YEOFORD residents were bemused this morning, Monday, October 19, when they discovered that one of their village road signs had been replaced with one from Crockernwell.

It is believed that a prankster or pranksters had stolen the Devon County Council “Crockernwell” sign and overnight removed the existing “Yeoford” sign to attach the one from another Crockernwell village, just a few miles away.

The Coleford road sign which has left Lapford residents bemused. AQ 7618
The Coleford road sign which left Lapford residents bemused in 2023. AQ 7618 (Alan Quick, Crediton Courier)

One local resident told the Courier: “Some idiot has removed the Yeoford sign and replaced it with Crockernwell.

“I don’t know if Crockernwell is now Yeoford.”

Since the early morning discovery, a local resident, Bruce Abbott, has said on the village Facebook page: “I found the Yeoford sign in the ditch and replaced it.

“Both signs are damaged.”

The four new Crediton road signs, top left on the Bickleigh entrance, top right on the Sandford road entrance, bottom left on the Exeter entrance and bottom right on the Copplestone entrance.
The four Crediton road signs which were replaced after all four on the approach to the town went missing in February 2025. (Alan Quick, Crediton Courier)

The incident follows a similar incident in September 2023 where Lapford residents discovered that their village road sign had been replaced with one from Coleford.

Commenting on social media in 2023, Keith Russell asked: “Will this affect house prices?” And Steph Gilbert commented: “Wonder if Coleford has Lapford sign.”

Lapford resident Julie Down commented: “Noticed early this morning. Some joker thinks this is funny. It’s clearly an old sign. I expect another village has ours. Parish Council is on the case!”

The entrance sign on the A377 west of Crediton has also vanished
The Crediton entrance sign on the A377 Copplestone approach before it went missing and how it looked in February 2025. (Crediton Courier)

On January 24, 2025, all four Crediton town entrance signs disappeared overnight.

Emily Armitage, Crediton Town Council administration officer, said about the missing signs in February 2025: "We checked that they weren't removed by the county council for any reason so we can only assume they were taken and probably melted down for scrap.

Unfortunately, the cost of replacing the signs cost hundreds of pounds which had to be paid for by Crediton Town Council, ultimately by Crediton residents through their council tax.

The public was asked to remain vigilant to ensure road signs are not stolen.

There has been discussion about inserting tracker devices into the signs.