News in Dawlish

Dawlish's Brook Lights are on again, after months of uncertainty about whether they'd be back in operation in time for Christmas.

Teignbridge District Council flicked the switch to light up the Brunswick Place side of the Lawn on the evening of Wednesday, December 9.

Black swan badges are going on sale in Dawlish to raise money to replace the birds lost in the avian flu outbreak last month.

The badges have been produced by local man Richard Hayward, who has designed the Dawlish Royal British Legion's Remembrance Sunday poppy badges for the last five years.

The nineteenth century designer, poet and novelist William Morris said: "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." And that's the ethos behind Ruth Birch's shop, Georgian House.

The shelves are filled with stylish home décor items, kitchenware and cookware, along with cruelty-free skincare products, and accessories including hats and bags. The shop attracts many people in search of presents for friends or relatives, but it's not a gift shop. Customers buy things that remind them of Dawlish, but they're not useless souvenir-type items; they're both decorative and useful.

Police figures show there were 62 crimes in Dawlish during October 2020, and 42 in the Dawlish Warren area.

The October figures are the latest published on a national website that gives a breakdown of crimes in each policing area.

Last week the new tier system was introduced putting Devon in Tier 2. In my view that was a mistake.

Teignbridge has one of the lowest infection rates in the country. Even Plymouth, Exeter, and Torbay, while higher, are well below the national average.

Dawlish's first late night shopping evening of the 2020 Christmas season was hailed as a success by traders.

On Friday, December 4, town centre shops kept their doors open until around 8pm, and many local residents came out to take advantage of the extended hours.

Long-awaited visits to relatives in Devon's care homes – without protective screens - could be possible this Christmas, according to the county council.

Eight residential homes in the county have taken part in a national pilot scheme in which one family member or friend per resident was given a rapid Covid-19 test.

Visible on the Dawlish skyline from far away, the WaveWalker has been a talking point among residents and visitors alike.

The huge, imposing machine, which moves sideways across the sea bed on its two sets of four legs, has been brought in by Network Rail to build part of the new tidal defences.

Two mass vaccination sites and several other localised bases will be used to deliver the Covid-19 vaccine in Devon.

The locations of the mass vaccination sites have not yet been revealed - although earlier reports said one would be at the Exeter Chiefs' rugby ground, Sandy Park, on the outskirts of the city. The county council says this has now been ruled out.

Exasperated town councillors are demanding that Dawlish's Brook lights be turned on for Christmas, and are accusing the district council of 'holding them to ransom' over the cost of repairs they feel are unnecessary.

Feelings were running high at the town council meeting on Wednesday, December 2, after Teignbridge District Council said Dawlish would have to pay more than £1,500 to replace faulty bulbs and bring the lights back to full working order.