Tuesday 17th December

Tuesday, 17 December 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Emergency teams are still working across Somerset to remove trees damaged in last week’s Storm Darragh. Crewkerne Town Council has been asked to ban the Seavington Hunt from gathering in the town centre on Boxing Day. The London Standard newspaper has named the Lord Poulett Arms in Hinton St George as its "Country Pub of the Week"...and more

Emergency teams are still working across Somerset to remove trees damaged in last week’s Storm Darragh. Some roads in Somerset remain partially blocked by trees waiting to be felled.

Crewkerne Town Council has been asked to ban the Seavington Hunt from the town centre on Boxing Day. It’s become traditional for the Seavington Hunt to gather in Crewkerne on Boxing Day but Action Against Fox Hunting says the Hunt’s activities are abhorrent and want the Town Council to follow Castle Cary Town Council who have banned the Sparkford Vale Hunt from the town centre. The Countryside Alliance has hit back saying only a small group want the Seavington Hunt banned from Crewkerne.

Controversial plans to build 46 new homes in Castle Cary are due to be decided at a meeting of Somerset Council Planning South Committee on Tuesday, January 28th. The application to develop land north of the town’s cemetery in South Street has twice been delayed over concerns about access and drainage issues.

Councillors in Glastonbury have backed proposals to link the town to Castle Cary with a new community bus service. The initiative, led by the Somerset Bus Partnership, aims to make travel between the two towns easier, with improved access for rail passengers using Castle Cary train station.

Work will start in the New Year creating a car-free route between Curry Rivel and Langport. The Curry Rivel Active Travel Group says the route will make it possible for pedestrians and cyclists to avoid using the A378 to get from Curry Rivel to Langport. Eventually, it will form part of a wider planned active travel network stretching across the Somerset Levels and Moors.

Public access is now being provided through the grounds of Hazlegrove Preparatory School at Sparkford. South Somerset Bridleway Association applied in 2018 to secure a footpath through the grounds of the grade two listed Hazlegrove House, which has been a school since 1947. Somerset Council approved the request, despite claims that due process had not been followed, and concerns about pupil safeguarding.

The London Standard has named the Lord Poulett Arms in Hinton St George as its "Country Pub of the Week". The newspaper highlighted the pub's quintessential charm for its choice.

More from News

Monday 5th January

A woman has been cut free from her car after a four-vehicle collision in Montacute. Devon and Somerset fire crews have been praised for their bravery, following the summer wildfires. More new homes are set to be built in Martock, following approval from Somerset Council...and more.
Wednesday 24th December

A formal planning application has been made to carry out significant improvements to Yeovil’s Octagon Theatre, costing £15 million. The Halifax Bank in King George Street in Yeovil could be converted into 17 flats. A new young people’s centre opens in Chard early in the New Year...and more.
Tuesday 23rd December

NHS Somerset reports a strong uptake of flu jabs, but some eligible people for free vaccinations haven’t come forward. Police are appealing for witnesses to an accident on the A303 in which a pedestrian was killed. A Crewkerne woman has gone viral on TikTok after being trapped inside a Lidl store in the town... and more.
Monday 22nd December

Somerset Bus Partnership has welcomed a £24.7m boost for the county's bus services. Outline planning permission has been granted to build up to 100 new homes in Ilminster. An Ilminster man has been banned from keeping animals for seven years. Residents in Chiselborough have set up a group to try and re-open the village pub...and more.
Friday 19th December

Crewkerne Community Hospital is to lose half its inpatient beds. A review will be conducted of a project to make Bridgwater more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly. Chard Methodist Church is offering residents a free lunch on Christmas Day. Yeovil-based Screwfix is opening a new outlet in Minehead...and more.
Thursday 18th December

Yeovil MP Adam Dance has warned that delays in ordering 30 new medium lift helicopters for the RAF is putting the future of Somerset’s defence industries at risk. Somerset's farmers are being urged to convert more cow manure into biogas to heat homes. A new visitor centre has opened at Ham Hill country park...and more
Wednesday 17th December

Parcel business, Evri, has been criticised by Glastonbury and Somerton MP Sarah Dyke over what she claims have been ‘widespread delivery failures’. Demand for mental health support provided by South Western Ambulance Service is running at record levels. A nine-year-old Somerset boy has completed 100 days of litter picking for charity...and more
Tuesday 14th December

New data shows that crime in the Avon and Somerset police area is at an all-time high. Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard has issued a warning to prospective pet owners ahead of Christmas. The owner of four pubs in Somerset has warned that many could be forced to shut unless the government reconsiders business rates...and more.