likeness. I was 21 then, very young. It is very good of the French to do this for me.”
Led by chairman of the Mary Queen of Scots Pipe Band of France Serge Athénour de Gourdon, the French party were welcomed at the town’s historic Manor House yesterday.
Mr Millin’s pipes led the 1st Commando Brigade under heavy German fire as it stormed Sword Beach on the first day of the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944. Having been instructed to ignore orders from the military high command not to play, Mr Millin led troops ashore to the sound of Highland Laddie, Blue Bonnets Over The Border and Road To The Isles. As shells exploded over his head, the unarmed, kilt-wearing soldier kept playing to raise morale. Some German soldiers later claimed they did not shoot him because they thought he was mad.
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First no carrier bags ... now DIY water bottles
20-11-2009
THE Westcountry town that sparked a global boycott on plastic carrier bags is at it again – by re-filling bottles of water.
Environmentally-aware Modbury in South Devon made headlines the world over after shopkeepers united in refusing to hand-out plastic carrier bags.
Organic store Pips of Modbury is now selling natural Dartmoor water on tap, which it hopes means a reduction in the amount of plastic bottles purchased in the town.
The water is bottled at source by Clearly Devon, a company based near Buckfast Abbey. Because of its close proximity to the store, Pips believes the water will slash the number of miles water has to travel.
Roger Mitchell of Clearly Devon said: “It is incredible that most plastic waste in the UK – 7 million tons per year – is still dumped in landfill sites or burnt.
“And, at sea, it is estimated that the volume of plastic now exceeds that of plankton – the vital source of food for marine life.
“Nor are many people aware that it takes 1.5 litres of water and 330 mls of petroleum to make each 500ml bottle that you see in the shops and supermarkets being sold to customers.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Public given chance to view wind farm plans
18-11-2009
By Ryan Hooper
PLANS to build more wind turbines in Cornwall will be shown to the public for the first time next month.
Renewable energy company Cornwall Light and Power wants to build a new wind farm on land at Denzell Downs, near St Eval, North Cornwall.
Details of the height, number and generating capacity of the project have yet to be specified. However, the company hopes to specify many of these criteria following a public exhibition of plans.
The exhibition will be held at St Mawgan Village Hall on Friday, December 11, from 2pm to 8pm, and the next day from 10am to 2pm.
Visitors will have a chance to find out about outline plans for the site and comment on the scale of scheme they would like to see.
If any subsequent planning application was successful, it would see a second wind farm built in area, following the Bears Down site near Padstow, which is home to 16 turbines.
Simon Pipkin, project developer at Cornwall Light and Power, said: “Our proposals for Denzell Downs give the local community an opportunity to benefit from further clean electricity, in addition to that already generated by Bears Down turbines.
“The purpose of the exhibition is to engage with people living near the site – to explain the process we have gone through in confirming Denzell Downs is suitable, and to hear people’s views to help shape our eventual planning application.
“At this stage, nothing is fixed and we welcome the views of residents in helping us develop a renewable energy scheme that people are comfortable with.”
The firm already operated wind farms at Goonhilly Downs on the Lizard and Roskow Barton near Penryn. The company is also applying for planning permission to install a single wind turbine on land at High Down, Redland, near Callington.
A company spokesman said electricity generated by the Denzell Downs turbines could go into the local distribution network, possibly providing sufficient energy to power over 5,500 households in the surrounding communities each year.
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independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Manor house hosts festive gift fair
18-11-2009
TREREIFE House will host a Christmas Gift Fair this weekend.
The historic Queen Anne manor house, on the outskirts of Newlyn, West Cornwall, is set to prove an atmospheric venue for visitors keen to pick up some unique Cornish gifts.
The weekend will kick-off in style with a series of demonstrations and a programme of entertainment, as well as an art exhibition in the gallery.
The craft fair will take place under cover in heated marquees and over the course of the weekend.
A selection of local suppliers, including Worthy Farm Cheeses and Polgoon Wines, will feature. Poet’s Cafe will also be serving a home-made refreshments.
The event opens at 10am both days and runs until 5pm on Saturday and 4pm on Sunday.
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Ancient regional maps for sale at auction
18-11-2009
A COLLECTION of rare maps of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly dating from the 16th and 17th Centuries go on sale next month.
Some of the maps show the tip of West Cornwall with the Scillies beyond Land’s End, while others depict the islands alone.
The earliest of the group, which will go under the hammer at Bonhams in Oxford on December 1, is a hand-coloured chart by Greenville Collins, printed in 1693 and which is estimated to sell for between £300 and £500.
In April this year, Bonhams sold an exceptional collection of 184 lots, assembled by the Enys family of Enys near Falmouth, which covered the history of Cornwall.
The collection encompassed works of poetry, fiction, news items, crime reports, maps and photograph and was estimated to fetch £50,000 but in fact made £80,000.
David Park Head of the books, maps and manuscripts department at Bonhams, said it had been a bumper year for collectors of Cornish artefacts.
“It is happy coincidence that in a season when Bonhams has been able to offer one of the best collection of books on Cornwall of recent years, we also now have this remarkable collection, Scillonian, but undeniably Cornish as well.”
Many of the early maps were destined for the libraries of wealthy men, with few ever making it to sea in the hands of mariners.
Most of the maps that did guide sailors have not survived because of the wear and tear they were subjected to.
As they are today, early maps were seen as decorative items as much as anything else, and only with time became seen as objects of utility for actual use by seamen.
The earliest of the 40 items, which include international maps, is a 1586 map by Waghenaer, which was printed in Leiden in the Netherlands and is estimated to sell for £800 to £1,200. The most expensive of the group is another with Dutch connections, a highly decorative map of the Romeyn de Hooge area printed in 1693 and estimated to sell at £900 to £1,200.
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Ferry planning decision ‘needs more local input’
18-11-2009
By Lyn Barton
PROTESTERS fighting plans to develop Penzance harbour have cried foul over a decision to put a crucial planning bid into the hands of a committee with few local members.
Cornwall Council has announced that the application for works to build a new passenger and freight terminal at Penzance will be deliberated by a strategic planning committee. It had previously been thought that the controversial mainland enhancement to the Isles of Scilly sea link would be decided by the local west area planning committee.
The authority has robustly defended the decision, saying there was a bigger picture at stake, as such a large development has implications for the whole county. Moreover, it said Penzance councillors had the right to attend and speak at any planning committee meeting.
John Maggs, of the campaign group Friends of Penzance Harbour, said Cornwall Council’s decision was unprecedented and called for a rethink.
“The effect of the move is to disenfranchise the council members representing those most directly affected by the scheme, and sidestep massive public opposition to the plans,” he said.
Mr Maggs said planning applications were normally referred to the strategic committee by area planning groups. Members local to the Penzance area make up half the 12 members on the west area planning committee. However, only two Penzance area councillors are on the 21-member strategic planning committee.
Friends of Penzance Harbour believe that, if it gets the green light, the current planning application will destroy the historic Battery Rocks area. The group is promoting an alternative which would see disused buildings near the current berth for the Isles of Scilly ferry converted into a passenger terminal. Freight would be handled at an out-of-town depot.
There are also fears that Government funding for the scheme will dry up if it does not move forward. The planning application for improved facilities at the other end of the link on the Scilly Isles has already been approved.
The planning application at the Penzance end will be heard by Cornwall Council’s strategic planning committee, in line with the constitution. Phil Mason, head of planning and regeneration at the authority, said the decision to refer the case to this committee was taken because the development had implications for a huge area. He said the work at Penzance harbour was irrevocably linked to a bigger overall scheme, which would also include the new facilities at Scilly.
“The impact on the overall scheme and the consequential impact upon Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly must be taken into account,” he said.
Factors which influenced the decision included that fact that the boat link was an economic and cultural lifeline to Scillonians. It was also a strategic transport connection in relation to the trunk road and main rail line network of Cornwall, he said, which meant it was important to the whole of the South West region.
A spokesman for Cornwall Council said the authority’s constitution recognised the need for local member input into decisions made at a strategic level and that all members had the right to speak at any planning committee meeting.
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Bats get ready to check in to luxury ‘hotel’ on sti
17-11-2009
A LUXURY bat hotel costing £150,000 has been built to house a colony of the flying creatures at a multi-million-pound leisure complex which is nearing completion.
The privileged bats will get to hang upside down in a purpose-built home on stilts.
The Cornwall Hotel, Spa and Estate, at Tregorrick, near St Austell, has created the home for a colony of bats that live in trees adjoining the site of the new luxury hotel. Planning rules stipulate that the creatures must be protected, but the hotel has gone the extra mile to build the house on stilts.
More than £150,000 has been spent on the project according to the company, and if plans go ahead to install cameras in the aptly named Bat Hotel, guests will be able to view their nocturnal comings and goings. It has purpose-built “caves”, two bat tunnels, 30 bat boxes, five roosting units and a barn nearby to protect the six species abundant in the area.
Mark Rudrum, commercial director at CMR Leisure, the company which owns the hotel, said: “We are very protective of the bats and see them as a feature on the site.
“The conservation will be a real draw for families, especially being able to flick on the TV channel and watch the bats in their own environment.”
Other species have been safeguarded during construction, including badger setts and barn owls and more than 1,000 trees have been planted during work on the grounds.
The hotel complex, set in 43 acres, will have 65 rooms and 60 lodges situated in woodland, as well as spa facilities, tennis courts and a state-of-the-art gym.
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Children’s centre holds open day
17-11-2009
PARENTS, carers and children from the Camborne area are being invited to attend a special open day at the Trevu Children’s Centre next week.
The open day, which is being held between 9.30am and 11.30am on Monday, November 23, is designed to help people find out about the wide range of children’s services on offer to families in the Camborne area.
Rosie Sutherland, children’s centre development manager for Camborne, said: “People who come along to the open day will have the chance to speak to a range of professionals to find out what services they can offer their families. We are also offering them an opportunity to become a member of the parents’ group or to become a volunteer and help within the centres.”
The day will also provide the chance to find out about the results of the recent consultation which was carried out with families.
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County will be among first to implement coastal access
17-11-2009
THE Westcountry could be one of the first areas in the country where the new “right to roam” legislation will be applied.
With the Marine and Coastal Access Bill now law, Natural England heralded the new legislation as a landmark moment in the history of access to the countryside.
The agency has announced that Somerset is one of the six areas across the country where work would be first concentrated, once the Secretary of State has approved the detailed approach.
Natural England will work with Somerset County Council to implement the new right of access and there will be close local consultation including “walking the course” with affected occupiers.
Launching a 12-week public consultation on the scheme that will guide its work under the Act, Janette Ward, Natural England’s South West regional director, said: “With the South West Coast Path heading west from Minehead, the Somerset coast is a logical place for us to start.
“Working with Somerset County Council, the approach we are proposing will involve extensive consultation with landowners, communities and businesses along the coast to help map out and agree the route.”
Coun Anthony Trollope-Bellew, Somerset County Council Cabinet member for environment, said: “Choosing Somerset as a pilot authority for this project is welcomed as we have a very good track record with this kind of work.
“However, I know that many coastal landowners have reservations about this legislation and I hope that Somerset being involved at an early stage will resolve some of these concerns.”
Natural England will also work with Dorset County Council to open the first stretch of the all-England coast path at Weymouth, home of the Olympic sailing events.
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Chapel could be converted into houses
17-11-2009
A FORMER Methodist chapel in Cornwall will be converted into affordable housing if it gets the go-ahead from councillors.
The redundant Bridges Methodist Chapel in Luxulyan, near St Austell, is the subject of a planning application for five residential units. Four of these will be affordable housing.
Cornwall Council’s Central Sub Area Planning Committee will meet tomorrow to discuss whether planning permission is approved for the building, which has not held regular services for several years.
Last month the committee decided to defer a final decision on the application to conduct a site visit, after concerns were raised over vehicle access.
Members were told access to the site would be widened and, when balanced against the previous use of the building as a chapel, it was suggested there would not be a big traffic increase.
A dozen members of the public attended the site meeting, held on November 5. Committee chairman Tony Martin said: “There are people for and against it. Some people are concerned about vehicular access, while others are keen to get some affordable homes in the area.”
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Statue to honour bravery of piping legend
17-11-2009
A WESTCOUNTRY war hero is this week welcoming French officials who are honouring him for his role in liberating them from Nazi Germany.
Legendary piper Bill Millin, from Dawlish, is to be immortalised in a statue near where he braved German bullets to pipe Allied troops ashore during the Second World War invasion of Normandy.
Mr Millin, 86, is to be portrayed in bronze by the people of Colleville Montgomery, which he helped to liberate in 1944. This week, a group of French officials will visit Dawlish to show him a model of the statue.
Headed by Monsieur Serge Athenour de Gourdon, chairman of the Mary Queen of Scots Pipe Band of France, and one of the principal organisers of commemorative occasions in Normandy, the French party will be officially welcomed on Thursday.
Scotsman Bill was well-known for his bravery during the first hours of the D-Day landings on Sword Beach near Colleville in Normandy. Unarmed, he played the pipes to raise the spirits of troops coming ashore under heavy fire.
His actions bemused German soldiers, with some later claiming they did not shoot him because they thought he was mad. His exploits were graphically recorded in the film The Longest Day.
Mr Millin is feted in France, and as a mark of unending admiration for his courage, the mayor and citizens of Colleville-Montgomery have commissioned a three-metre statue of him.
Speaking on behalf of Devon’s Royal British Legion, Peter Williams said: “Bill is very aware of the importance of this, not just for him but for his comrades who died or were injured.
“The French who are coming over are particularly keen on doing this because it is their way of saying ‘thank you’ to the Allies.”
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Abandoned incinerator could cost £30 million
17-11-2009
By Andy Greenwood Chief reporter
TAXPAYERS in Cornwall face a crippling £30 million bill if plans for a controversial waste incinerator are abandoned.
The former Cornwall County Council rejected plans, from its own waste contractor, for a £117 million energy-from-waste plant at St Dennis, Mid Cornwall, in March this year.
French-owned Sita UK, which was awarded a 30-year, £427 million waste management contract by the county council in 2006, has now appealed against that decision and a planning inquiry is due in March next year.
It has now emerged that the new Cornwall Council is entitled to cancel the contract because work to start building the incinerator will miss a deadline set for next March.
Depending on the outcome of the planning inquiry, councillors face choosing between the massively unpopular incinerator, which opponents fear will have major health implications, and a bill which could have damaging consequences for other front-line services in a climate of financial hardship for the public sector.
Then there is the threat of further multi-million pound fines for continuing to landfill huge amounts of rubbish and the dwindling capacity in the county’s landfill sites. Coun Julian German, who holds the waste and environment portfolio on the council, said there would be “ramifications” for front-line services if the current contract was abandoned.
“It is a reality check,” he said last night. “This is the situation we are in. We do want to look at what the possible alternatives are and we have to go through what the financial and environmental implications are. We recognise that we are in a difficult position.”
The incinerator, with a proposed 390ft chimney, would process 240,000 tonnes of waste a year. It would be capable of handling all Cornwall’s domestic waste and converting it into electricity and heat to power 21,000 homes.
Campaigners fear it would blight the local community for more than a generation and want other measures, including greater recycling and cleaner technological solutions, introduced.
Pat Blanchard, chairman of the St Dennis Anti Incinerator Group (STIG), said: “A mass burn incinerator in the heart of Cornwall is not just unsustainable, it is downright immoral.
“£30 million may be a small price to pay to ensure that we get the best way to deal with Cornwall’s waste.”
The council released details of the compensation clause in a comprehensive statement which, it claimed, was released “in a spirit of openness”.
Terminating Sita’s contract would result in a compensation payment for all the facilities, such as recycling centres, it has provided so far. The bill is estimated at £30 million.
The current contract does allow for a smaller incinerator to be built and an anaerobic digestion facility added. However, any alternative scheme involving a different technology or location outside central Cornwall would also break the current contract.
The council’s cabinet now needs to decide whether to terminate the contract or ask for a revised project plan.
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Westcountry is powerful draw for the lottery winners
17-11-2009
LOTTERY millionaires are flocking to spend their cash on sumptuous houses in the South West, according to a new study.
To coincide with the 15th anniversary of the launch of the National Lottery, HSBC has analysed Land Registry data across England and Wales relating to million-pound property sales in the region over the past 15 years.
It says 1,743 property millionaires have been created over the last 15 years in the South West through the purchase of £1 million-plus homes.
And the region has the third highest concentration of £1 million-plus sales, accounting for 4 per cent of all such transactions across England and Wales after London and the South East.
According to data gathered by the bank, in 1995, only three properties in the South West sold for more than £1 million, compared to 449 in 2007.
The study shows that the average house price in the South West has risen an above-average 230 per cent over the past 15 years from £63,067 in 1995 to £207,960 in 2009.
The places enjoying the largest house price rises over the 15 years are Truro, up 303 per cent, Exeter up 251 per cent, Plymouth up 242 per cent and Torquay up 239 per cent.
The enclave of Sandbanks, near Poole in Dorset, scores the highest proportion of £1 million-plus properties, says the study.
Dawn and Derek Ladner, an office clerk and a fireman, were among more than 100 lottery millionaires who gathered on Sunday to toast the 15th anniversary of the game that made them rich.
The couple were doubly lucky because Mr Ladner bought a second ticket for the same draw, having forgotten he had already bought one.
The couple, from Redruth in West Cornwall, won a total of £958,000, split into two shares of £479,000, in 2007 and decided to retire.
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Council spends £1m on its own quarry
17-11-2009
By Lyn Barton
CORNWALL Council is believed to have become the first local authority in England to purchase its own quarry at the cost of an estimated £1 million.
The council yesterday closed the deal to buy Castle-an-Dinas Quarry at Ludgvan, near Penzance in West Cornwall.
The quarry was owned by Castle Granite Ltd, which went into administration in April.
Its purchase will secure the jobs of a dozen people and guarantee the council a steady supply of high-quality granite for building projects as well as aggregate for road works.
Robin Fisher, Cornwall Council’s Highways business manager, said it was good news.
“This is an excellent purchase for the authority which not only secures employment for local people but enables us to enter the coated stone supply market at a very reasonable entry point,” he said.
“We look forward to this quarry becoming an excellent addition to our service provision.”
The council’s Highways service currently buys more than 100,000 tonnes of materials to make bitumen for roads every year and the purchase of the quarry will ensure continuity of supply at reasonable rates.
The quarry’s high-quality granite is used in building and construction, and there is a strong local market for its natural stone products and aggregates.
The site also features a Macadam plant and supplies material for road construction throughout Cornwall.
Arthur Hooper, head of Highways at Cornwall Council, said it was a win-win situation.
He said the council had purchased the majority of their aggregate from the Ludgvan site and from Dean Quarry on the Lizard. However, when the latter ceased trading, it was left with just the one local supplier. When Castle Granite Ltd went into administration earlier this year, the council faced the expensive option of having to buy aggregates from outside the county in a market where prices were rising.
Mr Hooper said he had every confidence that the quarry could be operated successfully by Cornwall Council.
“We have great experience in the service industry already,” he said. “This is just another string to our bow.”
Graeme Hicks, Cornwall Council Cabinet member for highways, transport and planning, said it was good move for Cornwall.
“Buying the quarry will make sure we can get hold of the right materials at the right price,” he said.
“Work on Cornwall’s roads is vitally important to everyone in the county and I’m proud of the fact that the council has taken this step.”
Cornwall Council is believed to be the only local authority in England to own a quarry, although Tayside Contracts which provides construction services to three Scottish councils also recently bought its own quarry.
A quarry is not the most unusual purchase made by a local authority. Last year Portsmouth City Council spent an estimated £2 million to take over the UK’s biggest banana importer based in the area.
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Green energy champions recognised
16-11-2009
By Ryan Hooper
SOME of the region’s sustainable energy champions are celebrating after being recognised at the South West Green Energy Awards.
Pioneering green projects across the region were praised at a gala dinner, with awards presented by television presenter Jonathan Dimbleby.
Organised by RegenSW, the South West Green Energy Awards recognise the increasing importance that renewable energy and energy efficiency play in the South West in providing solutions to the threat of climate change.
Among those receiving awards were the Sustainable Energy Champion Richard Parkinson, managing director of Mojo Marine in Falmouth, and Devon County Council, which won Most Proactive Local Authority award.
Merlin Hyman, chief executive at Regen SW, said: “The UK’s EU targets show that by 2020 we must generate 15 per cent of our energy from renewable sources, which will require change on an extremely large scale.
“This is a major challenge, but it’s also a major opportunity for the South West, which is rich in the natural resources and entrepreneurial spirit needed to lead the sustainable energy revolution.
“The winners of the South West Green Energy Awards clearly demonstrate what a strong position the region is already in to take this on.
“All of the finalists are exemplars in their field, and the high-quality work they carry out shows just how quickly the sustainable-energy sector is developing in the South West.”
The winners were chosen from a high-quality shortlist of entrants from across the region by an independent panel of judges who have expert knowledge in sustainable energy.
Overall energy champion Richard Parkinson was described as being “at the forefront” of promoting marine energy in the South West. He was also praised for his role in a meeting with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in helping the region secure a Low Carbon Economic Area accreditation for marine energy.
Elsewhere, Devon County Council was declared Most Proactive Local Authority for its role in sustainable energy policies and schemes. Praise was also reserved for the council’s role in helping reduce carbon emissions and encourage green energy in schools.
The council’s Renewable Energy for Devon, which offers independent support and advice to members of the public and schools, was also commended.
Elsewhere, the National Trust’s Castle Drogo at Drewsteignton in Devon, won the Best Renewable Energy Scheme after its new biomass boiler reduced the estate’s annual carbon emissions.
The Clifton Lido blue water swimming pool won Best Small Renewable Energy Scheme, while Sungift Solar in Exeter won Installer of the Year.
Other winners, all from Bristol, were: Marine Current Turbines (Best Business Innovation); Ashley Vale Action Group (Best Housing Scheme) and Liz Eve (Sustainable Energy Photo of the Year).
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£900,000 to restore artist studios from 200 years ago
16-11-2009
HISTORICALLY important artist studios in Cornwall have received £900,000 of Government funds to help restore them.
The 200-year-old Grade II-listed Porthmeor Studios near St Ives were given the money under the Sea Change programme, designed to spruce up the country’s coastal towns.
The studio complex faces on to the beach and epitomises the connection between the town, fishing industry and local artists.
As part of the project, new studios will be created and two of the fishermen’s old cellars will be refurbished.
And in Plymouth, a grant of £100,000 has been offered from the fund to develop plans for relocating the Plymouth Arts Centre on the Hoe.
The plans are for a centre that will house two cinemas, as well as education and production spaces, along with a cafe. St Ives and Plymouth are two of seven coastal resorts across the country to receive Government handouts under the scheme.
The others include Barrow- in-Furness in Cumbria, Fleetwood in Wyre, Roker in Sunderland, North Tyneside, and Margate in Kent.
Margaret Hodge, culture and tourism minister, said: “What I love most about the Sea Change programme is the huge variety and diversity of the projects that receive funding.
“What’s exciting is that many of these grants will enable our seaside towns to celebrate their fantastic heritage and history while at the same time making the services and cultural facilities they offer completely relevant for the future.
“Sea Change is all about investing in culture and heritage to stimulate regeneration in coastal towns that are struggling.”
Richard Simmons, chief executive at Sea Change, said: “These seven projects all demonstrate how culture can be a catalyst to recapture the flair that these places enjoyed in their heyday.”
The Sea Change programme began last year and runs until 2011.
Organisations involved in the scheme include the regional development agencies, English Heritage, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, Arts Council England and the Big Lottery Fund.
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Herring festival treat as chef Hugh goes fishing
16-11-2009
TV CHEF Hugh Fearnley- Whittingstall was the celebrity champion for herring at a festival celebrating a village’s links to the fishery.
Hoards of visitors sampled the cook’s herring creations at the Clovelly Herring Festival in North Devon yesterday.
Mr Fearnley-Whittingstall went out fishing in the morning, and returned with around 30 herring which he cooked for the hungry throng, for a December episode in his series Winter’s On Its Way.
Those who did not get the chance to sample the chef’s creations could try a kipper or bloater, specially smoked by maritime writer and historian Mike Smylie, who took his Kipperland exhibition to the event.
Entertainment included live music, sea shanties and the Singing Fishwives.
Clovelly’s harbourmaster Stephen Perham is one of the last remaining herring fishermen in the village, along with his brother, Tommy. Mr Perham went out fishing with Mr Fearnley-Whittingstall and demonstrated the sustainable methods he uses.
He spoke of the once-prosperous fishery consisting of 100 boats in the mid-1700s: “This festival isn’t just about those of us who are still fishing, but to remember the reason that Clovelly is here at all is because there was a fishery. It’s about celebrating the past as well as the future.”
He said such events, and the celebrity chef endorsement, would help raise the profile of herring as an inexpensive and nutritious fish.
Event organiser Sue Howarth, who staged a crab and lobster festival in September, said: “Lots of people turned up and we were so lucky with the weather. There’s loads going on, and it has been a great opportunity for us to promote the sustainable methods of fishing here and the excellent properties of herring.”
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Restaurant reopens
14-11-2009
CHEERY news in these recession-hit times. The Finnygook in Crafthole, Torpoint, is relaunching next weekend. To book, call 01503 230338.
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The £125 burger that’s truly fit for a king
14-11-2009
A DEVON pub was set to take away a global food record yesterday after serving up the world’s most expensive burger – costing £125.
The fine dining burger – called The Royal – is made from premier gourmet Japanese Wagyu beef, which costs £100 per lb. The luxurious meat is coarsely ground into an 8oz burger and marinated in Pannier Champagne for 24 hours before cooking. It is then seasoned with fresh black autumn truffle and served with caramelised onions in a toasted truffle bun.
The burger – served with just chips – has been introduced as part of the new winter menu at the Royal Dart in Kingswear, near Dartmouth. But hungry diners must order the burger one day in advance because of the time it takes the head chef to prepare the luxury dish.
The Royal has become the world’s most expensive burger – beating Burger King’s Burger Bling, which was launched last year – and costs £95. And pub manager Steve Sussams yesterday confirmed he had taken his first order.
He said: “We like to think it is not just the world’s most expensive burger, but also the best. We believe it is a completely unique recipe and the champagne really gives an extra dimension.
“It may sound like a lot of money but if you buy one you will be eating the very best. You cannot buy a better burger anywhere on the planet.”
Wagyu beef originates from five breeds of Japanese cow, their ancient blood lines enhanced by special diets including beer and sake. Breeders even massage them and play soothing music to help achieve a luxurious marbled beef.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Bike safety campaign sees accidents fall
13-11-2009
A CAMPAIGN highlighting the dangers of motorcycles, scooters and mopeds has been praised after police said the number of casualties in motorbike accidents had fallen.
The reduction follows an enforcement and education campaign which was launched in Plymouth in April. It has been aimed at riders of mopeds and motorcycles under 125cc, ridden mainly by younger riders.
As a result of the campaign, 289 bikes have been checked by police, of those four have been seized, 24 have been prosecuted for various offences and a further 62 cautioned for minor offences.
The checks have included tyres, lights, a general mechanical check, driving documents and advice regarding wearing protective clothing.
The casualty figures for the period April to September show that in 2008 there were two serious injury collisions involving bikes under 125cc in 2009 there were none.
Slight injuries have also fallen – in 2008 there were 42 slight injury collisions and in 2009 there were 29.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Willow figure set to light up the night
13-11-2009
THIS towering willow man will be set alight next week as part of Occombe Farm’s annual fire festival.
The imposing willow figure was lovingly created by Somerset sculptor Stefan Jennings using locally coppiced ash and hazel, willow, sawdust and straw. Mr Jennings began creating the frame at the farm on Monday and visitors were able to watch the sculpture taking shape during the week. The 30ft willow man will be set alight with flaming arrows during the Light Up the Night festival tomorrow at the organic farm in Paignton. Mr Jennings has created a number of large natural sculptures as part of school workshops and at UK festivals.
He also created the Blackdown Hills’ legendary leaping roe deer and other hedgerow sculptures on the Devon and Somerset border. A pyromania fire juggling show will also take place at the festival, which is run in aid of Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust, as well as live music by local band Secondnature.
Light Up the Night begins at 6.30pm. Entry is £3.50 and under-threes go free. For further details, call 01803 520022.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Marine’s gift to son is healthy life ahead
13-11-2009
A ROYAL Marine returned from the horrors of Afghanistan to become a hero of a different kind – by donating a kidney to his son.
James King, 28, was fighting the Taliban when he found out his three-year-old son – who has had kidney problems since birth – had suffered complications through a bout of peritonitis. So he returned from the gruelling tour to be admitted to Southmead Hospital in Bristol, where one of his kidneys was removed and transplanted into his son, also called James, at Bristol Children’s Hospital.
This week the family from Yeovil, Somerset, travelled to Bristol so young James could have his dialysis lines removed.
His father said: “James is really well. He is a lot less tired during the day. He has got more energy.
“For me, recovering from the operation has been hard because from being fully fit to sitting at home is very frustrating.
“They said I would be tired but the nausea and feeling unwell has been the worst.
“But it makes it all worthwhile when I am lying in bed in the morning thinking I’m in agony when James comes in and he is more energetic and happy. It’s brilliant.”
James hopes to return to light duties in the next few weeks and be fully fit in the New Year.
A vehicle mechanic, he completed an eight-month tour in Afghanistan with 3 Commando Brigade in July. He said it was the hardest operational tour he had been on, but donating a kidney had been even more of a challenge.
Little James first had a problem with his kidneys identified during a routine pregnancy scan. Doctors discovered a tube draining his kidneys was blocked, potentially hampering his development in the womb.
A blood test when he was just five days old revealed his kidneys were damaged and he would require ongoing treatment. From the age of 18 months, he needed peritoneal dialysis.
Initially the family had to travel to Bristol at least three times a week for him to have treatment, but he was later able to have dialysis at home.
When he contracted peritonitis in June this year, he had to return to his old course of treatment and the need for a donor became more urgent.
Mum Louise, 33, said: “We had known for some time that James would need a transplant, but he had to reach a certain weight to go on to the transplant list.
“James was put on the list about 18 months ago and round about that time my husband and I put ourselves forward to be tested to see if we were suitable to donate. My husband was more suitable.
“The operation wasn’t so much what we were worried about. Afterwards is the unknown.”
Saying James junior was now doing “fantastically well”, she added: “He is a different little boy and has got so much more energy.
“It has come at a good time because he is starting school next September and by then he should be a normal healthy little boy.”
Mrs King, a former able seaman in the Royal Navy, met her husband when both were working in Norway. They have been married for five years.
Paying tribute to her husband’s sacrifice, she said: “He doesn’t really talk about it much, but you couldn’t ask for a better husband or a better father. I think being a service family you are more adaptable to situations that aren’t day-to-day.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Robot is saving lives of cancer patients
13-11-2009
IT LOOKS like a scene from a science fiction film as surgeons hunch over a spider-like machine with their eyes glued to a 3D image revealing the insides of their patient.
The technology is certainly “space age” but the £1.5 million Da Vinci machine is not the work of a vivid Hollywood imagination – it is already helping to save the lives of cancer sufferers in the Westcountry.
Patients going under the knife at Torbay Hospital are increasingly likely to find they are being operated on by one of the most advanced tools of modern medicine – a robot.
Da Vinci has been in use in the hospital’s operating theatre for the last two months and has so far carried out 19 operations, mainly on cancer patients.
Winniford Moore, 81, from Paignton, Devon, was one of the first patients to be operated on by a surgeon using the new machine.
She was treated for cancer and was very impressed with the results. She said: “As soon as I came round, I felt normal. It is incredible.”
The two tiny incisions where the robot went in were just over an inch long. Mrs Moore was out of hospital just five days after the seven-hour operation, which was successful in removing the tumour.
Her surgeon, Steven Mitchell, said the robot benefited someone of Mrs Moore’s age because it allowed people to recover from surgery more quickly. Recovery time from operations using the machine are equal to or better than for keyhole surgery.
Torbay is one of about 20 hospitals in the UK which have a version of the machine. It allows surgeons to see a 3D picture of what they are doing and can be used to perform microscopic tasks inside a patient’s body after making minimal incisions into the flesh.
