Friday 25th July

Friday, 25 July 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A father has been found guilty of murdering his two-week-old son at Yeovil Hospital. From Monday, no trains will be stopping at Crewkerne until further notice. Experts say the dry weather has created ideal conditions for wasps to multiply in significant numbers across Somerset. A rare railway carriage from the 1880s, believed to have been built in Somerset, is being given a new lease of life...and more.

A father has been found guilty of murdering his two-week-old son at Yeovil Hospital. Bristol Crown Court was told that Daniel Gunter, aged 27, of no fixed address, inflicted catastrophic injuries to the head, neck, legs and jaw of Brendon Staddon. His former partner, Sophie Staddon, aged 23, also of no fixed address, was cleared of causing or allowing the death of a child.

From Monday, no trains will be stopping at Crewkerne until further notice. A replacement bus service connecting Yeovil Junction and Axminster stations will serve the station. It's due to the dry weather causing clay embankments to shrink, meaning trains cannot travel safely at their normal speeds.

A local driver, found to be double the drink-drive limit when stopped by police, has been banned from driving for 20 months. Tracy Sandford of Fairhouse Road in Barwick near Yeovil pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol at Yeovil Magistrates Court. Sandford was also fined £138 with £85 costs.

Experts say the dry weather and the early heatwave have created ideal conditions for wasps to multiply in big numbers in Somerset. People from all around the County are reporting seeing a big increase in wasp numbers for the time of year.

A rare railway carriage from the 1880s, believed to have been built in Somerset, is being given a new lease of life. The carriage has been acquired by the Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust, which will undertake a complete restoration before returning it to service on the East Somerset Railway.

Artwork by students at schools in Chard has gone on display at two GP surgeries in the town. The paintings created by students at Manor Court Primary, Redstart Primary, Avishayes Primary and Chard Prep schools, in collaboration with Chard Together, are now displayed in the reception areas of both St. Mary's and Summerfield surgeries.

Cinema at the Warehouse, Ilminster's film club, has announced a new season of showings. The first of twelve screenings planned for the new season will be a showing of The Salt Path on the big screen at the Warehouse Theatre in Ilminster on Saturday, 13th September.

More from News

Monday 16th March

Drivers are being told that it could take several more weeks yet before Hendford Hill in Yeovil reopens to traffic. A new bus service between Glastonbury and Castle Cary railway station is to start on a trial basis. Children in Chard are being given free reading books as part of a scheme founded by Dolly Parton... and more
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