Local News Friday 18th August

Friday, 18 August 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Network Rail is investigating what services could be provided at a re-opened Chard railway station. Plans have been submitted to extend Keinton Mandeville Primary School. Somerton Town Council has introduced a dress code for its members. Yeovil is bidding for new honours in this year’s Britain in Bloom competition...and more.

Network Rail has agreed to investigate what services could be provided as part of plans to bring back a railway station to Chard. Chard Junction station fell victim to the Beeching cuts in 1966 and now a group of councillors and local business people are campaigning to have it re-opened. They’ve raised twenty thousand to prepare a business plan that will be submitted to the government before the end of the year.

Plans have been submitted to build an extension at Keinton Mandeville Primary School. Land within the school grounds that was previously a car park would be used for the two-classroom modular building.

Somerton Town Council has introduced a dress code for its members. It bans councillors from wearing summer shorts or sports clothing at meetings, also hats of any kind. The new rules apply to full council meetings, committee meetings and other events where a councillor is acting in an official capacity.

A collection of twenty ventriloquist dolls, some dating back more than one hundred years, will be sold in Sherborne later this month. They’re due to be auctioned at Charterhouse Auctions on August 31st and September 1st.

Police are searching for the driver of a blue Suzuki car believed to have left the scene of a road traffic accident in Glastonbury. The accident involving the Suzuki and a scooter happened on Old Wells Road last Friday. If you witnessed or have dashcam footage of the crash you’re asked to call the non-emergency number 101.

Yeovil is bidding for new honours in this year’s Britain in Bloom competition. It’s the twenty-seventh year the town has taken part in the South West section having won gold every year since 2011. Britain in Bloom judges visited Yeovil in July and were shown the flower displays in St. John’s Churchyard together with hearing about the charity, Able2Achieve helping with the planting.

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Thursday 17th April

The father of a one-month-old baby boy in Chard is to stand trial for the murder of his son. New figures show that just under 1300 crimes were reported to the Police in Yeovil during the final quarter of last year. A night in a prison cell is offered at Shepton Mallet Jail to those who want to be alone this Easter...and more.
Wednesday 16th April

Big changes are being made to where taxi ranks in Yeovil are located. Farmers are being told to keep an extra lookout for people acting suspiciously following the latest livestock theft near the Devon and Somerset border. Channel 4’s Location Location Location is coming to Somerset, with anyone looking to buy a property locally invited to apply to be in the show...and more
Tuesday 15th April

A 36-year-old man remains in police custody after being arrested on suspicion of a sexual assault in Yeovil. Yeovil Labour Club has had its drinks licence revoked. NHS Somerset has been taking its physiotherapy team around the county to cut waiting times for patients. A men-only cooking course has been launched in Sherborne with all ingredients and equipment provided free of charge...and more
Monday 14th April

A new banking hub has opened in Crewkerne. South Western Ambulance is asking people to only dial 999 in a life-threatening emergency over the Easter weekend. £1.8 million is being spent improving walking and cycling routes around a major new housing development at Up Mudford in Yeovil...and more
Friday 11th April

Police are appealing for witnesses to an accident in Yeovil in which a man riding an e-bike was injured and later died in hospital. Somerset Fire and Rescue Service says the number of false alarm calls it receives is on the increase. A new micro-pub opens in Chard next week...and more
Thursday 10th April

Yeovil MP Adam Dance is calling for more targeted support for schools in Somerset. Police are appealing for witnesses to an accident near Wells in which a cyclist died. Plans have been approved to convert a former care home in Yeovil into a house of multiple occupation...and more
Wednesday 9th April

A man from Yeovil has been jailed for stabbing another man in a pub in the town. Work is underway to help minimize the flood risk at Chard Reservoir. Plans have been submitted to build thirty-six new homes at Sparkford. A new Town Crier is needed in Glastonbury...and more
Tuesday 8th April

Work is underway to demolish the Glovers Walk Shopping Centre in Yeovil. A Yeovil man has appeared in court charged with drink driving for a third time. Somerset Council has paid £35,000 in compensation for failing to deliver the right support to children with special educational needs. Another shop in Yeovil town centre is closing for good today...and more