Consultant surgeon Nick Kenefick said the state-of-the-art technology in the robot made it different from others in the country.
“There is improved vision and better clarity of picture and much better dexterity,” he said. “It allows us to do very precise surgery.”
Mr Mitchell has been a surgeon for seven years and believes robots are the way forward.
He said: “This is the biggest change in my practice and will be for many years to come. It’s only going to get better and better.
“You can compare it to the advance of computers.
“Robotic surgery is the way of the future.”
The Torbay Hospital League of Friends raised a large amount towards the purchase of the robot.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Delight as Plymouth’s Christmas lights are switched o
13-11-2009
PLYMOUTH’S Christmas lights were switched on last night in front of hundreds of people in the city centre’s Piazza.
Rain tried to stop play – but it failed as the crowd was not going to miss the annual festive tradition in Plymouth.
Hordes of screaming girls watched a high-octane performance from dancer George Sampson, winner of last year’s Britain’s Got Talent.
He warmed up the crowd before panto star Christopher Biggins joined Lord Mayor Ken Foster on stage to switch on the lights with city girl Nadine Hopton. The ceremony signalled the start of late-night shopping.
More than £450,000 worth of illuminations were lit up – with crowds marvelling at the new, mostly blue lights which now adorn the city centre.
Coun Foster said: “Plymouth looks pretty fantastic with the Christmas lights. It’s a shame it wasn’t drier – but all the young people loved George Sampson and enjoyed the event.”
Christopher Biggins, who plays Widow Twankey in the Christmas pantomime Aladdin at the Theatre Royal, agreed: “It was great. I’m always amazed when switching Christmas lights on – it’s always bad weather but so many people go along. I have been in many shows in Plymouth over the years and I’m looking forward to this one!”
Nadine Hopton, 13, who goes to Eggbuckland Community College, won a competition to help switch the lights on with the celebrities.
She said: “It was amazing. I will remember it for the rest of my life.”
Lewis Bladen, 12, from Badgers Wood, was hugged by George Sampson after his four-song performance. He said: “I enjoyed the lights being switched on and it was great to get a hug from George!”
Late-night Christmas shopping will run every Thursday until December 17.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Flood Alerts As Storm Hits West
13-11-2009
By Ryan Hooper
WEATHER experts say the Westcountry could be hit by the “biggest storm of the season” so far with 70mph winds set to batter parts of the region and leave many areas at risk of flooding.
Forecasters have issued severe weather warnings as gales are expected to sweep across the South West today – signalling the start of what could be a week of almost non-stop rainfall.
Initial forecasts received from the Met Office show waves of heavy rain sweeping across Devon, Cornwall and other parts of the Westcountry from today.
As some rivers threaten to burst their banks, Environment Agency spokesman Ronnie Jones said: “As we head for winter, this is the biggest storm of the season so far.
“If you know you are prone to flooding, then make preparations and if you have a flood board and a flood plan, use them.”
Cornwall Council has placed stocks of sandbags in key locations to cope with any flooding emergencies across the county while farmers, sailors and motorists have all been warned to brace themselves for the incoming storm.
The Environment Agency last night warned the deluge could begin this morning.
Early predictions indicate about 40-50mm of rain could fall on low ground, and possibly 80mm on the moors, with the heaviest falling between midday and 6pm.
Members of the farming community are also braced for flooding, with many taking precautions to limit the impact of the weather.
Environment Agency staff are on 24-hour alert, receiving updates from the Met Office and continuously monitoring river levels. Officers on the ground are on stand-by to check flood defences, clear river blockages and install flood barriers.
A flood warning was issued to the whole of the South West, with gales of up to 70mph predicted.
Forecaster Kevin Hogg warned this weekend’s conditions could mark the start of a period of heavy wind and rain. He said: “I think in terms of wind and rain through Friday and Saturday, you should be braced for some severe weather. There won’t be much respite once it sets in.
“October was certainly a rather dry month, and now things are going the other way. It is difficult to say how the rivers will cope, but we are warning more rain will come (after the weekend).”
Motorists have also been urged to stay off the roads during the worst of the rainfall unless their journey is absolutely necessary.
Ben Johnstone for the Environment Agency said the rainfall could lead to some localised flooding from run-off with drains becoming unable to cope with the increased volumes of water.
He added: “These bands of rain could cause problems and we would urge people who live in homes that are vulnerable to flooding to start thinking about taking precautions to protect their properties.”
A spokesman for Falmouth Coastguard said it had received gale warnings from meteorologists and would broadcast regular reminders to all mariners of the severe conditions on the region’s seas.
Ian Johnson, spokesman for NFU South West, said: “It will be a more acute problem for those in low-lying land. Those who haven’t already taken precautions should seriously consider doing so.”
Phil Parsons, a livestock farmer in South Petherwin near Launceston, Cornwall, said rain had already begun to lash down on his farm yesterday afternoon.
He said: “We are trying to keep drains clear because the build-up of leaves is a big problem at this time of year.”
Those in areas identified in a 2007 report by the Environment Agency as being prone to coastal flooding last night described how defence schemes had helped prevent serious flooding in their areas.
Harbourmaster Chris Curtis, from Polperro, South East Cornwall, and Lynton and Bernard Peacock, Mayor of Lynmouth, North Devon, said there had not been a great deal of concern after the weather warnings.
Anyone concerned about the weather should call the Floodline on 08459 881188.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
City prepares to dazzle with festive lights show
12-11-2009
TEAMS of electricians will rig up two kilometres of electric cable, 100 metres of fixing wire, 30 rolls of black insulation tape and more than 500 “star-flash” bulbs for this year’s Christmas lights display in Exeter.
The lights will officially be switched on next Tuesday, November 17 by Heart FM radio and TV presenter Toby Anstis.
The Lord Mayor of Exeter, Coun John Winterbottom, and the Northcott’s pantomime dame Mother Goose will help him with the task.
The spectacular lights display includes a light canopy above Bedford Square as the centrepiece.
Heart presenters Matt and Dani will entertain the crowds in Exeter’s High Street from 5.30pm.
The winners of Heart’s Schools Got Talent competition, The Shute Shining Stars from Shute Community Primary School, will also be performing their winning act.
A fireworks finale will mark the event as the lights are switched on at 6.15pm and entertainment will continue until 7pm.
Thursday late night shopping until 9pm starts on Thursday, November 19 in Exeter for Christmas shoppers.
The city’s Father Christmas parade, with reindeer, dancing and music, takes place on Saturday, November 21 at noon.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Money pours in to help Bonfire Night fire victims
12-11-2009
By Andy Greenwood Chief Reporter
WELL-WISHERS have donated hundreds of pounds to help the children of a 59-year-old woman from Cornwall who was killed in a blaze on Bonfire Night.
Mary Fox, a mother-of-nine, died in a top-floor bedroom of her home in Wallace Road, Bodmin, after a blaze was sparked by a firework pushed through her letter box. She is believed to have helped her 17-year-old son Raum to escape through the bedroom window. He ran next door to raise the alarm and although firefighters were on the scene within six minutes they were unable to save her.
Three teenagers from the Bodmin area – an 18-year-old and two 17-year-old males – were arrested on suspicion of murder at 7am on Monday. Since then, they have been questioned by detectives at Launceston police station.
Detectives were granted an extra 30 hours to question the three after making an application to magistrates on Wednesday afternoon. That time limit ran out at midnight last night.
There was no news on whether the three had been charged, or released on police bail, when the Western Morning News went to print last night.
Meanwhile, people and businesses in Bodmin have given generously to support the family.
Teresa Krrashi, a friend of Mrs Fox’s daughter Mo, has been collecting donations for the family.
She raised £186 from pub-goers in the town while a further £154 was raised by The Gin House. Sports Direct is posting a voucher and Asda has a given £50 voucher for Raum to buy new clothes.
Morrisons has also donated toiletries and Bodmin football, Lions and Rotary clubs have raised hundreds of pounds. A fund-raising bag pack is being organised at Asda on Saturday.
Ms Krrashi said: “Raum has lost everything. He didn’t even have any shoes on. I really wanted to be able to help the family and so many people are willing to give.
“The family wish to say a huge thank you to everyone for their ongoing support and kindness.
“At the moment the family are not up to visitors and are asking people to respect this, but Mo has been overwhelmed by the support of people in the town.
“Mary was a lovely woman who always stopped to talk to everyone. Residents in Bodmin are absolutely shocked at what happened.
“There’s a lot of anger, but there is also a lot of sympathy for her children.”
Yesterday, Mrs Fox’s family released a second statement thanking everyone for their “support, kindness and sympathy at this very difficult time”.
“The senseless death of our mum has shocked us, particularly how she died,” they said.
“She was a resourceful person who would find a use for everything.
“She enjoyed listening to the radio and she liked to read.
“She was a supporter of many charities. She was a special and unique person and we all miss her dearly.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Work to start on £42m Wave Hub next week
12-11-2009
By Graeme Demianyk
THE world’s largest commercial wave farm is moving closer to fruition as its developer announced onshore construction will begin next week.
Wave Hub, which will be sited 10 miles off the north coast of Cornwall, is in effect a giant electrical grid-connected “socket” on the seabed in which green energy firms can “plug” their wave energy devices.
The South West Regional Development Agency yesterday said contractors would start work at Hayle beach in Cornwall on Monday ahead of laying a massive sub-sea cable next summer.
The government-backed project has been hailed as massive boon of the Westcountry economy, creating an estimated 1,000 jobs in the region and laying the foundations for a new, well-paid marine energy industry in Cornwall. Stephen Peacock, executive director of enterprise and innovation at SWRDA, said: “This milestone is the culmination of more than six years’ work by the RDA and its partners and will catapult South West England and the UK to the forefront of wave energy development.
“Our aim is to create an entirely new low carbon industry in the South West and hundreds of quality jobs.”
While the project has secured planning consents and around £42 million of funding from SWRDA, the EU and the Department of Energy and Climate Change, it has signed up just one developer thus far.
Ocean Power Technologies is to take one of four berths available at the scheme, while talks continue with engineers Fred Olsen and Bodmin-based Orecon.
In April it emerged a consortium of energy company E.ON and Bristol-based partner Ocean Prospect dropped out to focus on testing wave technology at a rival site in Orkney.
The first wave energy devices will hopefully be deployed in 2011, SWRDA has said.
During the first phase of construction between now and the end of the year, civil engineers Dean & Dyball will drill a 200-metre duct under and through sand dunes on the beach at Hayle in Cornwall.
The narrow duct will be lined with a pipe as it is drilled and will eventually link Wave Hub’s sub-sea cable with a new electricity sub-station on the site of a former power station.
Work on the sub-station will start in January and is expected to take six months to complete. Wave Hub will be deployed and the sub-sea cable laid in the summer of next year.
The SWRDA has also announced the appointment of Guy Lavender as general manager for the Wave Hub project.
Energy and Climate Change Minister, Lord Hunt, said: “Clean green renewable energy is a central component of our response to climate change and ensuring future energy supplies. The scope for wave and tidal energy around the UK’s shores is massive and the Wave Hub will help marine energy developers test their cutting edge projects and help them reach commercial viability.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Huge investment will transform derelict site
12-11-2009
A DILAPIDATED building in Redruth is to be converted into a community space as part of the area’s urban regeneration project.
The Elms, which stands empty at the moment, will benefit from a £950,000 investment from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Convergence Investment.
Cornwall Neighbourhoods for Change (CN4C) will provide the rest of the money for the £1.38 million project.
The 450sq m floor space will provide facilities for community groups as well as premises for non-profit social enterprises and voluntary organisations.
The centre will also offer information, advice and guidance for groups and individuals about education, pathways to employment and community development activities. Once completed, it is expected to provide 16 jobs for local people.
The project has been developed by CN4C, with assistance from CPR Regeneration, the urban regeneration company for Camborne, Pool and Redruth, and Coastline Housing Ltd, which purchased the site two years ago.
Tarn Lamb, chief executive of CN4C, said: “This is great news for grassroots community groups across Cornwall and for the people of Redruth.
“The Elms will demonstrate partnership working in action by regenerating a dilapidated building in the centre of Redruth into a state-of-the art community hub, providing facilities for groups and individuals of all ages.”
Neil Lindsey, European team director at CPR Regeneration, welcomed the commitment of ERDF Convergence investment.
He said: “This project will help achieve our objective to grow a more prosperous and dynamic future for Redruth by significantly strengthening CN4C’s role in supporting local economic development through the voluntary and community sector in the area.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
TV chef Hugh to support sustainable fishing at festival
12-11-2009
CELEBRITY chef Hugh Fearnley- Whittingstall is expected to visit an annual festival held to help safeguard local fishermen and promote sustainable fishing.
The Clovelly Herring Festival, on Sunday celebrates how sweet herring was once the village’s staple economy and will offer visitors a wealth of herring dishes, local cider and wine and songs from traditional shanty singers among other attractions.
Mr Fearnley-Whittingstall is due to be filmed at the event for Channel 4’s River Cottage series: Winter’s On Its Way.
This year’s festival ties in with celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The festival – one of a series of events on the culture, history and wildlife within North Devon – will raise awareness in carefully managed fishing. Maritime historian and writer Mike Smylie will bring his Kipperland exhibition to the festival that will tell the history of the herring as well as demonstrate his fishing skills and crafts.
There will be live music from traditional sea shanties, local food and craft stalls and a photographic exhibition of Clovelly’s fishing history. The festival will be held on Sunday from 10am to 4pm.
For more details, call 01237 431781
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
A modern twist as church finally gets its lamps back
12-11-2009
A HISTORIC Cornish churchyard is being restored with new lanterns for the first time in more than half a century, thanks to a local light manufacturer.
Redruth-based company OMC has joined forces with Camborne’s JW Engineering to return a set of decorative Victorian lamps and lanterns to Camborne Church after an absence of more than 65 years.
The lamp and lantern were taken down, along with the churchyard’s cast iron railings, during the Second World War, to be melted down for munitions.
JW Engineering, owned and operated by John Woodward, was initially contracted to design, make and install new cast iron railings and re-instate the lamp and decorative archway and lantern to the front wall of the church.
It also undertook further refurbishment work to large cast iron entrance gates and designed and made a second lamp for a surviving Victorian lamp-post on the church’s south side – having only a single photograph of the original to work from.
John said: “The works undertaken at Camborne Church have been the most interesting and rewarding of my career. Many engineering challenges presented themselves, but all were overcome.
“This church has been looking after my family for at least 200 years, so it was something I wanted to do and the end result has given me both a great sense of achievement and satisfaction.”
As both of the lamps were originally powered by gaslight, the company needed to find a modern, low-maintenance and environmentally friendly alternative method of illumination.
OMC’s James Jose said: “LED lighting is being used increasingly in restoration and refurbishment work, particularly in sensitive, historic buildings, for a number of reasons. The key benefits of using LED lighting in this type of environment are their longevity – a typical light will last 50,000 hours or 10 years minimum – the fact they are so robust, consume relatively little energy and produce very little heat.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Councillors divided over bilingual road sign plan
12-11-2009
By Petra Mann
A ROW has erupted after Cornwall councillors voted to replace the county’s worn out road signs with bilingual ones in both English and Cornish.
From now on, when an old street or place sign needs replacing, the new one will have both languages on it, in a similar scheme to that in Wales.
The move has outraged some members of Cornwall Council, who branded it “ridiculous”, while others were delighted Cornwall’s “uniqueness” was being recognised.
Yesterday, the council’s Cabinet voted to approve a draft policy for the use of the Cornish language.
It also calls for the council to recognise the county’s distinctive culture and the “place of the Cornish language as a unique cultural asset” and asks for it to be promoted in line with the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.
Council premises will also get the new signs and councillors are asked to consider using Cornish in all future council publications, promotional literature and the council website.
Councillors were told the changes would not incur any costs as the manufacturers would add translations free.
Council services will be asked to think how Cornish can be “incorporated within its work over and above inclusion in publications” and for its publications, the council will use the standard written form of Cornish.
Coun Dick Cole, Mebyon Kernow party leader, said the new signs would benefit the Cornish economy.
He said: “Cornwall’s uniqueness is its Celtic heritage and we have to promote that as a brand to attract more overseas visitors. These sort of things are vitally important when trying to make an area stand out from the rest.”
Coun Mark Kaczmarek , cabinet member for housing, said: “If we are changing the sign names to include Cornish, then the Cornish signs we have should have the English translation.”
But Coun Morwenna Williams, Conservative, Troon and Beacon, said: “This will not be welcomed in my part of the county. Some people in Cornwall will find this ridiculous and unnecessary.”
The now defunct Kerrier and Carrick district councils had a policy of promoting the language and used bilingual signs, such as those at Richmond Hill, Chapel Hill and Old Bridge Street in Truro.
Councillors will be working with the Cornwall Cultural Partnership to bring the changes in. The group includes organisations dedicated to promoting Cornish language, culture and sport, including the Cornish Language Partnership.
Jenefer Lowe, development manager, said around 300 people speak Cornish “confidently” and around 3,000 know a few words, although interest in the language is increasing.
What do you think about Cornwall Council’s new policy? Let us know your views at wmnnewsdesk@westernmorning news.co.uk or by writing to the Western Morning News at 17 Brest Road, Derriford, Plymouth, PL6 5AA.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Public ‘was ignored’ on the Post Office closures
12-11-2009
By Matt Chorley, London Editor
MINISTERS showed a “real lack of concern” for communities across the Westcountry when ordering the closure of dozens of post offices across the region, a damning report claims today.
The public consultation on the process, which eventually saw 140 branches axed in Devon and Cornwall, is dismissed as “little more than a piece of window dressing” which caused “distress and upheaval” for rural and urban communities.
The powerful Public Accounts Committee (PAC) also warns the Government must now “rectify the weaknesses” in the way it plans the network “by considering the impacts of closure on rural communities”.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is accused of making an “inadequate assessment” of the social and economic costs of the closure programme. “It showed a real lack of concern for the citizens affected,” said PAC chairman Edward Leigh.
“The consultation process appeared to the public as little more than a piece of window dressing for a decision which, to all intents and purposes, had already been taken.”
He said BIS needed to spell out how it expects remaining branches to survive in the future. And he warned that a looming review of outreach services – including mobile vans and counters set up in pubs and village shops – could yet “result in such services being withdrawn”.
In addition to the branches axed outright, some 60 communities across the Westcountry were told they would lose their permanent outlet and would have to rely instead on a diminished outreach service.
Mr Leigh was also highly critical of the low level of expected savings – forecast to be £45 million a year from 2011-12, following a loss of £17 million in each of the five preceding years.
“In view of the distress and upheaval caused to rural and urban communities by the closure programme, and the less-than- impressive financial benefits, compulsory closures of post offices should in future be a last resort, not a first,” he said.
The committee claims only a “small percentage” of people were even aware of the consultation and, with a target set for the number of branches needed to close, many felt local concerns were ignored.
The process was so poor it could have brought the whole principle of public consultation “into disrepute”, the PAC has said.
More branches are expected to close if sub-postmasters choose to retire or sell their business, but the department and Post Office Ltd are accused of being vague about how they will ensure the network survives.
Today’s report is the latest round of criticism for the nationwide Network Change programme, which saw ministers demand 2,500 branches be axed in 2007.
A separate Commons committee warned in July that a “lack of imagination” by Labour ministers to attract more customers to remaining branches put the post office network at risk.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Villages vie for lottery funding
12-11-2009
THREE villages in the Westcountry have taken a step closer to winning hundreds of thousands of Lotto pounds to improve the environment.
Villages across the country are battling it out to get their hands on up to £400,000 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Village SOS scheme.
The former mining village of St Hilary, near Penzance, is among those hoping to scoop the prize and build a new indoor all-weather riding arena.
Village SOS is a scheme run by Lottery bosses and the BBC to inspire a revival of the UK’s rural spots.
It aims to fund six rural villages to develop new business ventures that will breathe new life into their areas, create new jobs and improve the quality of life for local people.
Their experiences will be documented by the BBC for a major prime time series.
St Hilary’s planned indoor all-weather riding arena will be for use by the local community and will also act as a venue for delivering an alternative therapy project for people experiencing mental health problems.
The village of Norton Fitzwarren, near Taunton in West Somerset, has also been shortlisted.
There the village hall’s Orchard Products Retail Association wants to use its skills to create a profitable retail business selling produce based around locally grown orchard fruits.
And in Kingsbury Episcopi, near Martock in South Somerset, the Kingsbury Community Shop Project would use the money to create a community hub in the centre of the village offering a range of services including a village shop, cafe, book exchange and Internet access.
The final six villages will be announced in May.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Householders warned of council tax scam caller
12-11-2009
CONMEN posing as council officers have been operating in North Devon.
The scam has been operated by a caller who says the householder may be eligible for a reimbursement in council tax.
Already knowing the name and address of the victim’s bank, the caller then asks for more bank details before explaining they would be sent a form to complete, to process the claim.
The scammer would then attempt to gain access to the account.
North Devon Council and police have warned homeowners to report any suspicious behaviour.
DI Dave Atkinson, of Barnstaple police, said: “Thankfully, nobody so far has been duped.
“It is reassuring to see that a vast majority of the public are now much more vigilant when it comes to cold callers and do not divulge private information.
“I also urge people to consider shredding items such as bank statements or other documents that contain private information prior to disposal, as these are often used by fraudsters to obtain credit or clone your identity.”
Residents are being urged to report any suspect calls to North Devon Council’s revenue manager on 01271 388382 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Shoppers are offered easier commute with park and ride
11-11-2009
A NEW park and ride service has been built in Taunton to help shoppers commute to the town centre.
Situated on the A358, just off Junction 25 of the M5, the site is due to open on Monday, November 16.
With more than 1,000 car parking and cycle spaces, the average commuter could save the £70 a month it would roughly cost to park in the town centre.
Services will run every six minutes at peak times, and every 10 minutes at off peak times.
Coun Anthony Trollope-Bellew, Somerset County Council’s Cabinet member for environment, said: “Somerset County Council has invested over £4million to deliver this project as part of the long-term vision to reduce the growth of traffic congestion in Taunton.
“With frequent buses at a cost of £1.70 return, this new service represents a convenient and affordable way to travel.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Ben thinks local in beer ad debate
11-11-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
FOR almost half a century, pints of Newton and Ridley have been supped at the bar of the Rovers Return.
The fictional brewery’s beer has quenched thirsts after family crises and been the cause of high drama since TV’s Coronation Street began in 1960.
But an overhaul of advertising rules means real-life breweries could be free to appear in the nation’s favourite shows.
And as MPs tussled in the Commons to argue their local brews deserved a higher profile, Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw intervened to insist “you cannot beat” the Westcountry’s very own Otter Ale.
As the minister in charge of all media policy, Mr Bradshaw has ordered a consultation into how product placement could work on British TV.
“There is no doubt that commercial broadcasters are suffering in this challenging economic climate, with the sharp decline in advertising revenue well documented,” said the Exeter MP.
“Programme makers have argued that our current stance on product placement will put them at a competitive disadvantage against international rivals, particularly from the US.”
His move represents a major U-turn on Government policy, after his predecessor Andy Burnham ruled out allowing product placement on TV screens.
The change would most likely benefit cash-strapped ITV, where millions of people tune in to catch the latest drama in Coronation Street.
In the Commons debate, Tory backbencher Nigel Evans, from Ribble Valley in Lancashire, made a pitch for his own local breweries to replace fictional tipples on the set of popular shows.
“Clearly, we might see the end of Newton and Ridley beer being served at the Rovers Return on Coronation Street, but we have some very good brews around my constituency – Bowland, Thwaites, Moorhouse’s and the like – which could be served there,” he told MPs.
Mr Bradshaw shot back: “I do not agree that your area has better beers than mine as you cannot beat a pint of Otter Ale.”
If Otter Ale were to feature on the pumps in the Rovers Return, it would not be the first time the firm, based at Luppitt, near Honiton, Devon, has been seen on the small screen. It featured heavily in the BBC One sitcom Jam and Jersualeum, starring and written by Westcountry-based Jennifer Saunders.
Last night, the Otter Brewery welcomed Mr Bradshaw’s suggestion that Otter could appear in programmes on commercial stations as well.
Patrick McCaig, son of Otter founders David and Mary Ann, said: “We are obviously delighted that our local MP is suggesting he likes Otter so much and it should be a high-profile beer on something like Coronation Street.”
But there could be one stumbling block for Otter Ale. Mr Bradshaw’s consultation includes one proposal to prohibit placement of products involving alcohol, unhealthy foods or gambling.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Protesters fear store will create ghost town
27-10-2009
By Graeme Demianyk
AS MANY as half the shops in a Westcountry town could be forced to close if a Tesco supermarket gets the go-ahead, a protest group has claimed.
The chain wants to build a 10,000 sq ft out-of-town store on a former factory site in Ottery St Mary, East Devon.
Green campaign group Sustainable Ottery reckons that if the council approves plans, a “ghost town” would follow.
It says four town centre retailers would close “almost immediately” and up to eight more shops will “very likely close within a year”.
Sustainable Ottery says this would mean between 20 per cent and 50 per cent of shops in the town centre, which includes bakers and butchers, could go to the wall.
The volunteer group has based its calculations on research by academics and Government departments, as well as surveying shopkeepers in three other Devon towns where a supermarket has recently arrived.
But the supermarket rejected the claims, saying the report runs “contrary to the experience of towns which have welcomed a Tesco store”.
Helen Collinson, a spokesman for Sustainable Ottery, said residents had until November 6 to object to the plan. “Ask our many visitors what they like about Ottery and the vast majority will tell you it’s our variety of independent shops and our unique town centre. But these are the very features which could be destroyed if a planning application for a Tesco store on the old factory site is approved.
“We want to see the old factory site developed as much as anyone else but we want it developed in a way that will benefit the town centre and our community, not destroy it.”
The antipathy towards Tesco’s plans in Ottery St Mary is mirrored in some towns across Devon and Cornwall where supermarkets are attempting to get a foothold.
Earlier this year, traders in Tavistock were delighted when Sainsbury’s plans to build a huge out-of-town shopping centre were thrown out by council planners. Sainsbury’s has also put forward a scheme for a store in Ottery St Mary town centre twice the size of the Tesco proposal.
Juliette Bishop, corporate affairs manager of Tesco, said research by the University of Southampton showed there was “not the adverse impact that some people fear”.
Tesco said research by East Devon District Council last year showed 90 per cent of Ottery residents’ bulk food shopping was done outside the town.
Ms Bishop went on: “Our proposed store will help to reduce that figure and allow linked trips so that more money is spent in the town centre.
“In Ottery, many shops have already closed for a variety of reasons and in the current economic climate, many other shops are struggling.
“We believe a Tesco store would help more to survive and Ottery town centre to grow stronger and thrive again.”
But Sustainable Ottery countered that the same council report said the out-of-town location “could compromise the health of the town centre”.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Organic growers benefit West
20-10-2009
ORGANIC farming helps the economies of Westcountry communities, according to a new report.
The study, carried out by the University of Exeter for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), provides evidence on the problems and prospects for organic farming – particularly relevant in the South West with its high proportion of organic producers.
Though the socio-economic impact of organic farming on rural areas has its limitations, according to the findings, organic production involving large numbers of small local producers is, nonetheless, beneficial to rural economies.
Dr Matt Lobley, a rural economy expert at the University of Exeter, said: “The organic sector is unevenly split, with the largest 10 per cent of farms accounting for over half of the sales and half of the full-time staff employed.
“Over half of farmers surveyed said they would continue in organic production so long as they could make a profit. Interestingly, it was often the smaller, more locally orientated farmers who said they would only ever farm organically.”
It is the first time an integrated analysis of organic farming, focusing on all three areas of marketing, consumer behaviour and production, has been conducted. Exeter’s Centre for Rural Policy Research led the research, which was co-authored by the University of Gloucestershire.
Despite growth in recent years, food production by organic farmers is still relatively small compared to other sectors of agriculture.
The report, based on a survey of more than a fifth of all organic farmland, shows a large number of smaller farms are strongly orientated towards selling to their local consumers through box schemes, farm shops and farmers’ markets and fulfil the expectations of many organic consumers.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local - Shop Local - Park Local
20-10-2009
By Ryan Hooper
PARKING charges across Cornwall could be slashed in a bid to encourage more customers to shop locally.
Councillors will today be urged to agree new 10p charges for the first hour’s parking in locations across the county.
Market and coastal town centre car parks owned by Cornwall Council have been identified as key areas where the reduced rate could be introduced.
The call for action follows a year’s trade blighted by the economic downturn and the impact out-of-town supermarkets are said to have on local independent traders.
The 10p parking charge was introduced in some car parks in South East Cornwall two years ago – and Coun John Turner, who tabled today’s motion, said it had a positive impact on local traders.
He added: “We are talking about thinking locally and buying locally, and we want to increase that.
“But often, parking charges in market and coastal town centres are putting people off – it is too expensive for them to come into town to get a paper and a bottle of milk when they have to pay out to park in the first place.
“It is driving customers to out-of-town supermarkets and the local traders are paying the price, which, during this economic climate, is the last thing they need. It is no wonder some people upcountry are calling us ‘rip-off Cornwall’.”
Coun Turner agreed that while car parks were a source of income for councils, cutting parking charges could benefit the authority by saving taxpaying local businesses from going bust.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Small traders urged to use supermarket tactics
19-10-2009
By Ryan Hooper
WESTCOUNTRY market towns have been urged to use supermarket-style promotional tactics in a bid to survive during the recession.
The annual conference of the Action for Market Towns (AMT) group suggested they should ditch the “hanging baskets and market stalls” in favour of more ruthless approaches towards branding and marketing.
Loyalty cards and festivals have been identified as one means of encouraging customers to “shop local”, as smaller businesses compete against out-of-town supermarkets, city centres and Internet shopping.
But the region’s business owners have hit back at the claims, saying their own unique selling points and a determination to “think local” have helped stave off threat of the credit crunch, an ethos promoted in the WMN campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
The claims have also prompted new calls for local authorities to scrap charges in town centre car parks.
John Pole, spokesman for AMT, said: “Towns need to think of themselves as a department store, with different shops. You have to look at your branding and the products you are promoting.
“Towns need to look at themselves in that sort of way, to identify their strengths and weaknesses.
“There is no ‘one size fits all’ to this, but the lure of the city and the Internet means market towns are having to up their game to fight for their customers.”
However, Cornwall chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, Carol Wells, said emphasis should be placed on reducing charges in council-owned town centre car parks.
She said: “There are already lots of loyalty cards across Devon and Cornwall. What I would really like to see is councils reducing parking charges.
“If people didn’t have to pay out at the car park, I think we would see more people using their market towns.”
There was anger in Westminster and the Westcountry in August, when the Commission for Rural Communities said Government ministers were “wrong” to funnel most of a £3 million fund to revive struggling high streets towards urban areas.
But the suggestion at the AMT conference was for towns to implement loyalty card schemes in a bid to fight to keep their town centres alive.
Barbara Ellenbroek, the Mayor of Redruth, said the West Cornwall town has benefited since the creation of a loyalty card scheme earlier this year. Dozens of businesses, including retailers and service providers, have signed up to the scheme, while a recent national consumer survey also praised Redruth traders’ customer service.
Mrs Ellenbroek said: “The loyalty card is a way the customer can prove that they support a local business.
“Cornwall Council conducted a pedestrian count in Redruth town centre, which for some time has shown an annual reduction in the number of people in the street.
“But this year the figure was up. What the loyalty card does is give us as a community something which says we support our local traders, and think locally.”
However, Mike Sealey, vice-chairman of Totnes and District Chamber of Commerce said the schemes wouldn’t work in all Westcountry areas, highlighting the South Devon town’s family businesses as one of its key attractions.
He said: “Most towns promote themselves in a low key way. Aggressive supermarkets have professionals who are paid lots of money to handle the promotional side of things – they have big budgets and staff, and those of us involved in market towns simply don’t. We couldn’t.
“I think we are lucky as we in the Westcountry have a unique atmosphere which is absent in cities and larger towns.
