Local News Thursday 2nd September

Thursday, 2 September 2021 06:00

Great Western Railway, which runs services through Castle Cary, is advising passengers to only travel if their journey is essential. Increased numbers of motorists submitting dashcam footage to police have led to a sharp rise in driver prosecutions. A shop owner in Somerset is warning of a shortage of children’s toys this Christmas. A man has been charged in connection with an assault on another man in Langport last weekend...and more.

Great Western Railway, which runs services through Castle Cary, is advising passengers to only travel if their journey is essential. It follows a lorry hitting a bridge in Plymouth and blocking the main Paddington to Penzance line that runs through Somerset. Network Rail says it could be Sunday before things return to normal.

Increased numbers of motorists submitting dashcam footage to police have led to a sharp rise in driver prosecutions. In a post on social media, Avon and Somerset Police thanked local motorists for helping to keep local roads safer by sending video footage of drivers breaking the law.

A shop owner in Somerset is warning of a shortage of children’s toys this Christmas. Manufacturers say it’s due to not having enough people to make toys. Shop owner, Mark Granger, says toys will also be more expensive, due to the higher costs of shipping supplies to the UK from China.

A man has been charged in connection with an assault on another man in Langport last weekend. Appearing before local magistrates, Horatiu-Aurel Varga, of no fixed address, was charged with wounding with intent. Varga was remanded in custody and will next appear at Taunton Crown Court on Friday, 24th September.

Plans have been submitted to convert a pavilion into a new changing rooms block at Kings School in Bruton. If approved by South Somerset District Council, a new 'external viewing terrace' will be added to the Hyde Pavilion, alongside the cricket pitch in Dropping Lane.

TV celebrity Martin Clunes is set to make an appearance at a charity coffee morning in Chard. The Doc Martin and Men Behaving Badly star will be guest of honour at the event being held in Chard Guildhall on Saturday, 11th September with proceeds going to Macmillan Cancer Support.

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Somerset’s busiest speed camera in 2023 has been revealed as the camera on the westbound carriageway of the A303 between the Podimore Roundabout and the Hazelgrove Roundabout. Bus campaigners are calling on Somerset Council to keep the public toilets open at Yeovil bus station. The funeral has taken place in Yeovil of D-Day veteran, Bill Tolley, who has died at the age of 97...and more.
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.