East Devon District Council has announced that it will reopen the reception at Exmouth Town Hall to the public from 5 December.

It has been closed since the Covid-19 pandemic. The reception's opening hours for drop-ins will be Monday to Thursday from 9am to 1pm.

The local authority said that following a decision by the council to reopen the reception when staffing resources allowed, it has now successfully recruited additional staff to enable the office to reopen.

EDDC Chief Executive Mark Williams said: "The overwhelming nature and volume of our business is conducted via the phone, email, letters or pre-arranged appointments. This reflects how our customers actually do contact us.

"We do acknowledge a limited amount of demand from some residents and customers of Exmouth Town Council and the Devon County Council Registrar for the Exmouth Town Hall reception to be open.

"We will monitor the number and type of visits to the Town Hall and the information we obtain from this will be discussed with the Town Council and the County Council."

East Devon Conservative MP Simon Jupp, whose constituency includes Exmouth, has been calling for the reception to reopen.

He said: "I'm glad the current administration have finally seen sense and will allow visitors to turn up and get urgent face-to-face support.

"I hope ruling councillors in the administration will reopen the council's offices in Honiton, too. It's what council taxpayers rightly expect."

Alongside the drop-in service, EDDC operates an appointment system for people to meet with particular officers.

Click here to book an appointment.