Local News Thursday 26th May

Thursday, 26 May 2022 06:00

Yeovil is the second easiest place to pass a driving test in the UK, according to new research by the insurance firm, Ingenie. A special church service has been held at RNAS Yeovilton to remember those who lost their lives serving on HMS Coventry and the Atlantic Conveyor in the Falklands conflict. The Liberal Democrats, who won control of Somerset County Council in the local elections earlier this month, have confirmed Councillor Bill Revans in the role of new County Council Leader...and more

Yeovil is the second easiest place to pass a driving test in the UK, according to new research by the insurance firm, Ingenie. Between April 2020 and June 2021, the town had a pass rate of 66.5 per cent. Dorchester had the highest pass rate in the UK with 67.3 per cent of those taking the driving test, passing it.

A special church service has been held at RNAS Yeovilton to remember those who lost their lives serving on HMS Coventry and the Atlantic Conveyor in the Falklands conflict. This week marks 40 years since both ships were sunk during the Falklands War with more than thirty men losing their lives.

The Liberal Democrats, who won control of Somerset County Council in the local elections earlier this month, have confirmed Councillor Bill Revans in the role of new County Council Leader. At the first meeting of all 110 councillors held in Bridgwater who will run the new Somerset unitary council from April next year, Councillor Val Keitch, the current Leader of South Somerset District Council, was given the Local Government Reorganisation and Prosperity portfolio, with Councillor David Woan as her deputy.

Two garden designers from Bruton have won a ‘Best in Show’ award at the Chelsea Flower Show. Lulu Urquhart and Adam Hunt were chosen for their creation of a garden depicting a beaver wetland habitat. The garden, which also won a Chelsea gold medal, features a beaver lodge, dam, a pond and stream, and various plants including orchids, forget-me-nots and hawthorn.

The first business to move in at a new industrial estate in Yeovil has begun trading. The national chain, GSF, which sells car parts, has opened a Yeovil branch on the new Glenmore Trading Estate, off Lufton Way, close to Yeovil Town’s Huish Park ground.

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