Friday 27th October

Friday, 27 October 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Somerset Council has been warned that it could effectively go bankrupt within four months if current forecasts come to fruition and no corrective action is taken. Plans to build twenty-eight new homes at Tintinhull have been given the go-ahead. Huish Park will turn pink tomorrow when Yeovil Town play a National League fixture in aid of the Yeovil Breast Cancer Unit Appeal...and more.

Somerset Council has been warned by auditors that it could effectively go bankrupt within four months if current forecasts come to fruition and no corrective action is taken. Dr Marlene Davis, an expert in local government finance and an associate at the University of South Wales, says the financial problems at Somerset Council are becoming more widespread within local government.

A new Asda Express store has opened in Yeovil. The new outlet, on the site of the former Co-op petrol station on Sherborne Road, is one of 116 convenience stores and petrol stations acquired by Asda from the Co-op Group.

Plans to build 28 new homes at Tintinhull have been given the go-ahead by Somerset Council. The development, on the western edge of the village near the junction with Montacute Road, will be a short distance away from a new special needs school being constructed on the other side of the A303. Of the 28 homes, ten will be affordable, meeting Somerset Council's target of 35 per cent affordable housing for any new development of ten homes or more.

Huish Park will turn pink tomorrow when Yeovil Town take on Braintree Town in a National League South fixture. The game is being played in aid of the Breast Cancer Unit Appeal at Yeovil Hospital with Yeovil’s players kitted out in a pink strip. Much of the stadium will also change colour to pink, including the corner flags. Somerset-based TV celebrity, Sarah Beeny, who’s currently receiving treatment for breast cancer, will speak to the crowd to rally support for giving to the Breast Cancer Unit. Organisers say they need a further £30,000 to hit their target of two-and-a-half-million pounds to build the new unit and are hoping to raise that amount at tomorrow’s match.

More from News

Thursday 30th October

Bird flu has been found at a nature reserve in Somerset, closing part of it down. 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.
Tuesday 28th October

Plans have been submitted to build 12 new homes in Chard. A nursery in Yeovil has been rated ‘overall good' by Ofsted. A Somerset mortgage broker has achieved national recognition. A stretch of the M5 at Wellington will be shut every night this week...and more
Monday 27th October

The Unite union has announced four days of strikes by its members at Leonardo in Yeovil. One of Yeovil’s busiest roads is closed to traffic today. Staff at the Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard raised £3,000 taking part in a Sleeping Ruff challenge at the weekend...and more
Friday 24th October

New figures show that 500 young people were either injured or killed on roads in Somerset and Devon last year. The Old School Community Centre in Queen Camel has reopened, thanks to a donation of £10,000 from Somerset Freemasons. Two Fleet Air Arm engineers based at RNAS Yeovilton have recreated a family moment from 26 years ago...and more
Thursday 23rd October

Yeovil-born actress Sarah Parish is supporting efforts to reopen the Octagon theatre. Mobility scooter campaigners in Somerset have welcomed a government review of the legislation governing the use of mobility scooters on public highways. Changes are being made to the dates when garden waste is collected in Somerset...and more
Wednesday 22nd October

A major house builder in the South West says government targets for new house building in Somerset are 'unrealistic'. Pizza Hut is closing its restaurant in Yeovil. Staff at the Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard will be taking part in a ‘Sleeping Ruff’ challenge tomorrow...and more .
Tuesday 21st October

Reckleford in Yeovil is to shut for 15 days for essential drainage works. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust has paid out compensation of £23 million for claims related to birth injuries. A Grade II listed building in Glastonbury has been converted into a health and wellbeing centre...and more