“Totnes has a lot of what I would call ‘one-man shops’, and there is a mind-set in this area that people want to support each other by shopping locally.”
Recent statistics show the majority of Westcountry towns have fared better than the national average, according to shop vacancy figures.
In Bridgwater and Torquay, the rate was 10.3 per cent, according to statistics for the end of June. Taunton had a 9.7 per cent vacancy rate, while Barnstaple had 9.4 per cent, and Newton Abbot 5.7 per cent. Elsewhere, Penzance, Paignton, Falmouth and Truro all had rates of below 5 per cent.
Mr Pole, for the AMT, agreed that the Westcountry appeared to be doing well. He said: “Some towns are doing better and some towns are doing worse, I suspect the ones that attract the tourist trade, those in the Westcountry for example, are doing better.”
£60,000 to help community-led markets’ plans
19-10-2009
FARMERS’ markets in rural areas of West Cornwall are to be given a helping hand to flourish, thanks to a new project.
In a scheme backed by the Government and EU-funded West Cornwall Local Action Group, £60,000 has been handed over to South Kerrier Alliance Community Interest Company to support local producers.
The project was developed by eight farmers’ markets and, over the next 18 months, will invest in new initiatives to help all of them, including recruiting a project co-ordinator.
Clare Leverton, manager of the Local Action Group of which West Cornwall is a part, said it was good to support this type of project.
“South Kerrier Alliance has received a grant of £60,000 for this project because it is helping deliver the group’s objectives to develop the rural economy of West Cornwall through innovation and enterprise.”
Armed with the cash, the markets and their new co-ordinator will research what makes markets successful, how to overcome the barriers for local food producers to sell at markets and to the local catering industry, and will support and advise food producers and market organisers.
The project, which will start in early December, is run by the South Kerrier Alliance, which is established as a leader in developing local community-led projects.
The group already runs a very successful farmers’ market in Helston, a local transport scheme for the east Lizard area, has led an allotment scheme near Helston, and is developing a Helston and Lizard area customer loyalty scheme.
For further information on the South Kerrier Alliance and details of the farmers’ market project officer post visit www.southkerrieralliance.org.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Grants help gardeners buy allotment plots
19-10-2009
GARDENERS in Totnes are celebrating after being awarded two grants to fund the purchase of a new plot of allotment land.
The 80 green-fingered members of Totnes Allotment Association (TAA) have campaigned for three years to supplement 14 allotment plots at a site in Castle Meadow.
The delighted gardeners heard on Tuesday that they had been awarded a £9,980 Big Lottery’s Awards For All grant, as well as £5,000 from local Wakefield Trust.
The amount is enough to purchase more than an acre of land on Kingsbridge Hill, which will provide allotments of varying sizes for around 30 people. The plot, which is on the route of the local community bus, is being sold for approximately £10,000. The association will use the rest of the money to install amenities at the site.
TAA chairman Laurie Taylor said: “It’s wonderful news. The two awards together give us enough to buy the land and cover the cost of infrastructure projects – fencing, water supply and access. We are very grateful.”
The owners of the plot, Jude and Bone Wilson, who are both volunteer drivers for the community bus, offered the land to the association when they heard about the campaign. Mr Wilson said: “We bought the land with the house we live in 14 years ago. Up to now we’ve allowed farmers to run sheep on it. But we don’t really need it and so, hearing that the Totnes Allotments Association needed land, we offered it to them.”
The TAA decided to purchase its own land after failing to persuade local landowners to offer it land for allotments.
Mr Taylor said he had twice written to the Duke of Somerset, who owns land on the Bridgetown side of Totnes, but on both occasions received a negative answer.
“There are still possibilities of land for allotments in and around the town,” he said.
“We’re gaining in credibility the whole time – anybody who hasn’t joined the association because the situation looked hopeless, might want to think again.”
Bus driver Jude Wilson said she would welcome gardeners armed with forks, trowels and even manure on the bus. “We’ll carry anything, fresh veg included... although I will draw the line at wheelbarrows.” she said.
Call the TAA on 01803 865091.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Cornwall feeds growing UK appetite for its fare
08-10-2009
By Catherine Barnes
CORNWALL’S food industry is increasing its portion of the space within the nation’s larders. This week, two leading labels announced national and international sales expansion respectively, as “brand Cornwall” marches apace.
Kelly’s ice cream, once a holiday time treat for visitors, is now becoming a favourite frozen dessert outside of the county and has announced its has become the fastest growing ice cream brand in the UK following a £2 million advertising drive funded by its major shareholder.
Meanwhile, Rick Stein’s collaboration with Redruth-based Furniss Foods is extending into the Southern Hemisphere this week, with the first shipment of his savoury biscuits heading for Australia.
Kelly’s announced this week that its £2 million “Cornish by Nature” TV advertising campaign launched in May helped drive sales up by 35 per cent.
It is to launch a further £500,000 series of ads in the lead-up to the lucrative Christmas period to boost awareness of the brand and is committed to further investment in 2010.
Locals and holidaymakers aside, awareness has gone from a standing start to a third of UK consumers now recognising the brand through its TV pitch, according to Charlotte Hambling, senior marketing manager at R&R Ice Cream.
Since Leeds-based R & R bought a major stake in the family-run Bodmin firm in 2008, it has invested heavily in marketing the brand and R&R’s existing distribution networks have secured Kelly’s a place in the freezer section of all the UK’s major supermarkets.
The brand’s Cornish identity and provenance is the key driver, says Ms Hambling, in positioning it towards becoming the nation’s leading premium ice cream.
“We’re in a very competitive market place and the brand’s unique Cornish-ness and natural ingredients – sourced from producers within a 40-mile radius of the Bodmin factory – is very important to consumers.
“It’s very much a Cornish product. The only real benefit of us being involved is our investment and ability to add some scale to the brand.”
Furniss Foods is the latest local food producer with whom Rick Stein has engineered a recipe for success. The 150-year old traditional fairings maker began baking Stein’s savoury biscuit range in July. Since their launch, they have now become available to buy in Waitrose and at the beginning of this week, in 315 Tesco stores.
Furniss, which has a growing export market for its own range and also bakes for Tesco Finest, this week dispatched the Rick Stein biscuits for the Christmas market in Australia and New Zealand.
Partnership – now the official buzzword for the Duchy since the official launch of Cornwall’s Convergence and SWRDA’s Partner to Succeed initiative last week – has seen the identity of many Cornish brands strengthen, through joint collaborations.
The Rick Stein connection is a case in point: his savoury biscuits are flavoured with Davidstow Cheddar and Cornish sea salt and the chef recommended Cornish Blue and Yarg cheeses and locally-caught mackerel as the ideal accompaniment in accompanying promotional literature.
“Cornwall has definitely made an impact as the nation’s larder,” said Rupert Wilson, general manager of Stein’s, at Padstow.
Mr Stein also put his name to a real ale collaboration with Rock-based Sharp’s Brewery and this year took on the licence of St Austell Brewery pub, the Cornish Arms. Meanwhile, St Austell partnered with the West Cornwall Pasty Company to produce a steak and ale pasty.
Callington-based pasty baker Ginsters has based its “Real Honest Food” national marketing drive on its policy of sourcing ingredients from local producers.
Cornwall Food and Drink festival organiser and food market analyst Ruth Huxley said: “ This is indicative of what is happening throughout the county.”
From a once symbiotic relationship with Cornwall’s tourism industry, the food industry nudged ahead to take a lead over the former, in 2007. For many shoppers around the UK, fresh Westcountry produce is no longer a seasonal holiday treat.
With £1billion Objective One funding pumped into the sector, Cornwall’s food industry leapt from a £800 million yield in 1998, to £1.5 billion in 2006. Estimates on its current worth vary between a conservative £1.6 billion to an optimistic, but tasty, £2 billion.
“The Internet has also provided opportunities to market a diverse range of products, with Cornish provenance attached to their brand. Drinks and ambient product are ideal for online dispatch,” Ms Huxley said.
“Businesses have also seen an opportunity to create what the market has demanded.”
Locally sourced food is now worth £70million to Tesco in the across the South West – an increase of six per cent on last year. The multiple works with 90 suppliers in the region, which was Tesco’s first to have a dedicated marketing manager to works with local suppliers.
Lucy Neville-Rolfe, Tesco’s executive director for corporate and legal affairs, said: “Research over the last three or four years has showed that provenance is important for people.
“It’s not just about having British food – people like to know that things are coming from somewhere they know.”
On a smaller scale, Liskeard entrepreneur Matt Chatfield began weekly deliveries of Cornish food boxes to London in March.
His business, Cornwall in My Kitchen, sells a selection of locally procured fresh meat, vegetables and other Cornish fare, to a growing clientele from a weekend market stall at a Putney pub.
He believes this year’s pre-Christmas market will prove particularly lucrative for smaller-scale local food producers, saying: “It will make a big difference to suppliers, because it brings in money out of season.
“For them, London as a market is totally new income. People in the capital say that they love to have the Cornish produce all year round.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Food firms urged to go green to win business
08-10-2009
By Liz Parks
GREEN issues will move to the fore in the region’s food and drink sector over the next two years, the chief executive of Taste of the West has predicted.
John Sheaves said that while the focus for the next 12 months would be progress out of recession, after that, sustainability was likely to move to the top of the agenda.
He called on the Government to issue clearer guidelines about carbon-related food labelling so that there was a clear, uniform system that was easy to understand for consumers and producers.
“At some time, there is going to be a huge drive towards greater sustainability,” he said.
“The producers that will win the day need support in terms of cutting costs in the production system, and support in meeting climate change targets.
“There needs to be greater clarity around food labelling so that people understand what the carbon levels mean.
“It’s also absolutely crucial that food packaging waste is looked at. Most people are now on board with recycling in the home, but the majority of waste from the home is food packaging – the Government needs to put pressure on the supermarkets to reduce this.”
Taste of the West was set up by the National Farmers’ Union in 1991 with the remit of supporting the economic development of the region’s food and drink producers.
Initially funded by a range of organisations including Defra, Food From Britain and the South West Regional Development Agency, it is now entirely self-supporting from members and sponsorship activity.
Based in Exeter with a team of eight, TOTW organises annual food awards to assess more than 1,200 different food and drink products every year, awarding gold, silver and bronze awards as an indicator of quality.
It also promotes the South West’s food and drink sector and helps to arrange supply and distribution routes to market for the region’s producers.
Mr Sheaves said many of the region’s 50,000 farm holdings were now looking to diversify – with food and drink production providing an obvious source of revenue.
But he warned that producers needed to be business savvy – as well as having a great product.
“People need to sit down and do their homework,” he said.
“They need to start from the market and work backwards, and there are still not very many that do that.
“A lot of producers are good at promoting their product, but they need to ask ‘is it what the market wants?’
“And they need to do their market research to identify gaps in the market.”
Highlighting Kingsteignton-based sausage makers Westaways as an example of how to succeed in the food sector, Mr Sheaves said producers needed to position their product at the right price, on the right route to the market.
Mr Sheaves also cited Bridport-based Denhay, Truro-based Lynher Dairies and Newton St Cyres-based Quickes as examples of producers who had both product and business plan right.
For many food and drink producers, getting on the radar of a supermarket is a key goal.
Plympton-based dairy produce firm Langage Farm and Plymouth-based Burts Chips have both seen strong growth after supermarket listings.
But Mr Sheaves warned that this was not the right path for many food and drink businesses, who would be better off targeting delicatessens and other independent retailers.
“It’s a very exacting market. Their requirements are very high on the technical side and on the marketing side and they will only choose producers with a business plan that is robust enough to support their growth plans,” he said.
“Producers need to go in and work with them (the supermarkets). It’s not a question of putting the product on the shelves and sitting back – there’s a lot involved.”
Taste of the West is working on an initiative which is aimed at helping producers to band together to bid for public sector supply contracts in schools and hospitals.
Few producers in the region could supply the level of orders required by, say, a hospital or local authority but, said Mr Sheaves, by banding together, suppliers could achieve the necessary economies of scale.
“We see the concept of a regional, rather than local, supply chain. There is scale at a regional level to provide the volume that would be needed,” he said.
Taste of the West is currently bidding for contracts on this basis, using its distribution expertise, but Mr Sheaves stressed that this was a difficult process and he called for more support from the Government.
“I would like to see stronger signals to procurement managers saying that it is part of Government policy on food,” he said. “They need to find more local rather than national or international supply chains – we’ve seen many examples where a hospital or a council has gone with the cheapest bidder rather than the best food.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Devon brewery celebrates anniversary with new ale
02-10-2009
By Martin Hesp
A NEW Westcountry ale created to mark the 25th anniversary of a Devon brewery is about to gush from pub pumps across the nation.
XXV is the special beer created to mark the quarter century notched up by the Exe Valley Brewery and it will be sold throughout the Wetherspoon chain during the autumn, and in selected Westcountry pubs.
Brewery owner Guy Sheppard said: “Back in the early 1980s, a resurgence of interest in traditional beers was just gaining a foothold in Devon.
“A few new breweries had come into the marketplace to help satisfy the demand for traditional, quality beers that had been created by the formation of Camra (Campaign for Real Ale) a few years earlier.
“Among them was Exe Valley Brewery, which was started by ex-publican Richard Barron in a barn on his farm in Silverton.
“He commenced brewing in 1984 and started with a 4 per cent abv beer called Barron’s Draught.”
For the first seven years, Mr Barron did all the work himself – from brewing the beer to delivering to pubs –but in 1991 he was joined by Mr Sheppard, who had experience in marketing and distribution as a brewer’s wholesaler.
Mr Barron eventually retired in 2003 and the business is now wholly owned by Mr Sheppard who, along with two employees, continues to produce beers that are respected throughout the trade and sold across Devon and beyond.
To celebrate the quarter century, the team developed the XXV which is a Golden Ale (4.3 per cent abv) brewed with Cascade and Bobek hops along with locally grown Devon malt and the brewery’s own spring water.
“These give XXV a lovely hop aroma, a good depth of body from the malt and a zesty aftertaste on the tongue,” says Mr Sheppard.
As for the next quarter-century, he remarked: “There will continue to be interest in locally made beers. I think the local-made ethos will take over from organic. There is a bigger emphasis on buying local – we can’t go on moving things around the world.
“And, despite the pub trade being hit in recent times, the traditional local beer trade is still growing.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: Who’s in line for funding?
02-10-2009
By Louise Vennells
A FUNDING project which helps schemes that benefit their local community is searching for new cases to support.
Making it Local (MiL) has already provided vital grants to six varied initiatives across the Blackdown Hills, and in East Devon’s Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) conservation area.
The scheme, which distributes funding from a range of sources, is also looking for volunteer appraisers, to help decide which applicants are successful over the finding period, which ends in 2013.
Up to now, MiL has bought chillers for a community shop, helped fund a project to recruit apprentices working on forestry and enabled a digital mentor to help with a community communications scheme.
The fund will take applications from businesses, community groups and individuals.
Its ethos is in line with the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
It encourages readers to source from their surrounding area wherever possible, to help boost the economy on their doorstep.
MiL is also searching for more members from the area covered by the programme, to act as consultant advisers. Anyone interested is invited to attend its next meeting, in Chard, Somerset, on the evening of October 22. Interested parties are asked to call the group in advance, on 01823 680626, or e-mail makingitlocal@devon.gov.uk
The project has three main objectives. It aims to raise business performance and employment, and make small businesses more productive and ambitious, to create more jobs and a market for local products and services.
It also strives to support projects that help communities and businesses to become more resilient and sustainable by developing strong local connections, essential community services and community-held assets.
And it aims to make the most of local resources. It is looking for projects which strengthen the local economy through sensitive and sustainable use of the landscape and natural resources, and that work with local culture and built heritage
MiL is funded by the EU, Defra, SWRDA and Leader. Funding comes from the Local Action part of the Rural Development Programme for England, through the South West Regional Development Agency.
It is managed by the Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon AONB, but the accountable body for the programme is Devon County Council.
Decisions are made locally by a Local Action Group which has community, business and local authority membership. The Making it Local staff are based in the programme area within the two AONB offices.
An MiL spokesman said: “Making it Local is interested in funding projects that make the most of the outstanding landscape and local skills which bring long-lasting prosperity and economic benefit to the area.”
Tories boost British produce
02-10-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
FOREIGN meat will no longer be disguised as British after two leading supermarkets struck a deal with the Conservatives.
Despite Labour ministers claiming little could be done to ensure shoppers are not misled, Tesco and Morrisons last night signed up to the Tories’ Honest Food campaign calling for labels to say if imported food is used.
Labels will include clearer information on products where the meat content is 10 per cent or higher.
And the phrase “Produced in the UK” will be replaced with “Made in the UK with meat from X” when a product processed in the UK contains non-British meat.
Westcountry farming leaders last night welcomed the move as “long overdue” but necessary to ensure shoppers got what they thought they were paying for. It is hoped the change will stop the region’s farmers having to compete with cheap imports packaged to appear British.
The pledge to label food properly comes after concern that people who wanted to support British farmers were being duped into buying low-quality foreign meat, produced to lower welfare standards. The WMN’s Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning, has encouraged consumers to buy home-grown produce, with all food and drink labelled correctly.
Lucy Neville-Rolfe, Tesco executive director of corporate and legal affairs, said: “It is very important to provide clear information so customers can make informed choices.
“In future, Tesco meat products will display more information about the country of origin, further demonstrating what can be achieved by collaboration rather than regulation.”
The move by Britain’s biggest supermarket chain, along with Morrisons, follows political deadlock between Labour and the Conservatives.
Shadow environment secretary Nick Herbert warned earlier this year that he would be willing to change the law to enforce compulsory country of origin labelling for meat or meat products.
But Labour ministers, including Environment Secretary Hilary Benn, claimed the plan would be illegal under EU law, despite admitting the existing rules were “a nonsense and have to change”.
In addition to the agreement from Tesco and Morrisons to change their labels, the Tory Honest Food campaign has also attracted the wider support of Sainsbury’s, M&S and Waitrose. Meanwhile, Asda is reviewing its labelling.
Last night, Mr Herbert said the Conservatives had succeeded where the Government failed.
“Ministers have made no credible attempt to improve country of origin labelling and it is Conservatives who are driving change for the benefit of consumers and British farmers.
“People want clear information about where their food comes from and the supermarkets are responding.”
Until now, a voluntary agreement had not seemed possible, but getting Tesco and Morrisons on board was a “significant step forward”.
But Mr Herbert would not rule out using legislation if the rest of the industry failed to sign up to a voluntary agreement.
Ian Johnson, spokesman for the NFU in the South West, welcomed the move by the supermarkets to change their labels: “It may be some attempt to wriggle out of any kind of regulation – which supermarkets abhor pretty much as anyone else does.
“But it is good news and long overdue. It seemed that we were bogged down in political inertia – many sympathetic words were spoken but nothing happened.
“The fact that it has been achieved, albeit belatedly, is very good news.
“If you buy something, you need to have confidence that it is what you think you are buying.”
The Tory campaign has attracted the backing of a number of TV chefs, including Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Clarissa Dickson-Wright.
It followed shocking revelations about the way foreign meat was obscurely packaged to appear British.
It included a packet of Bird’s Eye roast beef slices labelled “Great British menu” on the front but the meat was imported from overseas; a corned beef sandwich from Marks and Spencer emblazoned with a Union Flag and the phrase the “nation’s favourite” but the meat was from Brazil; and a packet of bacon chops from Tesco described as “produce of Britain” but the meat could actually be from Holland, Denmark, the Republic of Ireland or Britain.
Farmers and food firms call for Government help
02-10-2009
By Becky Sheaves Food Editor and Louise Vennells
FARMERS and food producers have demanded urgent Government action to help the network of businesses which underpin the Westcountry economy to survive the recession.
A Western Morning News investigation into the state of the sector in the region has revealed widespread discontent at what many see as Labour’s tendency to neglect rural areas in favour of urban conurbations when it comes to vital support.
Ian Johnson, South West spokesman for the National Farmers’ Union, accused ministers of favouring car factories in the Midlands over the producers who feed the nation.
He said: “The Government sees it as a priority to ensure big car plants don’t close in the run-up to the next election. But the Westcountry food industry contributes £3 billion a year to our local economy and employs thousands. Our farmers and food producers also need support through the recession. And the lack of encouragement and enthusiasm from the Government is very demoralising.”
The general consensus is that more support is needed for local businesses working in the food industry, which is the core message of the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
The NFU launched its manifesto two weeks ago, Why Farming Still Matters. Mr Johnson said: “We’re not asking for subsidies or handouts. But there is so much more that could be done, especially when it comes to deciding Government contracts for food in schools, hospitals and the Forces.
“When you compare a large factory full of Labour voters in a marginal seat in the Midlands to the thousands of small agricultural businesses spread throughout the South West, you can see why this government has shored up the car industry to the tune of £200 million through the car scrappage scheme. That’s where the votes are.”
Dame Suzi Leather, chairman of Defra’s Food Policy Committee, visited the South West last week to discuss the possibility of regional procurement – giving public catering contracts to local food manufacturers and processors.
Ian Johnson described the visit as “paying lip service”.
He said: “The fact of the matter remains that not a single rasher of bacon served up to the Army is even British, let alone Westcountry.”
And Exeter beef farmer Jilly Greed, vice-chairman of the National Beef Association, dismissed her visit as “mere fine words”. She said: “I don’t see any genuine political will to make this happen. It would make an enormous difference to the Westcountry to see local produce used locally in this way. But it needs a total shift of culture and sound bites alone simply aren’t enough.”
John Sheaves, of Taste of the West, which represents 800 companies in the South West, said: “If the Government simply had a shift of culture to insist that every school in the region used local ingredients and every hospital served Westcountry food, it would really boost the local food economy.
“It’s frustrating because the input from Government just isn’t there. But the benefits are potentially huge in economic and nutritional terms. After all, don’t we owe it to our children and to the region’s hospital patients, to give them really great, fresh seasonal food from their region instead of whatever’s cheapest, often from overseas?”
Food market analyst Ruth Huxley is organising Cornwall Festival of Food and Drink in Truro between September 25 and 27. She said public funding this year had “dried up” and the festival was now dependent on sponsors and volunteers.
“The worth of food to our local prosperity should not be under-estimated,” she said. “The Cornish pasty alone is worth £150 million to the economy here.”
Small farmers, whose businesses make up 45 per cent of the region’s agriculture, are also feeling overlooked. Mary Talbot- Rosebear, of the Small Farmers’ Association, said: “We really do think that the Government has been speaking to us with a forked tongue. It’s nothing short of disgraceful that our police, Navy, Army, schools and hospitals don’t serve Westcountry food.
“Farmers are leaving the industry in despair and young people with good degrees in agriculture who desperately want to farm can’t get the support they need to do so. Meanwhile the Government promises us the earth and delivers nothing.”
Cornish bid for UK culture crown
02-10-2009
By Ryan Hooper
CORNWALL is considering a bid to become a UK city of culture – as well as a European region of culture – to generate half a billion pounds for the county’s economy.
Although a successful double bid would cost £58 million, the rewards would be huge, including the creation of more than 5,000 jobs.
Cornwall has been campaigning to become the first European Region of Culture in 2014 and Cornwall Council will today be asked to make two key decisions to realise that goal.
Council cabinet members will be asked to pledge £500,000 to host Manifesta – a contemporary art festival – as well as an additional £38,000 to create a new delivery structure and keep the bid’s staff employed for another six months.
A report has been prepared by Cornwall Council’s chief executive Kevin Lavery and creative services manager Julie Seyler ahead of today’s full cabinet meeting. It says the five-year campaign would involve Cornwall Council investing £17 million if it was awarded the titles with the rest of the money from grants and other sources of matched funding triggered by the council support.
Cornwall Council has based its figures for how much the regional and city title could be worth on Liverpool’s successful year as Capital of Culture in 2008. Liverpool spent £108 million on its campaign and development to the urban area but recouped £800 million spent in the city, mainly through an increase in tourist traffic.
More than 3.5 million people visited the area that had never previously done so.
The report prepared for the council meeting says hosting an “internationally renowned event” will provide a “dry run” for hosting the year of celebration.
If Cornwall’s bid is successful, it will be the first time a European culture title has been awarded to a region rather than a city.
As well as bidding to becoming a European Region of Culture in 2014, the county could also bid to become the UK’s City of Culture in 2013. Culture Secretary and Exeter MP Ben Bradshaw is encouraging this and the existing team has the experience and structure to bid for both titles.
Bath last week confirmed it would no longer enter the bid to become the UK’s first City of Culture over fears the campaign would cost too much during a recession. However, 28 other cities are thought to be interested in the title.
Gillian Taylor, of Arts Council South West, said the Westcountry’s public arts body supported Cornwall’s bid: “We think it will give opportunities for artists and cultural organisations to promote the work they are doing.
“We’re looking at a range of initiatives which could hopefully put Cornwall on the European map during the Year of Culture.
“I think it will have a benefit on the South West as a whole and I can see Devon enjoying economic benefits as part of a ripple effect of increased tourism in Cornwall.”
Dick Cole, leader of Cornish independence party Mebyon Kernow, said: “Cornwall has a distinct culture based on its history and nationality. Mebyon Kernow is supportive of all measures which work to increase that sense of identity.”
A Cornwall Council spokesman said: “Since 2005, Cornwall Council has been leading a project to lobby the EU to create a European Region of Culture designation. The idea is to create a new designation for rural areas to allow them to bid for a platform to celebrate their culture on a European stage.
“It will be similar in scope to the European Capitals of Culture designation which has been running for 24 years and which Liverpool won last year.
“The idea is that rural places like Cornwall should be given a platform to celebrate their cultures on a European stage, just as cities do.”
In a separate development last week, the UK Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) announced a new scheme for the UK which would celebrate places of culture, to be known as UK Cities of Culture.
Despite the scheme’s name, the DCMS has confirmed that Cornwall is eligible and, because Cornwall has been working to develop its bid to the EU, it is now in a “good position” to bid for the UK scheme.
The council said the cost of bidding for the UK Cities of Culture designation would be minimal because of the work already done in support of the European Regions of Culture Campaign.
“The cabinet members of Cornwall Council will be considering a raft of cultural events and activities for a four-year programme in the lead-up to attempting to secure a European Regions of Culture designation,” said the spokesman.
“Cornwall Council is at an early stage of scoping what these activities would comprise, and how much they would cost.
“However, it is envisaged that for such an initial investment, the county would benefit by up to half a billion pounds.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Royals urged to allow food growing on land
02-10-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
PRINCE Charles and other members of the Royal Family are being urged to allow local people on to their land to grow their own food.
Campaigners claim the move will encourage people to keep fit, eat more healthily and lead to a new range of fruit and vegetables to be sold at farmers markets. The move is part of a call from a leading think tank for the Government to massively increase the number of allotments, including persuading landowners to donate plots to the community in return for tax breaks.
But where the voluntary approach fails, a land grab could be launched to temporarily hand over sites to green-fingered locals.
The New Local Government Network, a think tank close to Gordon Brown, claimed it is “unfair that while some individuals own hundreds of thousands of acres, others are unable to rent a small allotment plot”. In particular it hit out at vast swathes of the country owned by the Royal Family, including Prince Charles.
A report published today says the Royal Family, comprising the Crown Estates, the Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster and private land, has some 677,000 acres.
With thousands of people on waiting lists for allotments in the Westcountry, the NLGN said better use should be made of the estimated 3,500 hectares of unused brownfield land nationwide to create new community allotments.
The report proposes offering tax breaks to landowners to hand over portions of land. Failing that a Large Private Estates Commission could “have the power to temporarily transfer unused plots of private land to the local community for agricultural use”.
Chris Leslie, director of the NLGN, said: “It is well documented that allotments can help keep people fit, encourage healthy eating, reduce carbon footprints and save money on food bills, so it’s a tragedy that more than 100,000 people are waiting to be provided with a plot of land.
“Our reforms would see much more unused and unfunctional brownfield land developed into a much more picturesque landscape of working allotments.
“I am sure that as a vocal advocate for farming and the countryside, Prince Charles and the Duchy of Cornwall will be supportive of the idea.”
The call comes after last week’s deal between Waitrose supermarket and the Prince’s Duchy Originals brand, which critics claimed had become too expensive, leading to plummeting profits.
The kitchen at Buckingham Palace is soon to be provided with produce from an allotment in the palace grounds, and Sarah Brown has been growing vegetables in the Downing Street garden.
Ministers are also being urged to change the law allowing local growers to sell their produce to local restaurants and through local shops and farmers’ markets.
“Allotments are an iconic part of the British psyche and conjure up images of Dig for Victory signs during the war,” Mr Leslie said. “However, they are as relevant today as then and can be an excellent way of bringing together local communities and producing fantastic food.”
The NLGN also calls for local councils to encourage “edible landscaping”, including the creation of more roof gardens and even planting food on roundabouts.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Children boost food campaign
02-10-2009
By Alice Wright
SCHOOL visits to farms are playing a vital role in encouraging parents to buy more local food, new research has revealed.
The study from Kingston University found evidence that children’s trips to farms had a significant knock-on effect on their parents’ consumer behaviour.
More than half of parents questioned said they had learned something from their children’s visit and 16 per cent said they would be more prepared to change how they bought their food, looking for local, seasonal or organic produce.
This is a key message to youngsters and parents - a message which is the core focus of our Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
One farmer questioned during the study said children who took part in visits started asking their parents questions, so the trips were “inadvertently educating adults”. And a parent told researchers her child “wouldn’t stop talking” about his day at a farm.
John Sheaves, chief executive of Taste of the West, agreed that primary school-age children were “probably the strongest influence on consumer spending, either directly or indirectly”.
He described this age group as a “growth market” and said the organisation, which promotes local food in the Westcountry, was trying to harness its power by working with schools.
There was a “big move” towards educating children about food and farming in primary schools.
Citing research released by the University of Plymouth last year, Mr Sheaves said evidence showed consumers in rural areas were aware of local food but it was still “quite a challenge” to encourage urban consumers to change how they shopped.
And he added that one way Taste of the West was trying to change attitudes was through working more with urban schools.
Julian Carnell, of Occombe Farm, Paignton, Devon, said he was aware of anecdotal evidence that school visits were helping persuade parents to think more about their buying habits.
“It makes sense,” he said.
“You see that it does impact on children in terms of their attitudes and understanding and you would think that would have a knock-on effect.”
The principal aim of Occombe Farm is to reconnect people with where their food comes from and to promote the local food culture of South Devon.
The farm hosts a number of visits from schoolchildren through the year and Mr Carnell said he hoped what they learned was filtering through to parents.
He added that most children came to the farm as part of wider projects at school, which encouraged them to ask questions about their food both in the classroom and at home.
“You’re trying to affect the behaviour and understanding of children and you would hope that would have other impacts,” he said.
Clare Parnell, of Carruan Farm, Polzeath, Cornwall, said 680 children had visited since last November and hopefully left with something that would encourage them to change their behaviour, and that of their parents.
She said it was hard to quantify how the visits affected spending behaviour, and there was often a disparity between what people said about the food they bought and the reality when they were actually in the supermarket.
However, she said many children enjoyed the visits so much that they asked their parents to bring them back to the farm, giving the adults the chance to learn more about local food too.
Despite the encouraging figures, the research from Kingston University found there was still a long way to go in terms of educating children about farming.
Farmers told of children who thought milk came from a bottle and could not tell the difference between a sheep and a goat.
The visits also helped challenge stereotypes about farming, according to the study, with one child expressing surprise that a farmer was not only a woman, but “blonde, bubbly and young”.
Dr Frances Harris, author of the report, called for a new push to get schools to take up these visits.
Despite a “huge commitment” from farmers and a range of supporting programmes, she said it was still difficult to set up and maintain the links between farms and schools.
She was pressing the Government to do more to help.
Workshops aim to help shop owners survive
14-09-2009
A SERIES of free workshops designed to help rural shopkeepers overcome the challenges of the difficult economic climate will be held this month.
Devon County Council has teamed up with the Rural Shops Alliance to hold four events throughout September, which will offer the chance to get together and discuss any problems.
Stores in isolated areas are seen as particularly susceptible to downturns which mean people are spending less.
Ken Parsons, the alliance’s chief executive, will be leading discussions at the forthcoming events.
