The World of Country Life in Exmouth, Devon, has reopened its petting farm after an investigation by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) found no direct links to an outbreak of E.coli.

Park officials took the decision to close the attraction's petting farm and Deer Train ride in September in order to allow the HPA to probe three confirmed cases of the E.coli illness, although the rest of the park remained open. In a statement, however, the park said: "The team at the World of Country Life are thrilled to reopen their walk in animal petting centre with the approval from the Health Protection Agency, who have run numerous tests in this area and have concluded that there are no direct links to the E- coli outbreak."

Meanwhile, the number of cases linked to Godstone Farm and Playbarn in Surrey, which was forced to shut on 12 September after the first outbreak, has now increased to 90. Two children remain in hospital, both of whom are described as stable.