Friday 22nd March

Friday, 22 March 2024 11:35

By Steve Haigh

A by-election for a seat on Yeovil Town Council has been won by the Yeovil Independents. Owners of empty properties in Somerset will be paying double in council tax from April. A Somerset man is celebrating after finding England’s largest ever nugget of gold, said to be worth £30,000, using a metal detector...and more.

A by-election held in the Westland ward in Yeovil for a seat on Yeovil Town Council has been won by Ruth White for the Yeovil Independents. She polled 482 votes, beating Justice Jimba for the Liberal Democrats on 335 votes into second place. Terry Ledlie for Labour came third with 123 votes. The result increases Yeovil Independents' representation on Yeovil Town Council to 3 members.

Owners of empty properties in Somerset will be paying double in council tax from April. It follows a decision by Somerset Council to charge double council tax on properties left empty for 12 months or more. The Council estimates the change will raise an extra £1.7 million every year in council tax revenues.

Plans to build 24 new homes in Martock have finally been approved, four years after they were first proposed. Stonewater Housing Association has won permission to build the properties on Foldhill Lane, opposite the La Fontana dementia nursing home. The application had been delayed by the phosphates issue, with the developer having to put in place additional mitigation measures. Construction is expected to start later this year.

A Somerset man is celebrating after finding England’s largest-ever nugget of gold using a metal detector. Richard Brocks nearly missed the search in Shropshire, turning up hours late and with dodgy equipment. His find, estimated to be worth £30,000, has now been put up for auction online.

Funding's been secured to expand a programme in Somerset helping women back into work after becoming parents. Set up four years ago, the Woman's Work Lab has supported over 300 mothers with up to 70 per cent returning to employment. Now three courses a year are being run locally.

Herne Hill Nature Reserve in Ilminster is to be provided with five new dog waste bins. Ilminster Town Council has been given funding for the bins through the Community Champion Fund run by Persimmon Homes South West. The Council says the bins should create a cleaner and safer environment for people visiting the reserve.

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