Local News Tuesday 31st August

    Somerset has been designated a drought area in line with the rest of the South West. More pubs are set to close in Somerset due to the unprecedented increases in energy costs, according to Somerset Chamber of Commerce. Great Western Railway has launched a new pay-as-you-go smartcard for travellers. Ilminster Town Council has moved to new premises and Yeovil Hospital has announced that construction work will begin later this year on a new breast care unit.

    Somerset has been designated a drought area in line with the rest of the South West. The Environment Agency has added drought status to Somerset, Bristol, Dorset, south Gloucestershire and parts of Wiltshire following a summer of record levels of low rainfall. 

    More pubs are set to close in Somerset due to the unprecedented increases in energy costs, according to Somerset Chamber of Commerce. CEO of the Chamber, Emma Rawlings says they've joined with the big brewery companies in asking the government for urgent help for the pub sector. Meanwhile, Yeovil MP Marcus Fysh says no new policies to deal with the energy crisis will be announced until the new Prime Minister takes office next week. 

    Great Western Railway the train operator that runs services through Castle Cary and Bruton has launched a new pay-as-you-go smartcard for travellers. Passengers no longer need to buy a ticket before jumping on a train. The smartcard is available to use across the GWR network, Cross Country and Transport for Wales rail services. 

    Ilminster Town Council has moved to new premises. The Town Council has relocated its offices to the Old Magistrates Court in East Street. Ilminster Town Council is open for business between 11 am and 2 pm Monday to Friday.

    Yeovil Hospital has announced that construction work will begin later this year on a new breast care unit. The new two-storey building will include waiting rooms, consultation rooms, diagnostic rooms, and counselling rooms, and is being funded in part by charitable donations of more than one million pounds. 
     

    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

    Today's Weather

    • Yeovil

      Heavy Rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

    • Chard

      Light rain

      High: 10°C | Low: 5°C

    • Crewkerne

      Light rain

      High: 10°C | Low: 5°C

    • Somerton

      Light rain

      High: 10°C | Low: 6°C

    • Wincanton

      Light rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 6°C

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