All photographs copyright Nick Shepherd
Welcome to the official website of Strete in Devon, England, which is managed by Strete Parish Council. Strete is about a fifteen minute drive from Dartmouth. It is to be found on the high coastal ground at the eastern end of Slapton Sands. It's a good place to stay if you like exploring the local beaches and is also convenient for Kingsbridge, Totnes and Salcombe. Strete is situated on the South West Coastal Footpath and, with a variety of accommodation in the village, it is an ideal location to take a break in your journey. Take time to relax and enjoy the beautiful AONB surroundings.
District Councils across Devon are working together to
support people identified as being ‘vulnerable’ through
this second lockdown. During the first lockdown beginning last March,
around 34,000 Devon residents were considered to be ‘vulnerable’ based on their long term health conditions and vulnerability and
they were advised to ‘shield’. Many spent several months with little if
any interaction outside of their households. Councils, local charities and community groups
worked hard to ensure that those who needed support, received help – including
food deliveries, shopping and lifts to medical appointments. With the latest lockdown, the ‘vulnerable’ have been written to by government this week and
councils have put in place a support programme for those that need additional
help to comply with new lockdown guidance. Priority supermarket slots are available to
speed up deliveries for people who otherwise would not be able to go to the
shops to buy food over the next few weeks as Government-provided food parcels,
given to around 7,000 vulnerable people in Devon last
time, do not feature in the national support package this time. The government letter also asks recipients to
let them know if they need any specific additional support in order for them to
follow the national lockdown guidance for the duration of the lockdown. Those without family support networks can contact
NHS Volunteer Responders, or any of the community groups set up across Devon
offering support to local residents, or District Councils, which can signpost
to support to help them over the latest lockdown period. Being identified as vulnerable does not mean that you are more likely to catch coronavirus.
It just means that given your health and condition the impact of it would be
potentially more serious for you were you to catch it.
Details of the support available, described in the Public
Health Devon letter, are published on Devon County Council’s website, devon.cc/clinicallyvulnerable, along with information about
financial support that the council has made available via District Council ‘hardship funds’ for people in need of
short term help to afford paying for basic household essentials, devon.cc/support. This pandemic has been a very worrying time for everyone and many who were vulnerable last time and asked to ‘shield’ found lockdown to be a very difficult time. Therefore, please contact others for help if
you need it, and stay in touch with family and friends during this time – but do
this digitally as much as possible, to keep that important social
distance. Remember that your mental wellbeing is as important as your
physical health.
Cllr Judy Pearce, Leader of South Hams
District Council, said: “People may well be very
worried at the moment and we will do everything we can to support our
residents in a compassionate and caring way. We will continue to provide
support to our communities, as we have done throughout the year.”
The Leader of Devon County Council, Cllr
John Hart, said: "We have funds from the government to
provide support, and we’re sharing that with our Team Devon partners to help
them respond quickly to support people during lockdown. We are
well-experienced in providing the levels of community support that people will
now need. We are ready and we will do everything we can to assist our
most vulnerable residents through the next few weeks.”