Disruption to rail services on the London line through Castle Cary is set to last until the end of the week. Somerset's gritting lorries travelled a record number of miles last winter. South Somerset District Council is to continue holding meetings online, for the time being. Journalist and broadcaster, Mariella Frostrup, is the new President of the Somerset branch of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England...andmore.
Disruption to rail services on the London line through Castle Cary is set to last until the end of the week, according to GWR. It follows hairline cracks being found in the chassis of some trains and the trains being taken out of service. Great Western is hoping things will return to normal by the weekend but says people should not travel unless the journey is essential.
Somerset's gritting lorries travelled a record number of miles last winter. The County’s fleet of 23 gritters were called out on 66 occasions and laid salt on more than 70,000 miles of local roads. In the winter of last year, the same number of vehicles salted just 44,000 miles of local roads.
South Somerset District Council is to continue holding meetings online, for the time being. Special measures banning face-to-face meetings introduced at the start of the pandemic expired last week, and organisations representing local councils are pressing the government for clarity on the issue.
Journalist and broadcaster, Mariella Frostrup, is the new President of the Somerset branch of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England. Ms Frostrup, who lives in Bruton, takes over as Head of the local CPRE from Roger Martin.
Long Hazel Park camping and caravan park at Sparkford has been voted Holiday Park of the Year in the Somerset Tourism Awards. Owners, Alan and Pamela Walton say winning the title has given them a great start to the new holiday season.
The Leader of Somerset Council has repeated his call for a reform of the way that councils are funded. Crimestoppers is stepping up efforts to help tackle violent crime in Somerset. A new radar satellite is playing a crucial role in collecting data about flooding in Somerset...and more
Somerset Council has approved a seven-and-a-half percent increase in council tax. People are being asked to return boxes of paracetamol bought from Boots Chemists in Somerset. It’s been revealed that five members of staff at Somerset Council are being allowed to work from home outside the UK...and more
Somerset Council has been told that hundreds of millions of pounds in loans taken out by former district councils, including South Somerset, have to be paid back. A Somerset charity says it needs more volunteers to help with research into new treatments for dementia. A local shop owner has welcomed Somerset Council’s decision to scrap plans to charge for parking after 6 pm...and more.
The population of Somerset has reached record levels with nearly one in ten born outside the UK. Stanchester School in Stoke-sub-Hamdon has been rated as ‘requiring improvement’. Experts have been called in to appraise a 15th-century piece of artwork in Sherborne...and more.
A woman from Crewkerne has been fined £280 for assaulting two emergency workers. Plans have been announced to open new NHS dental surgeries in Chard and Crewkerne. A Yeovil man has been thanked for raising £10,000 for the cardiac charity Heartbeat...and more
A local man has been charged after allegedly driving a tractor while under the influence of alcohol. One hundred bikes, collected with household waste in Somerset, have been donated to charity. The junction of the A37 Ilchester Road and Stiby Road in Yeovil will again shut this evening for resurfacing...and more.
Fourteen hundred people have added their names to a petition against Somerset Council's plans to scrap free car parks. St Margaret’s Hospice has won a share of £25 million of government funding. A man from Charlton Adam is preparing to visit Ukraine as an Aid Worker for a tenth time...and more
A local man has been charged with possessing an air weapon following an incident in Yeovil town centre. The Labour government has removed funding to the Amulet Theatre in Shepton Mallet that the previous Conservative government had allocated. Entries are now open for this year’s Minster Miles 10K fun run with organisers aiming to exceed last year’s number of runners...and more.