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Daniel Clark
Local Democracy Reporting Service

Bus operator Stagecoach is set to back down on its decision to increase child fares by 200% after a raft of angry protests.

There was a public outcry when the bus company announced it was scrapping the £1 child add-on tickets which was first introduced seven years ago, without informing or consulting with councillors or passengers.

Image source, LDRS

Instead it announced it would be bringing in single fares or £3 dayriders for children, which equated to an increase of 200%.

An adult travelling with one child for a day of travel within Exeter will now have to pay £7 - a £4 adult dayrider plus £3 child dayrider - rather than £4.90 - a £3.90 adult dayrider plus £1 child add-on.

Single parents and families with tight budgets have said they are no longer able to travel by bus, are becoming socially isolated, or are finding it cheaper to take the car or train.

At a Devon County Council Cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning, Councillor Emma Brennan, said that a meeting on Thursday, the operator would be presenting a new set of fares.

Stagecoach has been contacted for further comment in relation to the meeting scheduled for Thursday.

Dick Straughan
BBC Radio Cornwall

A fire that ripped through sheltered housing in Truro is believed to have started in a bin store, police say.

The blaze, at Merrifield Close, saw 60 firefighters and six fire engines at the scene during its height after it broke out at about midnight.

Six homes were damaged and several residents were evacuated from properties. They have all been accounted for.

Cornwall Council said no-one was injured and that those affected had been found temporary accommodation

The blaze is being treated as suspicious.

BBC Radio Devon

On Marldon Road, near Paignton, close to Maidenway Road, there are reports of an accident.

BBC Radio Devon

The axing of a special child bus fare by Stagecoach is being discussed by Devon councillors.

Previously, a parent and child could travel together all day for £4.90 - £3.90 for the parent, with a £1 add-on for the child - but this has now increased to a total of £7.

A motion going before Devon County Council's cabinet claims the removal of the child add-on fare is causing hardship, especially to poorer families.

Operator Stagecoach said the £1 add-on started as a promotion to encourage families to use the bus more and, after not changing for a number of years, was no longer sustainable.

Sophie Pierce
BBC Radio Devon

Members of Devon County Council's cabinet have voted to phase out the authority's use of single-use plastic food and drink packaging by 2020.

The council used more than 321,000 items of plastic in its cafes and catering last year, the majority of which was drinks bottles, a meeting was told.

Public health and environmental cabinet member Roger Croad of the Conservative-led authority said the council had to get its own house in order before preaching to anyone else.

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

Police in Falmouth are warning against so-called tombstoning off a town pier because it could be potentially fatal.

Officers said on Facebook, external that they were seeing a rise in reports of the activity, which sees people plunging into open water from a great height, from the Prince Of Wales Pier and other locations as a result of the "ever warming sea and weather".

They added: "Not only does this activity disrupt the comings and goings of the ferry services, it also poses a risk to life due to the unknown of what's in the water below.

"At low tide you can often see large objects such as shopping trolleys which pose a danger at high tide."

Image source, Google

Elderly and disabled residents are evacuated as flames destroyed a housing complex in a "suspicious" blaze.

Hannah Stacey
BBC Radio Cornwall

A man rescued the female occupant of a sheltered housing property in Cornwall while "beams were crashing down", a Cornwall Councillor says.

Sixty firefighters and six engines spent three hours dealing with the fire in Merrifield Close in Truro after it broke out at about midnight.

Six residents - some elderly, some with disabilities - were evacuated from their bungalows. There were no reported serious injuries.

Police are treating the fire as suspicious.

Cllr David Harris said he was proud of how the community reacted to the emergency, and that "everybody was out helping people, taking them into their homes".

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

The first case of the tree disease ash dieback has been confirmed on a Devon Wildlife Trust site and there is evidence it is on at least five other sites, the charity has confirmed.

Image source, Forestry Commission

The trust, which manages 50 nature reserves across Devon, totalling 1,940 hectares (4,800 acres), said the Forestry Commission confirmed the presence of the Chalara fraxinea fungus that causes ash dieback, on the Dunsdon nature reserve, on Dartmoor near Holsworthy.

Trees with symptoms have also been recorded at Halsdon, on the River Torridge; Meeth Quarry, near Hatherleigh; Dunsford in the Teign Valley, and The Rough, near Honiton.

He said the trust was to map where the biggest and most high-risk ash trees were, those close to roads and public footpaths, as "any large diseased trees posing a risk to the public will have to be felled".

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

A fire that ripped through sheltered housing in Truro is being treated as suspicious, a police detective at the scene has confirmed.

