The RSPB in Somerset says it is seeing big changes in bird migrations to and from the county. The Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Police says delays in answering 101 calls are a result of understaffing and accidental pocket dials. Beekeepers in Somerset are appealing for help to spot Asian hornets that are a threat to honey bees...and more.
The RSPB in Somerset says it is seeing big changes in bird migration patterns to and from the county. It follows a report claiming the changing climate is affecting the numbers, distribution and behaviours of migratory birds, including cuckoos and chiffchaffs.
The Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Police says delays in answering 101 calls are a result of understaffing, rising demand, and accidental pocket dials. Sarah Crew told a police performance and accountability board meeting that Avon and Somerset Police are dealing with around eighty thousand emergency and non-emergency calls every month.
Beekeepers in Somerset are appealing for help to spot Asian hornets. Somerset Beekeepers Association says they’ve received several unconfirmed sightings of Asian hornets that are a threat to the honeybee population. The insect is described as being like a large black wasp with yellow legs, an orange face, blackish brown body, with an orange stripe towards the end of its abdomen.
A Somerset mother who lost both her daughters to a rare but deadly disease is working to help other families dealing with the medical condition. Sarah Moore's daughter Harriet died aged eighteen months, then Kimberly died aged four. They both had Mitochondrial Disease. Sarah’s working with the Lily Foundation, which raises awareness of the disease.
The head chef of a gastropub based near Chard has won a ‘Best Pub Chef’ award. Charlotte Vincent, and her team at The Candlelight Inn in Bishopswood, were presented with certificates at the Great British Pub Awards ceremony held in Birmingham.
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
New mums in Somerset could soon be offered a cervical screening test six weeks after giving birth. Police are asking for help in finding a Yeovil man wanted on recall to prison. The government has given half a million pounds towards planting more trees in Somerset, including 100 new trees in Yeovil...and more