Thursday 22nd August

Thursday, 22 August 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Plans to regenerate Yeovil’s former cattle market have been cancelled. Two suspected cases of Mpox have been reported in Somerset. An 11-year-old Somerset boy has won two gold medals at the British Transplant Games. Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance has announced the return of its 100 Miles Challenge...and more.

Plans to regenerate Yeovil’s former cattle market have been cancelled. The upgrade of the site off Reckleford was part of the Yeovil Refresh project to which the previous Conservative government had given £9.75 million. Under the new Labour administration, funding to Yeovil Refresh has been cut to under £4.9 million. Somerset Council says none of the money will be spent on regenerating the cattle market but instead on buying the empty Glovers Walk shopping precinct and demolishing it, creating 18 flats within the former Porter Blacks building at 66, Middle Street, demolishing the building at 96, Middle Street, next to the 94 Club, replacing it with a ground floor commercial outlet including nine flats, and demolishing the existing buildings at Grimsby Corner at the end of Wyndham Street and replacing with a block of 48 flats. Meanwhile, plans to upgrade the A358 between the Southfields roundabout at Ilminster and the M5 at Taunton have been officially ‘put on hold’. National Highways says the scheme is being ‘paused’ as part of a review of all major transport schemes. It follows the cancellation of the £1.7 billion Stonehenge tunnel project, announced last month.

Two suspected cases of Mpox have been reported in Somerset, one in the Taunton area. The World Health Organisation declared an international emergency after the disease spread across Europe from the African Republic of Congo. Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is an infectious disease caused by a virus. It causes flu-like symptoms including fever, muscle aches, and a skin rash that can last two to four weeks. The WHO say of all 116 suspected Mpox cases in the UK, none are of the most serious strain.

An 11-year-old Somerset boy has won two gold medals in the swimming at the British Transplant Games. Six years ago, Jayden received a new heart. The boy had his life-saving operation at Great Ormond Street Hospital and competed for their team at the Transplant Games.

A Somerset insect expert says while there have not been a lot of bugs around this summer, that could soon change. Entemologist, Dee Patel, says a combination of rainfall and heat has meant more ants, wasps, mosquitoes and slugs are starting to surface.

Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance has announced the return of its 100 Miles Challenge. The event, now in its second year, invites participants to support the life-saving service by 'moving' 100 miles throughout October. Whether walking, running, cycling or swimming, everyone is welcome to take part, covering the 100 miles in their own time. Last year’s challenge raised £21,829.00.

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.