Local News Wednesday 24th November

Wednesday, 24 November 2021 06:00

Avon and Somerset Police have issued warnings to twenty-one shops. At least 9,000 older people will need help from the Surviving Winter Appeal in Somerset this year. Latest figures show a steep increase in waiting times for treatment at Yeovil Hospital. A former supermarket building in Chard has been given a new lease of life. Ilchester Cheese in Ilchester has launched a new Marmite flavoured Cheddar cheese...and more.

Avon and Somerset Police have issued warnings to twenty-one shops that sold knives to underage children following a series of spot-checks. Large kitchen knives and other potential weapons were sold to children aged 15 and 16 during the force's largest ever test-purchase sting.

At least 9,000 older people will need help from the Surviving Winter Appeal in Somerset this year. That's according to Somerset Community Foundation who started the campaign more than a decade ago. It's asking for people who don't need their winter fuel allowance to donate it to charity.

Latest figures show a steep increase in waiting times for treatment at Yeovil Hospital. At the end of September, eleven and a half thousand people were on waiting lists at Yeovil Hospital, which was 40 percent higher than in September 2020. 43,000 people were waiting for treatment at all of Somerset’s hospitals at the end of September.

A former supermarket building in Chard has been given a new lease of life. The store on Fore Street previously used by Morrisons has been acquired by Chard Auctions. Business owner, Stuart Bull says auctions will be held at the shop on the first Saturday of the month.

The 2nd act for 'Live in Somerset, in Taunton next summer has been announced. Simply Red will be headlining the event in Vivary Park on Sunday the 28th August 2022. Ollie Murs will perform on the Friday of the same weekend.

Ilchester Cheese in Ilchester has launched a new Marmite flavoured Cheddar cheese. The company says the product launch is part of marking Ilchester Cheese’s 60th anniversary.

The Wurzels are coming to Yeovil. The Somerset-based band, famed for hits like Combine Harvester and I Am A Cider Drinker, are performing at the Westlands Entertainment venue on Thursday, December 2nd.

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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
Friday 7th February

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
Thursday 6th February

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.
Wednesday 5th February

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.
Tuesday 4th February

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.
Monday 3rd February

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.
Friday 31st January

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
Thursday 30th January

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