Vanessa George was found guilty of sexually abusing children in her care in 2009.

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

Exeter's Magistrates' Court is to be integrated into the city’s combined court building after the announcement the magistrates' court's neighbouring police station is up for sale.

The Ministry of Justice said the decision had been taken because the shutting of the Heavtiree Road station's custody suite and a commitment by police "to leave the site by 2019" meant the court was "unsuitable for custodial work".

It added the combined court in Southernhay Gardens - which houses the city's crown and county courts, as well as taking some magistrates' hearings - would "receive investment for additional hearing rooms".

The move would also mean that "all cases will remain in the city," the ministry said.

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

A woman and a girl have been arrested after a hand bag was snatched in Tiverton, police say.

Officers said, external a woman in her 60s was unharmed but left shaken after her bag was taken in the West Exe South area of Tiverton at about 16:25 on Tuesday.

A 16-year-old girl was arrested on suspicion of robbery, and an 18-year-old woman arrested on suspicion of robbery and being in possession of a Class-A and Class-B drug after investigations led officers to an address in Kings Crescent in Tiverton.

Both are in custody awaiting questioning.

Police have appealed for witnesses.

British and Irish divers who helped rescue 12 boys and their football coach from a Thai cave return to the UK.

Twitter

Mimi Walter, 19, is sharing photos of herself afterwards as a warning to others.

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

Plans for a merger of two police forces in the South West are on hold after bosses at both forces failed to reach a unanimous decision about whether to submit them to the Home Office.

Proposals were put forward to combine the Devon and Cornwall force with Dorset to increase operational efficiency, the number of officers and deal with "significant funding challenges".

Both forces had agreed the business case and the decision was due to be made on Tuesday.

However, Devon and Cornwall Police Commissioner Alison Hernandez's current view was "not to support the submission of the business case to the Home Office", Dorset Police said.

Ms Hernandez was to bring the case to the Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel meeting for "further discussion" on Friday 5 October, it added.

A final decision was due to be made on Monday 8 October after meetings by police and crime panels of both forces, "which are taking place within the next 10 days", Dorset Police said.

BBC Radio Devon

A Plymouth paedophile has lodged an application for her release from prison with the Parole Board, external, it has confirmed.

Forty-seven-year-old Vanessa George, from Plymouth, was jailed indefinitely in 2009 for sexually abusing children while she worked at a city nursery.

She sexually abused children in her care, taking photographs on her phone of her abusing toddlers, and swapped indecent images over the internet.

Image source, Devon and Cornwall Police

At her sentencing, the judge said she would serve at least seven years for her crimes which "plumbed new depths of depravity". Two other people were also jailed in the case.

George had applied for parole in 2016 but was rejected, the Daily Mail reported, external.

A spokesman for the Parole Board confirmed George's review had been referred to it and the board would be "following standard processes".

They added that the processes would determine "if someone would represent a significant risk to the public after release".

Carys Edwards
Correspondent, BBC Spotlight

Food bought for schools, prisons and hospitals may in future be sourced closer to home.

The South West Business Council is piloting a scheme to encourage more organisations to buy from local producers.

The scheme is backed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

The aim is to get a third of organisations buying from local sources within five years.

Sarah Harrison, catering operations manager at Devon Norse - which provides catering services to private and public sector clients including Devon County Council, schools and NHS sites - says money will go back into the South West....

BBC Radio Devon

On the A30 after Okehampton Services, heading towards Exeter, one lane is closed due to a crash and recovery work.

Food tempted the West Caucasian tur back to her herd, zookeepers said.

BBC Radio Cornwall

• The A30 between the Allet turn-off and the Chiverton Cross roundabout is partially blocked due to a crash. Traffic is slow-moving
• Staying on the A30, and there are also reports heading westbound near Chiverton Cross of a broken-down vehicle

The Daily Mail

A female paedophile hopes to be out of prison by Christmas after lodging a new application for her release with the Parole Board, external.

Vanessa George, 47, was jailed in 2009 for molesting and photographing up to 64 children while on duty at a Plymouth nursery. She tried to walk free in 2016 after serving her minimum sentence of seven years but had her appeal turned down.

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

Image source, Kingsbridge Fire Station

Two fire crews are still at the scene of a large thatched roof blaze, external in the South Hams in Devon.

Eight crews were dealing with the blaze in Ford, north of Holbeton, at its height on Tuesday after the alarm was raised at about 20:30.

It was reduced to four by midnight.

The two remaining crews are damping down hotspots

No-one was injured in the blaze. The cause is being investigated.

Image source, Kingsbridge Fire Station

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

A goat-antelope which escaped from a zoo in Devon has returned to her herd, staff say.

The female mountain-dwelling West Caucasian tur broke free from Paignton Zoo on Monday.

The animal, which is listed as an endangered species, jumped a fence during its escape, and went into dense woodland.

The zoo said she was "finally tempted by a little food and walked back in, none the worse for her brief time in the woods" and staff were "delighted that she has returned".

Image source, Via Devon and Cornwall Police

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

The sale of illegal tobacco "will not be tolerated", fraud investigators have said after an operation to disrupt the supply of illegal tobacco across Devon uncovered more than 8,100 cigarettes and 4kg of hand-rolling tobacco.

An operation last Friday saw 24 officers from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), plus Trading Standards staff, visit 28 shops and self-storage units, seizing items from three premises.

The contraband would have seen an estimated £1,800 of duty and VAT evaded, officers said.

They added that lost revenue was "theft from the taxpayer and undermines legitimate traders".

Bringing you the news, sport, travel and weather for Devon and Cornwall

Emily Woodhouse slept on Dartmoor every night to raise money for a search and rescue team.

Christine Butler
BBC Radio Cornwall

A former serviceman from Plymouth who struggled to find work after leaving the armed forces has created an app to make it easier for others like him to find employment.

Called Imployable, the app lists local jobs and the extra skills the applicant might need to get them and then advises where is best to go for training.

The potential of Imployable has already been recognised by Google which has gone into partnership with the company.

Peter Kelly, 31, left the Royal Marines after 10 years of service and said he was "highly qualified, inexperienced and unemployable".

He hopes the app will prevent others from facing the same situation...

The app, which is still in the development stage, will be launched on 26 November and will be free to users.

Matt Pengelly
BBC Radio Cornwall

Truro City are back in Emirates FA Cup action at their temporary Torquay home on Wednesday night.

They take on Hereford FC in a replay after Saturday's second qualifying round game finished 0-0.

The successful team will host Welling on 6 October.