Local News Tuesday 29th June

Tuesday, 29 June 2021 06:00

More than a dozen further cases of the Indian or Delta variant of Covid have been recorded in South Somerset. Learners drivers in South Somerset are having to wait even longer to take a driving test. Four people needed hospital treatment following a two-vehicle crash in the village of Penselwood, near Wincanton. Fire has damaged a house in Combe Close in Yeovil. A delay has been announced to the start of work on smartening up Yeovil town centre...and more.

More than a dozen further cases of the Indian or Delta variant of Covid have been recorded in South Somerset. The latest figures show there were 34 new cases of the Delta variant recorded in the greater Yeovil Area in the seven days up to June 23rd. This is twenty more cases than the week before.

Learners drivers in South Somerset are having to wait even longer to take a driving test. According to data from the insurance provider ‘Veygo’, test centres in Yeovil, Taunton and Weston-super-Mare are each showing “no dates found” when learners try to book. Nationally, test centres say the earliest that a test can be booked is November.

Four people needed hospital treatment following a two-vehicle crash in the village of Penselwood, near Wincanton. It happened at around 8 pm on Sunday evening with one person left trapped for 2-hours before being released by fire crews.

Fire has damaged a house in Combe Close in Yeovil. Reports of a loud bang being heard preceding the blaze have been attributed to a gas boiler in a loft space exploding. Crews from Yeovil, Sherborne, Martock and Crewkerne attended the incident. No one was hurt.

A delay has been announced to the start of work on smartening up Yeovil town centre. Construction had been due to begin this month on Yeovil Refresh but South Somerset District Council said it will now be mid-July before work starts. The Council says the delay is to allow time to secure additional funding for the Yeovil Refresh project, above the £10 million already given by the government

A woman from Chard wants more GPs to take up free training about menopause. Nikki Long is promoting training from The Menopause Charity. She says she struggled to get her GP to recognise her pre-menopausal symptoms. Somerset NHS Clinical Commissioning Group says it's exploring options around how to improve support for women experiencing menopause.

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Tuesday 30th April

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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.