Local News Friday 26th August

    Local fish and chip shop owners say they're struggling to stay open because of the rising cost of ingredients, and customers cutting back on eating out. A campaign’s been launched to stop the closure of the ticket office at Crewkerne railway station. A Somerton mother has set up a Facebook group for buying and selling school uniforms and a Somerset father says he’s concerned about his son losing his teeth because he can’t find an NHS dentist to look after him.

    Local fish and chip shop owners say they're struggling to stay open because of the rising cost of ingredients, and customers cutting back on eating out. The price of cod has almost doubled over the past twelve months, and sunflower oil prices have soared since the invasion of Ukraine. The National Federation of Fish Fryers says 60 percent of chip shops have reduced their opening hours to keep energy costs down. 

    A campaign’s been launched to stop the closure of the ticket office at Crewkerne railway station. Local train users held a protest outside the station earlier this week holding-up signs saying “Cut profits, not ticket offices.” The protest follows reports that up to one thousand ticket offices at train stations across Britain could be closed and replaced with ticket machines.

    A Somerton mother has set up a Facebook group for buying and selling school uniforms. Nikki Allen says the site has been extra busy with families swapping and buying uniforms from each other, with visits to the site higher than usual due to the cost-of-living crisis.

    A Somerset father says he’s concerned about his son losing his teeth because he can’t find an NHS dentist to look after him. Ezekiel was born with a cleft palate and needs regular check-ups. His dad, Simon Pickard, says at the moment his only option to get treatment is to go private, which he can’t afford.
     

    More from News

    • Friday 26 April

      A man has been arrested in Castle Cary and charged with stalking, harassment and making threats to kill. The NHS in Somerset says its staff retention rate has improved over the past two years. A farmer in South Petherton is preparing to cycle 1,000 miles to raise money for charity...and more.

    • Thursday 25th April

      The NHS is offering spring COVID-19 vaccines to people in Somerset who are at increased risk of serious illness from the virus. A new way of making roads safer for children in Somerset has started this week. A Yeovil-based apprentice has been named as a winner in the JTL Regional Awards. Haselbury Mill near Crewkerne has been put up for sale...and more

    • Wednesday 24th April 

      Yeovil Town FC have sent a strongly worded letter to the Football Association asking for plans to end FA Cup replays to be dropped. A Somerset woman who's spent the last 32 years living with Hepatitis C, says better support is needed for those affected by the contaminated blood scandal. A new school of musical theatre has opened in Chard...and more.

    • Tuesday 23rd April

      Two teenage boys have admitted animal cruelty after filming themselves throwing a lamb down a stone staircase at Montacute. Somerset Council could lose around £5 million by selling the Marks and Spencer building in Yeovil. Chard, Wincanton, Castle Cary and Ansford are on a list of fifteen places in Somerset where new 20 mph speed limits could soon be introduced...and more.

    • Monday 22nd April

      The parents of a two-week-old baby boy, accused of his murder at Yeovil Hospital, are to stand trial. Protesters have splashed red paint across the front of County Hall in Taunton for a second time. A comedy film about the world of competitive marrow-growing and made in Shepton Mallet has opened in cinemas across the UK...and more. 

    • Friday 19th April

      Work starts today building a new eastbound carriageway as part of dualling the A303 between Sparkford and Podimore. A childhood obesity clinic in Somerset has revealed that it is treating children as young as eight months old. Somerset Wildlife Trust has launched a campaign to recruit an army of young people to act as conservation champions...and more.

    • Thursday 18th April

      A Martock man has been jailed after admitting to shining lasers at aircraft flying over Yeovil. Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the TK Maxx store at Babylon Hill. Nearly four hundred people have put their names forward for redundancy at Somerset Council...and more.

    • Wednesday 17 April

      Three local primary schools have been named on a list of England's top five hundred primary schools. A new co-working space for businesswomen has opened in Wincanton. Urgent repairs are being carried out to Ilminster's new public clock after it started showing the wrong time...and more

    Today's Weather

    • Yeovil

      Heavy Rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

    • Chard

      Light rain

      High: 10°C | Low: 5°C

    • Crewkerne

      Light rain

      High: 10°C | Low: 5°C

    • Somerton

      Light rain

      High: 10°C | Low: 6°C

    • Wincanton

      Light rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 6°C

    Recently Played