Thursday 1st August

Thursday, 1 August 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Overnight beds at Yeovil Hospital are being freed up thanks to a new bladder cancer treatment. Somerset Council is selling a business centre, office building and several regeneration sites in South Somerset to raise much-needed cash. A trail to encourage people across Somerset to support their local pub is back after five years...and more

Overnight beds at Yeovil Hospital are being freed up thanks to a new bladder cancer treatment. Over the past year, urologists have used a portable handheld laser device to treat small tumours. It's safer, less invasive and quicker than surgery, allowing patients to go home on the same day they receive treatment.

The families of three Somerset swimmers who, together with teammate Duncan Scott made history by retaining their Gold medal in the 4 by 200 m Freestyle, have paid tribute to the team. The quartet, which includes James Guy, Matt Richards, and Tom Dean, have become the first team to win Gold in two consecutive Olympic games.

A business centre, office building and several regeneration sites in Yeovil and South Somerset are being sold off by Somerset Council to help balance the books. Included are the Boden Centre, on Silver Street in Chard, Fiveways Resource Centre on Ilchester Road in Yeovil, Yeovil Small Business Centre on Memorial Road in Yeovil, and 92 acres of land at Thorney Marsh near Castle Cary. The government has permitted Somerset Council to use the proceeds from selling the properties to fund its day-to-day spending. ISomerset Council is selling off a total of 22 sites in the hope of raising between £17 and £21 million, over the next 18 months.

St John’s Almshouse in Sherborne is to get a major makeover – including the creation of a new tea room, alongside affordable accommodation. A joint scheme, involving the Almshouse and Sherborne Abbey, will see space retained for affordable accommodation, with the downstairs of the property becoming a tearoom. Other rooms upstairs will also be used for a young people’s centre and community group meetings. A public meeting for all interested parties to find out more and share views will take place at the Almshouse in the coming weeks.

A trail to encourage people across Somerset to support their local pub is back after five years. It's being run by the local branch of the Campaign for Real Ale with fifty pubs across the county taking part.

More from News

Thursday 19th September

Yeovil's MP Adam Dance has officially opened a new £30 million logistic hub at Leonardo Helicopters in Yeovil. Somerset Council says more parents are looking to move their children out of private schools and into state schools due to the addition of 20 percent VAT to private school fees. Star of TV’s Clarkson’s Farm, Kaleb Cooper, will be appearing at next month’s Yeovil Literary Festival...and more.
Wednesday 18th September

BT is reassuring customers in Somerset who are worried about the upcoming digital switchover for landline phones. Somerset Council could lose 13 percent of its elected members as part of an upcoming boundary review. Castle Cary has been named as the best place to live in the UK in an online poll...and more.
Tuesday 17th September

£400 million is being invested in research and development projects at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil. £29 million in council tax was left uncollected in Somerset in the last 3 years. A teenager from Yeovil is calling for more awareness of kidney failure. A new procedure for treating varicose veins has made it possible for patients to leave hospital earlier... and more.
Monday 15th September

The public is being asked for its views on how the Hinkley Point B nuclear power station near Bridgwater should be decommissioned. The number of reported rape cases to Avon and Somerset Police in the last 12 months increased to just over 3,000. Asda in Yeovil is inviting donations of used children’s books as part of the supermarket's partnership with the Children's Book Project...and more
Friday 13th September

The Prime Minister has paid tribute to the Royal Navy officer from RNAS Yeovilton who died in a training accident last week. A public consultation is underway into plans to build a giant solar farm between Yeovil and Sherborne. A care home in Crewkerne has been celebrating the 100th birthday of one of its residents...and more.
Wednesday 12th September

Somerset Community Foundation says it is looking to find new ways to fund its Surviving Winter Campaign. The National Farmers' Union is warning that its ambition to make UK farming ‘net zero’ by 2040 is in doubt. A newly refurbished play park in Queen Camel is being officially opened today...and more.
Wednesday 11th September

Work building the new amphitheatre in Lower Middle Street in Yeovil won't be finished until late autumn. Plans have been submitted to build sixteen low-cost homes in Somerton. Dunelm has re-opened in Yeovil as a 'click and collect hub' after a fire destroyed its store in the Quedam Centre...and more.
Tuesday 10th September

A new school for children with special needs has opened at Ash on the outskirts of Yeovil. One hundred Ash trees in Ham Hill Country Park are to be felled due to Ash dieback disease. The South Western Ambulance Service is holding its Annual Members Meeting in Ilminster next week...and more.