Friday 24th November

Friday, 24 November 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A Police operation has resulted in 160 knives being taken off the streets in the Avon and Somerset force area. Ofsted says pupil suspension rates in Somerset are alarmingly high. It’s a big night for Christmas light switch-on events in South Somerset with Christmas lights being turned on in Wincanton, Ilminster and Crewkerne...and more.

A Police operation has resulted in 160 knives being taken off the streets in the Avon and Somerset force area. Officers carried out a range of engagement activities to encourage people not to carry knives or get involved in serious violence as part of Operation Sceptre.

Ofsted says pupil suspension rates in Somerset are alarmingly high. In their annual report, Ofsted says the national average for pupil suspensions is 7 per cent, while in Somerset it's above ten per cent. The rate of pupils missing school, or absenteeism, in Somerset is again above the national average by around two per cent.

The Manager of Yeovil’s Quedam Shopping Centre says longer-term guarantees are needed on business rates to help struggling retailers. Commenting on Wednesday’s Government Autumn Statement, James Tovey says an extension of 12 months in the 75 per cent discount on business rates was to be welcomed but didn’t give smaller businesses the ability to plan ahead.

Two lead members of Somerset Council have announced they will be stepping down from their executive roles at the end of the year. Tessa Munt and Mike Rigby will resign from their positions on the Executive but will continue as local councillors.

Somerset NHS Foundation Trust – which includes Yeovil Hospital - has issued an apology following yesterday’s news that up to two hundred people have had their hospital records inappropriately accessed by a member of staff. The Trust says the individual concerned, who no longer works for Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, accessed the records of people who were known to them over a period of six years. Avon and Somerset Police are currently conducting an investigation into the circumstances.

It’s a big night for Christmas light switch-ons in South Somerset. Christmas lights are being turned on in Wincanton, Ilminster and Crewkerne tonight. Tomorrow, it’s the turn of Chard to switch on their Christmas decorations.

More from News

Friday 13th March

The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more
Thursday 12th March

A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more
Wednesday 11th March

Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more
Tuesday 10th March

Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more
Monday 9th March

Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more
Friday 6th March

Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more
Thursday 5th March

Two military helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton are being sent to Cyprus to help bolster UK’s defences amid the US-Israel war with Iran. Yeovil Town Council is seeking legal advice over the closure of the hyper acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. Flood warnings have been lifted on the Somerset Levels... and more
Wednesday 4th March

A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more