He said: “These are bespoke opportunities to meet other rural shopkeepers and to listen to expert talks from people who really know the rural sector.”
The four events will all take place from 6pm to 9pm, at: The Pack Horse, in South Brent today; The Lamb Inn, in Sandford, on Monday; The Union Pub, in Mortenhamstead, on Tuesday, September 22,
Prewley Moor Arms, in Sourton, on Tuesday, September 29.
Anyone wishing to attend the free events should contact Charlotte Wheedon on 01392 383345 or email charlotte2@devonrcc.org.uk.
The scheme is in line with the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, which encourages readers to source from their surrounding area wherever possible.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
For more information on how to help local businesses weather the economic storm, log on to wmnthinklocal.co.uk.
Urgent call for owners to protest holiday tax
14-09-2009
TIME is running out for the region’s holiday let owners to take a stand against a change in the law that could cost the domestic economy £110 million.
The Government intends to repeal furnished holiday letting rules, introduced in 1984, that afford self-catering accommodation the same tax privileges as other paying-guest businesses.
Capital gains and allowance tax relief provide scope for investment in improving and maintaining the standard of the self-catering accommodation provided.
But now, government bureaucrats have come to regard self-catering accommodation as an investment property, which they deem should be subject to the same stringent levies as residential buy-to-lets.
Campaigner Simon Tregoning is urging the thousands of micro-business owners behind holiday cottages and apartments in the South West to lobby their MP and parliamentary candidate to rally behind their cause.
“Let the Government just put it off for a year – pend it,” he said. “Now is the time to do that with the minimum of pain.
“This is the easiest time to get things changed, as it is not yet written into the Finance Bill, as it will be in the Budget.”
Mr Tregoning, founder of Helston-based agency Classic Cottages, is actively campaigning as a member of both the English Association of Self-catering Operators and Devon and Cornwall’s Combined Association of Holiday Home Agencies, to get breathing space from the Treasury.
Local members say the Government has failed to understand the crucial role of holiday lets in Devon and Cornwall’s fortunes.
Yet the Government aims to close what it perceives as a tax loophole, exploited by holiday let owners.
If the Government goes ahead with the Furnished Holiday Letting (FHL) repeal on April 6 next year, self-catering accommodation will no longer be regarded as a trading businesses.
“In a nutshell, this means that UK owners of furnished holiday-let properties – a crucial element of the accommodation for South West tourism – will now have to review the commercial viability of their business,” said Brian Payne, chief executive of accountancy firm Bishop Fleming, which is also campaigning against the repeal.
“Owners who have bought properties primarily as a business may feel that it is not worth doing any more and will sell,” said David Hamner, director of Kingsbridge-based luxury self-catering agency Toad Hall Cottages, which has more than 400 properties on its books.
“Holiday letting is now a year-round business. If it goes, or is diminished, then it is bound to have an impact on the economy. Anything that upsets the applecart isn’t going to be good”
Mr Tregoning said: “If this fundamental misunderstanding of our business prevails and the FHL rules are repealed, it will damage our industry and the economies in which we operate.”
He is urging the thousands of micro-business owners behind holiday cottages and apartments in the South West, to contact both their MP and local parliamentary candidate to rally behind the cause.
“The lobbying thus far has ensured that Stephen Timms, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, has undertaken to conduct an impact assessment which will be published in the Pre Budget Report this autumn,” he said.
“If the repeal does go through, there is enough incentive to take a more formal procedure in the form of a court challenge, to prove that self-catering accommodation is a trade. It will be painful and expensive.”
To differentiate between holiday lets and second home investments, it was ruled in 1984 that properties should available to the general public for a minimum 20 weeks each year and actually let for 10 weeks.
“The rules serves us very well, but we are not against looking at where they need to be tightened, so that there are no perceivable loopholes,” Mr Tregoning said.
Truro and Newquay accountancy firm Winter Rule launched a Holiday Let campaign roadshow in June to reach out to the 7,500 individuals who own holiday lets in Devon and Cornwall.
It is supported by South West Tourism and the Combined Association of Holiday Home Agencies. Last month, Winter Rule’s head of tax, John Endacott, had two meetings with Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs officials in Whitehall.
“While there has been no indication yet that the Government will change its mind on the proposed tax changes from April next year, we have been getting a very good hearing from those responsible for implementing this policy change,” he said.
“They are certainly very interested to listen to our concerns, as I think it is fair to say that there has not been as much detailed research by the Government on the impact of this change as one would have liked before the announcement of abolition was made.
“We remain hopeful that we may get some concessions – but, at the very least, we are seeking greater clarity and further guidance on the implications for the businesses concerned. All is not yet lost.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Riverford pips all-comers to title
14-09-2009
ORGANIC growers Riverford are celebrating after scooping the best fruit and vegetable category at the Soil Association’s Organic Food Awards.
Praised as “delicate, sweet, melt in the mouth, fresh and crunchy”, their compact Cassim cucumbers won the title, with the pointy cabbage being commended by judges.
Cucumbers only thrive in warm, sheltered surroundings and most are grown hydroponically, never touching the soil. Riverford grower John Harding, based near Buckfastleigh in Devon, has worked hard to discover which cucumber variety is best to cultivate for our climate and tastebuds.
He found mini straight Cassim cucumbers grown to 20cm are more flavoursome than the long, often bendy, varieties found in supermarkets.
“Growing cucumbers in the soil and keeping them small is key to enhancing their flavour,” said John. “Since judging, this crop was destroyed by aphids, but it’s the price you pay for prize-winning veg.”
Riverford’s list of accolades for 2009 includes Best Organic Retailer in the Soil Association’s Natural and Organic Awards, Best Ethical Restaurant for its Field Kitchen in the Observer Food Monthly Awards and Non-Multiple Retailer of the Year 2008 in the Food and Farming Industry Awards.
Royals urged to allow food growing on land
14-09-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
PRINCE Charles and other members of the Royal Family are today urged to allow local people on to their land to grow their own food.
Campaigners claim the move will encourage people to keep fit, eat more healthily and lead to a new range of fruit and vegetables to be sold at farmers markets. The move is part of a call from a leading think tank for the Government to massively increase the number of allotments, including persuading landowners to donate plots to the community in return for tax breaks.
But where the voluntary approach fails, a land grab could be launched to temporarily hand over sites to green-fingered locals.
The New Local Government Network, a think tank close to Gordon Brown, claimed it is “unfair that while some individuals own hundreds of thousands of acres, others are unable to rent a small allotment plot”. In particular it hit out at vast swathes of the country owned by the Royal Family, including Prince Charles.
A report published today (MON) says the Royal Family, comprising the Crown Estates, the Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster and private land, has some 677,000 acres.
With thousands of people on waiting lists for allotments in the Westcountry, the NLGN said better use should be made of the estimated 3,500 hectares of unused brownfield land nationwide to create new community allotments.
The report proposes offering tax breaks to landowners to hand over portions of land. Failing that a Large Private Estates Commission could “have the power to temporarily transfer unused plots of private land to the local community for agricultural use”.
Chris Leslie, director of the NLGN, said: “It is well documented that allotments can help keep people fit, encourage healthy eating, reduce carbon footprints and save money on food bills, so it’s a tragedy that more than 100,000 people are waiting to be provided with a plot of land.
“Our reforms would see much more unused and unfunctional brownfield land developed into a much more picturesque landscape of working allotments.
“I am sure that as a vocal advocate for farming and the countryside, Prince Charles and the Duchy of Cornwall will be supportive of the idea.”
The call comes after last week’s deal between Waitrose supermarket and the Prince’s Duchy Originals brand, which critics claimed had become too expensive, leading to plummeting profits.
The kitchen at Buckingham Palace is soon to be provided with produce from an allotment in the palace grounds, and Sarah Brown has been growing vegetables in the Downing Street garden.
Ministers are also being urged to change the law allowing local growers to sell their produce to local restaurants and through local shops and farmers’ markets.
“Allotments are an iconic part of the British psyche and conjure up images of Dig for Victory signs during the war,” Mr Leslie said. “However, they are as relevant today as then and can be an excellent way of bringing together local communities and producing fantastic food.”
The NLGN also calls for local councils to encourage “edible landscaping”, including the creation of more roof gardens and even planting food on roundabouts.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Real ale bucks trend as six breweries open
10-09-2009
SIX new breweries have opened in Devon and Cornwall over the last 12 months, according to the latest version of the country’s best-known pub guide.
Although sales in the beer and pub industry are at their lowest since the Great Depression, the campaign for Real Ale’s latest annual book says the real ale sector is maintaining its rapid growth, with more brewers in operation than at any time since the Second World War.
As the campaign’s 2010 guide was released todaythurs, the organisation released a league table of UK counties with real ale breweries. West Yorkshire came top with 34, but Devon came in at a respectable fifth, with 27. Cornwall also made it into the top 10 at number nine, with 20 breweries.
Six were set up in Devon and Cornwall within the last year, including the Forge Brewery, at Hartland, near Bideford, and Hunter’s Brewery, at Ipplepen, near Newton Abbot.
In Cornwall, the newcomers are the Forgotten Corner Brewery, at Millbrook, in South East Cornwall; Penpont, at Altarnun, North Cornwall; Roseland Brewery, at Philleigh, near Truro; and the Tintagel Brewery.
The Forgotten Corner Brewery is a one-woman project, with Beverley Gibson creating the recipes, brewing, bottling and selling the finished product herself.
She said: “To be included in the CAMRA Real Ale League validates what I have been doing with the recipes and the brews.
“When you get such approval from an organisation like CAMRA, you know your brews are worthy, even if you thought so before.”
Ms Gibson produces JP pale ale, Trust Ale bitter and Hunter’s Porter. She is currently working on a fourth ale to add to her portfolio.
John Herd, brewer at Tintagel Brewery, said: “To get into the CAMRA league is ideal as we have only been brewing for six months. Breweries like Sharp’s have gone national now and you can drink Doom Bar in Leeds and Manchester. The league will help smaller breweries like us get recognised by people who visit the area and who want to try different real ales.”
Now in its 37th year, CAMRA’s 100,000 members fully revise the Good Beer Guide every year, to give readers the most up-to-date information about the places to find the best real ale.
This year’s guide includes 1,297 new entries, including 13 new entrants in Cornwall and 32 in Devon.
In Cornwall, these include the Napoleon Inn, Boscastle; The First & Last Inn, Penzance; The Gurnard’s Head, Treen; The King’s Arms, Tregony; The Brea Inn, Brea; The Ship Inn, Mousehole; The Jubilee Inn, Pelynt; The Pirate Inn, Penzance; The Turk’s Head, St Agnes; The Smugglers Inn, St Erth Praze; The Old Town Inn, St Mary’s; The Trewellard Inn, Trewellard; and Bunter’s Bar, Truro.
In Devon, new entries include the Dartmoor Lodge, Ashburton; The Old Thatch Inn, Cheriton Bishop; The Royal Castle Hotel, Dartmouth; The Royal Oak, Meavy; The Miners Arms, Hemerdon; The Dartmoor Inn, Merrivale; The Whitchurch Inn, Whitchurch, and the Dolphin Inn, Kenton.
Ian Packham, CAMRA South West regional director, said: “CAMRA members in the local area have been busy all year locating the best pubs for submission to the guide.
“Only pubs serving a consistently high standard of real ale have been considered for inclusion and it is always so difficult to decide which pubs make the final version, as there are so many great pubs in the region.”
Landlord and chef delights in Pub of the Year win
10-09-2009
A WESTCOUNTRY inn has been named the best pub in the land by Michelin.
The 13th century Masons Arms, in Knowstone, Devon, has been named Pub of the Year 2010 by the Michelin Eating Out in Pubs guide.
The Mason Arms is owned by Mark Dodson, who spent 12 years as Michel Roux’s head chef at the three Michelin-starred Waterside Inn, at Bray-on-Thames.
When the lure of country life proved too strong, Mr Dodson and his wife Sarah, who heads the front-of-house team, relocated to Devon with their three daughters and achieved a Michelin star for the pub a year later.
Mr Dodson said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won such a prestigious award, for both the pub and North Devon. It has been a difficult year for many pubs and people in North Devon and this is an achievement to be extremely proud of.”
Mr Dodson’s cooking leans towards classical dishes and he creates sophisticated French and British food with an understated modern edge. One of the most popular dishes on the menu is the roulade of pork belly, which Mr Dodson describes as “a hearty and wholesome dish”.
Michelin commended the Masons Arms’ use of local produce to create “attractive” and “fresh” dishes, as well as the overall presentation of the food. They also highlighted the pub’s appeal as both a village local and a restaurant serving an haute-cuisine experience.
Mr Dodson added: “We may serve first-class food in the dining room, but we are still a village pub and it is important that the staff and village get to celebrate this award together.”
Rediscovering home-grown golden orbs of joy
09-09-2009
LAXTON’S Epicure, Ellison’s Orange, James Grieve, Saint Edmund’s Russet, Ribston Pippin, Huesgen’s Golden Reinette, Adam’s Pearmain, Ashmead’s Kernel... The wondrous names alone are enough to make anyone drool at this time of the year.
Old-fashioned English apples are fabulous, world-beating, fruit. It’s a fact. Nowhere on earth can they grow apples that beat the varieties and cultivars that have stemmed from British orchards down the centuries.
And the good news for apple lovers here in the Westcountry is that the season has begun in earnest. One of the region’s main eating apple orchards near Taunton has been harvesting early varieties for the past five weeks.
We’ll find out more about Charlton Orchards later, but first let’s muse upon the overall apple story.
The very first eating apples similar to the ones we enjoy today were being cropped many thousands of years ago near the modern city of Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan. The earliest examples in Europe were found among charred remains at a Stone Age village in Switzerland. The ancient Greeks grew some varieties and the Romans were said to have been very fond of the fruit. In fact, it was they who first brought them to our shores.
The cool damp climate of the Westcountry and certain soils found in our more protected areas was ideal for the growing of apples, both to eat and for cider-making purposes. Which makes it all the more of an anathema that today we rely upon supermarkets to sell us green things (I am loathe to use the word apple here) from South Africa, pale yellow orbs from France, and brightly coloured, highly polished globes from the Antipodes. So many of these long-distance fruits have one thing in common – while being sweet, they lack distinctive flavour..
Meanwhile landowners in the Westcountry have been grubbing up old orchards for decades. And why shouldn’t they? If no-one wants to buy their fruit then they may as well grow grant-aided wheat or rape.
We must be mad. We have turned our backs upon one of our national treasures – and in the Westcountry we are more guilty than most.
I am quite willing to believe, for instance, that the chalky slopes of France are the best place in the world for grapes – but it is equally true that our lush, cool, damp, valleys provide God’s own acre for the noble apple. It’s all about climate, according to some experts. Because of the cool temperatures (and obviously, it shouldn’t be too cold) our apples must undergo a lengthy growing season in order to mature – and it is this length of time on the tree that allows the fruit to develop such a full flavour.
By the way, it’s also this lengthy growing time that allows misshapen fruit to occur – and you know how much the supermarket bosses hate anything that is deemed visually imperfect...
Do yourselves a favour and visit somewhere like Charlton Orchards at Creech St Michael near Taunton. Sink your teeth into one, or several, of the different varieties on sale and you will, I bet, swear that you’ll never bother with bland imported fruit again.
Duncan Small and partner Sally Bail run the family-owned orchards nowadays, but the 40 acres have been producing various forms of fruit since 1947.
“There are 25 acres of apples – that’s 32 different varieties growing on over 6,000 trees,” says Duncan as he takes us on a walk around the heavily laden orchards. “We’ve chosen our varieties for flavour rather than just for being local – a lot of old Somerset apples were grown for cider and you can’t eat them.”
As we walk, we munch our way through a couple of the different varieties that are being harvested now. “The first was the Discovery which started in August, but now they are coming to an end,” explains Duncan. “They’re actually a cross between Beauty of Bath and Worcester Permain.”
Next we try a Laxton’s Fortune. “Worcester Permain is a mainstream apple for early September and it is a nice apple,” says Duncan. “But the first of our more unusual apples is the Laxton’s Fortune, which is sweet and aromatic with an open textured crunchy flesh.”
Back at the sorting sheds, where four women are working hard packing and weighing the freshly picked apples, Sally tells us more about the business.
“The Cox’s Orange Pippin is still the favourite English eating apple – around 50 per cent of ours are Cox’s – and that’s from a mix where 85 per cent of the apples we grow are for eating, the rest cooking.
“It’s an extremely nice apple and can be stored relatively well, which gives it a long season. It’s very aromatic and has an attractive flavour which people associate with the classic English eater.
“It crops reasonably regularly. Some of our more obscure varieties eat fantastically well, but can be a bit temperamental when it comes to cropping.
“The Cox’s won’t start until the end of September or beginning of October – they need time for the flavour to develop while they’re still on the tree – and that’s something we believe in firmly here.
“We like our fruit to ripen on the trees because it really gives you flavour. The leaves of the trees are working to collect sunlight which in turn helps the starches in the fruit convert to sugars. The downside of this is you can’t store them indefinitely. But we think the apples taste of sour turnips if you pick them before they are really ready.”
However, some of the later cropping apples do require further ripening after they’ve been picked. “Of the really late apples, some aren’t edible when they are picked,” says Sally. “They need to slowly mature off the tree and won’t be ready to eat until January or February.”
These late croppers (like the old English russet) are delicious, but they can be problematic because people simply don’t know how to store them properly. “We get people saying, ‘I can’t keep apples like my grandmother used to – they don’t taste the same.’ And we ask, ‘Do you have central heating?’ Of course they do, but when we ask if their grandmother had it they say, ‘Oh no – her spare bedroom was like a fridge!”
Unfortunately many folk today would shirk altogether from the task of carefully storing late- cropping apples for use throughout the winter. It’s a fuss – why bother when there are always apples on sale at the supermarket?
But, as this series has been discovering, there are more and more good reasons to source and eat food from the locale rather than rely on produce from far afield.
“I think there’s definitely an increasing interest in real food,” comments Sally. “Whether it is fruit, meat, or whatever... There is a resurgence in interest when it comes to flavour. People are prepared to look for food that actually tastes of something. I think we’re getting more into the continental way of enjoying what we are eating.
“The whole farmers’ market thing has helped immensely,” said Sally, who partly relies on such outlets to sell the Charlton Orchard fruit. “The farmers’ markets have enabled us to go to town centres where people are able to sample our apples.”
As for the basic concept of this series that real food should come from real local landscapes, Sally agrees. “We do feel passionate about our orchards,” she says. “Really it is our back garden and we want to be successful in encouraging things like beneficial species – we love to see wildlife in the orchards.”
But profit doesn’t simply grow on trees – running an orchard is hard work.
“You’ve got to feel passionate about the orchard environment and want to work in it,” says Sally, explaining that the work stretches far beyond harvest time. “We are grading apples until Christmas and beyond, then we start pruning,” she says. “That takes us from January through to the beginning of May – it is quite intensive work.
“Then there’s the planting new orchards and general maintenance…”
Perhaps because of this, we have as a nation have forgotten far more apples than we ever knew – although Duncan tells me some old varieties are best forgotten. “You could call it evolution – they went out because they were truly horrible.”
Fortunately, though, enthusiasts and specialist growers have begun to reverse the trend when it comes to the old-fashioned varieties that are worth saving.
One enthusiast we’ve already met in this series is Barry Champion, who recently retired as the National Trust’s head gardener at Trelissick in South Cornwall.
“We have a very loose organisation called the Cornish Orchards Project, which encourages people to grow old varieties,” says Barry. “We started at the lowest ebb (when apples were being forgotten) and we slowly got a few nurseries and people setting up small orchards in the county.
“Now we’ve got about 90 different apples at Trelissick which are Cornish – then there’s the Tamar valley where there’s a beautiful collection at Cotehele, and another collection at Tresillian House near Newquay.
“I equate apple-growing to wine,” says Barry. “It’s such a vast subject – each variety of grape is so individual and so different. Apples are the same.
“What annoys me is the experts who say we can’t grow apples in Cornwall.
“We can – and do it well,” he says, citing one example. “A number-one classic apple that was considered best eating by the Cornish was the Gilliflower – it was introduced mid-19th century by a man called Hawkins.
“It’s a beautiful apple, but doesn’t mature until winter – November onward. It was what they called a keeper – quite aromatic.
“The production of different apples is fascinating,” says Barry. “Prior to the Romans we just had native apples, but they introduced several and that was the start of the apple-growing industry. The Normans brought in lots and there are some with names like Mary Daw, which is actually Miel Dior.
“I’m very interested in the economic value apples had,” concludes Barry. “Virtually every town and farm in the country had orchards – the countryside must have been wonderful in those days with blossom everywhere in spring and summer.”
We in the Westcountry have no excuse when it comes to losing our wondrous apples – Somerset in particular was once as synonymous with apples as Burgundy is with grapes. We ought to be supporting our local growers and attending events like Apple Day on October 21 in an effort to do everything we can to rediscover our culinary heritage.
£1m innovation centre la crème de la crème
09-09-2009
A PINT of milk is one of the purest products there is, but adding to it could help ensure the future of the Westcountry dairy industry.
That was the underlying message at the opening of a new £1 million innovation centre at a giant creamery in the heart of Devon yesterday.
Opening the facility at Milk Link’s Taw Valley Creamery, shadow minister for agriculture and rural affairs James Paice said the Westcountry was the best place in Europe in which to grow good quality grazing grass and the region should therefore be a Continental leader in creating dairy products.
But he said that around half the milk products consumed in this country were at present imported.
New centres of innovation like the one at North Tawton, he said, were crucial in redressing the balance and for the future of the English dairy industry.
“We spend a great deal of time worrying about price of liquid milk and farmers complain that supermarkets don’t pay enough,” he told the Western Morning News. “But we forget that only half the milk produced goes into bottles – the other half goes into processing.”
It was the value-added style of product that Milk Link’s new centre was already starting to address.
On a tour of the facility yesterday, the shadow minister and other VIPs from the dairy industry were able to see how flavoured milk drinks and new low-fat cheese products were being developed in-house by a specialised team.
The centre is one of the first of its kind in the UK, having a capability to make test products for sale in modest volume on its very own miniature production line.
“Adding value to basic cows’ milk – that’s the name of the game,” said Matt Richards, Milk Link’s head of innovation. “The UK dairy market is one of the most developed in the world, and it’s our job to stay at forefront.
“The creamery has been here for a long time making cheese, but what we aim to do now is develop new products to meet consumer and market demands,” he added.
“For example, we have active programmes in developing new healthier dairy products without compromising on the taste and quality.”
Visitors to the creamery yesterday sampled new flavoured milk drinks aimed at the children’s market which will have only 1 per cent fat, but which still taste rich and creamy. There was also a matured cheddar-style cheese containing 30 per cent reduced fat.
Cornish dairy farmer and vice chairman of member-owned Milk Link, Rex Ward, said: “The new centre is all part of the process we’ve been going through since 2002 when we bought this factory.
“We’ve invested and modernised – it’s all necessary in order to command the market, because the market for milk is not guaranteed.
“Farmers are saying: ‘What are you doing to get our prices up?’ We have 1,600 members predominantly from a line south of the M4 – and this is our heartland. So this new centre is a way of ensuring our future and it’s all done in-house by our own employees.
“Without investments such as the innovation centre, we are going to get further behind and allow our market to be overtaken by imports.”
CHILDREN BOOST FOOD CAMPAIGN
09-09-2009
SCHOOL visits to farms are playing a vital role in encouraging parents to buy more local food, new research has revealed.
The study from Kingston University found evidence that children’s trips to farms had a significant knock-on effect on their parents’ consumer behaviour.
More than half of parents questioned said they had learned something from their children’s visit and 16 per cent said they would be more prepared to change how they bought their food, looking for local, seasonal or organic produce.
One farmer questioned during the study said children who took part in visits started asking their parents questions, so the trips were “inadvertently educating adults”. And a parent told researchers her child “wouldn’t stop talking” about his day at a farm.
John Sheaves, chief executive of Taste of the West, agreed that primary school-age children were “probably the strongest influence on consumer spending, either directly or indirectly”.
He described this age group as a “growth market” and said the organisation, which promotes local food in the Westcountry, was trying to harness its power by working with schools.
There was a “big move” towards educating children about food and farming in primary schools.
Citing research released by the University of Plymouth last year, Mr Sheaves said evidence showed consumers in rural areas were aware of local food but it was still “quite a challenge” to encourage urban consumers to change how they shopped.
And he added that one way Taste of the West was trying to change attitudes was through working more with urban schools.
Julian Carnell, corr of Occombe Farm, Paignton, Devon, said he was aware of anecdotal evidence that school visits were helping persuade parents to think more about their buying habits.
“It makes sense,” he said.
“You see that it does impact on children in terms of their attitudes and understanding and you would think that would have a knock-on effect.”
The principal aim of Occombe Farm is to reconnect people with where their food comes from and to promote the local food culture of South Devon.
The farm hosts a number of visits from schoolchildren through the year and Mr Carnell said he hoped what they learned was filtering through to parents.
He added that most children came to the farm as part of wider projects at school, which encouraged them to ask questions about their food both in the classroom and at home.
“You’re trying to affect the behaviour and understanding of children and you would hope that would have other impacts,” he said.
Clare Parnell, corr of Carruan Farm, Polzeath, Cornwall, said 680 children had visited since last November and hopefully left with something that would encourage them to change their behaviour, and that of their parents.
She said it was hard to quantify how the visits affected spending behaviour, and there was often a disparity between what people said about the food they bought and the reality when they were actually in the supermarket.
However, she said many children enjoyed the visits so much that they asked their parents to bring them back to the farm, giving the adults the chance to learn more about local food too.
Despite the encouraging figures, the research from Kingston University found there was still a long way to go in terms of educating children about farming.
Farmers told of children who thought milk came from a bottle and could not tell the difference between a sheep and a goat.
The visits also helped challenge stereotypes about farming, according to the study, with one child expressing surprise that a farmer was not only a woman, but “blonde, bubbly and young”.
Dr Frances Harris, corr author of the report, called for a new push to get schools to take up these visits.
Despite a “huge commitment” from farmers and a range of supporting programmes, she said it was still difficult to set up and maintain the links between farms and schools.
She was pressing the Government to do more to help.
Recession leads to fall in holiday spending
08-09-2009
CASH-STRAPPED Britions are spending less on their holidays than they did last year, confirming the fears of many in the Westcountry tourism industry.
Statistics from VisitEngland show more people holidayed in Britain at the start of the year, indicating predictions that 2009 will be the year of the “staycation” may prove accurate.
Britons took 45.26 million trips in the UK in January-May 2009 – a 1.08 per cent increase on the number for the first five months of 2008.
But as the recession knocked consumer confidence, the amount they spent in the first five months of the year went down 3.08 per cent to £7.51 billion.
The region’s tourist board, South West Tourism, had warned the recession could prompt visitor numbers to fall 8 per cent and spending by a fifth in the West, dampening expectations for a bumper season. But isolating the May 2009 figures, statistics are more encouraging.
Britons took 12.77 million trips in the UK in May – 7.10 per cent up on the May 2008 total. Their spending also rose, going up 1.87 per cent to £2.18 billion.
On Saturday, the Western Morning News reported on research showing a promising level of confidence among attractions, hotels and restaurants as 80 per cent of South West Tourism businesses were claiming the season compared favourably with 2008.
“Despite the regular downpours and lack of sun, the survey found that participants were generally positive and upbeat about 2009,” said Robert Rush, managing director of PFA, the Cornish market research company that carried out the survey.
Meanwhile, a Westcountry estate agent has dismissed as “bizarre” suggestions that house prices are surging in tourist areas because people are shunning holidays in sun spots this year. Figures compiled by a property website suggest the holiday home market has bucked the national trend by recording a rise in the value of second properties.
In contrast, house prices in areas of Spain popular with overseas buyers have seen a fall of up to 7 per cent, according to www.nestoria.co.uk.
Richard Copus, Devon spokesman for the National Association of Estate Agents, said he was baffled at suggestions the rise of the “staycation” was impacting the Westcountry, one of the most popular parts of the country for holiday homes.
In the South Hams in Devon, property prices have gone up 16 per cent compared with summer 2008, according to Nestoria. Torquay and Dorset have also noted a leap since this time last year.
Mr Copus said while the market had stabilised, and predicted prices would rise once more next year, he was finding the second home market was more sluggish than other sectors.
He said: “The second home market has performed worse than the normal market, and it has done for the last few years. That’s what we would expect. People have not got the extra money to buy second homes. It’s another reason why house prices have plummeted in places like Spain. People are selling up to realise their value to pay their debts.
“Prices have stabilised and we expect them to go up in the next year. A price rise like that would need a shortage of second homes. But there are people desperate to get out of the market.”
Tenerife values have fallen 7 per cent, while Ibiza is down 6 per cent, Majorca is 4 per cent down and Benidorm in mainland Spain has dropped by 1 per cent.
Wizard chef Nathan hits the top 10
08-09-2009
A WESTCOUNTRY chef’s “dazzling” food has put his restaurant in the top 10 of eateries across the country.
Nathan Outlaw’s self-named restaurant at the Marina Villa Hotel in Fowey, Cornwall, has been named the 10th best in Britain by the Good Food Guide.
The news comes as it was revealed that Mr Outlaw is bidding to buy the hotel where his restaurant is situated.
The guide is full of praise for the establishment which offers “dazzling fun food from a wizard”.
In making it into the top 10, Mr Outlaw was well ahead of the only other Westcountry restaurant to be named in the guide – Gidleigh Park in Chagford, Devon, run by chef Michael Caines, which came in at number 22.
James Coggan, general manager and director of the Marina Villa Hotel, said it was well-deserved. “It’s a fantastic achievement for Nathan to get into the top 10 as the Good Food Guide is a respected guide written by and with contributions from diners and customers, as well as inspectors.
“We are rightly proud of Nathan and the whole team at Restaurant Nathan Outlaw for winning such a fantastic accolade.”
The recognition comes at a delicate time for Mr Outlaw, who is understood to be bidding to buy the entire Marina Villa Hotel business.
The current owners, who are believed to want to sell, are in negotiations with the chef to decide terms.
Mr Coggan said that taking over the business would provide Cornwall with a true jewel in the gastronomic crown.
“We have all got our fingers crossed with the negotiations.
“We very much want Nathan to stay in Fowey and achieve even bigger and better things in the next few years,” said Mr Coggan.
Breaking into the top 10 marks the latest rise up the cooking ranks for Mr Outlaw.
He started cooking at 14 and after studying at Thanet College in Kent, went on to work for Gary Rhodes and Rick Stein in Padstow, Cornwall.
He opened his own restaurant, the Black Pig in Rock, Cornwall, and within a year, aged 25, had attained a Michelin star.
Unfortunately, the Black Pig closed, but resurfaced at St Ervan Manor, near Padstow, and again within a year of opening had received one star in the Michelin Guide.
In February 2007, Mr Outlaw opened his signature restaurant – Restaurant Nathan Outlaw within the Marina Villa Hotel.
Two years ago, he was placed at number 12 by the Good Food Guide. Last year, he went up to number 11 and this year won his coveted spot in the top 10. According to the Good Food Guide, the British restaurant industry is now “so vibrant”, it has had to expand its list of top eateries.
There are now so many high-calibre restaurants in the UK that the guide’s 2010 edition comprises 50 venues rather than the 40 of previous years.
While Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay still top the list, as announced last month, the Good Food Guide 2010 also includes a number of new young chefs and a string of restaurants scoring high marks.
Editor Elizabeth Carter said there had been a recent culinary revolution giving Britain a new gastronomic lead over France. And she added that despite the economic downturn, high-end restaurants appeared to be riding out the recession, with more UK chefs making the grade. “There are so many great British restaurants hitting their stride at the moment that we just had to expand to a top 50.
Despite the credit crunch, the British restaurant scene has never been so vibrant.”
No need to shell out to feast on the finest seafood
07-09-2009
VISITORS to a pretty coastal village stepped out of the recession for the day when they feasted on crab, lobster and oysters as part of a decadent festival.
