Latest news with #MarkWest
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Animal ban for couple who kept 29 pets in flat in Exeter
A couple who kept 29 pets in a flat have been banned from keeping animals for eight Magistrates' Court heard Mark West and Rebecca Sowden had kept 14 snakes, 12 cats, a tortoise, a bearded dragon and a leopard gecko in a one-bedroom flat in Taunton Close, court was told the couple had been given advice 19 times by the RSPCA, social services, police and council officials about the state of the home and pair admitted two charges of failing to ensure welfare for the animals in their care. The court heard Sowden had studied animal care at college and West was a fast food delivery driver. 'Conditions were squalid' The animals were not fed, watered or exercised enough and had to live in the faeces-covered flat with not enough living space or heating, the court Judge Stuart Smith said: "The flat was not fit for humans or animals alike but they were forced to endure those conditions."The prosecution told the court the animals had all been signed inspector Miranda Albinson, who investigated the case, said: "The conditions within the property were squalid."She added: "These animals were badly neglected and were confined within a space that severely compromised their health and welfare."Judge Smith sentenced both Sowden and West to 12-month community orders with unpaid work, ordered them to pay costs of £514 each and banned them from keeping any animals for eight years.
RNZ News
06-05-2025
- Science
- RNZ News
Feature interview: how the pandemic changed education
science covid-19 3:00 pm today It happened without warning and preparation. Students around the world became lab rats for the world's largest experiment in online and distance learning when the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to close their doors. It did not go well says Mark West, a senior policy analyst at UNESCO the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Five years on from the lockdowns, we're seeing the unintended consequences of digital learning including lower test scores, higher inequities as well as greater physical and mental health challenges. West says that relying on tech alone is no substitute for thoughtful policy, trained teachers, and human connection, during a pandemic or not. The evidence and arguments are in a free book called An Ed-Tech Tragedy? Educational Technologies and School Closures in the Time of COVID-19.