The blaze, at Merrifield Close, saw 60 firefighters and six fire engines at the scene during its height after it broke out at about midnight.

Six homes were damaged and several residents were evacuated from properties. They have all been accounted for.

Cornwall Council said no-one was injured and that housing and adult social care staff were supporting affected residents, with "the majority able to return to their homes".

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Trains running between Exeter, London and the north of England have seen some disruption while work to improve flood defences at Cowley Bridge has been carried out.

It's hoped the water diversion work will increase the rail network's resilience and reduce the impact of flooding on customers.

Flooding at Cowley made national headlines in 2012 when the line was closed for several weeks.

BBC Radio Devon

Mayor of Torbay Gordon Oliver says the local council simply does not have the money to redevelop or refurbish Oldway Mansion in Paignton, and should not borrow any to carry out such work.

A council working party has produced a report which said the building could be restored and brought back into public use at a cost of about £15m over four years, with the money coming from grant funding.

However, Mr Oliver said he believed it would cost much more to put right and that he would "not support borrowing millions" for work on such an "enormous property".

He said: "I'm a realist and the real world says a lot more needs to be done to achieve a business plan that is viable for this property."

Mr Oliver has upset campaigners by deciding to go ahead with the sale.

Torbay Council confirmed the mayor's decision had been called in and scrutiny committee member would be discussing the issue.

Ross Ellis
BBC Radio Cornwall

Former England international wicket-keeper Jack Richards has been playing for Falmouth in the Cornwall Premier League.

Jack played in eight test matches for England, making 133 against Australia at the WACA, Perth in 1987. He also featured in 22 One Day Internationals.

The 59-year-old has donned the gloves once again to help out the Cornish team. He's also been coaching young players.

Jack told BBC Radio Cornwall's John Martin about his continued love for the game...

Daniel Clark
Local Democracy Reporting Service

Two people spent six weeks this winter in East Devon living in the back of a broken-down car during the Beast from the East.

The duo, who were staying in Axminster, were offered temporary accommodation in Exmouth and were even driven to a shelter, but only stayed for one night as 'they didn't have access to drugs".

The tale, told by Cllr Andrew Moulding at the East Devon District Council (EDDC) Cabinet meeting last week, was used as an example of the growing problems of homelessness - a national issue that is becoming more demanding in the Devon district.

In response, John Golding, strategic lead for housing, said he was "familiar with the case".

He added: "We accept it is our responsibility to assist but we cannot force them to stay in temporary accommodation and in this case we did our duty. We did not solve the problem but we met our statuary and moral duty."

Councillor Jill Elson, EDDC's cabinet member for communities, said the authority was taking action to ensure the best possible arrangements are in place to provide suitable accommodation for homeless people, advise them on their needs and support them through what is a tough time for individuals and families.

Plymouth Live

Police say there will be no prosecutions in connection with a horrific crash that killed three people, external - including a six-year-old boy - near Landrake in South East Cornwall last July.

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

Housing officials and social care staff are supporting residents affected by a fire at a sheltered housing complex in Truro, Cornwall Council says.

The blaze, at Merrifield Close, saw 60 firefighters and six fire engines at the scene during its height after it broke out at about midnight.

Six homes were damaged and several residents were evacuated from properties. They have all been accounted for.

The authority tweeted there are no reports of any injuries and that Cornwall Housing and adult social care staff "are supporting residents, with the majority able to return to their homes".

BBC Spotlight

A special song has been recorded by Truro Cathedral Choir, ahead of the one year anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire in London on Thursday.

The song called 'Grenfell From Today' is about the loss of life, the courage of survivors and emergency services and the community spirit felt after the tragedy.

Proceeds from the sale of the song will go to the charities Cornwall Hugs Grenfell and the Grenfell Foundation.

Esme Page is the founder of Cornwall Hugs Grenfell...

BBC Business News

Pub chain JD Wetherspoon has said it will replace champagne with sparking wines from the UK from next month.

The company's founder, Devon-based Tim Martin, who campaigned for Brexit, said it was part of a transition away from products made in the European Union.

Under the plan, British wheat beer and alcohol-free beer will replace the current beers brewed in Germany.

Mr Martin said the new drinks would be cheaper than the European Union products that they are replacing.

The move was part of a review of all products over the next six to 24 months, he said, adding: "We intend to honour existing contracts with EU suppliers, some of which have several years to run. However, we are starting to make the transition to non-EU trade now."

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The drink-drive limit in England is 35 micrograms per 100ml of breath.