McCarthy Stone is going to donate £2,500 to The Fire Fighters Charity in recognition of the firefighters' work tackling the fire at the Knowle last month.

The Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service tackled the fire at the former East Devon District Council offices on Thursday, March 30. 

McCarthy Stone says it is 'continuing to work with the fire and police authorities to establish further information in relation to the causes of the fire'.

The former council office building, which has been subject to a recent planning application made last month that proposes the building’s demolition, was left structurally unsafe by the fire.

The pedestrian footpath along the site’s eastern boundary has had to be closed with immediate effect for health and safety reasons.

McCarthy Stone is 'seeking the necessary consent to undertake works to make the area safe and enable the reopening of the footpath'.

The developer has thanked residents for their cooperation and have stressed that health and safety remains its the immediate priority.

In the meantime, it is kindly asked that residents use other pedestrian routes via Station Road or Knowle Drive.

Ed Garcia, divisional land director at McCarthy Stone said: “We would like to place on record our thanks to the remarkable efforts of the Fire and Rescue Service in the aftermath of the unfortunate fire at The Knowle.

“Our donation will help contribute to ensuring that these invaluable members of our community have access to the help and support that they need.”

“Since the fire we have 24-hour security patrols in place with a dog unit to deter any further unauthorised access on site, and this will be in place for the foreseeable future. We have also liaised with immediate neighbours to keep them updated.”

Residents that have any further questions or concerns are welcome to get in touch with the project team via 0800 298 7040 or email: feedback@mccarthystoneconsultation.co.uk