DIY road maintenance groups in Teignbridge have until the end of the month to apply for funds to execute a range of schemes from filling potholes, cleaning signs and cutting hedges.

This Thursday, November 30, is the deadline for communities to submit bids for the next round of funding for the self-help projects overseen by the highways authority.

This financial year County Hall has awarded nearly £60,000 from the fund to 37 communities.

With the help of local volunteers, more than £120,000 worth of work across the county has been carried out.

The scheme aims to contribute towards the costs of materials, equipment, tools and training to get the jobs done.

Devon now has more than 50 Community Road Wardens who can access the funding, although communities don’t need to be signed up as Road Wardens to submit an application.

A further 174 people from local councils and other organisations - including district councils, Community Payback Scheme supervisors and local community organisations - have also undertaken training. And more than 40 others are booked up or on the waiting list for training.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Highway Management, said: ‘Communities are really seeing the benefit of this funding and the value they can get from it to carry out their priority work on their local roads.

‘The scheme is providing us with an important link to our local towns and parishes, and we really appreciate the efforts being made by communities in volunteering their time.’

He added: ‘This scheme is enabling them to cover all sorts of highway maintenance work that the county council wouldn’t otherwise be able to do.

‘The funding can also be used for road closures for special events which can be extremely helpful.’

Applications received by the end of November will be assessed in the first week of December. Applications can also be submitted between December and the end of February, but they won’t be assessed until March next year.

Further information is available at https://new.devon.gov.uk/communities/