Local News Friday 27th May

Friday, 27 May 2022 06:00

Emergency stroke services in the county could be offered in one hospital instead of two, in the future. court has heard how a Chard woman, who portrayed herself as being homeless, stole a man’s wallet after he invited her back to his flat for a meal. The former Conservative Leader of Somerset County Council, David Fothergill, has been speaking about making the switch to the new Somerset unitary council. A Yeovil man is setting-up Somerset’s first wheelchair rugby club...and more.

Emergency stroke services in the county could be offered in one hospital instead of two, in the future. NHS managers are looking at whether to close the emergency stroke unit at either Yeovil or Musgrove Park hospitals, so they have all the specialist staff and equipment in one place.

A court has heard how a Chard woman, who portrayed herself as being homeless, stole a man’s wallet after he invited her back to his flat for a meal. Taunton Crown Court was told that Emma Shirley, now of David Way in Chard, approached the man in Yeovil town centre claiming to have no money for food and repaid his kindness by stealing £180 from him. Shirley, who had a history of similar offending, was jailed for fifteen months.

The former Conservative Leader of Somerset County Council, David Fothergill, has been speaking about making the switch to the new Somerset unitary council. From April next year, Somerset’s district councils, including South Somerset and the County Council will disappear and be replaced by the new 'one' council that will run all council services across Somerset. The Liberal Democrats won control of the County Council at the local elections and will run the new unitary when it comes into being in 2023. Councillor Fothergill says he wants the new unitary authority to be a success.

A Yeovil man is setting-up Somerset’s first wheelchair rugby club. Julian Allen, who won silver in the wheelchair rugby at the Invictus Games in the Netherlands, has enlisted the support of Help for Heroes and the Rifles’ Care for Casualties charity with the venture. He’s aiming to have a Somerset-based wheelchair rugby club in place to compete against teams like Southampton Sharks Bournemouth Lions by the start of the 2023 season.

A four-year-old boy from Chard, who suffers from eczema, is taking on a walking challenge to support other children with the condition. Ezra Venn was diagnosed with eczema as a baby and despite being given various treatments his condition remains pretty much unchanged. Ezra, who will start primary school in September, is completing 5,000 walking steps every day during May, raising funds for Eczema Outreach Support.

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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