Bus services around Yeovil and across Somerset are set to benefit after the government confirmed that £130 million is to be invested in the bus network across the country. Uncertainty surrounds the future of Cineworld on the Yeo Leisure Park, off Station Road in Yeovil. Repairs to the A30 at Sherborne have entered the third week after further damage was found to a gas pipe. Police are investigating a fatal crash that happened on the A303 near Wincanton...and more.
Local News Monday 22nd August
Bus services around Yeovil and across Somerset are set to benefit after the government confirmed that £130 million is to be invested in the bus network across the country. The funding represents a six-month extension of the bus recovery grant and should secure services at their current level until March next year.
Uncertainty surrounds the future of Cineworld on the Yeo Leisure Park, off Station Road in Yeovil. This is after reports that owners of the Cineworld Group, are preparing to file for bankruptcy. The company is understood to have hired consultants to advise on the bankruptcy process. In a statement, Cineworld said low admission levels at their cinemas have had a negative impact on the group’s liquidity position.
Repairs to the A30 at Sherborne have entered the third week after further damage was found to a gas pipe. The road has been closed between Marston Road and Bristol Road since Thursday, August 11, following an accident in which a combine harvester collided with a gas main. The A30 is not expected to re-open to traffic as normal until Wednesday this week at the earliest.
Police are investigating a fatal crash that happened on the A303 near Wincanton. A car and a van collided on the road last Thursday evening. The driver of the car, a woman in her 20’s, died at the scene. The driver of the van was taken to hospital with serious injuries.
A Fleet Air Arm war veteran has been treated to a special flyover of the plane that he used to pilot. Ralph Jameson, who’s 98, relived memories as the Navy Wings Seafire was flown over his residential care home in Leigh near Sherborne as a thank you for his long service. Mr Jameson flew Barracudas and Fireflies with the British Pacific Fleet during the Second World War and continued to fly with the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve after the war. The flyover was staged by Navy Wings, who are based at RNAS Yeovilton.
A dog, stolen in Norfolk seven years ago, has been found 200 miles away safe and well in Somerset. A man who lives in Seavington St Michael near Ilminster has been jailed after driving a car at police officers. One hundred new affordable homes could be built near Langport...and more
A Yeovil man has been fined £1,200 for sending hostile text messages to his ex-wife. A report into the performance of Avon and Somerset Police has found it doesn't answer emergency calls quickly enough. Twenty-two swimmers at the Trident Swimming Club in Chard have won places in this year’s Somerset County Swimming Championships...and more
A man has appeared in court charged with murdering a one-month-old baby boy in Chard. Kingfisher Primary School in Yeovil has been highly praised by Ofsted. Somerset Council says it’s “extremely disappointed” after its bid to form a devolved Wessex group of local councils was rejected by the government...and more.
The Liberal Democrat Leader of Somerset Council, Councillor Bill Revans, says they had no choice but to ask the government to allow them to lift the 5 percent cap on raising Council Tax. Two teenagers have been released on bail following the stabbing in Yeovil. More than six thousand pounds has been awarded to local groups by Chard Carnival Committee...and more.
Somerset has been permitted to increase its Council Tax share by 7.5 percent. An Ilminster man, forced out of his house by last week's floods, says he doesn't know when he will be able to return home. Ilminster Literary Festival has launched its annual children’s writing competition, designed to encourage local children to write creative literature...and more.
Five men have appeared in court charged with the murder of a man in Yeovil. A 16-year-old is the second person to be arrested in connection with a stabbing in Yeovil. Yeovil’s new outdoor entertainment space in Lower Middle Street has been officially opened by the town’s MP... and more.
A teenager has been arrested following a stabbing in Yeovil. Water bills in Somerset are set to go up on average by £123 from April. Yeovil MP, Adam Dance will officially open Yeovil’s new outdoor performance space later today...and more
Lloyds bank is closing its branch in Chard. A Sherborne man has been jailed after defrauding a Yeovil woman of £40,000. A volunteer group in Chard is urging people to sign up to a flood victims register. A councillor in Shepton Mallet has become the first Reform UK member on Somerset Council... and more