But gorging seafood at the Crab and Lobster Feast, held in Clovelly yesterday, sun did not break the bank – the most expensive offering was the Harbour Hotel’s lobster and seafood platter, which allowed people to dine like a lord for just £14.95, including a glass of champagne.
The North Devon village, renowned for its cobbled streets, also offered treats such as a seafood bisque at just £2 a serving, and single oysters that were so popular that the stand had sold out by midday.
Event organiser Sue Howarth said the celebration was part of the 50th anniversary of the North Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designation, and would be followed up by a herring festival on November 15.
She welcomed a spell of bright weather, saying: “Everyone seems to be welcoming an opportunity to get outdoors for the first time in weeks and enjoy a festival in beautiful surroundings.
“It’s great to see so many people sitting on the quay, listening to music and tucking into crab, lobsters and seafood.”
She said the National Lobster Hatchery, based at Padstow, Cornwall, had seen a lot of interest on its stall, which explained how fishermen brought pregnant lobsters to them to allow their young to develop to a size where they could be re-released, without interference from predators.
The festival is designed to support fishermen who use sustainable methods to catch the delicacies.
Think Local for health benefits: Blue Gym
02-09-2009
By Jane Labous
BEING in or near the sea is officially good for you, doctors have said.
Three medics from the Westcountry are so convinced of the health benefits of the sea that they have launched a website to encourage the British public to make better use of their beaches and rivers.
They have dubbed the sea a ‘natural health service’ and claim doing activities in or near the water can help reduce stress, obesity and depression, as well as being a valuable factor in preventing illness.
Professor Mike Depledge, director of environment and human health at Peninsula Medical School, Dr William Bird, GP at Peninsula Medical School and strategic health adviser to Natural England, and consultant surgeon Paul Peyser have teamed up with Surfers Against Sewage founder Chris Hines to launch www.bluegym.co.uk.
The Blue Gym website, launched in Porthtowan, Cornwall, encourages people to get involved in beach activities such as surfing, bodyboarding and swimming, as well as simply playing in the sea. It also advocates sand castle building, beach cricket, frisbees, football, boules, walking and running.
The site includes a social networking group allowing users to find people with similar interests and arrange outdoor activities, as well as information on local events and sports activities, photographs and blogs.
The doctors say there has been international interest in the Blue Gym project from countries such as Australia, Canada, America and Pakistan, as well as from charities dealing with mental health, elderly people, and drug use.
Mr Peyser said: “It’s not just about being in the water it’s about being by the water and it’s not just about being young and fit – it’s for everyone.
“People exercise a lot less than they use to, and I think, certainly in Cornwall, that they don’t use the access they have to the coastline. Many regard things like surfing as a bit elitist and we want to say, you don’t have to be an amazing surfer to enjoy yourself.
“It’s sustainable and it’s free, you don’t need to buy a ticket before going in the sea. A lot of people down here live three miles from the beach and don’t go, we want them to rediscover the natural environment around them. This site is about connecting people, so they can come on and find out how to learn to swim, row, surf, all those things.”
According to government figures, one in four young people under 16 will be obese by 2050. Statistics also show employers lose 3.75 billion days through lost work caused by stress.
Dr Bird said he believed using the natural environment as a treatment room could help change these statistics. “It’s absolutely vital that to get healthy people we need to have a healthy environment,” he said. “The natural environment is a treatment room where I can refer patients. The more stress reduction people have, the more activity they take, the healthier they’re going to be.”
Dr Bird said: “If people go to a gym on their own, indoors, they tend to drop out within a few weeks. We know that being in a natural environment and being with people are two ways to sus tain activity – it’s social, environment and variety-based.
“The Blue Gym is a movement to get people more active. Just two per cent of money in health is spent on prevention and 98 per cent on treatment, yet in western societies we are losing the battle – we’re getting more obese, more depressed and less active.
“So the idea is to stimulate a cultural change in getting people active not telling them to, but getting them to visit the water and then they’ll want to be involved.”
The Blue Gym is funded by the Environment Agency and Natural England, but the founders have applied for money from the Government’s Get Active Get Healthy initiative, and are hoping for funding from the EU to expand the project.
They are keen to explore the role of the Blue Gym in improving pre-operative fitness before major surgery and are developing a research project with the Peninsula Medical School.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
People power saves local library
02-09-2009
A WESTCOUNTRY library saved by people power now has a “bright future”, the council running it has said.
The library in Appledore, North Devon, was earmarked for closure by the council as few people were using it.
But the Friends of Appledore Library (FOAL) campaigned to keep it open, agreeing to take on electricity, rates and maintenance costs.
But local people decided to take action to support the service, actions applauded by the WMN Think Local campaign sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Now Devon County Council says additional services, such as support for children and adult education, could become available from Appledore library if new recommendations are adopted.
It says that FOAL no longer needs to contribute £4,500 running costs as it should be covered by the £30,000 from the council.
The council has also suggested relocating the library to more accessible and suitable premises in the town, to provide a community hub that would include library, information and learning services.
It also wants to see whether its library services in Appledore could operate in partnership with Bideford’s Children’s Centre and adult learning.
County councillor Stuart Barker, who is responsible for the county’s libraries, said: “I am not happy with the financial arrangements for Appledore.
“Nowhere else in Devon does the local community contribute to library costs in this way, and I don’t think they should have to.
“Where possible, we would like our libraries to broaden their appeal to become centres that provide a range of community services.
“We are already discussing the possibility of providing additional services from the library.”
The council wants Devon to have 21st century libraries, but it says access to Appledore’s current library is poor, and people with limited physical mobility are unable to access the building.
“We want to start looking for more suitable premises in Appledore,” said Coun Barker.
“We will be working with the district council and other local partners, to decide how much of our work could be delivered jointly within the town.
“We would like FOAL to work with us to help develop the service, and I hope that their excellent fundraising experience and knowledge of the community can be focused on promoting the library within Appledore.”
Rural business campaign for fair broadband prices
02-09-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
PEOPLE who live in the countryside could face paying more for the same Internet access as those in towns and cities, the Government has admitted.
Plans to ensure “universal” broadband provision applies only to the speed and not the price – leaving the way open for commercial firms to target city-dwellers with better deals. Rural campaigners say the move amounts to a “broadband tax” on people in the countryside.
Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw announced in June that money left over from the switchover to digital TV would be used to ensure every home and business could access Internet with a speed of at least two megabits per second (2Mbps) by 2012 – a relatively slow broadband.
But it has now emerged that the “universal obligation” of two megabits per second by 2012 will only apply to ensuring everyone has the same Internet speed and those in more remote areas could be charged more.
The Government is hoping that competition between broadband providers will help drive down costs for rural communities.
But commentators have warned that installing high-speed Internet in the countryside may not be commercially viable.
More than 10 per cent of households cannot access 2Mbps broadband, often because they are too far from the local telephone exchange. In rural areas the figure rises to 42 per cent.
Stephen Timms, the new minister heading the Government’s Digital Britain strategy, has insisted some public money will be available to help build the necessary infrastructure to provide the universal service.
Last night a Government spokesman admitted it was “possible” that rural communities would have to pick up the bill for additional costs.
“We would be looking for network service providers to offer a range of choice which should keep prices down,” he said.
The Country Land and Business Association has warned that the emergence of “rural not-spots” – areas without good Internet access – threatens to “suffocate” businesses in the countryside. Local people also risk being cut off from crucial services.
“What we’re campaigning for is that everybody should have inexpensive high-speed broadband in the countryside and the Government should put in place policies that make that possible,” a CLA spokesman said.
“We think everybody should pay the same. There shouldn’t be a broadband tax on people in the countryside because they don’t have access that people in the cities do.”
The Commission for Rural Communities, (CRC), has also warned vast swathes of the Westcountry could still be left without high-speed broadband.
Audrey Roy, head of rural services at the commission, said: “We recognise that some services can cost more to deliver in rural areas. Broadband provision is such a critical catalyst for access to so many other services, and because digital technology is based on consistent infrastructure across all providers, we think it is unreasonable to apply higher charges in rural areas.”
The CRC is calling for a firm commitment from the Government for 100 per cent roll-out of super-fast connections. But feels rural areas may be willing to wait a little longer for it to arrive.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
More space to grow your own
02-09-2009
By Nick Pryke
WITH its vast array of rolling fields crammed with mouth-watering crops, the Westcountry has always been proud of its green-fingered heritage.
Yet with increasing numbers wanting to feel the sense of achievement in “growing your own”, finding viable land that can be converted into allotments for private use has been a problem.
For that reason the National Trust began its National Allotments Week and is on target to surpass the pledge it made in February – to create 1,000 new allotment plots on its land by 2012 to provide local communities with space to grow their own fruit and veg.
Each is being created, where possible, with the help of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s new Landshare website – an online “matchmaking” database that connects keen growers with those who have available land.
Rob Love, from Landshare, said: “We are thrilled with the response we have had to Landshare and excited about the addition of 1,000 National Trust plots to the campaign.
“We have now included a map on the website which shows the inspirational number of matches across the country today. Hugh’s next autumn series for Channel 4 continues to chart the success and encourages more to join.”
All over the country growers are avidly turning soil and planting seeds, but some of the project’s biggest successes have been in Devon and Cornwall.
In 2008, a local community group teamed up with National Trust staff at Wembury in South Devon, to set aside around two hectares for 40 allotment plots. Some will eventually be split to give as many people as possible the chance to grow their own vegetables.
Staff also plan to work with allotment holders to promote water conservation, composting and the advantages of following organic principles.
Jenny Sansom, the National Trust’s local food champion, said: “Allotments bring whole communities together to share skills and, knowledge, and enjoy gardening. Some people are learning to grow for the first time, others are sharing their expertise, and everyone is linked by a common desire to grow their own food and the satisfaction of eating the rewards of their labour.”
This is certainly true in Porthcurno, West Cornwall. Two years ago, National Trust warden Pip Morse set up a Guardianship project with the local school in St Buryan to help the children learn how to grow vegetables.
The project has become such a success that demand now outstrips supply. Nineteen plots have been created – 14 this year alone – with a further seven in the process of being made available.
Mr Morse said: “Some people are old enough to remember the land being used during the war, but for others it’s been a real revelation. Knowledge is shared, but each allotment is different – for example, one lady here is a herbalist and plans to grow a wide range of different herbs on her plot.”
With other sites such as Cotehele in Cornwall and Bovey Tracey in Devon proving how allotments are working in favour of local communities, the National Trust will be providing additional funding this autumn to help boost the number of allotment sites available on its land.
Ms Sansom said: “We have had a tremendous response from people to this initiative. We now have 35 allotment sites up and running, with more than 350 plots. Another 15 sites will be ready by next spring.”
For more information visit www.landshare.net. E-mail us at thinklocal@westernmorningnews.co.uk to let us know what you are doing to Think Local.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: 'Everyone knows each other now’
02-09-2009
By Louise Vennells
A GROUP of villagers have turned around the fortunes of losing their post office to create a thriving community shop which helps bring people together.
The store at Plymtree, near Cullompton in Mid-Devon, is now run by volunteers, and offers a wide range of quality local foods at affordable prices.
As well as pasties, fresh bread, local fruit and veg, wines and organic goods, residents can also take advantage of the postal service, which is run on an outreach basis and by volunteers.
Shop manager James Carpenter said the shop was thriving, and had well exceeded expectations for the first quarter.
But he said: “To me, the most successful thing about the shop is in bringing the community together. Everyone pitched in to make it happen, and they continue to offer their time and services to make it work.
“It’s a real mix – young and old, people who have lived in the village for generations and those who moved in more recently. Everyone knows each other now.”
The scheme echoes the ethos of the Western Morning News’ Think Local campaign, which encourages communities to unite to weather the economic storm, and urges readers to take advantage of the goods and services on their doorstep.
In Plymtree, residents were mobilised when the post office was included on a list of those to be axed under swingeing cuts last year.
The managers told the community they could no longer run the village shop without the business.
But residents were determined to retain a facility, and within just seven months they were up and running.
A key aspect was getting a premises, and landlord John Hussey agreed to rent out a unit at a rate below market value. Mr Hussey, who now helps run the post office, also pitched in with converting it to suitable use.
The united effort meant the shop opened in May – just six months after villagers first met to discuss the idea. They formed a committee and raised funds privately. They collected thousands, and their contribution was match-funded by both the Cooperative Bank and the Government’s Versa fund.
In the meantime, everyone pitched in, with the local plumber and electrician among those to contribute their skills, and accountants, bankers and lawyers all helping to form how to run the business – as well as putting paintbrushes to good use.
“Our counter was built by an engineer and a brain surgeon,” said Mr Carpenter, himself a jewellery designer and the shop’s only paid member, who regularly exceeds his 20 hours per week. “The community is proud of what we’ve created.”
Think Local: Pilot scheme helps unemployed youngsters
01-09-2009
Ryan Hooper
A PILOT scheme launched in the Westcountry to get unemployed teenagers into full-time employment could be rolled out across England.
The Lime training company, based in Truro, has run a series of LaunchPad Projects across Devon and Cornwall, designed to offer 13-week full-time training courses for 16 to 18-year-olds.
The project is an excellent way of supporting young people, an ethos echoed in the Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
The most recent project, in Truro, was launched last week, and will see 21 youngsters from the area take part in a three-week in-house training scheme followed by a 10-week placement in their preferred trade.
Dozens of youngsters from Devon enrolled on another LaunchPad Project in Plymouth last month, with youngsters gaining places working in trades including baking, hairdressing, retail and administration, as well as a NVQ Level 2 qualification.
Laura Indans, Lime’s account director, said it was hoped the project would help get young people into work locally.
She said: “The idea is not for employers to take on these youngsters and have them making tea and coffee or stuffing envelopes.
“It is about getting good experience, learning skills and hopefully getting a job at the end of it.
“Obviously, given the current climate, it is not always possible to guarantee a job with the trader, but we hope that many will be able to offer positions once their 10-week training is over.
“This has proved successful in the Westcountry so far, so the scheme could go national in six months.”
The LaunchPad project is being run at the Foyer youth learning and accommodation centre in Truro, where 21 teenagers from across Cornwall are being paid £95 a week to enrol on a course funded by the Learning and Skills Council.
Some of them will go on to do apprenticeships in mechanics, bricklaying, administration and IT.
Future projects will be launched in Penzance in October, as well as in Plymouth and Truro, depending on demand.
It was announced by the Government yesterday (TUES)that the number of vocational diploma courses available to 14- to 19-year-olds in England would be doubled from five to 10, in a bid to help tackle the 935,000 people not in employment, education or training in the country.
Anyone looking for more information or wanting to go on Lime’s 16-18-year-old programme can contact the business team on 0844 357 4991.
Think Local: Mucking in for a clean start
24-08-2009
By Louise Vennells
A VILLAGE hall in the pipeline for 10 years has finally opened its doors after a community raised nearly £700,000 to get it off the ground.
Residents of Kennford, near Exeter, battled against the odds to secure the funding to create the new-build, as well as to relocate the pre-school to brand new premises. They had to overcome a number of morale-sapping obstacles, particularly when funding was twice denied at the 11th hour – first by the Department for the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra), and then by the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA).
But, explained Kennford shopkeeper Howard Milton, they persevered – and the village is now proud of its achievements.
It echoes the ethos of the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, which encourages communities to pull together, and to support businesses and schemes on their doorstep.
Think Local is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Mr Milton said the campaign was “fantastic”, adding: “Our project has shown that it’s all about thinking local – that’s the way to make the biggest difference.”
In 1999, the committee used a £5,000 Awards for All grant which established that it was not feasible to upgrade the old public building, built in 1878. Land was found in the form of an old depot owned by Teignbridge District Council, which the authority agreed to sell. But securing the funding was no easy ride. Lottery financiers had other priorities, so the committee teamed up with the Community Council for Devon (CCD), which was looking for a new-build project to use as its headquarters.
The partnership worked with Defra for two years, on the understanding that funding would materialise, as the project ticked boxes on innovation, creating income, and rural sustainability.
But Mr Milton said: “When we came to put in our application, they turned around and said, ‘Sorry – we have no money left’. We’d put hundreds of man hours into it. It was a real blow, but we picked ourselves up.”
The next avenue was the RDA’s Rural Renaissance Fund, which looked set to provide a grant of £257,000. The group was told the allocation only needed to be ratified, but in summer 2007, it became clear that it would not be.
“Shabby isn’t the word for our treatment,” said Mr Milton. “We had a letter of confirmation, and then we were just told ‘no’, with no real explanation. It was a real killer.”
A spokesman for the RDA accepted that hopes had been raised, but said: “Unfortunately the need to manage a finite budget against a large number of projects requesting Devon Renaissance/RDA support meant it was not possible to fund this project.”
He said he was “delighted” it was now open.
Having lost the CCD project but retained the organisation’s support, the committee changed tact. It used a £175,000 fund raised from Devon County Council, Teignbridge District Council, Kenn Parish Council, the parish hall committee and Ugbrook Environmental to erect a new building for the pre-school, which opened in June 2008. It then appointed a firm of architects to transform the old public building to residential use, and sold off the apartments at the height of the housing boom, raising £357,000.
The community continued to muck in, whether form-filling for grants, clearing ground or painting buildings. Finally, they opened the doors to their new building this summer. It will be used for conferences, sports, and a wide range of community activities.
“What we have achieved in 10 years is remarkable, just by rolling our sleeves up and getting stuck in,” said Mr Milton.
To book the centre, visit www.kenncentre.co.uk. Email us how you, like the people of Kennford, are thinking local.
Trust aims to create 1,000 allotment plots
23-08-2009
By Nick Pryke
WITH its vast array of rolling fields crammed with mouth-watering crops, the Westcountry has always been proud of its green-fingered heritage.
Yet with increasing numbers wanting to feel the sense of achievement in “growing your own”, finding viable land that can be converted into allotments for private use has been a problem.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign, promotes people using local produce and making use of local facilities and is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
The National Allotments Week is always hugely popular and the Trust is on target to surpass the pledge it made in February – to create 1,000 new allotment plots on its land by 2012 to provide local communities with space to grow their own fruit and veg.
Each is being created, where possible, with the help of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s new Landshare website – an online “matchmaking” database that connects keen growers with those who have available land.
Rob Love, from Landshare, said: “We are thrilled with the response we have had to Landshare and excited about the addition of 1,000 National Trust plots to the campaign.
“We have now included a map on the website which shows the inspirational number of matches across the country today. Hugh’s next autumn series for Channel 4 continues to chart the success and encourages more to join.”
All over the country growers are avidly turning soil and planting seeds, but some of the project’s biggest successes have been in Devon and Cornwall.
In 2008, a local community group teamed up with National Trust staff at Wembury in South Devon, to set aside around two hectares for 40 allotment plots. Some will eventually be split to give as many people as possible the chance to grow their own vegetables.
Staff also plan to work with allotment holders to promote water conservation, composting and the advantages of following organic principles.
Jenny Sansom, the National Trust’s local food champion, said: “Allotments bring whole communities together to share skills and, knowledge, and enjoy gardening. Some people are learning to grow for the first time, others are sharing their expertise, and everyone is linked by a common desire to grow their own food and the satisfaction of eating the rewards of their labour.”
This is certainly true in Porthcurno, West Cornwall. Two years ago, National Trust warden Pip Morse set up a Guardianship project with the local school in St Buryan to help the children learn how to grow vegetables.
The project has become such a success that demand now outstrips supply. Nineteen plots have been created – 14 this year alone – with a further seven in the process of being made available.
Mr Morse said: “Some people are old enough to remember the land being used during the war, but for others it’s been a real revelation. Knowledge is shared, but each allotment is different – for example, one lady here is a herbalist and plans to grow a wide range of different herbs on her plot.”
With other sites such as Cotehele in Cornwall and Bovey Tracey in Devon proving how allotments are working in favour of local communities, the National Trust will be providing additional funding this autumn to help boost the number of allotment sites available on its land.
Ms Sansom said: “We have had a tremendous response from people to this initiative. We now have 35 allotment sites up and running, with more than 350 plots. Another 15 sites will be ready by next spring.”
For more information visit www.landshare.net. E-mail us at thinklocal@westernmorningnews.co.uk to let us know what you are doing to Think Local.
Farming industry has a strong future, says Benn
23-08-2009
By Petra Mann
WESTCOUNTRY farmers could play a major role in future global food production if the era of “cheap food” ends, according to Cabinet minister Hilary Benn.
The Secretary of State for the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) was speaking during a whistlestop tour of Cornwall.
Defra said that rising population, climate change and health concerns all meant consumers would have to accept less choice and variety in future.
Mr Benn, who was visiting Tregothnan estate’s tea plantation, near Truro, said: “Our strategy will be asking our farmers to produce more in Great Britain and to be more innovative.
“We will be encouraging more people to get involved in the farming industry.
“Britain’s agricultural industry has a strong future.
“The world’s population will increase from two to three billion over the next 50 years.
“We are going to have to increase our agricultural production to feed all those people.”
Mr Benn said that buying local produce would boost the farming industry. This runs in line with The Western Morning News Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Mr Benn added: “Everyone has a part to play.”
During his tour, Mr Benn also visited Newlyn to see the fish market and the morning catch.
He met the Marine and Fisheries Agency inspectors and talked to fishermen involved in a project to collect litter from the sea to stop damage to the marine environment.
The European Union’s Common Fisheries Policy dictates fishing quotas and has proved deeply unpopular with Cornwall’s fishermen.
The Conservatives have said they would pull out of the policy.
When asked if the Government would do the same, Mr Benn replied that the Common Fisheries Policy was currently under review, adding: “I think it’s important to protect our fish stocks.”
Andrew George, the Lib-Dem MP for West Cornwall, said: “I welcome the Secretary of State’s visit.
“The fishing industry in Newlyn deserves a boost.
“Momentous decisions still have to be taken about the future of the port and I am grateful to the Secretary of State for the attention he has given to our local industry.”
Mr Benn also visited Trengwainton Gardens, a National Trust site near Penzance, where he saw work under way to eradicate and control the spread of Phytophthora ramorum, which is more commonly known as sudden oak death.
He said: “Phytophthora ramorum has the potential to damage our much-loved plants and trees.
“It’s vital that we take this threat seriously and that’s why Defra announced a programme of £25 million funding earlier this year.”
Mr Benn added: “It’s been useful to see what the team at Trengwainton is doing to combat this disease and keep protecting the trees for everyone to enjoy.”
He also stopped off at Varfell Farm in Penzance, where he saw the daffodil bulb operation.
Mr Benn finished off his tour of Cornwall with a visit to the Eden Project near St Austell, where he saw the Defra environmental volunteering campaign van for Muck In4Life.
The van is travelling around the region in a bid to get families involved in conservation work.
Mr Benn’s tour continued in Devon where he visited Brimpts Farm, a hill farm on Dartmoor, to see beef cattle and diversification moves.
The visit ended with a trip to Haldon Forest Park, near Exeter, to see the work of the Forestry Commission.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Police chief wants cash kept locally
23-08-2009
By Andy Greenwood and Matt Chorley
DEVON and Cornwall Police could be forced to axe 300 officers if the Government’s multi-billion-pound banking bailout results in public spending being slashed.
The force fears that policing would be hit hardest if ministers decide to protect spending on health and education while having to pay for loans used to support the ailing banking industry.
Those concerns have resulted in an unprecedented letter from Chief Constable Stephen Otter and Mike Bull, chairman of the Devon and Cornwall Police Authority, to the region’s MPs to rally support and lobbying power. Funding has been guaranteed until 2010/11, but not beyond.
In a stark nine-point briefing note, which has been seen by the Western Morning News, they warned that a freeze in police grant in 2011/12 coupled with a 3 per cent increase in council tax levy would require savings of £11 million.
“In order to get a feel for the potential scale of the problem, saving say £10 million from police officer pay would be equivalent to losing some 300 police officers,” they wrote.
The force, which currently boasts 3,500 officers, has undergone major change in recent years. Some 250 civilian back-office posts have been lost – around 10 per cent – allowing a further 200 officers to be transferred to the frontline. While making multi-million-pound savings year-on-year, the restructuring has delivered results, with overall crime falling and public confidence in the police rising. This year’s police grant was £186 million.
“We have consistently delivered above-target savings and have shifted considerable resources from back-office functions to the front line,” Mr Otter and Mr Bull told MPs. “In spite of this record, we are fearful that possible future restrictions on public spending could mean it is impossible to sustain officer numbers and could mean a major and continued setback for front-line policing.” A senior team has already been appointed by the force to plan for a variety of budget scenarios in 2011/12. They have been briefed to “think the unthinkable”.
Any job losses among officers could not be delivered by “natural wastage” and freezing recruitment. Senior police sources told the WMN that ministers and Whitehall officials were currently unwilling to discuss future budgets, with no-one breaking ranks. It is unclear whether a department-by-department, comprehensive spending review will be held before the next general election, likely to be May 2010.
“There has been much debate on the problems of public sector spending and the need to constrain spending to bring debt levels down after the recession,” the briefing went on. “No doubt there will be much more over the coming months. However, many commentators agree that the financial and economic crisis will lead to major constraints on public spending over the next two to five years.
“So far, different speakers have talked of protecting health or, perhaps, education. There is a real danger that, in these debates, policing could be treated merely as part of ‘other public spending’ – a sector that is likely to face the most severe constraints, especially if it also has to cover the real and growing cost of servicing public sector debt.
“The purpose of this note is to remind members that there are real and pressing demands for policing, demands which cannot be met if resources for policing are frozen or reduced. We are dependent on council tax and, crucially, police grant.
“We believe our strategy here in Devon and Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly to drive up the number of police officers and to enhance front-line policing is what local communities want and is entirely consistent with Government policy. Enhanced policing has been and is a success.
“It would be most unfortunate if this success was to be undermined by spending constraints in a public spending round dominated by the big spenders of health, education and debt.”
The approach met a mixed response from MPs. Gary Streeter, Tory MP for South West Devon, said the police should resist “whingeing” and instead concentrate on modernising the way they work.
“Every department is going to have to tighten its belt in the next few years – that’s the reality,” he said. “I think there are lots of ways the police – who I have huge respect for – could look to do things better, particularly in the management.
“They could learn colossal things from the private sector. They are still stuck in the dark ages in terms of technology.”
He added: “It is no good just whingeing because whingeing will get you nowhere. There will be no special pleading if there is a Conservative government.”
Senior police sources have suggested they fear the commitment by both Labour and the Conservatives to protect health spending was unfair. One insider said: “It will leave the health service just as unfit as it is now.”
Geoffrey Cox, Tory MP for Torridge and West Devon, said: “If the chief constable is very concerned that the financial allocation to them is going to be insufficient to keep their front-line officers at full strength, that would be a very, very retrograde and disappointing outcome if that is true.”
A Home Office spokesman said the police funding formula was “designed to make sure that all forces, regardless of whether they are rural or urban, are adequately resourced”. He said there had been a 60 per cent increase in funding for police since 1997 and added that police numbers were at an all-time high.
“In addition, the Rural Police Fund provides extra funding to help rural forces meet their unique policing priorities, increasing both the visibility of police officers in rural communities and the public’s access to them.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Organic food producers urged to unite at festival
21-08-2009
By Louise Vennells
ORGANISERS of the first organic food festival to be held in a picturesque Westcountry woodland are urging more producers to come forward to unite in tough times.
The first Devon Organic Festival, to be held in Haldon Woods, near Exeter, on September 20, will aim to create a festival atmosphere fuelled by lashings of delicious food and drink.
It comes as the build-up to North Devon’s second Foodfest, to be held in Barnstaple in October, begins, and producers are invited to take part.
Both events are in line with the Western Morning News’ Think Local campaign, which is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Although many of the places are full, the event is still seeking a handful of exhibitors to take part.
Rebecca Welstead, of Luscombe Organics, based in South Devon, will be among the exhibitors. She said organic products had received bad press in the depths of the credit crunch, as consumers are increasingly tightening their belts. But she said Luscombe was holding up well, and said the key was to ensure that the product was of the best possible quality.
She said the event would help to raise the profile of companies in the Westcountry and beyond, and said: “As organic producers, we should all join forces. It’s a really tricky time for organics, and there has been a bit of a backlash, but we need to get over that and show people that organic isn’t as expensive as some sections of the media have made out.”
Co-organiser Helen Lynch, of organic tea company Teas Me, at Ashton, in South Devon, said the day hoped to offer something for everyone. “It’s shaping up really well,” she said. “It’s going to be a really good event.”
As well as the stalls and tastings, it will feature live music, fungi forays and grow-you-own workshops for kids, as well as craft activities. it will also feature expert talks on a more sustainable way of life. Rod Hall from Rod and Bens, based at Kenn, near Exeter, urged other producers to get involved. He said: “Interested producers should take the opportunity to book now. The festival is not just about food and drink and we welcome bookings from other producers – as long as they are organic.”
To sign up, call Helen Lynch on 01647 252520.
In North Devon, FoodFest is due to take place in Barnstaple’s historic pannier market on October 18.
Helen Symons, organiser and business engagement manager for North Devon+, said the festival hoped to build on last year’s success, when 4,000 visitors attended.
She said: “The event featured the very best of what our local producers have to offer and we are planning to extend the range of food and drink for our customers this year.”
There will be a nominal charge of £25 to stallholders to cover administration and marketing costs and producers can register their interest by calling Ms Symons on 0845 2412043.
Think Local: Get protected status says minister
21-08-2009
By David Wells
MORE food producers in Devon and Cornwall should apply for protected status for their products and join iconic British foods like Cornish clotted cream and Westcountry farmhouse Cheddar, the Government has urged.
A range of foods including the clotted cream for which Cornwall is renowned the world over and Stilton cheese, and most recently Melton Mowbray pies, have been awarded protection by the EU.
And Cornish pasties could soon make the list of foods produced by companies in a specific local area using particular methods or recipes which can use their own traditional name, guaranteeing the product is authentic and preventing imitation throughout Europe.
But while France and Italy boast more than 300 protected foods under the EU scheme, the UK has just 38, with a further 15 applications submitted.
Farming minister Jim Fitzpatrick said: “Our food is just as good, if not better, than any other country’s. I want to see the UK’s regional foods on the world map.
“The EU protected food name scheme means farmers, producers and shoppers all know that the special foods we’re buying are authentic. And it protects all these small businesses that keep our rural areas alive.”
The farming minister made the call at a 10 Downing Street event to celebrate regional foods with the status.
Alan Adler, of the Cornish Pasty Association, which is applying for protected food name status, said: “It is a way to protect the heritage of the Cornish pasty and protect Cornish industry.”
He said the association had 50 members, employing 1,800 people directly and 13,000 in linked industries such as producing the raw materials for the pasties.
“I think it will give consumers confidence that a Cornish pasty is just that – a genuine Cornish pasty.”
Gill Payne, chief executive of the Commission for Rural Communities, said: “Local foods are an important part of what the countryside has to offer and are a draw for people who visit or take holidays there, and many rural areas are reporting a welcome upturn in rural tourism which is helping boost local economies.
“The protected food name scheme will ensure consumers can have confidence in the origin of some of our most well-known and cherished foods.”
Nigel White, of the Stilton Cheese Makers Association, said the cheese was one of the first UK foods to receive the award, in 1996. The scheme stopped products being downgraded by cheap imitations and protected rural economies.
“It aims to protect traditional producers of special foods and those who supply the raw materials for them and it guarantees the consumers know where it’s been made and where the raw materials have come from,” he said.
Melton Mowbray pork pies received their protected food name status at the beginning of July – almost 12 years after producers started working towards it.
Stephen Hallam, managing director of Melton Mowbray pie-makers Dickinson and Morris, said food production had changed from local and regional to national and international markets.
“When you have what is a particular style of pie, if it’s not protected, it can be abused, it can be changed to suit the purpose of the seller, and that’s what we found was happening,” he said. Previously, there had been nothing to stop anyone in the world making any kind of pie and calling it a Melton Mowbray pie.
The scheme allowed consumers to know what they were buying. “When they go to buy a pork pie, they put their hand out for the Melton Mowbray because they think it’s the best”.
He said consumers increasingly wanted to know the provenance of their food and that it was what it said it was on the label, and he urged producers who made traditional, local foods “worthy of the status” to apply for it.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Hands off our money Boris!
