Local News Tuesday 27th September

Tuesday, 27 September 2022 06:00

Some teaching staff at Yeovil College have gone on strike in a pay dispute. The government has announced that work to turn the A358 between Ilminster and Taunton into a dual carriageway is to be fast-tracked. Somerset County Council has launched a campaign to raise awareness about head trauma in babies. Police are asking the public to help find Daniel Kellaway, aged 27, who’s wanted on a warrant for breaching his probation and in connection with a number of offences...and more.

Some teaching staff at Yeovil College have gone on strike in a pay dispute. Members of the University and College Union claim the pay of their members has fallen behind inflation by 35 percent since 2009 and that the pay gap between school and college teachers now stands at around £9,000. The UCU says the strike action will continue for 10 days unless their members are made a serious pay offer. (This story is courtesy of Somerset Live).

The government has announced that work to turn the A358 between Ilminster and Taunton into a dual carriageway is to be fast-tracked. It says it wants to speed up the planning process and get building work started by next year.

Somerset County Council has launched a campaign to raise awareness about head trauma in babies. The "Babies cry, you can cope" campaign is aimed at getting parents to open up about stress and seek help and advice.

Police are asking the public to help find Daniel Kellaway, aged 27, who’s wanted on a warrant for breaching his probation and in connection with a number of offences including theft, public order and assault. Kellaway is described as white, around 5ft 7ins tall, with short, dark brown hair and is known to frequent Yeovil, Castle Cary and Sherborne. A photo of him can be viewed on the Avon and Somerset Police website. If you see Kellaway or know of his whereabouts you’re asked not to approach him and to call 999.

Two students at Holyrood Academy in Chard are fundraising for a school trip to Cambodia to help build sustainable housing and schools. Milly Tucker and Megan Wrenn, both aged 15, plan to travel to Cambodia next year as part of the Camps International scheme. So far, Milly and Megan have held a cake sale, two garage sales, and a tombola to raise funds for the £4,000 they each need to raise to pay for the trip.

More from News

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
Tuesday 16th April

A new operator has been found to run a Chard care home that has been at risk of closure. A licence has been granted to run a new music festival in West Dorset. People have until midnight tonight to register for a vote in the election for a Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset...and more.