A prolific shoplifter has been banned from entering a number of stores in Yeovil. Motorway users faced a second weekday of problems on the M5 yesterday. The organisers of the Somerset Comedy Festival have had to cancel more shows...and more
A prolific shoplifter has been banned from entering a number of stores in Yeovil after being issued with a two-year Criminal Behaviour Order. Liam Allen, 35, of no fixed address, was given a one-year prison sentence at Taunton Crown Court after pleading guilty to 10 counts of theft between December 2023 and March 2024. The court also granted the order which prohibits him from entering Tesco Express, Tesco Extra, Boots, WH Smith, Superdrug and the Co-Op in the town.
Motorway users faced a second weekday of problems on the M5 yesterday. The road was closed around 10 am in both directions between junctions 23 and 24 after a serious incident, a short distance from Friday’s lorry crash. Although the motorway reopened shortly after midday, the delays remained for some time. Somerset Council is warning of disruption to waste collections for the rest of the week as a result. The crews use the M5 to access the depot where vehicles are emptied.
The organisers of the Somerset Comedy Festival have had to cancel more shows, following poor ticket sales. We told you last week that sets from big names like Sean Walsh and Simon Brodkin had been cancelled. But it has been announced that a further twelve performances have been axed. The organisers are urging the public to support the remaining shows if they possibly can.
And the cleanup operation is underway at Worthy Farm after festival goers left the Glastonbury site yesterday morning. An army of volunteers are now collecting huge amounts of rubbish strewn across the 800-acre site. Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that conversations are already underway with acts for the 2025 event, with 2026 set to be a so-called ‘fallow year’.
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
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
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
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