21-08-2009
Matt Chorley London Editor
LONDON Mayor Boris Johnson has launched an audacious raid on Westcountry housing budgets, claiming the capital is a special case and deserves more money.
Ministers are resisting the plea for more cash to build affordable homes, insisting London has no automatic right to the “lion’s share” of funding.
There are more than 68,000 people on the housing waiting list in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset alone, with thousands more across the wider South West region.
But Mr Johnson has claimed the Government should overlook the housing need in the region and other parts of England in favour of supporting London.
The top Conservative is demanding Labour housing minister John Healey gives him an even bigger share of the money, claiming the current deal has “not done justice” to the capital.
The Mayor of London suggests he is being short-changed despite getting an extra £207 million from the Government’s National Affordable Housing Programme to build more cheap homes to rent or buy. In comparison, the entire South West region gets just £61 million.
It means the capital is already receiving the equivalent of around £590 for every person on the housing waiting list compared to less than £380 in the South West.
Mr Healey has hit back, vowing to protect housing grants in the South West and elsewhere and dismissing claims that London is bearing the brunt of the housing crisis. Mr Johnson hit out after ministers began to hand out Gordon Brown’s £1.5 billion affordable housing package unveiled last month.
London has received a third less than it would have if the Government had followed an agreed funding formula, claims Mr Johnson.
In a letter to Mr Healey, he says: “We are disappointed about how this additional funding is being apportioned between the regions and believe that your approach fails to fully recognise London’s housing needs.”
He claims London is facing “exceptional pressures” on new homes because of a 350,000 waiting list for social housing and record numbers of people in temporary accommodation.
He also bemoans the fact the capital has received only £207 million extra from the national affordable housing programme. While London’s housing needs have increased recently, “it is the opposite in other regions”, he claims.
“We would also argue that in apportioning resources, you should consider not only the relative needs among regions, but also the wider cost to the public purse,” he goes on. “Londoners who are unable to access affordable housing provision are forced to live in higher cost private sector accommodation.”
Despite Mr Johnson’s claims, housing need in the Westcountry has worsened dramatically in recent years. The number of people on waiting lists has doubled since Labour came to power in 1997.
Housing became a major Government priority when Mr Brown succeeded Tony Blair as Prime Minister, but efforts to address the problem have been hampered by the economic downturn which has seen building work stall. Now Mr Healey, who was promoted to housing minister attending Cabinet in last month’s reshuffle, has hit back at the London Mayor’s attempt to secure more funding.
The minister last night vowed to protect allocations in other parts of the country.
“Other regions have unmet need for affordable housing too,” he said.
Mr Healey added: “The Mayor of London might argue the real housing need in Britain is in London, and he’s wrong. There’s serious housing need across the country.
“You’d hardly find a local area anywhere in the country where there’s not a need for new homes, particularly homes that people can afford to rent or buy.
“I’ve made clear to the Mayor that London has to prove itself because I will be looking for those areas which will build the homes rapidly.
“There’s no automatic claim as London might like to think it has to the lion’s share of the funding.”
This week, Mr Healey announced plans to loan up to £12 million to developers in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset to kick-start work which has stalled on six building sites in the region.
It is hoped the plan will see construction begin within weeks on up to 450 new affordable homes.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Call to help shape future of local beauty spots
20-08-2009
RESIDENTS living in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Cornwall are being asked to help shape the future of local beauty spots.
A new five-year management plan will be produced next year.
On behalf of the Cornwall AONB Partnership, Cornwall Rural Community Council will be asking people for their views during the coming summer and early autumn so that the new plan reflects real community attitudes to, and concerns about, the landscape. Cornwall Rural Community Council and the Cornwall AONB Unit will be carrying out this consultation across the county during the summer.
Questionnaires are also available from www.cornwall-aonb.gov.uk
Peter Maxted, a spokesman for Cornwall AONB, said: “We want to know what is important to people about our precious landscape and what they think are the challenges we face in the future.
“It is vital that as much local information as possible is obtained to make the new plan the best possible document with maximum impact on policy makers and planners.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Archbishop leads 5,000 in open-air worship
11-08-2009
By Louise Vennells
THE Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Dr Rowan Williams, declared the Christian faith “alive and well” in the Westcountry, after an open air service attracted thousands of worshipers.
Dr Williams said he was “encouraged” by the throngs of people of all ages who turned out to a range of activities at Exeter Cathedral over the weekend, in a grand finale to a series of events to mark the 1,100th anniversary of the Diocese of Exeter.
The Archbishop preached to a congregation of almost 5,000 on Saturday morning, as the sun beamed down. Special events were organised for children and young people, as well as a variety of seminars. In the evening, a Songs of Praise event was held on Cathedral Green.
The morning’s service was a fine balance of traditional and modern, with a resounding message of unity. Repeatedly, other faiths and nationalities were welcomed and embraced, such as in a gospel acclamation which included a chorus in a Zimbabwean language. The message of “love thy neighbour” resonated throughout the proceedings, both in domestic and international terms.
Three impressive giant puppets of historic figures relating to the cathedral played out a series of dramas, backed by the cathedral choir, relaying the messages of the church. Stalls celebrated agriculture and local produce, as well as activities helping those in need.
Speaking after the proceedings, Dr Williams told the Western Morning News: “It has been joyous, exciting and very encouraging.”
Around 1,000 young people turned out on Friday night, to hear Christian bands playing in the cathedral, and to put their questions to the Archbishop. “We had a very good discussion, and coupled the huge crowds at the service, we are really seeing that the Christian faith is alive and well in Devon,” he said.
He said the event was proof that the church was becoming more accessible. “We are finding what makes sense to people. This morning’s service was quite traditional in some ways. It was a combination of old and new.”
In his sermon, the Archbishop talked of “selfless sacrifice” as the key to glory. Speaking afterwards, he encouraged Christians to use their faith as a “campaign for better human beings”. He said: “We need to get back to a sense of humanity that’s not all about profit and competition. There are an awful lot of people in our society who seem to think those are the main things in life.”
The Bishop of Exeter, the Rt Rev Michael Langrish, said all his high expectations of the event had been exceeded. “Everything about it has been wonderful.” He said Devon was one of the few counties to see a slow growth in its congregations over the past four years. “We want to see a far greater growth, but over the past three months, as I have travelled around the diocese as part of the celebrations, I have found Christians in very good heart.
“Those who are writing the obituary of the Church are doing so prematurely.”
Canon Missioner Mark Rylands is part of the team who have worked on organising the event for a year-and-a-half. He said it was the biggest Christian gathering in the diocese for at least two decades.
Phyllis Voisey, 96, from Buckfastleigh, embraced the modern elements of the service. She said: “We’re used to that in our church. It’s important to stay with the times.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Government boost for recession-busting projects
11-08-2009
Graeme Demianyk
GOVERNMENT officials are intervening to keep the Westcountry’s two biggest housing developments moving, as part of a campaign to kickstart the economy.
A recession-busting task force made up of government agencies and industry bosses, is orchestrating plans to bring forward millions of pounds of public money to sustain jobs during the downturn. Since January, it has “unlocked” 10 developments where the brakes had been slammed on because of the parlous state of the housing market and the credit crunch.
The Housing and Communities Agency (HCA), which is leading the task force’s efforts to revitalise regeneration projects, is eyeing a further 25 schemes that are at risk or have stalled as a result of the region’s biggest construction slump in more than a decade.
They include the Sherford plan for 5,500 homes in the South Hams, and the 7,500-home Cranbrook new town on the edge of Exeter, both of which have suffered delays.
Elsewhere, the HCA has bought land in Pool, near Redruth, taken an equity share in 48 new build houses in Devonport, Plymouth, and advanced funding for site clearance in the former tin mining area of Dolcoath, in Camborne.
Business leaders praised the task force’s work, but questioned why the public sector was less willing to work closely with business during better times.
Colin Molton, South West regional director of the HCA, said it was difficult to quantify the impact of the intervention, but added the task force was conscious that many key regeneration schemes had downed tools.
He said: “Public sector intervention is crucial. Agencies and local authorities can really come into their own and keep things moving. They create jobs and they are things people want to see anyway – improvements to the public realm, schools, affordable housing.
“If they can be taken forward in the recession it creates confidence.”
The HCA is part of the South West Regional Economic Task Group, a collective of agencies, industry bodies and politicians formed to guide the region through the downturn.
Chaired by regional minister Ben Bradshaw, the task force includes representatives from the NHS, South West Regional Development Agency, Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress. Jobs, business support and regeneration are its key areas of concern.
The HCA-led housing and infrastructure action group is producing some of the most tangible results, and is confident it will be able to announce “several more” unblocked regeneration projects at its next meeting later this month.
Mr Molton said the team is working with developers behind the Cranbrook scheme to get access to the £80 million regional infrastructure fund.
With the help of public money, development consortium the Cranbrook New Community Partners, has said it hopes to start building a bypass and access roads that would pave the way for house building to start next year.
Mr Molton added that the fund might also be suitable for Sherford. Red Tree, developers of the new town on the outskirts of Plymouth, last month said it was exploring funding opportunities from the public sector.
Mr Molton, former deputy chief executive of the South West RDA, explained scores of developments across the region had come to a standstill as a result of a slump in demand for property, brought on by falling prices and rationing of mortgage finance.
Affordable housing, built as part of council consent for private developments, has also been adversely affected by shrinking demand.
Mr Molton said: “These factors conspire to mean that these sites can’t go ahead. The idea is to keep things moving so developments are ready when the upturn comes.”
Mr Bradshaw, the MP for Exeter, said: “The reason the group was set-up was to try to co-ordinate and ensure a joined-up response to the economic downturn. The experience we’ve had in the past six months begs the question, why didn’t we have that anyway in normal times? I think it has been a useful forum for all the development government agencies and business to come together to bypassing the other usual civil service routes.”
Tim Jones, chairman of the Devon and Cornwall Business Council, said: “This is absolutely brilliant. Development leads to affordable housing, which is not just social housing but helps key workers and first-time buyers, helping to keep young people in our region.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Businesses should listen to employees
17-07-2009
Jane Labous
Most employees suspect they could make better decisions than their managers sometimes – and for good reason, according to a new report.
The McLeod Review, which was commissioned by the Government last autumn, says employees should become more involved in the future of the firms they work for.
Giving more say to employees at the grass roots of a business is a key step to innovate and take advantage of new opportunities, the review concluded.
“It’s about unleashing the potential of people at work and enabling them to be the best they can be,” said David McLeod, a non-executive director of the Department for International Development and non-executive director of the Ministry of Justice who produced the report with Nita Clarke.
“We believe that if employee engagement and the principles that lie behind it were more widely understood, if good practice was more widely shared, if the potential that resides in the country’s workforce was more fully unleashed, we could see a step change in workplace performance and in employee well-being, for the considerable benefit of UK companies.
“Whether we’re in a downturn or in better economic times, engagement is key to innovation and competitiveness."
When the workforce is positively encouraged to perform to its best, the results are "transformational" according to the report.
It studied UK companies including Tesco, Google, the John Lewis Partnership, Marks and Spencer and Serco, which operates extensively in the South West, to see how putting employee input at the heart of business strategy improved performance.
“Managers [at Serco] found that the key to their success was to proactively identify, recognise and publicise great performance. Employees seeing their managers take action as a result of the survey positively improved engagement scores,” said the report.
McLeod added: “Employee engagement enables an adult, two-way relationship between leaders and managers, and employees, where challenges can be met and goals achieved, whether it be improved patient care, higher quality production, or more satisfied customers.”
Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Peter Mandelson introduces the report and says greater employee engagement can enhance innovation, performance and productivity.
Employment Relations Minister Lord Young also welcomed the review and agreed that firms must harness the full potential of employees.
“Workers know better than anyone how the firm they work for can improve, innovate and succeed. For any business, large or small, a committed and involved workforce is essential,” he said.
The MacLeod Review wants the Government to raise awareness of ways to increase employee engagement and sets out a road-map for businesses and employee groups.
McLeod believes a group bringing together representatives from business, the public sector, not-for-profit organisations and unions will boost understanding of the issue.
“The Government and its agencies should work together to ensure their support is aligned and tailored to the needs of different organizations, in different sectors of the economy, seeking to enhance levels of employee engagement,” he said.
“A range of more practical support for organisations who want to raise levels of employee engagement should be made available by March 2010. This support should be designed in consultation with businesses and other organisations to ensure it is tailored to their needs.
“Employers in all parts of the economy can make a success of employee engagement through culture change, rather than investing significant financial resources."
Lord Young added that engaging employees in business practice could boost the economy, improve opportunities at work and protect jobs.
“I want to ensure that UK firms are best placed to take advantage of the upturn. Employee engagement will be a key part of our strategy and it is an opportunity that businesses cannot afford to miss,” he said.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Campaign is right behind our farmers
15-07-2009
WESTCOUNTRY farmers are often viewed as people who have a lot to complain about – and certainly the whole farming community is perceived as being good at it. Or, at least, it used to be. High-profile campaigns by celebrity chefs on the benefits and efficacies of home-grown produce, backed up by media publicity like the WMN’s celebrated Buy Local Campaign – now broadened into a Think Local Campaign – have seen a turnaround in the public’s perception of Farmer Giles.
Animal diseases have, perversely, been responsible for raising the stakes, and in the past four or five years knowledge about global warming, escalating world populations and projected food shortages, have all brought public opinion, gradually, round to the farmers’ side of the equation.
Even mischief-making by extreme environmental organisations is having less penetration, with realism taking over from idealism. Last year’s high-profile campaign to raise awareness in schoolchildren about food and where it comes from – The Year of Food and Farming in Schools – has paid dividends hands down.
So is there despondency in Westcountry farming as the credit crunch turns into ever-deeper recession? Remarkably, not. And the reason for that is that livestock prices have grown like Topsy. Bear in mind, most farmers in our region are involved in livestock in one way or another.
There are two main contributory factors to consider: the very weak state of sterling, and on-going state support – though the latter is, of course, due to taper and diminish as the Single Farm Payment Scheme grows ever more elderly and heads towards its demise. Of course it will be replaced with something else, or rejuvenated in the same suit of clothes, but don’t expect the present administration, heading for General Election defeat in May next year at the latest, to show much interest.
In the farmers’ psyche, New Labour has a very great deal to answer for over its reign of indifference, negativity and rampant bureaucracy.
Whenever responsive and sympathetic Labour Ministers have raised their heads in farming’s favour, they have very quickly been replaced – upwards, downwards or sideways. Jim Knight, Willie Bach, Jeff Rooker and, most recently Jane Kennedy, all have gone.
The weakened state of sterling, though, is proving a positive asset to our exports. Holidaymakers heading for the Costas may find their pounds don’t go very far when changed into euros, but agricultural exports are showing signs of booming.
And there is another spin-off. Single Farm Payments are paid in euros, so farmers are quids-in, to mix metaphors.
Of course farming remains a diverse package, not just throughout the UK as a whole, but in the regions as well.
The old adage remains true – without financial support from the public purse, large chunks of agriculture cannot function profitably, at least in the short term.
After a good year for almost every sector, the prognosis of a much more volatile time was forecast by leading consultants Andersons, when they presented a synopsis of farming through roller-coaster conditions to an audience of 50 Westcountry agriculturalists at Exeter Racecourse.
Summing up the arable industry’s performance, Andersons concluded: “The combinable sector again needs support for profit.”
For the dairy trade, meanwhile, they said that falling milk prices, plus a further increase in costs – partly resulting from investments wished on the industry by increased (and, to the farmers, at least, unnecessary) new Nitrate Vulnerable Zone constraints, will push many producers towards a loss-making position.
Again, the Single Farm Payment is forecast to come to the rescue, with significantly larger payments helping businesses to remain profitable.
For the whole farming spectrum nationally, Andersons concluded that the industry remained asset-rich but cash-poor, and last year might prove to be a one-off in terms of profitability. Cost increases and price drops were returning some sectors to little profit from production; the Single Farm Payment was the profit. On top of that sobering thought, investment was required for many businesses.
Taking an upbeat stance, Andersons’ business research specialist, Francis Mordaunt, stressed there were many profitable businesses, with a strong capital base, and with a growing global population prices should increase. The outlook should take account of trading volatility, he said. He even warned that farmers should be extra careful with new diversification projects, which very often involved a great deal of capital, as there was not much funding available in these very constrained times.
His colleague Richard King pointed out that had it not been for a weak and falling sterling, wheat prices in the late autumn would have fallen further than the £90 per tonne mark, probably to £70. Exports were going well so far, because of the competitive position, but this year the exportable wheat surplus could fall again, to 1.5 million tonnes, because of lower production and increased usage for bio-ethanol. And worryingly, wheat plantings were, in fact, down by 14 per cent.
On the dairy sector, he said the fact that UK milk production had fallen had discouraged retail buyers from reducing their prices, for fear of losing their supply – but there had been cuts this year, and more might be on the way, particularly if sterling strengthened. By next year prices should be better aligned. But the gap between quota and production was unlikely to close, which would have implications on quota values prior to their demise in 2015.
He was optimistic in the longer-term, he said, commenting: “There are good, young people coming into the dairy sector, and a wealthy population which likes its liquid milk.”
Mr Mordaunt reported prices holding and considerable optimism in the beef and lamb sectors, despite much higher output prices.
Beef should remain profitable through to next year, with the top quarter in profit without support. The same was true about the top third of sheep producers, he said, where the decline in livestock breeding numbers did not necessarily mean lower production, as less productive ewes were disappearing from the uplands.
It is, of course, the Westcountry’s uplands – Dartmoor, Exmoor and Bodmin Moor – that tell a different story, a tale that ex-Farming Minister Jane Kennedy (sacked last month by the Prime Minister) was ready to hear when she toured Exmoor. Pity she went; she was showing promise.
She had become used to fielding bouncers on the on-going problems of bovine TB and the Government’s craven refusal to order a cull of sick badgers, hiding behind an argument that a vaccine for badgers would solve the problem, eventually. The fact the whole badger vaccination campaign would be horribly costly, and almost certainly unworkable, is lost in the palliative smokescreen.
The Government’s insistence that farmers should bear some of the burden of cost over countering animal disease has also led to widespread dissent – with the farming organisations justifiably pointing out that the disastrous spread of bovine TB and both outbreaks of foot and mouth so far this century may be laid firmly at the door of a New Labour administration that cared little, and understood less, about farming and the countryside.
It would be glib to say (and it is often said) that New Labour doesn’t care about agriculture because there are no votes in it for them; but will the Tories do a whole lot better? They didn’t exactly sparkle last time round, with (if you recall) BSE and salmonella in eggs causing hiatus in the beef and poultry sectors, but they do, at least, include farmers like Jim Paice and the Westcountry’s own Neil Parish, who fully appreciate the industry and its challenges.
But, as Jane Kennedy was fast to point out to the Exmoor farmers, it was a Conservative regime that introduced the Badger Act, with all its appalling, and inadvertent, implications for cattle farming.
Following the furore over MPs’ allowances, it will be interesting to see who and what emerges from the General Election. But willy-nilly, some of our current administrators will disappear, undoubtedly – to sighs of relief from the agricultural community in the South West.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Leading butchers saves customers cash
09-07-2009
Alice Wright
A DISCOUNT loyalty scheme run by Lloyd Maunder has saved customers more than £1,000 since the beginning of the year, says the leading Westcountry butchers’ shop chain.
It launched its loyalty card in January this year in all 14 of its stores in Devon and Cornwall.
The chain has been trading in the Westcountry for more than 100 years, but this is the first time it has run a scheme of this kind.
Andrew Maunder, who owns the Exeter-based business, said: “We wanted to show our customers how much we value their trade and to actively encourage people to keep shopping on the high street and supporting local independent businesses through these tough economic times.”
The idea behind the loyalty card echoes the principles of the WMN Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning, which encourages people to support local businesses and offers a forum to discuss ways to do this.
Mr Maunder said: “As far as we know we’re the only butchers in the area offering this kind of loyalty scheme, and customer response has been fantastic.
“Our prices for locally reared meats have always been competitive and customers can choose cuts and quantity according to their budgets, but the loyalty scheme is a timely and welcome icing on the cake – or should I say crackling on the pork.”
The loyalty cards are available to anyone who visits the shops. A stamp is given for each transaction of £10 or more and once 10 stamps are collected the card holder receives a 20 per cent discount on the next purchase.
By the end of May, 534 cards had been redeemed in the 14 shops, collectively saving customers at least £1,068.
The shops will continue to offer the scheme indefinitely except for a one-month break in December when customers can redeem their Christmas Club stamps –another Lloyd Maunder initiative that is proving popular.
Mr Maunder said 10 times more people were collecting Christmas stamps than in previous years. Each stamp costs £1 and customers receive two free stamps to help them on their way to saving up £50 towards their Christmas meat.
“It’s all about making shopping with us the smart choice,” Mr Maunder said. “The loyalty scheme and Christmas Club together give a little something back, which means our customers are happy and so are we.”
Lloyd Maunder shops source their meat from Devon, Cornwall and Somerset, and are managed by a master butcher. Customers are welcome to ask where meat comes from, and see it cut.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Cornwall can tap into geothermal energy
21-06-2009
By Miles Davis
CORNWALL could be at the forefront of the shift towards revolutionary green technology, Conservative leader David Cameron said yesterday.
Mr Cameron said the county was well-placed to take advantage of technological advances in geothermal energy which took heat from miles underground.
The Conservative leader made the comments during on a visit to Kensa Engineering, a pioneering energy company near Truro.
Mr Cameron’s tour of the county came on the same day as he came under increasing pressure in the MPs’ expenses scandal with the resignation of his aide, Tom MacKay, over unacceptable claims.
He said: “It’s been talked about for years, but now it could be within our grasp. And if you look at the geothermal maps of where the suitable locations are in the world, Cornwall really stands out. There’s absolutely no reason why we shouldn’t be tapping into this. Experts think that, if we really got our act together, deep geothermal technology could meet as much as 10 per cent of our electricity needs, so it’s not a trivial issue.”
Geothermal energy involves drilling down deep into the earth’s crust to tap into thermal energy stored there.
The Tory leader said there would be three major benefits to making the most of this type of energy.
“First, for our economy – this is new technology that could create new jobs here in Cornwall and other former mining areas like Yorkshire and the North East.
“Second, for our energy security – this energy is under our feet here in Britain, so we don’t have to rely on other countries for it.
“Third, for our environment – geothermal energy is virtually carbon-free.”
Mr Cameron believed that the UK should harness whatever resources there were to produce electricity in an environmentally friendly way. “I believe this could and should be part of that mix,” he said.
Kensa Engineering currently produces heat pumps which use the heat and energy underground to produce low-cost energy. The firm is based at a former mine at Mount Wellington near Chacewater. Mr Cameron said expertise from old industries could be used to good effect in new green technology industries.
The Tory leader promised help to new energy industries if his party got into power.
“We don’t know how well this technology will turn out, but we’re just not giving it a chance,” he said.
“That’s why a Conservative government will provide generous incentives to give this new industry the shot in the arm it needs to get going.”
Mr Cameron said the country needed to build on its current stake of 5 per cent in the emerging global market for green technologies.
“We need to play catch-up,” he said. “Germany already has a working geothermal plant and there are projects being planned around the world.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Pubs to provide local knowledge to boost trade
19-06-2009
By Graeme Demianyk and Pippa Stephens
TROUBLED rural pubs are in line for a much-needed financial boost, if a campaign to persuade landlords to become unofficial tourist guides is a hit.
VisitEngland wants local pubs to become makeshift tourist information centres, providing local knowledge and literature on local attractions rather than just pulling pints.
The idea behind the campaign, entitled Inn England, is to help struggling pubs not only to generate more trade, but also encourage them to diversify into accommodation and become part of short-break holiday market.
An average of 39 pubs are forced to close each week in the UK, the British Beer & Pub Association claims, many in rural areas which are left without a community focal point.
Run in association with The Publican magazine, Inn England has been welcomed by Westcountry tourism bosses and landlords.
Annette Cole, deputy director of South West Tourism, said the campaign could be a boon for rural tourism, particularly as it would tempt tourists to stay in the countryside as opposed to heading to busy urban locations. She said: “For the rural sector, I think it’s a really good idea.
“There are quite a lot of local attractions that might not be big enough for tourist information centres to know about. Historic homes that only open in peak months and one day a week, for example. It would also get people into pubs. If visitors went into a pub they might leave with an orange juice if it’s a hot day. They might look at the food menu and pop back for lunch.”
She warned it would probably not work universally. “But it does have to fit in with the community. It has to be comfortable for the pub landlord and it’s not going to be right for every pub. In urban areas they may be well-served by information centres.”
Jeremy Mitchell, head of marketing at St Austell Brewery, which has a portfolio of 170 pubs across Cornwall, Devon and the Isles of Scilly, said pubs already helped visitors to feel like part of the community, adding the campaign would “build on the strengths of the traditional pub and not only provide visitors with more ideas for their holiday but also potentially increase trade in the pubs”.
VisitEngland wants pub landlords to position their businesses as the starting point for any visit to an area, rather than purely focusing on the needs of locals.
Inn England aims to promote pubs as places of tourism interest and in return, landlords can help publicise local tourism.
VisitEngland head of marketing Amanda Smyth said: “Pubs and inns provide more than food and drink. Pubs are a key part of England’s brand, our history and way of life.
“They are often the cornerstone of a local community and a great way to discover more about a destination.”
Publicans in the Westcountry, which have come under pressure from cheap supermarket offers, spiralling beer taxes and competition from home entertainment, broadly welcomed the concept.
Neil Spears, landlord of The Kings Arms at the heart of the tourist hotspot of Salcombe, said: “We’re always handing leaflets out, and directing people to the nearest hotels or restaurants. It’s definitely good for business as it gets people in the pub and hopefully they’ll stay.”
Jill Dyson, landlady of The Dodbrook Inn in Kingsbridge town centre, said: “Anything that brings tourism into the area is a good thing. It is important that we all pull together.”
But Lesley Webber, landlady of The Pigs Nose in rural East Prawle, South Devon, was not so convinced. “I don’t feel we would be a great bet – to be honest we have little space to put leaflets and are very busy in the summer months,” she said. “The village shop would be a better idea.”
Caroline Nodder, editor of The Publican, said the Inn England campaign would remind people of “the unique place that the English pub holds in our history and our culture.Pubs are the beating hearts of our country”.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Potential value of our woodland ‘squandered’
19-06-2009
By Andy Greenwood Chief Reporter
THE Government must recognise the value of Westcountry woodland to the region’s economy and environment, rural campaigners have said.
The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) spelled out its vision for forestry and woodlands until 2050 and warned that: “If woodland management does not become profitable, it will die.”
It said the Government must value the huge contribution woods and forests make to the landscape, biodiversity and water and carbon management, and understand that tree-planting and effective woodland management are legitimate ways of offsetting the carbon emissions blamed for climate change.
Ministers also have to accept that growing trees is an industry and needs to be financially viable.
CLA president Henry Aubrey-Fletcher said: “Now is the time for forestry and woodland. The potential is enormous and largely unrealised.
“In England we currently harvest less than 40 per cent of the volume of timber that grows in the woods each year – squandering this valuable and sustainable resource.
“And less than 1 per cent of the value of timber is returned to the grower who sells it. That’s the lowest in Europe and just one tenth of what foresters get in Finland.”
The report – Seeing the Wood for the Trees: CLA Forestry and Woodland Vision and Policy – said there had already been a decline in skilled staff and a lack of job opportunities in the industry.
Government policy had to “reverse this spiral of decline” if woodlands were to continue to be sustainably managed, benefiting both wildlife and the local economy.
Mr Aubrey-Fletcher said: “In England and Wales between 2003 and 2008, new planting almost halved, falling from 5,100 hectares a year to 2,800 hectares a year.
“And between 1998 and 2008, the number of sawmills processing home-grown timber in the UK fell from 341 to 211 – a drop of around 40 per cent.”
At the same time, he added, the industry was being “over-regulated” by Government. Geraint Richards, head forester for the Duchy of Cornwall and a member of the CLA committee which produced the report, said managing woodland produced “enormous benefits”.
Mr Richards, who manages 4,500 acres of woodland, more than 50 per cent of which is in Cornwall, said there was opportunity for high quality timber to replace concrete and steel in construction.
Greater use wood as a biofuel, either in chip, pellet or log form, was also important.
“It is an incredibly important time for timber to come to the forefront,” Mr Richards said yesterday. “I think we are missing a trick, regionally and nationally, if we don’t recognise the value of these woodlands.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Shopkeeper stays after poll
19-06-2009
By Graeme Demianyk
A VILLAGE shopkeeper who faced being replaced as the manager of a community store by a businessman from Kent has been comprehensively backed by residents – after they ousted those behind the decision.
Tim Barrett, 31, has been running the temporary shop in the South Devon village of Aveton Gifford for four years.
In August, the “Tin Shop” is to be replaced by a new £100,000 store – but the shop’s committee wanted to get rid of him because it claimed he was not cut out for the role.
Shareholders, drawn chiefly from villagers, have now voted in a new committee – which vows to retain Mr Barrett in his post.
Amid heated scenes, more than 250 people turned up to a village meeting. Fire regulations meant around 150 had to stand outside, booing and cheering as they listened to arguments via a public address system.
Mr Barrett, a married father-of-one, said: “It was a great result. It was really good to know how behind me the whole village was.
“We had 250 people turn up to the meeting, which is unheard of. People have been really kind.”
He went on: “There were quite a few angry people. People were shouting and booing. It didn’t descend into bedlam but the chairman threatened to stop the meeting if they didn’t behave.”
The new committee was voted in overwhelmingly after a poll of villagers who bought shares in the new shop.
An independent interview panel, made up of local businessmen who advised the committee, had suggested Mr Barrett “lacked confidence” and did not have the necessary business skills for a larger shop.
But Mal Young, chairman of the new shop committee, said members were sure that with their support, Mr Barrett could meet the commitments. “Tim has done a fantastic job. He has given four years of his life to the shop and we feel confident that he will make the new shop a success,” he said.
Two assessors said in a report last year that he could be given a chance in the new shop if his skills improved.
But after a six-month period of training, the shop committee said Mr Barrett had shown “very little improvement”.
When it was announced that Mr Barrett had not got the position in the new shop, angry villagers collected dozens of signatures for a petition demanding he be given the post.
In response, the shop committee sent out a note to locals entitled “The other side of the coin”. In it, the committee explained why it felt Mr Barrett was not suitable for the role.
Burda Gage, chairman of the outgoing eight-strong committee, including a solicitor, accountant and retailer, said there was “no way we were going to run the shop with Mr Barrett”.
She added: “We are disappointed as we spent two years of hard labour getting funding and everything else and it has just been completed.
“I hope the village does not suffer. Our group was very successful. I don’t think there is another group of people you could have pulled from the community that achieved what we achieved.
“The thing that troubled me most was the misinformation that was coming out of some people in the community. Only two people came to me to ask what was our side of the argument.
“At the meeting, there weren’t any intelligent questions asked. It’s purely an emotional thing on their part.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Government boost for recession-busting projects
19-06-2009
By Graeme Demianyk
GOVERNMENT officials are intervening to keep the Westcountry’s two biggest housing developments moving, as part of a campaign to kickstart the economy.
A recession-busting task force made up of government agencies and industry bosses, is orchestrating plans to bring forward millions of pounds of public money to sustain jobs during the downturn. Since January, it has “unlocked” 10 developments where the brakes had been slammed on because of the parlous state of the housing market and the credit crunch.
The Housing and Communities Agency (HCA), which is leading the task force’s efforts to revitalise regeneration projects, is eyeing a further 25 schemes that are at risk or have stalled as a result of the region’s biggest construction slump in more than a decade.
They include the Sherford plan for 5,500 homes in the South Hams, and the 7,500-home Cranbrook new town on the edge of Exeter, both of which have suffered delays.
Elsewhere, the HCA has bought land in Pool, near Redruth, taken an equity share in 48 new build houses in Devonport, Plymouth, and advanced funding for site clearance in the former tin mining area of Dolcoath, in Camborne.
Business leaders praised the task force’s work, but questioned why the public sector was less willing to work closely with business during better times.
