News in Dawlish

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.

Stamp enthusiasts from all over the country are being attracted to Dawlish Stamp Club's meetings, currently being conducted via Zoom.

The club has attracted national attention in the philately world for its success in using technology to bring its meetings to life.

Police are warning of rogue traders operating in the Dawlish and Teignmouth area.

Officers say there have been reports of cold callers visiting people's homes and offering to carry out work on their homes or gardens.

Over the last few years, I have made my position on the closure of Teignmouth Hospital clear, especially when it comes to the decision-making processes involved and the implications for health and care provision in Teignmouth and across the wider South Devon footprint.

First of all, as I have previously put on record, the new hub at Teignmouth bringing together some of the GP practices, the integrated services team, and the voluntary sector, is the right way forward. Our local primary care team are literally world leading exemplars of how to integrate services. However, this consultation process has been about much more than that. It's about the adequacy of that provision to cover residents needs more broadly and the future of Teignmouth Hospital. The CCG decision-making process does not adequately address all of this.

Seven years ago today, Dawlish made international headlines when a massive storm destroyed the sea wall and left part of the railway track suspended above the wreckage.

Today, Network Rail is looking back at the events of February 2014 and the huge efforts of its 'Orange Army' to repair the track and re-establish the rail link to the rest of the south-west.