News in Dawlish

A vision's been drawn up to make Dawlish a top visitor destination, as Covid restrictions end and 'staycation' holidaymakers head for the UK's coasts.

Local residents and businesses will be encouraged to give their feedback on the town council's draft tourism strategy, which takes a realistic look at what the parish has to offer and the areas where it needs to make improvements.

Two volunteer 'wildlife wardens' have been recruited for Dawlish to help protect the area's natural habitats.

Dave Hutton and Scott Williams will be working to help wildlife thrive in fields, woodland, beaches, urban areas, green spaces and waterways in Dawlish and Dawlish Warren.

Far too much recyclable material is being put into black bins by Teignbridge residents, according to the district council.

It's planning to take action to change the behaviour of residents who don't recycle, as part of a 10-point plan to increase recycling rates and reduce waste.

Dawlish residents are being urged to 'levy pressure' on Network Rail over the regular flooding under the Colonnade, by reporting it to the company.

Many people have contacted the town council about the issue, as it means people with accessibility problems cannot get to Marine Parade during the flooding, because they can't use the steps at the far end.

Here are the two prizewinners of Dawlish's children's creative writing competition on the theme of the WaveWalker: TJ and Nahla.

The eight-legged walking jack-up barge, brought in to build the seafacing foundations of the new sea wall, was locally nicknamed 'Luke Wavewalker', and attracted a lot of interest from local residents and visitors. It departed last month after completing the work.

Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival has announced a range of online events on Saturday, March 13th and Sunday, March 14th 2021.

With Covid restrictions still in place, audiences in East Devon and beyond will be able to watch talks by the writers of some of the season's new publications from their own homes.

Just under 40 per cent of Devon and Cornwall's adult population have had their first Covid-19 vaccine.

Across Devon as a whole, 39.1 per cent have had the first jab, and in the Teignbridge local authority area the figure is slightly lower, at 35.5 per cent.

Dawlish's new sea wall has been named as a finalist in two categories at the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Awards for Planning Excellence 2021.

The completed first section of new sea wall, which will help protect the vital railway line for the next 100 years, is in the running for 'Excellence in Planning for a Successful Economy' and 'Excellence in Planning for the Natural Environment' categories.

Devon's Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) is inviting nominations for its 2021 'best churchyard' competition, and is expecting a large number of entries.

The charity says local people have appreciated the green spaces around their churches 'like never before' during the Covid pandemic, with many churchyards becoming 'real sanctuaries' for the local community to exercise and observe nature, not just for churchgoers.

Crime drama series, The Serpent, has proved a great success since it came to our screens in January. But the man who produced the hit TV series advises you not to watch it on your own!

It was developed by Mammoth Screen for BBC One and Netflix and tells the story of how conman and murderer Charles Sobhraj, played by Tahar Rahim, was eventually caught with his girlfriend Marie-Andree Leclerc, played by Jenna Coleman.