Colin Molton, South West regional director of the HCA, said it was difficult to quantify the impact of the intervention, but added the task force was conscious that many key regeneration schemes had downed tools.
He said: “Public sector intervention is crucial. Agencies and local authorities can really come into their own and keep things moving. They create jobs and they are things people want to see anyway – improvements to the public realm, schools, affordable housing.
“If they can be taken forward in the recession it creates confidence.”
The HCA is part of the South West Regional Economic Task Group, a collective of agencies, industry bodies and politicians formed to guide the region through the downturn.
Chaired by regional minister Ben Bradshaw, the task force includes representatives from the NHS, South West Regional Development Agency, Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress. Jobs, business support and regeneration are its key areas of concern.
The HCA-led housing and infrastructure action group is producing some of the most tangible results, and is confident it will be able to announce “several more” unblocked regeneration projects at its next meeting later this month.
Mr Molton said the team is working with developers behind the Cranbrook scheme to get access to the £80 million regional infrastructure fund.
With the help of public money, development consortium the Cranbrook New Community Partners, has said it hopes to start building a bypass and access roads that would pave the way for house building to start next year.
Mr Molton added that the fund might also be suitable for Sherford. Red Tree, developers of the new town on the outskirts of Plymouth, last month said it was exploring funding opportunities from the public sector.
Mr Molton, former deputy chief executive of the South West RDA, explained scores of developments across the region had come to a standstill as a result of a slump in demand for property, brought on by falling prices and rationing of mortgage finance.
Affordable housing, built as part of council consent for private developments, has also been adversely affected by shrinking demand.
Mr Molton said: “These factors conspire to mean that these sites can’t go ahead. The idea is to keep things moving so developments are ready when the upturn comes.”
Mr Bradshaw, the MP for Exeter, said: “The reason the group was set-up was to try to co-ordinate and ensure a joined-up response to the economic downturn. The experience we’ve had in the past six months begs the question, why didn’t we have that anyway in normal times? I think it has been a useful forum for all the development government agencies and business to come together to bypassing the other usual civil service routes.”
Tim Jones, chairman of the Devon and Cornwall Business Council, said: “This is absolutely brilliant. Development leads to affordable housing, which is not just social housing but helps key workers and first-time buyers, helping to keep young people in our region.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Brewery celebrating 25% rise in beer sales
20-05-2009
By Emma Corlett
CORNWALL’S St Austell Brewery is smashing its own beer sales records and defying industry trends by reporting a 25 per cent rise in sales of its ales so far this year.
Just days after the British Beer & Pub Association reported beer sales had slumped more than 8 per cent nationally, the award-winning brewery is enjoying unprecedented demand from across the UK.
Almost four million pints were brewed and sold by St Austell Brewery in the four months to the end of April this year.
The brewery’s flagship Tribute ale is leading the charge – with sales up 33 per cent to April 2009 compared with last year. It means Tribute – now a UK Top 10 premium cask ale – made up more than two-thirds of the draught beer sold by the Brewery so far this year.
Other highlights include a 27 per cent increase in sales of bottled beers this year, including a mighty 153 per cent rise in sales of Admiral’s Ale, after it was recently voted the World’s Best Bottled Beer at the International Beer Challenge.
The figures come hard on the heels of St Austell Brewery beating of some of the biggest names in the country to become the UK’s Regional Brewer of the Year – judged not only on the quality of its beers but also its pub estate and award-winning staff, food and training.
Managing director James Staughton said: “It is immensely satisfying that these brewing figures are driven entirely by customer demand for our ales right across the UK, with Tribute in particular going from strength to strength as a national brand with a distinctive regional character.
“We’re delighted that beer drinkers up and down the country are choosing to enjoy the true taste of Cornwall and we’re proud to be playing our part in enhancing the reputation of Cornwall as a destination and the home of great food and drink.”
The brewery has made two significant investments this year on the back of soaring demand for its award-winning ales both regionally and nationally.
Work is under way on a major £700,000 project to build a new in-house bottling line, which opens in June, and the doors opened on the brewery’s new Cornwall Distribution Centre in St Columb Major to serve as a regional hub for all its 2000 customers in Cornwall. Sales of St Austell Brewery’s flagship Tribute Ale have risen for eight consecutive years since ins launch in 2001, continuing the meteoric success of the beer which has become the first and only Cornish beer to make it into the UK Top 10 of premium cask ales.
A national deal with Waitrose has seen Tribute sold in selected larger stores across the country, cementing other existing national listings for Tribute with Asda and Sainsbury as well as, across the South West, in Tesco, Co-op, Spar and Thresher stores.
In April, St Austell took home more golds than any other brewery at the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) South West Beer Festival.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
National Trust Think Local
19-05-2009
THE National Trust last week launched a scheme aimed at encouraging children to grow their own veg – it’s part of a trend which we all applaud. A list of events have now been scheduled:
Arlington - Wormeries for Growing Gardeners!
May 29; 11am-3pm
Drop-in workshop
Children’s fun drop-in workshops to make a home for your worm using recycled materials. Watch as they mix and mulch the layers to condition your soil for great vegetable growing. Normal admission charges + £1 for materials.
Castle Drogo - Food Glorious Food Trail
May 23-31; 11am-4pm
Prize trail around the garden and grounds to discover how you could survive on wild food! Normal admission charges + £1.50 per child.
Castle Drogo
Food Glorious Food Activities
May 28 from 2-4pm and May 30 from 11am-1pm
Including finding out how to make a bird feeder for your garden or learn to grow your own food from seeds! Ring for details of specific daily activities. Normal admission charges + £2 per child.
Glendurgan - The Natural Larder
May 26 from 10.30am-4pm
Cooking with foraged food: from nettle soup to seaweed salad! Demonstrations, tastings and recipes to try at home. Normal admission charges
Killerton
Vegetarian Week
May 20-25 from 11am-5pm
Come and try delicious vegetarian dishes in the tea-rooms. Normal admission charges
Lanhydrock
National Vegetarian Week meals
May 18-24 from noon-3pm
Join us to celebrate National Vegetarian Week with a feature veggie menu and enter our seasonal recipe competition to win a meal for four. Winning recipe will also be put on the menu for Father's Day lunch. Normal admission charges
Trelissick
Food and Craft Fair
May 30 and 31 from 10.30am-5.30pm
An opportunity to sample and buy Cornwall‘s finest, in conjunction with Dibb Events. £3.50 car parking charge for non-NT members.
Saltram
Sow and Grow at Saltram
May 28 from 12 noon - 4pm
Help the Park Restaurant to plant up its terrace vegetable tubs, and then have a go at making your own cress potato head to take away. Drop in any time. Child £2.50
Trengwainton
Do You Know Your Onions?
May 24-28 from 10.30am-5pm
Family garden trail to test your knowledge! Normal admission charges + 50p per trail.
Trengwainton
Go Potty!
May 26 and May 28
11.30am-12.30pm and 2-3pm
Plant a vegetable seed, learn how to cultivate it, then take it home! Meet off the main drive, on the Meadow. Normal admission charges + 50p per pot.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Villagers Think Local in fight to open shop
30-04-2009
IT MAY not be much to look at, but a portable cabin in a car park takes pride of place in the village of Ide. Shipped in on the back of a lorry from Hull, the building had to be Oh-so-gently eased into place by crane.
This humble structure has been hailed as being of “incalculable” value to the community a mile south of Exeter. It will be obvious why to any village which has lost a post office or general store in the past few years. Last year, more than 140 post offices across Devon and Cornwall were shut, and the shop invariably went with it.
In October, the owners of Ide’s post office and only shop told the village they would be closing in the New Year. It was proving difficult to turn a profit. “I can wait hours for a customer,” said the owner of 14 years. It was to become houses.
But, among less than 600 villagers, plotting soon began. Word went round that perhaps a community owned and run shop could be created in its stead. Colin Chapman, chairman of Ide parish council, knew its significance was to prevent Ide from stealthily becoming a suburb of Exeter (it is separated by the A30). Ide has two pubs, but the shop was the social glue which held everything together.
Mr Chapman said: “Many residents despaired at the prospect of losing the shop, necessitating not only trips further afield to buy basics like bread and newspapers, but also saw the shop as their point of contact within the village. It was where you bought tickets for village events, were able to catch up with friends and find out what was happening.”
So they went to work. Quickly, it set up a committee and persuaded the shop’s owners to agree a stay of execution. The aim was to ensure Ide would not be without a focal point for a single day. The self-imposed deadline gave villagers just three months to jump through a series of financial and bureaucratic hoops.
“We were determined there would be continuity so set ourselves the rather barmy task of opening on April 1,” said Mr Chapman. “I think it is probably the fastest community shop set up, in history.”
The reaction, however, was “extraordinary”. More than a third of Ide’s residents purchased a share in the enterprise. This, along with loans and donations, raised more than £8,000 and a team of 35 volunteers gave up their time to drive the project forward. Practical support was offered by the Plunkett Foundation, a charity which supports rural communities. It provides advice on law, stocking shelves and business plans, areas where first-time shopkeepers are baffled.
Miraculously, the shop hit its mark, opening on the first day of this month. More than 40 volunteers help keep the shop – which is just 32ft by 10ft – open seven-days-a-week. Its range of local produce includes organic meat from West Town Farm, 500 yards away, as well as fresh fruit and vegetables from Shillingford Organics on the outskirts of Exeter.
Mr Chapman said: “Ide was determined not to lose its shop and post office as everyone recognised that we would be losing the heart of our village. The value of the shop from a social and community point of view is incalculable.”
Ide is a landmark for the Plunkett Foundation, being the 200th community across the country it has assisted. Seventeen villages across Devon and Cornwall have done something similar with Plunkett, often bringing to life buildings even more unlikely than a portable cabin. Across the two counties, community owned facilities have been found in village halls and a pub garden. In Exbourne, near Okehampton, West Devon, a shop and cafe is set into the side of a steep slope.
Harriet English, who manages shop projects for the Plunkett Foundation, said: “This is a feasible way for the community to fight back against closures of community shops. They have to be feasible. They are not charities, they are proper businesses.”
In Blisland, a pretty village where 250 people live close to Bodmin Moor in North Cornwall, villagers took the concept to a new level. It lost its shop and post office in 1999, and as temporary measure sold bread and newspapers out of an old shipping container. It took seven years, table-top sales and village carnivals to raise £60,000 and tricky applications for funding from Government agencies and the European Union, but the village eventually got its independence back.
Today, a sparkling modern building has multiple purposes housing a shop and post office, but also a cafe, Internet suite, acupuncturist and three business units.
It was a battle to make it happen, but it was community involvement which carried the day. Three women – who called themselves The Stooges – sold tea and coffee from a stall opposite the village green. After seven years, they alone had raised a thumping £22,000. Meanwhile, the postmistress waived a £25,000 salary – money which also went into the pot.
Arthur Ludgate, a retired defence engineer who was one of the driving forces behind the scheme, said: “We have a school in the village which we had to fight for in 1999. We have a pub that is recognised by the Campaign for Real Ale as one of the nation’s best. But without the shop, you would see people leaving the village and it would have taken a lot of life with it. It is invaluable for people to meet.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Convergence funding to boost Cornish economy
30-04-2009
By Matt Chorley
THE Treasury is being urged not to rein in match-funding of EU money for Cornwall.
Ministers were told the dire state of the public finances should not be used as an excuse for not drawing on funds from Brussels.
Cornwall has been awarded £415 million in EU ‘Convergence funding’ for 2007-13, which will be used to regenerate and develop the county’s economy.
But under the rules governing the European programme, money paid over by the European Commission must also be matched by investment from public bodies in the UK.
Fears have previously been raised that the South West Regional Development Agency might not be able to bankroll all the projects it hoped, as its own budget came under strain.
In March, RDA chief executive Jane Henderson revealed Government budget cuts of five per cent for the past three years had left the agency unable to fulfill its promise of funding for key projects across the region.
Some £26 million has also been redirected by Whitehall into other areas, including bailing out the struggling housing market. It is understood that the RDA’s £170 million has been cut by almost a third.
St Ives MP Andrew George called on the Government to step in, if necessary, to ensure Cornwall’s economy did not suffer because of shortfalls elsewhere.
There are also concerns that the collapse of the value of the pound against the dollar will make it increasingly costly to raise the necessary match-funding in sterling.
Speaking in the Commons, Mr George asked what the Treasury is “going to be doing to make sure that the European funding programme, particularly the Convergence programme has the available ‘match funding’ available to it given the shortage of money available to those Convergence areas which are after all the poorest in the UK”.
In particular, he asked what can be done to “mitigate against the sharp depreciation in sterling given the fact that European aid is drawn down in Euros”.
In response, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Yvette Cooper insisted the Government will not rein in spending.
“We have supported many of the programmes which include funds from Europe to support regeneration across the country that is why we are honouring and supporting the three year budgets that were set for local councils and also continuing with support for Regional Development Agencies and other agencies across the country.
“I do think it is right to continue to invest to support the recovery and not to cut public spending in the middle of the recession which I think would be devastating for recovery but also for the public finances as it would push up costs in the long term as well.”
However, last night Mr George said Ms Coopers words “appear to be at odds” with the reported belt-tightening at public bodies, including the RDA.
In recognition of its weak economy, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly was classified as an Objective One region in 1999, unlocking £350 million (498 million euros) in EU funding.
Althought there have been some improvments, the county was singled out for extra help again and was awarded 'Convergence status' worth £415 million (€579 million euros) for the period 2007-2013.
It is hoped the money will help develop the local economy and move it closer to the EU average.
Read Matt Chorley’s political blog at www.thisiswesternmorningnews.co.uk/mattchorley
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Lib-Dem leader is impressed by Buy Local champions
17-04-2009
LIBERAL Democrat leader Nick Clegg has pledged to urge other parts of the UK to follow Cornwall’s lead in promoting local produce in hospitals.
The MP visited the county yesterday thursday to see how staff at Camborne Redruth Community Hospital were championing the Buy Local cause.
Mr Clegg backed the Western Morning News campaign to Think Local, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning, which supports local farmers, producers and businesses.
He said: “I will be pushing for other parts of the country to follow Cornwall’s example and buy local produce whenever possible.
“It’s absolutely vital everyone starts to take these steps in order to help the economy get back on its feet to protect local jobs.
“During the recession, people should be proud to buy local food and drink to help stimulate local demand for what Cornish farms and producers are offering.
“I would like to see the Buy Local practice being pushed out into the schools as well as into the wider community.
“I’m right behind the Western Morning News Think Local campaign – it’s a win-win situation for everyone involved.”
Mr Clegg said that buying local produce would help safeguard the environment: “The benefits to the environment of buying local food and drink cannot be underestimated.
“Reducing the amount of miles lorries travel ferrying food up and down the country’s motorways is key to protecting our environment.
“In the upcoming local elections, Cornish Liberal Democrats will pledge to roll out similar Buy Local practices in all catering in Cornwall Council-run services wherever possible.”
Mr Clegg visited the hospital’s food preparation unit where fresh, local ingredients are used to make meals for patients at a cost of around £2.
The unit prepares dishes for all three of the hospitals in Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust (RCHT) which includes the Treliske site, St Michael’s Hospital in Hayle and West Cornwall Hospital, Penzance.
By using local and organic food, the trust said it had cut carbon emissions from road transport by two-thirds.
More than 80 per cent of the trust’s food budget is now spent with local companies, with more than 40 per cent of that figure spent on Cornish produce.
An RCHT spokesman said: “We’re delighted Mr Clegg took the time to come to see us.”
Think Local: Market helps showcase local produce
10-04-2009
A FARMERS’ market which provides a shop window on the best local produce is being relaunched over the Easter weekend.
Bideford Quay in North Devon will become a hub of delicious offerings from April 11 at 10am. It will then run on the second and fourth Saturday of each month until September.
Market spokesman Dan Garnett said: “The wide variety of locally produced goods helps showcase the excellence of North Devon rural and coastal produce to both locals and visitors.”
The market’s ethos echoes that of the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, which is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Mr Garnett said: “As small producers, we all have suffered with the economic downturn during the winter.
“This market, working with Torridge council, gives us a great chance to sell direct to the public, helping to reduce the food chain and food miles.”
James Morrish, leader of Torridge District Council, will officially open the market.
He said: “Having lived and worked in the rural community all my life, I know how important small businesses are to the rural and coastal areas. This is hopefully the start of a successful year and I look forward to working in partnership.”
Riverford Farm keeps families entertained
10-04-2009
By Petra Mann
AN ORGANIC farm in Devon is to open up its gates for its annual Easter celebration.
Riverford Farm, Buckfastleigh will be open on April 11 from 2.30pm - 5pm.
New to this year’s event, Riverford is inviting families to plant a keyhole garden (small garden) with the charity Send a Cow at 3pm.
Planting the garden will mark the beginning of Riverford’s three year partnership with the charity.
The charity was started in the 1980s by farmers in the South West to help rural families in Africa to work their way out of poverty by providing sustainable farming training, livestock and advice.
It has been found that planting a small garden can produce a good crop of vegetables.
Rachel Watson, who helps fun the farm, said: “We always love seeing people on the farm.
“Planting up our keyhole garden is a powerful way of showing how a simple idea can help struggling families in Africa to grow their way out of poverty.
“Everything we do at Riverford is about sustainable food production and that’s exactly what Send a Cow does in a different sphere.
“We’re really excited about the partnership and hope that lots of our customers will get involved.”
As usual the Easter egg hunt is on, where children can follow clues around the farm, collect eggs and meet a life-size Easter bunny.
Other activities include tractor rides around the farm, storytelling, egg decorating and face painting.
Riverford is calling all children to come in fancy dress with a spring theme, with prizes for the best costumes.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: St Austell Brewery commits to farmers
10-04-2009
WERE proof of St Austell Brewery’s commitment to local farmers needed, it can be found in its award-winning tipple.
Admiral’s Ale is made from 100 per cent Cornish barley and recently scooped top prize at the International Beer Challenge.
The prestigious contest is run with Off Licence News and puts the ale at the top of its World’s 50 Best Beers.
The event is the world’s biggest packaged beer competition and St Austell saw-off stiff challenges from brewing giants Fullers, Greene King and Shepherd Neame.
Admiral’s Ale stormed its class before going on to be named overall Supreme Champion at the ceremony held in London. The bottled beverage was created to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar in 1805.
St Austell Brewery has an impressive array of traditional cask ales. The biggest seller is Tribute, a 4.2 per cent premium Cornish Ale which can be found in pubs and supermarkets throughout the rest of the UK.
James Staughton, managing director at the brewery, said: “The point is that we in Cornwall are now offering really excellent local produce.
“OK, it might cost a slight premium – but it is only a slight premium which is going straight back into the local community, which can only be a good thing for everyone.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: Why small firms ought to help one another
10-04-2009
THE South West has a higher percentage of small businesses than any other part of the UK.
Whether it is an accident or a by-product of the area’s geography of thinly spread towns and cities, these small or medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – officially employing under 250 people each but often just a fraction of this total – are the lifeblood of the region.
They tend not to grab the headlines because they neither make vast profits nor sack huge numbers of people in times of strife. But make no mistake, these are not businesses run by no-hopers who have failed to make their company a huge going concern.
These are companies run by people with an independent spirit who are often happy running things at the level they have found. Many are sole traders or employ just a handful of staff. They can range from retailers, professional services like solicitors and accountants, to arts and crafts businesses.
In the current economic climate, they are facing hard times just as much as, if not more than, the huge multinationals. But while job losses at the likes of Goldman Sachs and BT grab the headlines, these smaller companies can often go out of business with a whimper.
And if you add up the jobs that can be lost quietly, it can be considerable.
It is for this reason that Think Local is important to local businesses, as it gives them a lifeline for survival. And it is not just local consumers who should be thinking this way – it is the local businesses themselves.
The most obvious advantage comes in the food and drink sector, with food miles. Much has already been written, and implemented by firms, about the need to cut down on the distance food travels from production to plate, both to cut down on carbon emissions and to cut the amount of expensive fuel used.
But increasingly, it is important for non-food businesses. Using a local firm instead of a distant one for a service-sector role, be it local accountants, a local IT firm or a local caterer for events.
Carol Wells, national vice-chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said that companies sharing trade locally between themselves was an excellent way of making sure communities survived in the 21st century.
The customer service offered by firms would be enhanced by the fact that they were dealing with local people they knew and had a relationship with.
“When you lose the local post office and shop, you lose the community. If you only buy one thing locally, you will make a difference,” she said.
“Once these shops are gone, they are gone. At the moment we have the diversity to choose and too often we are choosing not to use these shops.
“There are people who cannot choose where they buy things for financial reasons or whatever. But if those who can choose do not take the opportunity to shop in these places, they will soon not be there.”
There is a lot of support among companies for the idea of locally sourcing goods and materials.
Cornwall Enterprise’s business intelligence service, Enterprise Edge, recently undertook a study of more than 300 Cornish businesses’ sourcing habits as part of its six-month “Buy Cornish” project.
The results showed that nine out of 10 businesses would like to buy more goods and services from local suppliers and estimated that this could return £1 billion a year to the county’s economy – more than the total European Union funding it has received in the past 10 years.
In particular, the survey found Cornwall to be particularly strong in the creative sector, with three-quarters of all respondents already employing local firms.
Similarly, around two-thirds of the county’s businesses shopped locally for food and drink, information technology and professional services.
Enterprise Edge manager Dominique Tregenza-Hall said: “In almost every category, we found at least half of businesses were able to find suitable suppliers within Cornwall.
“Apart from certain specialised raw materials, there’s rarely a compelling need to source goods or services further afield, and the vast majority of companies who responded would be open to spend even more in their local area. That’s great news for the local economy.”
IT is also a growing player in the region, with Microsoft having previously singled it out as an area likely to receive strong growth.
There are also plans afoot to create a marine technology sector around the Peninsula Research Institute in Marine Renewable Energy (Primare), a joint venture by the Universities of Plymouth and Exeter to focus on creating the next generation of technology for green energy creation.
In all these cases, the businesses may be small in terms of numbers employed, but they all link into the fabric of the South West and collectively can make a real difference.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Cameron: Times are tough: we must 'Think Local'
10-04-2009
By David Cameron Conservative leader
I KNOW how tough times are for our businesses. With sales falling, costs rising and banks not extending loans, the line between staying alive and going under is a fine one.
So I congratulate the Western Morning News on its Think Local campaign to support local, independent businesses.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Small businesses employ more than half a million people in the South West, and keep the local economy going. So we must help them – and fast.
Here’s what the Conservatives would do. First, we would cut the small companies tax rate down to 20 per cent. Second, we would give all small and medium- size businesses the chance to delay their VAT payments to the Government for up to six months. This could really help for those struggling with cash flow problems.
And third, we would cut employers’ National Insurance by 1 per cent for every firm with under five workers. This will affect over two million jobs – and help keep people in work through the winter.
But it’s not just about what government can do. We’ve all got a responsibility to help our local businesses.
That means banks treating companies fairly. As I’ve said directly to the bank bosses, the taxpayer has stood behind the banks in their hour of need, and we expect the same from the banks now small businesses are in trouble. It means councils and bigger firms must make sure they pay any bills they owe to small businesses within days.
And most important of all, it means us, as individuals, backing our local firms the only way we can – with our cash. A pound spent in a locally owned business will typically be worth almost twice as much as a pound spent on other businesses as it is more likely to be re-spent locally and therefore support local jobs.
But this isn’t just right for the local economy. It’s also right for our wallets and the quality of service we receive. More often than not, it’s good, local firms that provide real value for money and that personal touch we want.
In these difficult times, that’s a pretty impressive dividend.
Lib Dem leader urges people to 'Think Local'
10-04-2009
By Nick Clegg Liberal Democrat leader
AS the country falls into recession, we are faced with difficult times ahead. The truth is that we are only going get through the downturn on the back of our small businesses. This country built its economy on the spirit of its hardworking men and women before. Now we are going to have to do the same again. That means supporting local business, to keep the wheels of the local economy turning and to stop these businesses from going to the wall.
The recession is going to be tough for Devon and Cornwall’s business community. Unemployment is on the rise and consumer spending is down.
Their customers are even harder pressed than in other parts of the UK, because they are already burdened with low wages, rocketing water bills, high fuel costs and unfair council tax. Their customers are going to have even less money to spend. Plus banks are withdrawing their credit at a moment’s notice, pulling the rug from under them. MPs are working hard to put pressure on the Government to give local businesses some breathing space with their tax bills while they tighten their belts.
If we are going to make sure these businesses survive, local people need to get behind them as well. That means thinking local. More specifically, buying and spending locally. People from Devon and Cornwall should be proud of the high-quality goods produced near where they live.
Like Davidstow cheese, wine made from local grapes and fish caught by local fishermen. Devon and Cornwall are also home to a wealth of industrious men and women offering high-quality services, like local carpenters, cobblers and decorators.
Small, local businesses are also at the heart of many rural communities. Shops and post offices provide a lifeline in isolated areas and are vital for vulnerable groups, like pensioners and families on low incomes. Pubs and restaurants add life to neighbourhoods and create places for local people to come together, whilst also creating jobs.
Giving money to local businesses can also be better for the environment. It stimulates networks of local produce, so goods travel much shorter distances.
So when people are out shopping, they should think about spending their money on local products and in independent, local businesses. Not only will they be helping them, they’ll be boosting the local economy, as well as investing in local pride.
I believe that people should be doing this up and down the country, but in Devon and Cornwall, where the quality of local goods is so often world-class, there really is good reason to think local.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: 'Do your local duty' warns party leaders
10-04-2009
EXCLUSIVE Matt Chorley London Editor
THE Government and leaders of the main opposition parties today unite in urging shoppers to ensure the survival of local businesses by backing the Western Morning News Think Local campaign.
Business Secretary Lord Mandelson, Conservative leader David Cameron and Liberal Democrat chief Nick Clegg warn the public that everyone has a responsibility to support small firms in the economic downturn.
The top-level political backing is a significant step in the WMN’s drive to encourage the public to spend their money with the businesses which will struggle most.
After a tumultuous week in Westminster focusing on the Treasury’s recession rescue package – including £20 billion of tax cuts now with the prospect of major tax rises later – the focus has turned on how individuals must play their part in helping local economies avoid the worst.
Lord Mandelson, credited with much of the help offered to small businesses, told the WMN: “It’s up to all of us to do our bit by supporting local traders in the South West.”
He said that small firms would be relying on their local communities to “help them survive”.
And writing exclusively in the WMN, Mr Cameron and Mr Clegg call on Westcountry shoppers to support vulnerable companies.
The Think Local campaign is a relaunch of the long-running Buy Local drive, which emerged in the wake of the 2001 foot-and-mouth outbreak.
The campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
It has now been expanded to include all sectors, with the only parameters being that they must be based in the Westcountry. It will still encompass food, but also embrace tourism, manufacturing, trade, services and every other business.
Lord Mandelson, who returned to the Cabinet in October to bolster Gordon Brown’s economic team in the downturn, was among the first Cabinet figures to demand public bodies pay their bills more quickly to smaller companies and has called on big private sector companies to do the same.
Backing the Think Local campaign, he said: “Small and medium-sized businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and are essential for the livelihoods of hardworking families. In these tough economic times, businesses will be turning to their local communities to help them survive, safeguard local jobs and come out strongly at the other side.”
Mr Cameron, who spent two weeks on holiday in Cornwall this summer, insists: “It’s not just about what government can do. We’ve all got a responsibility to help our local businesses. It’s up to all of us to do our bit by supporting local traders in the South West.”
Mr Clegg warns that shoppers in Devon and Cornwall will be harder hit because of historically low wages and high water bills, fuel costs and council tax.
But Westcountry people “should be proud of the high-quality goods produced near where they live” and should use what money they have to support local tradesman and shopkeepers.
The Government recently unveiled a package of measures aimed at helping small businesses, including help to access credit, delaying paying tax bills and more generous tax relief for businesses now making losses.
The cross-party support for the campaign will be seen as a massive boost for firms and next week, a parliamentary motion is expected to be tabled urging shoppers to support local businesses.
Think Local: NHS enjoys local produce, thanks to Roy
10-04-2009
THE South West has a new food champion – indeed it has its first ever official food champion.
The Westcountry’s annual food Oscars are about passion, expertise, flair and commitment – so you might not think that a bureaucrat in charge of procurement would ever get close to clinching one of the prestigious awards.
But that’s exactly what Roy Heath did thanks to his sterling and often hidden work in ensuring Cornwall’s NHS patients get the very best local food on offer.
He was pronounced Taste of the West’s first ever regional food champion and seemed bemused by his success even though his work has been responsible for almost £1 million worth of food orders remaining in the county each year.
Mr Heath is sustainable development manager for the Cornwall Food Programme working with Health Care, Estates and Support Services. “They are service providers for all three NHS trusts in Cornwall,” he explained. “I’m fortunate to be given a free reign to develop my own role, which is unusual for the public sector.
“We long ago took on the concept we can do more than just treat people when they’re poorly,” says Roy. “You can hopefully show that by utilising local food we can contribute to people’s good health and do good in the community.”
Mr Heath gave the WMN an example of his work: “Take Will Bowman of Gwavas Farm on the Lizard – he’s gone from being part-time seasonal employer to fill time, to all-year-round employer because we use his products.
“We help develop the suppliers – the philosophy we work on is that contracts are not just bits of paper, they are a continuous dialogue helping suppliers develop their businesses, as well as our needs.
“And most importantly it’s about confidence for our patients – if they are eating products they can recognise and know the provenance, that can make them feel better.”
A total of 80 per cent of the food budget of Cornish hospitals is now spent within the county.
“Now we go around the whole country showing what can be achieved,” says Mr Heath. “There’s good work going on around the country, but Cornwall is leading the way.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: Community pubs could be the answer
07-04-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
VILLAGERS should be able to buy their local pub and turn it into the centre of community life under plans backed by both landlords and alcohol campaigners.
Pubs which can prove they are more than just a watering hole should also receive tax breaks from local councils and could even be funded by charities, leading think-tank the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said.
A report warns community pubs are in danger of disappearing unless the Government takes urgent action to support them.
It comes after 100 pubs closed in Devon and Cornwall in the past four years, often being the last amenity in many villages to shut.
The Government has come under fire for planning increased alcohol duty rises which the industry fears will cripple many struggling landlords.
“They [pubs] are more than just businesses and pub closures can have a serious impact on the quality of local community life,” the report said.
It calls for ministers to “reward and incentivise” pubs which play a “positive role” in their local community.
Rick Muir, senior research fellow at IPPR, said the Government treating all licensed premises the same way is “killing off our community pubs”.
“Instead, responsible well-run community pubs should be encouraged and supported,” he said. “Our research shows community pubs aren’t just places to drink but also places where people meet their neighbours, where local clubs hold meetings and events and which support many important local services such as village post offices and general stores.”
According to figures released last month, there are 96 fewer pubs in Devon and Cornwall than in 2005. Torridge and West Devon constituency was the worst affected area, where 21 pubs – the equivalent of one in 10 – have closed in four years.
East Devon has lost 12, North Devon 11, South East Cornwall nine and North Cornwall six.
The IPPR report found pubs inject £80,000 in to the economy of their local area.
Mike Benner, chief executive of the Campaign for Real Ale, said: “The Government needs to recognise the benefit well-run community pubs bring to society and reward those that deliver genuine community benefit.”
Don Shenker, chief executive of Alcohol Concern, said: “Community pubs perform a valuable social function and are frequently the cornerstone of rural life, providing safe and friendly drinking environments.”
The IPPR has called for pubs to be given an automatic 50 per cent discount on business rates where they are local community hubs.
Some pubs could also apply to become Community Interest Companies and apply for grants from the charitable sector.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: ‘Refuse to sell it as a second home’
07-04-2009
Matt Chorley London Editor
PEOPLE should refuse to sell their house to second home-owners if they want village life to survive, TV property expert Kirstie Allsopp has claimed.
The Location, Location, Location host insisted “communities have to save themselves” and not rely on Government to pass laws banning the spread of second homes.
Ms Allsopp, who owns two holiday homes in the Westcountry as well as a permanent property in London, said: “If you want to keep your community alive, it is your responsibility to do that.
