Daniel Clark
Local Democracy Reporting Service

Councillors have unanimously backed plans to spend £2.5m to repair the storm-damaged A379 at Slapton but admit it is not known how long they will last.

The section of road to Strete Gate has been closed since March after most of it was washed away or undermined during Storm Emma.

Image source, Devon County Council

Work, subject to planning permission being granted, is set to begin in the summer.

The road should be reopen by the autumn after Devon County Council's cabinet approved the plans.

But the council accepts that at some stage in the future, the loss of the road is inevitable and that it is unknown how long these repairs will protect the road for.

Del Crookes
BBC News Online

A man has died after an accident on the A39 at Penryn last month.

Cameron Grieve, who was from the town, collided with a Volkswagen Golf while walking along the Penryn bypass at around 04:20 on Saturday 14 April.

Image source, Google

The 41-year-old died on Wednesday at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth.

Del Crookes
BBC News Online

A tawny owl has been saved by a couple who were driving between Halton Quay and St Dominic, near Saltash, on Tuesday night.

Alan Williams and his fiancee Sam Rogers found "Fluff" in the middle of the road.

"We called the RSPCA for advice and just as we finished speaking to them, some local residents came out and said tawny owls had been nesting in their barn for the last two years," he said.

"So we put him back and he seemed none the worse for his ordeal."

Del Crookes
BBC News Online

Campaigners in Cawsand, who were trying to save a derelict pub, say they have succeeded in raising enough money to save it, external.

Although the original target of £150,000 was not reached to buy the Old Ship Inn, 320 investors came forward with £137,533 and an agreement has been reached with the sellers.

It is hoped the Grade II listed building, which has been empty since 2013 after a fire, will be turned into five affordable flats for local people.

The proposal also includes a ground floor bar as well as a children's play area and cafe.

The Peninsula Trust says it hopes to have the legal paperwork finished by July.

English Heritage records show the building was built around 1750 and over the years it is believed to have hosted many famous people, including Admiral Lord Nelson.

The pub was empty for four years before the fire.

Vicky Clayton cannot give her son the thing he wants most in the world - his dad.

BBC Radio Devon

The government has announced that £83m is to be spent on upgrading the North Devon Link Road.

The multi-million pound plan, which follow years of campaigning, includes widening three sections between Barnstaple and South Molton.

It is hoped the works will be complete by 2022.

The road is a notorious accident black spot - earlier this month a 27-year-old man was killed, the most recent of many fatalities since 2000, external.

Haulier Bill Hockin, who uses the road regularly, believes that it should have been a dual carriageway from the outset.

"The Landkey junction, that's a bad one, just going out of Barnstaple," he said. "There's several others as you go up through.

"The fact that we've had these deaths, I think, really tells its own story."

BBC Radio Devon

A Devon pub is hosting a new weekly get together to try to combat loneliness in the local community.

The TLC (Tea Laughter and Company) gatherings at the Brook Inn at Plympton St Maurice aim to bring together people who may feel isolated, alone or in need of company.

The sessions will run every Thursday.

Image source, Google

BBC Radio Cornwall

Highways England says underpasses have been included in plans to dual the A30 in Cornwall, after a pressure group said it feared pedestrians would be killed trying to cross it.

The Cornwall Countryside Access Forum says not enough thought had been put into how pedestrians and cyclists would cross the road between Chiverton Cross and Carland Cross.

Image source, Highways England

Project manager, Josh Hodder says they are rethinking the Chiverton junction after feedback from the consultation, external.

"We did a lot of survey work to understand where the desired routes were for cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians," he said.

"It didn't identify Chiverton Cross as being a desirable route. Following the feedback from the consultation, it's been raised that that is absolutely a desirable route for people to get from St Agnes down to Truro and something needs to be done there."

Richard Whitehouse
Local Democracy Reporting Service

Wheelie bins look set to be rolled out across Cornwall after being selected as the best way to collect household rubbish in future.

The council's contract for waste and recycling collection services is coming to an end and the authority is reviewing what is collected and how.

Image source, LDRS

Under the plans, the council wants to move to a weekly recycling collection for households and a fortnightly collection of other household waste. Food waste would be collected weekly.

