BBC Radio Devon

People in parts of Torbay, including Babbacombe and Hele, have been protesting about an axed bus service which they say was "vital" and "a real public service".

The number 65 was discontinued last April and the Conservative-led unitary council said it was discussing future bus services with the Torbay Development Trust.

Independent Councillor Robert Excell, executive lead for community services, said he was hopeful the service would be restored soon.

BBC Spotlight

NHS and council bosses say "doing nothing is not an option" as they plan a shake-up of Cornwall's health and social care services.

There are proposals for a shared budget between NHS and council-run health and social care through a plan called an "accountable care system".

Campaigners fear it will lead to privatisation.

Conservative councillor and emergency department consultant Andy Virr is chairing a panel of six councillors leading an inquiry into Cornwall's plans.

He said the plans were not a "back door to privatisation", and a joint commission for health and social care would be set up to decide who was responsible for each piece of work.

BBC Spotlight

The number of people needing legal and consumer advice in south Devon is "increasing dramatically", a consultant has said.

Angie Manning (pictured), from What's Your Problem Torbay, said she would not be able to see everyone who needed help if she worked 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

She said cuts to legal aid in 2013, as well as the roll-out of universal credit, meant more people had "nowhere to go".

She said: "These are ordinary, hard-working families. They desperately need [legal] representation, especially for family court matters, and their provision isn't there anymore."

She added that a lack of disposable income for some families had left them unable to "access justice".

Ms Manning said she was predicting that this would "only get worse" with the changes to the benefit system under universal credit.

Harriet Bradshaw
Reporter

A man charged with murder in Exeter has been remanded in custody after an appearance at the city's magistrates' court.

The 36-year-old has been charged in connection with the death of a 32-year-old woman.

Paramedics were called to a property on Alphington Road on Wednesday where police later deemed the death suspicious. The woman's next of kin had been informed, officers said.

The man, from Exeter, is due to appear at Crown Court next month.

Ryan Morrison
BBC News Online

An appeal to recover a stolen voice machine has seen an outpouring of offers of money and replacements.

The computer tracks the eye movements made by 16-year-old Miya Thirlby, who has cerebral palsy and is deaf. It says the name of a picture she looks at out loud, allowing her to communicate with people.

A fundraising campaign passed its target in less than a day, and the original appeal has had tens of thousands of retweets, including from celebrities such as Andy Murray, Paul Gascoigne and Alan Shearer.

One response was from Jo Griffiths, who offered a solution. She replied to the original post from Mr Johnson on Twitter, offering to give equipment for Miya to use.

BBC Weather

Any fog patches are lifting away through the morning, leaving a dry day with sunny spells.

The wind will strengthen through the day, especially to the west of the county by the late afternoon.

Maximum temperature: 9C (48F).

Ryan Morrison
BBC News Online

A number of celebrities - including Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoigne and Andy Murray - have shared a tweet appealing for the return of a disabled girl's stolen computer.

Miya Thirlby, 16, who is deaf and has cerebral palsy, uses the eye-tracking machine to communicate with her family.

She is deaf, has cerebal palsy and epilepsy and so can't speak. The machine says the name of pictures she looks at on the computer.

It was stolen from the back seat of her father's car and he has taken to Twitter to ask for its return.

This has led to a fundraising campaign that met the £6,000 goal in less than a day.

Devon Live

A busy road in Paignton has reopened as police continue to probe an early-hours attack which left a man needing hospital treatment for serious injuries, external.

Rob England
BBC News Online

Fire and ambulance crews were called after a vehicle overturned in Woodbury earlier this morning.

It happened at about 07:57 on Tedstone Lane.

Firefighters reported there were no injuries and both occupants were able to exit the vehicle.

Rob England
BBC News Online

A pedestrian was taken to hospital with "serious injuries" following a car crash in Plymouth, police say.

Officers said a 81-year-old woman was taken to Derriford Hospital, "where she currently remains" after the crash about 18:30 yesterday on North Prospect Road.

The crash involved a Ford Ka, containing a male driver and female passenger, which was travelling towards Seymour Road.

Both driver and passenger were uninjured, police said, and the road was closed for three-and-a-half hours for "a full forensic investigation".

Cornwall Live

A young footballer floored a teacher with a single punch causing him a serious brain injury at the end of a boozy night out in Newquay, external.

Ryan Morrison
BBC News Online

Nearly £7,000 has been raised in less than a day to replace a piece of equipment giving a girl in Plymouth the ability to communicate with her family after it was stolen from her father's car.

Sixteen-year-old Miya Thirlby is deaf and has both cerebral palsy and epilepsy. She can't speak and so communicates through a machine that speaks aloud the name of a picture she looks at. The machine tracks her eye movements.

Her father, Paul Johnson, launched an appeal on Twitter to find the stolen machine, which was retweeted tens of thousands of times - including by celebrities such as Paul Gascoigne, Alan Shearer and Dawn French.

This has led to a fundraising campaign to pay for a replacement device, but Mr Johnson said the money would go to the Children's Hospice South West charity if the original was returned.

Have you any pictures you want to share? If so, please email us.

Rob England
BBC News Online

A 36-year-old man has been charged with murder in connection with the death of a woman from Exeter, police have said.

The body of the 32-year-old was found by ambulance crews in a property on Alphington Road on Wednesday. The death is being treated as suspicious.

Police said the woman’s next of kin had been informed, but formal identification was yet to be completed.

The local man is due to appear before Exeter Magistrates’ Court later.

BBC Spotlight

Campaigners in Cornwall are protesting plans for the NHS to share a budget with the local council.

They said the proposals, called an "accountable care system", could lead to a form of privatisation, which NHS and local authority bosses have denied.

Managers said the "one plan approach", combining all the budgets of health and social care providers, would make better use of the money being spent.

A spokesman for NHS Kernow said: "Our current system is not able to deliver the care that we need to. We're overspending and not able to provide the right outcomes for our patients."

Twitter

Rob England
BBC News Online

A person left trapped after a milk float was involved in a crash has been freed by firefighters.

Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service reported a person was released from the vehicle at Trethevy Quoit, Darite, at about 22:40 last night.

The casualty treated by paramedics at the scene and the milk float made safe, firefighters said.

BBC Radio Devon

• In Exeter, Polsloe Road is blocked following an accident between Sampsons Lane and Heavitree Road
• In Plymouth, rush hour traffic is building up on Tavistock Road heading towards Derriford
• In Ebford, on the A376 Exmouth Road, there is slow moving traffic heading towards Clyst St George
• The Shaldon Ferry will be running until 16:30
• No problems have been reported at Exeter Airport

Devon Live

An investigation has been launched by police following a collision involving a woman and a car along a major Plymouth road, external.

BBC News England

Fresh strikes are expected to cause more disruption for rail passengers in the latest 24-hour walkout over safety.

RMT union members at South Western Railway are taking action for the third time in less than a week.

Image source, Neil Hall

The union said scrapping guards and introducing driver-only operated trains risked passenger and staff safety. But rail companies insisted the move was safe and already widely used.

South Western Railway, external, which operates in areas including London Waterloo, Reading, Exeter and Southampton, said it expected to run more than 70% of its weekday timetable, and would use longer trains to provide extra seats.

Operators Northern, Merseyrail and Great Anglia are also being hit by industrial action.