“Parish councils up and down the country need to come up with clever and imaginative ideas for keeping communities alive, supporting local business and shops,” she told BBC Radio 4.
“I don’t think you can legislate about these things.”
She clashed on the Today programme with Truro and St Austell MP Matthew Taylor, who wrote a report for Gordon Brown which called for home-owners to obtain planning permission to use properties part-time.
Housing minister Margaret Beckett this week rejected the idea, claiming it would be difficult to enforce and could infringe the human rights of house-buyers.
But Mr Taylor insists the problem will need to be addressed by a future government, with some villages being “destroyed” by the growing numbers of second homes. There are around 25,000 properties registered as second homes in Devon and Cornwall, with some areas reporting up to 40 per cent of houses standing empty for large parts of the year.
Mr Taylor warned: “In some communities, the numbers of holiday homes and holiday lets are such that the school becomes unviable, the local transport services become unviable, the shops close in the winter and the community itself dies.”
But Ms Allsopp, who owns a house near Broadhembury in Devon and recently bought a derelict farmhouse in Welcombe, near the northern border of Cornwall and Devon, said: “I think the responsibility is on the communities. Matthew Taylor is saying don’t convert a family home into a second home – well don’t sell it to someone who is going to have a second home.”
She also launched a robust defence of her decision to have “not just a second home but a third home” in the Westcountry.
Her new coastal property in Welcombe had been owned by a farmer and his wife and was unoccupied for 37 years.
“It is better for that house to be owned by me, who intends to spend time there with my family and let it to family and friends.
“I have employed Devon builders, I have used local craftsmen, we have been working there for three weeks. The pub has been serving us lunch and dinner because we don’t yet have a cooker. That is a good thing for the local community.
“Communities have to save themselves.”
Mr Taylor, who called for a trial crackdown on second homes in national parks, insisted Government action is needed: “Sometimes people do say they won’t sell to second home-owners but, of course, by definition the people selling are moving out of the community. They are going to sell for the best price in most cases.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Fawlty Towers no good for Devon and Cornwall tourism
07-04-2009
By Matt Chorley London Editor
BASIL Fawlty must be consigned to the guide books of history if tourism is to help kickstart the ailing economy, the Conservatives said last night.
Shadow culture secretary Jeremy Hunt claimed parts of the industry had “for too long” relied on “high prices and poor service”.
The long-standing stereotype captured in the Fawlty Towers series must be “banished once and for all” to ensure high-quality firms are not “let down by a few”, he added.
The popular 1970s BBC series, created by and starring John Cleese, was inspired by a stay at Gleneagles, a Torquay guest house which encapsulated the worst in customer service.
Under Tory plans, any business which failed to meet the expectations of 21st century travellers would be banned from accessing the support and marketing of Government funded agencies.
In a speech to tourism leaders, Mr Hunt accused Labour ministers of ignoring the industry.
But he cautioned against blaming the Government for everything, adding if government lack of interest in tourism has been part of the problem, it has not been the whole problem.
“If Government is to raise its game, the industry must follow suit. We still have much to do to improve the welcome tourists get when they come here,” he said. “For too long, some parts of the industry have been willing to tolerate high prices and poor service levels for the tourists we now have to compete to attract.
“We need to banish the Fawlty Towers stereotype once and for all and make sure that the excellent welcome and facilities offered by the majority of our tourism businesses are not let down by the low standards offered by a few.”
He called for a single industry standard for quality to ensure “no business should be able to take advantage of Government-funded tourism agencies unless they are accredited and meet minimum standards”.
Earlier this year, Christopher Rodrigues, chairman of tourism agency VisitBritain, criticised poor service in some parts of the hospitality industry.
“We had a period in which people could get away with not being of the highest quality,” he said.
“We’re now in an environment where you have to do quality. Poor value for money and poor service costs jobs and will cost more jobs in a recession.
“Threadbare towels, a previously owned bar of soap and a grumpy person who says ‘we don’t do breakfast before 8am and we don’t do it after 8.12am’ – you don’t get a lot of happy customers.”
The Conservatives said the tourism industry also had to “think more about its role as a key employer”, including ways of retaining staff for longer, investing in training and keeping skills up to date. Mr Hunt said: “Tourism is no candy floss industry. As a sector worth £114 billion a year, it is responsible for some 8 per cent of our GDP and employs more than two million people. As we seek to rebuild our economy, it has a vital role to play in rebalancing the economy away from dependence on financial services, housing and debt.
“We have proposed allowing local authorities to keep any increase in business rates that they attract for six years. They will therefore have a real incentive to attract new tourism businesses. And we will help them attract these new businesses by giving councils the discretionary power to cut business rates however they like. This will give them a real incentive to support the development of a local tourism industry.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: Grass is greener on local side
07-04-2009
By Neil Young
“IF we can have local food, we can have local fuel.”
The rationale behind David Croxton’s comment is hard to fault. And he and his company, Bical based at Williton, West Somerset, are showing how it can be made a reality.
They are farming miscanthus, or elephant grass, as a biofuel and expanding its use both nationally and across the world.
To add to the company’s kudos, it has now won the support of Honda, which recognises the potential of miscanthus as a “green” source of energy that has so far been sidelined. Honda Trading’s managing director, Toshiyuki Sakakibara, declared himself duly impressed on a visit to Bical, wheer he witnessed how the grass is grown and made ready for transport.
“Honda is thinking about what we can do for the environment – and this is a new source of energy for the future,” he said.
The benefits could be manifold. Farmers diversify their business and supply to the local community. Meanwhile, the local nature of the process means transport costs are reduced and the carbon footprint is minimised – elephant grass is carbon-neutral to produce anyway. The big electricity generators such as Drax at Selby, which customarily concentrate on coal burning, use the miscanthus as part of their energy mix.
That way lies progress in curbing our dependence on fossil fuels.
Such is the potential that Bical has been receiving enquiries the world over.
The grass is grown on what is known as “marginal land”, so it is not diverting that needed to grow food. It also lends itself to organic growing once the initial problem of weed control has been overcome.
For Mr Croxton and his colleagues, the message they have been trying to circulate for 10 years is that economic and environmental demands coalesce. But they see miscanthus as “the poor relative” of the renewables industry. The attention to date has been concentrated on high-profile and controversial wind turbines. “The irony is that, at the moment, biomass is the biggest contributor to renewable energy.”
Current figures show that around 4.9 per cent of the UK’s energy generation is from renewable sources. That’s a steep shortfall on the Government’s stated target of 10 per cent by 2010, and 20 per cent by 2020. So the rapid development of miscanthus and biomass could go some way to speeding that process, if only outlooks can be shifted.
Farmers are often reluctant to take up the crop, said Mr Croxton. “They like spraying their crops and looking after their animals. This is all bit new for some of them. We think biomass needs a better press than it has had. It benefits local farmers and it’s totally green.”
Then comes what could be taken as his mantra: “If we can have local food, we can have local fuel.”
It’s been a long journey. Bical was initially set up by farmers to diversify their interests. Now it is the biggest developer of miscanthus in Europe. In the UK, it works with power stations such as Drax, and utility companies such as EDF.
How, then, does a car company come to be so closely involved? “What Honda brings to Bical is the credibility of being able to sign big contracts,” said Mr Croxton.
Jeremy Edwards, of Honda Trading, said: “Different parts of Honda are involved in renewable energy. We make photovoltaic cells which are supplied all over the world. We have bioethanol projects.
“In Europe looked at what we could do with miscanthus. It is best in the UK, where it can be supplied for big electricity generators. Now we are signing deals to take ownership of the miscanthus crop and contract Bical for that.
“There are also opportunities for what we can do with the renewable package for cars. The idea is that, in the next five years, there will be hybrids of all Honda cars.”
Honda’s first crop is now being harvested in Somerset – and the corporation is looking to increase those 12 hectares to several thousand in the next few years. Where that might lead is anyone’s guess.
At a time when the need for rapid curbs on emissions, a steep rise in renewables, and an emphasis on local sourcing and sustainable communities can be linked, miscanthus could play an important part.
No-one pretends it is a panacea, but it could have a major role in creating a low-carbon economy and balancing the national energy mix.
As Mr Croxton puts it: “Dedicated generation of local fuel is going to happen.”
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Think Local: Loyalty card worth shouting about
07-04-2009
Lyn Barton
A PIONEERING loyalty card programme has scored an impressive success in just a fortnight.
The Heart of Cornwall scheme aims to boost loyalty to local businesses in the Camborne, Pool and Redruth corridor.
With just two weeks under its belt, it has already signed up 45 local businesses.
The message was taken to the streets by Redruth’s town crier, Alan Jewell, and Mayor Barbara Ellenbroek.
Matt Powell, business growth manager at CPR Regeneration, the urban regeneration company backing the scheme, said the feedback was very positive.
“The aim of Saturday was to get out and shout about the Heart of Cornwall card to shoppers and businesses and I’m delighted with the response we received,” he said.
“It’s great to have the support of Redruth’s town mayor, Barbara Ellenbroek, and the positive response we’ve had so far really shows how businesses are doing their bit to help promote the value of shopping locally.”
He said more than 150 loyalty cards were handed out to customers on Saturday. Meanwhile, businesses in the town were offering additional promotions to mark the official launch of the full Heart of Cornwall card.
A pilot scheme was launched in Camborne in November and was then rolled out across Redruth and Pool. It rewards shoppers who sign up as each business taking part offers a range of special prices or offers.
Businesses taking part so far include cafés, convenience stores, traditional butchers and computer shops. Shoppers who use their card receive a specially tailored benefit from each business, such as free drinks or a percentage off their bill.
The Heart of Cornwall was initially backed by the Civic Trust, an independent nationwide network dedicated to helping communities grow and thrive.
However, in February the organisation pulled out, blaming the recession and other demands on its resources.
The trust’s withdrawal meant that one element of the loyalty card scheme – a charitable donation – has had to be scrapped.
However, a spokesman for the CPR Regeneration said shoppers would still receive their incentives for buying locally. “The scheme has been simplified, but it still means that shoppers who buy locally will benefit from it,” he said.
Mr Powell added that cards were still available and urged people and businesses to sign up.
“The scheme is open to businesses in the Camborne, Pool and Redruth areas and I would encourage anyone interested in signing up to get in contact and experience the benefits of participating in the scheme. As an added incentive, we’re also offering businesses the chance to take advantage of two months’ free membership if they sign up now.”
To sign up to the free scheme, shoppers should enquire at businesses displaying the black and gold heart logo. Alternatively, the CPR team can be contacted at 01209 722099 for more help.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Ministers refuse cash for tourism campaign
24-03-2009
CAMPAIGN to attract millions of extra visitors to Britain will have half the funding tourism bosses hoped for after ministers refused to offer any financial support.
Tourism agency VisitBritain is stumping up £6.5 million for an overseas marketing drive in a bid to cash in on the tumbling value of the pound by presenting this country as a value-for-money holiday option.
The campaign is aimed at reversing the perception abroad that Britain is an expensive place to visit.
But the enterprise is to be scaled back after ministers refused a plea to match the £6.5 million from Treasury coffers.
It is hoped that the Westcountry can benefit from a large influx of extra visitors. Airlines and ferry companies with direct links into the South West – including Brittany Ferries and Air Southwest – have already reported increased interest from holidaymakers from France, Germany and Spain.
And South West Tourism is urging holiday firms in the region to continue providing high-quality services without resorting to unsustainable discounting.
Tourism is worth 12 per cent of the South West’s economy. A VisitBritain study has warned that some 50,000 jobs are at risk in the UK tourism industry as a result of the recession.
David Frost, director general of the British Chamber of Commerce, recently claimed tourism could be the sector which pulled the economy out of recession.
But he said the industry was “invisible” and warned “questions will be asked” if agencies fail to capatilise on the collapse of the pound to attract foreign visitors.
VisitBritain’s new campaign was aimed at attracting big-spending visitors from lucrative countries such as Japan, China, the US and Hong Kong, where the value of the pound has fallen considerably.
But the Government’s refusal to stump up extra funds means it will rely on the VisitBritain contribution instead of being a £13 million campaign.
Liberal Democrat culture spokesman Richard Younger-Ross said: “The Government is missing opportunity after opportunity.” The Teignbridge MP added: “With the value of the pound down – it’s now 25 per cent less expensive for tourism for the Eurozone and 37 per cent less for people from America – this is a time to invest because it will bring in visitors and that’s desperately needed for the economy.”
Last night, VisitBritain insisted it would work hard to stretch the fund as far as possible.
Bernard Donoghue, head of government affairs at the agency, said: “We’ve got one of the very few economic opportunities that come along to really promote Britain as a value destination.
“They (the Government) turned us down and we think that’s an opportunity lost. We’ll do it anyway, but we’ll do it with less money.”
Tourism minister Barbara Follett has made clear to the industry that “there is no additional funding available for this purpose”.
A spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, said: “While we are always ready to consider additional requests for funding, we have made our priority a package of measures for small and medium-sized businesses which will directly help the tourism industry and protect jobs.”
To mark British Tourism Week, the Western Morning News will be examining how the Westcountry could be in line for a promising summer, driven by economic conditions, high-profile marketing campaigns and a wealth of reasons to attract visitors by thinking local. Find out about some of the opportunities for both tourists and tourism businesses in a series of reports each day starting on Monday.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Tourists flock in their droves for local heritage fix
24-03-2009
THE Westcountry’s rich heritage can be “taken for granted” despite culture vultures spending hundreds of millions of pounds while visiting the region’s crown jewels, a tourism leader has said.
English Heritage, the Government’s historic structures protection agency, reckons tourists who are drawn to medieval castles, cryptic stone circles and sites of global significance spend up to £5 billion a year in the region.
The most iconic of the welter of historic attractions are undoubtedly the Jurassic Coast and the Devon and Cornwall’s mining structures, both of which have attained World Heritage status, a badge of approval also held by the Egyptian Pyramids and Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
Less heralded landmarks include reputedly the longest stone row in the world, which can be found about Burrator Reservoir on Dartmoor. Early Tudor artillery forts, prehistoric settlements on Dartmoor and early Bronze Age stone circles all contribute to what is an increasingly lucrative facet of the tourism industry.
The South West Observatory says visitor numbers to historic properties have remained broadly unchanged in the last seven years, but gross revenue levels have risen by a fifth in the same period.
Annette Cole, deputy director of South West Tourism, said it was easy to undervalue the magnetism of heritage.
She said: “Heritage is the third most popular activity for people that visit the South West.
“Around 42 per cent of people visit a heritage site when they come to the region. Six per cent of people say that heritage is the number one reason for coming down, so it really is important.
“It’s undervalued because it is around us all the time and it’s taken for granted. The number one reason people come here is the environment, and heritage is very much part of that.”
The South West covers just 19 per cent of the land area of England, yet it has 32 per cent of the country’s scheduled monuments, 26 per cent of all listed buildings and 18 per cent of the registered designed landscapes.
Including Stonehenge and the city of Bath, four of the 17 World Heritage sites in England can be found in the South West.
The mark is granted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) for major world cultural and natural heritage locations considered to have outstanding universal value.
The Dorset and East Devon Jurassic Coast became a Unesco site in 2001 while, in 2006, the region’s stone engine houses, wooden water wheels and countless shafts were globally recognised when the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape became was the most recent site in England to be listed. The structures are seen as potent symbols of the industrial revolution.
Heritage is particularly attractive to tourists from countries still in a relative adolescence, such as the US, which have a dearth of historical landmarks.
Ms Cole added: “Overseas visitors make up just 7 per cent of visitors, but when they come they come for the heritage. Bath, Stonehenge, it’s the iconic stuff they don’t have.”
There are an abundance of both natural and man-made features across Devon and Cornwall. Dartmouth Castle was begun in the late 14th century as a defence called “the Fortalice”, intended to protect homes of Dartmouth merchants from a sea attack.
Pendennis Castle in Cornwall was built between 1540 and 1545. Pendennis and St Mawes Castle form the Cornish end of the chain of coastal castles built by Henry VIII to counter a threat from France and Spain.
The third British Tourism Week started yesterday and finishes on Sunday. Through a week of events it will increase awareness of the success and importance of the UK’s fifth biggest industry. It also highlights the importance of spending money in the local economy as highlighted in the Western Morning News Think Local campaign, sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Councils told: Think local to arrange contracts
17-03-2009
COUNCILS are being told to “think local” when drawing up contracts to give small businesses a fighting chance of landing lucrative public sector deals.
Barriers which make it too time-consuming or uneconomical to bid for local authority work must be torn down while a greater focus is needed to ensure taxpayers are getting value for money.
The “get tough” message from ministers aims to counter the perception that officials in county, district and unitary councils favour working with a small number of big-name companies.
The Government is even considering setting a target for around a third of all money paid out in public sector deals to go to small businesses.
In a boost for the Western Morning News’s Think Local campaign, an independent study found there is “no doubt” that small firms can offer value for money for the taxpayer.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning, who also promote the important message of spending money within the local economy.
Councils are ordered to find ways to “stimulate markets” while also “removing barriers to entry for smaller suppliers”.
The Government has already demanded councils speed up payment of invoices to smaller firms, although a recent survey found only one in five authorities in Devon and Cornwall had taken specific action. Less than half of invoices were paid by the region’s councils within the 10-day target set by Business Secretary Lord Mandelson.
Local government expert Bill Roots yesterday published an urgent review of the way councils award contracts. It aims to help them make annual efficiency savings of 3 per cent, worth £90 off the average Band D council tax bill.
But Mr Roots warned some of those working in district councils – like those across Cornwall and rural Devon –were simply not up to the job.
He said making it easier for smaller suppliers to clinch contracts should be an “integral part” of the work of councils.
The report comes after Devon County Council this week unveiled its blueprint to get the county through the recession. Councillors pledged to plough millions of pounds into regeneration projects while raiding reserves to keep down council tax bills. And Cornwall’s new unitary authority – which comes into force on April 1 – has already pledged to make savings of £16 million a year, which could be used to cut tax bills or invested in improving services.
Local government minister John Healey yesterday stressed the “need to make every council tax pound stretch that much further” in the current economic climate. He urged them to adopt “smarter procurement practices”.
He said councils could work together in so-called Regional Improvement and Efficiency Partnerships to “compare the best deals”.
The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform has also launched an independent inquiry into the barriers small firms face when trying to bid for public sector contracts.
Crucially, it is looking at the practicality of setting a target of 30 per cent of all state spending to be secured by small businesses.
Cartwheel says Think Local for tourism
17-03-2009
A WESTCOUNTRY tourism organisation says industries which Think Local will build a better showcase for the region in reviving the great British holiday tradition.
Cartwheel Holidays, a leading non-profit tourism firm exclusive to the region, says the industry needs to link all elements which draw visitors to the region such as quality accommodation, locally sourced food, fun activities and local heritage, rather than promoting themselves separately if it’s to make the most of the holiday-at-home boom predicted this year.
In response to the changing economic climate, Cartwheel has relaunched its website in an expanded format, featuring not only its 570 accommodation listings, but also details of farm shops and farmers’ markets across the region, where visitors can buy locally produced food, numerous attractions and activities, plus information about the region’s counties and towns.
Gina Woodcraft, chief executive of Cartwheel Holidays, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year, said: “It’s about promoting the whole experience of the Westcountry.
“Everyone’s feeling the pinch, but visitors are more likely to be drawn to the region if we share our local knowledge and make it easier for them to imagine and believe they will have a good holiday before they book.
Currently the tourism industry is very accommodation focused.
“But, this is only a small part of the experience potential visitors are after. If we can become more integrated, show and deliver the experience they’re after, it will encourage people to return year after year. I believe this is our best chance to revive the Great British Holiday indefinitely.”
Covering Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset, the Cartwheel website offers integrated holiday information across the region. It’s hoped this and others like it, if they’re developed, will help address the £400 million hit taken by the wider economy due to the drop in visitor spend in the region last year, mainly through a fall in spending on eating out and visiting attractions.
Ms Woodcraft said: “By putting more information in one place, people can get a better feel for the area and the authentic Westcountry experience quickly and easily. This will encourage bookings and, once they’re here, help visitors find places that they otherwise wouldn’t know about.”
Food and drink organisation Taste of the West supports this approach and has provided Cartwheel with a comprehensive list of farm shops and farmers markets for the new website.
John Sheaves, chief executive of Taste of the West, said: “I think this approach makes a lot of sense. If we can get more people enjoying our delicious local food and drink during their stay here, it gives them even more reason to return.
“There’s no denying it’s one of the reasons people love visiting the region.”
For more information, visit www.cartwheelholidays.co.uk
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Conservatives seek to secure the future of pubs
17-03-2009
IT SOUNDS like the perfect election pitch. Cheaper beer for voting Conservative, writes Matt Chorley, London Editor.
But the party believes the only way the traditional pub can survive is with a radical rethink of the way Government treats drinkers, including reducing tax on the average pint.
The Tories today launch a “call to arms” to secure the future of the Great British Pub.
It includes demanding a crackdown on binge drinkers and landlords who ply their customers with super-strength alcopops, leaving the regulars in village pubs to sup their pint in peace.
Echoing the Western Morning News’ Think Local campaign, shadow culture secretary Jeremy Hunt said pubs were not just a “critical part of our heritage but they are often hubs for local communities helping social groups, sports clubs and often even the village shop”.
According to the British Beer & Pub Association, pubs are disappearing at record rates with four a week calling time in the South West. In total, 114 pubs across the region closed their doors in the second half of 2008.
Mr Hunt claims those wanting to enjoy a quiet drink in their local are being treated like booze-fuelled hooligans: “For too long the Government has tried to tackle binge drinking by punishing responsible drinkers and landlords.
“With massive tax hikes and heavy handed regulation all Labour will succeed in doing is closing down more pubs. This has to stop. We should be proud of our brewers and proud of our pub industry and do what we can to support it which is why today we are launching this campaign.”
The pub industry has warned trading conditions are some of the toughest they have ever seen. Meanwhile, the Government presses ahead with plans for “even higher taxes on beer and a proposed £300 million bill for extra red tape”, the BBPA said.
Some 44,000 jobs were lost in the industry in the past couple of years, with 59,000 under threat.
Earlier this week Tory leader David Cameron unveiled plans to allow councils to cut business rates for pubs and other treasured amenities if they are vital part of community life. The Conservatives are launching a petition, highlighting the fact that a third of the price of a pint of beer goes to the Treasury.
The campaign says the Government should cut taxes on lower alcohol drinks, such as beer, with the cost offset by raising duty on “problem drinks” like high strength ciders and alcopops.
The WMN’s Think Local campaign encourages people to support local businesses during the recession and is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Motorway food park ‘would help farmers’
17-03-2009
A SERVICE station which sells local produce to the public could sit alongside a food park which would help farmers add value to their products.
David Disney, who owns 20 acres off junction 27 of the M5, near Tiverton, went on a fact-finding mission to Cumbria to bring fresh ideas back to Devon. He visited the independently owned Tebay Services and Plumgarth, a company which was set up by a farmer in partnership with Asda, and cuts out the middlemen in getting local produce on to supermarket shelves.
Mr Disney now wants to apply the lessons he learned to junction 27, which has been at the centre of a prolonged planning wrangle.
He discovered that Plumgarth operates on a smaller scale than he anticipated. He now believes that proposals for facilities for storing, packing and freezing food may not be necessary, and that the purpose could be served by setting up an efficient delivery network.
It means the £30 million proposal, which could create up to 500 jobs, may be reliant on large firms taking up the space, if it receives permission for industrial use.
But, on a separate site nearby, Mr Disney now hopes developers will consider a model for a service station where local produce is served alongside a farm shop and a butcher’s counter.
Mr Disney said: “Being a farmer, I was hoping that I could have done something that would have a far greater farming objective. But in reality, there’s a lot of opportunity for farmers to add value to their products on their own farms, or in village buildings. What’s crucial is that it is then moved to market in some organised way.”
The idea that motorists should be able to buy fresh, local food, instead of overpriced pre-packed sandwiches, has won support from Taste of the West, and from Malcolm Dudley-Williams, who is behind the food park proposal and owns the adjacent land on which the services could be built.
His focus is now on persuading planners that the area near junction 27 should be designated for commercial use. He won the support of Mid Devon District Council in 2004, after seven years of wrangling. But the site was deleted from a list of areas which could be developed by the Government Office South West (GOSW), which believes it is not sustainable because workers would have to travel too far to get there.
But Mr Dudley-Williams believes access is excellent, with road and cycle routes, bus and rail services nearby. He said that well over 60 per cent of the population of Tiverton now commuted to work, with many of them travelling 40 miles or more, instead of an eight mile round-trip to the site. He says the current economic climate means those figures are escalating, meaning the designation of the site can be revisited.
He said: “I’m not doing this for fun. I’m doing it because, over the last 30 years, the local authority has never allocated the appropriate amount of land for employment. They have allowed Tiverton to turn into a dormitory town with very few job opportunities.
“In my opinion, it’s a completely unsustainable economy that has been allowed to develop. I think young people deserve the opportunity of working closer to home, instead of having to drive to Taunton or Exeter.”
A spokesman for GOSW said it was not opposed to a food park, but it objected to junction 27 being used as employment land.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Tory food labelling plans ‘break EU laws’
17-03-2009
Matt Chorley London Editor
CONSERVATIVE plans to prevent foreign food being packaged to appear British are illegal and could land the Government in court, a minister has claimed.
The Tories have launched a major campaign demanding “honest” food labelling amid growing concern that shoppers, keen to buy homegrown produce, are being misled.
They maintain it is possible to force retailers to provide detailed country of origin information on all labels.
However Labour’s farming minister Jane Kennedy told the Commons she has taken legal advice on the Tory plans which suggests they would break EU laws.
She insisted the origin of all ingredients need not be displayed on the label.
It puts the two main parties at loggerheads over how to solve the problem of cheap imports being relabelled to cash in on the growing trend towards buying British.
Movements like the Western Morning News’ Think Local campaign call for it to be made easier for customers to support local businesses.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning, who support us in spreading the message about the importance of spending money in the local community.
The Conservative campaign has identified chicken from Thailand, Brazilian beef and Danish pork all being passed off as British in well-known high street stores.
Both sides agree something must be done, with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs working on a voluntary agreement with the big supermarkets.
However, the momentum towards ensuring shoppers are not misled could be derailed over renewed legal wrangling. A Conservative government would write into law a new definition of country of origin for meat and meat products so labels mean what consumers assume.
Ms Kennedy told MPs she had read the Tories’ legal advice “with interest” but found it wanting.
“According to legal advice I received as recently as [Tuesday], in order to test the ideas presented by the Conservatives, the proposal is certain – not almost certain – to fail the legal test that the European Commission would set.”
She accused the Tories of “raising false hopes among livestock farmers and easy wins in the short term” instead of the Government’s approach to “genuinely bring about change for the better”.
Ms Kennedy also offered to “investigate” the possibility of making the advice public.
The Tories hit back, claiming the Government had failed even to propose a country of origin labelling scheme to the European Commission to gauge its reaction.
Shadow environment secretary Nick Herbert said: “The Government’s plan for a voluntary agreement on food labelling with retailers is past its sell-by date. Other EU countries fight for the interests of their consumers and their farming industries within the trading rules. It is time for the British Government to show the same spine.”
He insisted the Tory plans, unveiled at last week’s NFU conference, were not about restricting trade, but simply require UK processors and retailers to label their products appropriately.
Ms Kennedy accused the Tories of adopting a “blunderbuss approach”.
“If we were to have all country of origin information on all products, what would we do with, for example, a pizza that is entirely made in the UK but that might be made with imported wheat or cheese or pepperoni sausage?” she asked.
Extra-special pancake day
17-03-2009
CHILDREN at a Westcountry primary school had an extra-special pancake day after winning a box of cooking equipment in a national competition to promote local food.
Pupils at Spreyton Primary School used their prizes from winning the regional section of the British Food Fortnight competition to make pancakes and then hold a pancake race.
The competition involved making a local, seasonal meal using as few food miles as possible.
The menu the children cooked was pork and apple burgers with beetroot ketchup and potato wedges baked in goose fat, with local greens.
As well as making and eating the food, the children then continued the project in their science and maths classes, learning some valuable lessons about local food along the way.
The food came from local farms, village stores, the school herb garden and the children’s vegetable patches at home.
The pupils enjoyed the experience so much the school is now planning to grow vegetable patches in the playground so the children can grow their own food.
Having won the regional section of the competition, the school recently received a box containing a Kenwood food processor, blender, six electric hand blenders, tea towels and aprons, as well as much more.
Natacha Du Pont De Bie, a spokesman for the school, said: “The children were really excited when this huge box arrived - they’re really into it.”
She added that winning all the equipment would enable the pupils to cook even more.
She said: “The pancake race has been great - we’ve made pancakes with some of the equipment and it was really a celebration of what we did in September.”
British Food Fortnight is now in its eighth year and schools across the country use it as an opportunity to teach young people about food and the benefits and pleasures of eating fresh, seasonal and local produce.
The Western Morning News Think Local campaign is sponsored by
independent financial adviser Worldwide Financial Planning.
Leaders united in helping Devon to weather the storm
19-02-2009
A GROUND-breaking conference yesterday set the new mood for Devon as it prepares to spend its way out of the recession with a mixture of firm resolve and fresh thinking.
As the county’s biggest “business”, Devon County Council, with its £1.2 billion budget, is leading the way with the kind of strategic thinking that pulled it back from the depths of despair during the disastrous foot and mouth outbreak of 2001.
To date, the council has made a £5 million capital investment towards a range of initiatives including the Devon Employment Space Strategy, Skypark, Renewable Energy for Devon and community infrastructure in coastal towns. It has also re-invested £48 million from the sale of Exeter International Airport into local projects.
The Weathering the Storm conference was told the reserves had been raided to ensure the council tax was “kept low” but that extra cash was available to ensure major economic projects were accelerated.
The leader of Devon County Council Brian Greenslade said: “What we are trying to do, particularly with this conference, in some respects is similar to what we did with the awful foot and mouth outbreak in 2001.
“It’s no good waiting until all the F&M cases had been resolved – we had to start looking ahead at how we would help the Devon economy recover once the disease issue was brought under control.
“In some respects, what we are trying to do with this conference is get the partners working together so that when the economic recovery does turn up we will be positioned as well as we can be to make good use of it.”
Key to that, he said, is a “shared understanding” by the public and private sector of both the issues and the potential solutions.
Mr Greenslade said: “What we do matters to the stability of the economy and I think within the business community they will be hoping that we will give priority to the economy so that together with them we can target resources at things we all agree will be beneficial in the current climate.”
Top of the agenda for the council will be an acceleration of both the Exeter Science Park and Skypark developments, to ensure both major employment sites are ready to be occupied once the economic recovery arrives and investors return.
Coun Humphrey Temperley, Devon County Council executive member for strategic planning, regional and international affairs, said that both projects were being “accelerated”, with the preferred developer for Skypark now selected – but not yet announced – and a chairman for the science park board due to be appointed next month.
The 37-hectare Skypark alone offers the potential for 7,000 new jobs near Exeter International Airport but has been held back due to land covenants. He said the council would also be helping to relocate the Clyst Rovers Football Club “earlier”.
“I’m very clear that the right reaction to a recession is to get on with the development work and to get on with getting onto the site and letting the contracts for the road access and so on,” Coun Temperley said.
“We have a reasonably sound financial position at the county council so we are just about to get a package together to fund the Clyst Honiton bypass that gives access to the Skypark site.”
The council’s over-arching strategy is to help both the disadvantaged northern and western parts of rural Devon and capitalise on the success of Exeter.
Both Skypark and the science park, and the continued growth of the University of Exeter, are key to the latter and will, he said, enable Exeter to emerge from the recession earlier than many other parts of the UK.
“It has a very good sound basic economy so the problems we had a year ago are still there – there’s no readily available high-quality employment land and as soon as the economy starts moving we want to be in a position where developers will come to us and buy our space at Skypark,” he added.
Coun Temperley said the authority would also be putting more effort into pulling European funding into Devon – a county which, unlike neighbouring Cornwall, does not enjoy hundreds of millions of pounds of EU Conve