Monday 24th March

Monday, 24 March 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Numatic International Ltd in Chard has been given planning permission to build a giant solar farm off the A30 Crewkerne Road. The RSPCA says incidents of dropped litter impacting the lives of animals in Somerset is a growing problem. Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is marking 25 years of saving lives across the two counties...and more

Numatic International Ltd in Chard, makers of the Henry vacuum cleaner, has been given planning permission to build a giant solar farm off the A30 Crewkerne Road. The solar farm, situated across two fields east of Nursery Gardens, will provide clean energy to all of Numatic’s buildings, including a new warehouse, under construction on the former Oscar Mayer site in Chard. Work building the new solar farm is expected to begin later this year.

The RSPCA says incidents of dropped litter impacting the lives of animals in Somerset is a growing problem. The charity says that last year it dealt with 54 incidents of animals, including hedgehogs, swans and deer ingesting litter or becoming entangled in litter. The RSPCA says drink cans, plastic items and disposable vapes are some of the items that pose the greatest danger to wildlife.

Thousands of new homes could soon be built in Somerset after a change of legal advice involving mitigating the release of phosphates. Somerset Council says upgrades to Wessex Water's water treatment plants have already extracted the amount of phosphate necessary to enable 12,000 homes in Somerset,
caught up in the phosphate planning backlog, to be built.

Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is marking 25 years of saving lives across the two counties. The service, launched in March 2000, operates using one helicopter from Henstridge airfield.

Police are seeking witnesses to an assault in Chard in which a man was hit over the head with a bottle. It happened as the man was walking through Stringfellow Park and was attacked by three men at around 11:30 pm on Tuesday, March 4th. Police are appealing for anyone who witnessed the incident to contact them. If you can help, you’re asked to please call the non-emergency number 101.

The M5 in Somerset will close in both directions on four nights this week for re-surfacing work. From today until Thursday, the M5 will shut between Junction 26 at Wellington and Junction 28 at Cullompton from 9 pm to 6 pm. A diversion will operate via the A38 and B3181.

More from News

Friday 7th November

A man from Yeovil has been jailed for eight years after being convicted of three counts of rape. Smoking rates in Somerset remain higher than in many other parts of the UK. Students at three schools in Yeovil have created a new shoe design for Clarks.
Thursday 6th November

The Supreme Court has ruled that building thousands of homes in Somerset has been "unlawfully held up". The Head of Holyrood Academy in Chard has described the building of a new primary school in the town as an ‘incredible opportunity’. A pub near Chard has been named one of the best in Britain by The Good Food Guide...and more
Wednesday 5th November

Members of the Unite union at Leonardo in Yeovil have called off a planned strike for today. South Western Railway says trains on the West of England Line will start running normally again at the end of the month. A memorial post box has been placed at the entrance to Crewkerne cemetery...and more.
Tuesday 4th November

Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service says from today it will no longer respond to automatic fire alarms. School in a Bag, based in Chilthorne Domer, is sending 400 school bags to Jamaica, following Hurricane Melissa. Yeovil Town has paid tribute to former manager Colin Addison, who has passed away...and more.
Monday 3rd November

Plans have been approved to convert Old Viney Bridge Mill in Crewkerne to residential use. The go-ahead has been given to decommission Hinkley Point B nuclear power plant in Somerset. We’re being asked to provide food for hedgehogs that come into our gardens this winter...and more.
Friday 31st October

There's anger in Chard about a road diversion in place alongside two sets of roadworks through the town. A motorcyclist has been injured in an accident in Bruton. £100,000 has been donated towards re-opening Shepton Mallet’s Amulet theatre...and more
Thursday 30th October

Bird flu has been detected at a nature reserve in Somerset, resulting in the closure of part of it. St Margaret’s Hospice in Somerset is calling for the hospice sector to be given more central funding. The Barrington Boar in Barrington has been placed 12th in The Good Food Guide’s list of 100 best pubs in Britain...and more
Wednesday 29th October

Police are investigating a suspected arson attack on a mobile home near Yeovil. Somerset Council is suggesting people turn their pumpkins into soup this Halloween. People in Yeovil have until Sunday to comment on controversial plans to sell off four car parks in the town centre... and more.