Tuesday 21st November

Tuesday, 21 November 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

The Leader of Somerset Council has written an open letter to every household in Somerset explaining why the Council has declared a 'financial emergency'. A public meeting has been organised to discuss the future of Bruton School for Girls. Staff and customers at a shop in Chard have raised £900 for Chard Hospital League of Friends...and more.

The Leader of Somerset Council, Councillor Bill Revans, has written an open letter to every household in Somerset to explain why the Council has been forced into declaring a financial emergency. In his letter, Councillor Revans says Somerset Council has a projected overspend of £27 million in the current financial year and a budget gap of £100 million in the next financial year, with the bulk of the overspend blamed on the rising costs of delivering adult social care services. At a meeting early next month, members of the Executive at Somerset Council will be asked to vote on a range of money savings measures including cutting staff numbers, selling council-owned buildings, and transferring some non-statutory functions, like running theatres, to town councils.

For the first time, nurses can be fully trained in Somerset without having to leave the County. Previously, those seeking a nursing degree have had to move to other parts of the country to study at university. Now, a nursing degree course is being offered at Bridgwater and Taunton College.

A Somerset couple have written a book about their travels on a narrowboat along Britain’s rivers and canals. Rob and Philippa Perryman spent a year covering thirteen hundred miles of waterways in their narrowboat. They’re hoping their book will inspire others to give traveling by narrowboat a try.

Staff and customers at the Original Factory shop in Chard have raised £900 for Chard Hospital League of Friends. The money was raised through selling carrier bags, holding a bingo night and raffle.

A public meeting has been organised to discuss the future of Bruton School for Girls. The school closed last summer after being in existence for 122 years. The school and adjoining land are currently advertised for sale at £9 million, with development potential. The meeting, organised by Bruton Town Council and Pitcombe Parish Council, takes place next Monday, November 27th.

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Monday 10th February

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