The world’s largest garden wildlife survey returns this month, with hundreds of thousands of people watching and counting the UK’s garden birds over the last weekend in January for the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch. Over half a million people took part in 2023, counting more than nine million birds. In Devon, nearly 10,900 people took part, with the House Sparrow taking the top spot as the most commonly seen bird, followed by Blue Tit and Blackbird.  This year’s event takes place on 26, 27 and 28 January 2024. People in Devon are asked to spend an hour watching and counting the birds in their garden, balcony or local park, then send their results to the RSPB. This year’s event marks 45 years since the first Big Garden Birdwatch. Starting in 1979, it has since become a much-loved annual citizen science event, that gives the RSPB a valuable snapshot of how garden birds are doing in the UK. Over that time, 185 million birds have been counted and nearly 11.5 million hours spent watching and counting garden birds. Beccy Speight, the RSPB’s Chief Executive, said: “By taking part in the Birdwatch you are joining hundreds of thousands of people…

Local homeless charity Julian House announces the return of the annual Big Exeter Sleep-Out event at St James Park Football Stadium, in partnership with Exeter City Community Trust. The event takes place on the 22nd March 2024, and the charity is inviting members of the public to sleep outside for one night; to help support those forced to sleep out every night in the city and across Devon. Julian House is a South-West-based charity that helps vulnerable, homeless, and at-risk people get back on their feet and rebuild their lives. The charity operates over 40 distinct projects, accommodation sites, and social enterprises across South-West England, extending a lifeline to over 2000 individuals annually. This year, an enduring housing crisis and escalating living costs mean the call for their life-saving services has been louder than ever. The charity urges individuals, student groups, corporate teams, and families to take part in the event. It’s suitable for anybody who is concerned about the issue of homelessness in their community and is looking to take some action and raise funds for a worthwhile local cause. Annabelle Lowes, Senior Community and Events Fundraiser at Julian House, said: “We are thankful that…

The run-up to Christmas has been busy for local health and wellbeing charity Westbank Community Health and Care, with a full calendar of events for members of its community and its team.  The festive celebrations got off to a heartwarming start when Year 2 children from Exeter Pre-Prep School visited Westbank’s Day Centre at Exminster to sing a melody of Christmas songs for regular clients. The following day, the Royal Oak in Exminster kindly hosted a 3-course meal for fifty of Westbank’s clients to mark the end of a year of fantastic support from the pub.  Westbank’s Head of Fundraising and Marketing, Katie Elliott, who attended the Christmas lunch, says, “The Royal Oak pulled out all the stops again this year, providing our clients with a delicious meal, much enjoyed and appreciated by all who attended. The pub was beautifully decorated, and the food was plentiful! Many thanks to Mel and the team for making it such a lovely event.  “Thanks also to all our wonderful volunteers who came along to help. One of our volunteers donated a beautiful Christmas hamper that was raffled off over lunch and raised over £100 to support Westbank’s work in the community.  “The icing on…

FORCE Cancer Charity has launched a campaign to increase support for people living with incurable cancer. Let’s Face Cancer Together aims to raise awareness of the unique way FORCE is supporting a patient group for whom there is very little dedicated support available. The Exeter-based charity runs a regular support and education group – Living with Non-Curable Cancer – and has also staged a pioneering retreat day. More than 20 people living with cancers that cannot be cured came together at Buckfast Abbey to share their experiences and hear from experts in cancer care. That pilot was so successful that FORCE would like to embed regular retreat days as part of its core services for anyone locally affected by cancer. To do that, the charity needs to raise £25,000. “We’re launching the Let’s Face Cancer Together campaign to let more people know about how FORCE can help those coming to terms with a diagnosis of incurable cancer,” said FORCE Oncology Support Specialist Emma Ellis. “Giving them the opportunity to be with others who understand what they’re going through is invaluable. That was made so clear at our first special retreat day. It was overwhelmingly powerful and we really want to offer…

Devon Carers, a free service by Westbank Community Health and Care, is this month celebrating 25 years of supporting unpaid carers across the county and is planning several events throughout the coming year as part of its landmark anniversary.  The charity provides a wide range of support services to those who look after family members or friends because they are ill, frail, or have a disability, mental health or substance misuse problem.   Over the last two and a half decades, Westbank’s Devon Carers has grown to be one of the largest charitable organisations in the UK helping adult and young carers; 28,000 adults across the county (excluding Plymouth and Torbay) are currently registered with Devon Carers, and around 2,500 under eighteen-year-olds are registered with Devon Young Carers.  What started as a small group supporting carers locally in Exminster, near Exeter, has expanded to cover Devon from coast to coast. The service continues to grow with thousands of carers joining each year, on average 200 – 300 per month. Andy Hood, Head of Devon Carers says, “There’s been a big increase over the last 25 years in terms of the support services we provide to carers, but we have big ambitions to…