At the moment, households have their recycling collected fortnightly and a weekly collection for other "black bag" waste.

People would be given two caddies to collect food waste - one will be for use inside the home to collect food in the kitchen with another, larger caddy to be used to deposit the waste which will be collected.

The cost of providing the bins and seagull-proof sacks would be £4m and the annual cost to the council would be £800,000.

BBC Radio Cornwall

Campaigners say people will die on the new dualling of the A30 in Cornwall unless more safety measures are put in place.

The eight mile stretch between Carland Cross and Chiverton Cross will cost £290m to upgrade.

The Cornwall Countryside Access Forum, external says not enough thought has been put into how pedestrians and cyclists will cross the road.

Highways England says there are several underpasses in the detailed plans but they are rethinking the Chiverton junction after feedback from locals.

Jenna Hawkey
BBC News Online

Police are appealing for witnesses after an altercation in Portreath., external

The incident happened between 19:30 and 19:45 on 10 May on Beach Road.

A woman in her 40s was reported to have been in an argument with a man known to her.

Police would like to speak to , externaltwo women who were in the area at the time and spoke to the victim after the incident.

Jenna Hawkey
BBC News Online

Image source, A Life More Ordinary Project

A collection of poems, cartoons and images created by well-known artists alongside people with dementia will go on public exhibition in Exeter next week.

The artworks, which are part of the University of Exeter's ‘A Life More Ordinary’ project, aim to capture the multifaceted experience of life with dementia.

They were created by photographer Ian Beesley, cartoonist Tony Husband and poet Ian McMillan in collaboration with members of Age UK Exeter’s 'Budding Friends' project. , external

Image source, A Life More Ordinary Project

Together, the artists and Budding Friends group created “The Allotment of Time, external”, a book about what it is like to live with a dementia diagnosis.

Selected work from the book will be on show at the Forum at the University of Exeter from 21-23 May, before moving to the Guildhall Shopping Centre in Exeter on 24 May.

Jenna Hawkey
BBC News Online

Image source, RNLI

RNLI lifeguards will return to Seaton beach for the 2018 season after a successful trial last summer.

Patrols start on the south east Cornwall beach near Looe on 19 May.

Plymouth Herald

Plymouth’s new council leader Tudor Evans has announced his top team, external, which will run the city after Labour regained power in the local elections.

Del Crookes
BBC News Online

Image source, Rebecca Wilbur

A cat called Smudge, which had its own Facebook page, external, has died aged 13 in Penzance.

The pet was a familiar sight for residents living near Morrab Gardens and tributes left online say he was often seen wandering around the area and sleeping in the sun.

Vets think he died after being hit by a car.

Smudge has been buried underneath his favourite palm tree and opposite the fountain in the gardens.

Richard Whitehouse
Local Democracy Reporting Service

More than half of households in Cornwall admit to throwing away bread and leftover meals.

New figures from a survey carried out by Cornwall Council , externalalso show that 43% of households had thrown away vegetables while 36% said they had put fruit in the bin.

However 14% of households said they did not throw away any food.

Cornwall Council is currently looking to introduce food waste collections so that food waste is not collected with normal household rubbish.

Image source, LDRS

Cornwall Live

A teenage drink-driver caused a catastrophic multi-vehicle crash, external when he lost control of his Volkswagen Golf and swerved onto the wrong side of the A38 before colliding head-on with another vehicle.

Lynne French
BBC News Online

A motorcyclist in his 30s has died following a crash in Torquay.

The accident involving a the motorbike and a car happened this morning just before 07:30 on St Marychurch Road.

The driver of the BMW was uninjured.

Anyone who witnessed the accident or has any information is asked to contact police.

Cornwall Live

As part of Mental Health Awareness Week, paramedic Sasha Johnston has spoken out about her own experiences and how she's trying to help other ambulance staff., external

BBC Radio Devon

Image source, Outdoor Classroom Day

More than 13,000 children across the South West are having lessons outdoors today after 82 schools in the region signed up to Outdoor Classroom Day, external.

A new report by national charity 'Learning through Landscapes' shows that eight out of ten teachers don't think there is enough learning outdoors., external

Earlier this year the government pledged £10m, external to help fund outdoor learning.