Local News Friday 16th September

Friday, 16 September 2022 06:00

A Chard man has appeared in court for possessing a bladed object. Police have found a body in their search for a missing Yeovil woman. Most foodbanks in Somerset will be closed on Monday for the Queen's funeral. Funding’s being made available in Somerset to provide people with learning disabilities with more opportunities to take part in social activities. The go-ahead has been given to build a new energy storage facility next to a Somerset beauty spot...and more.

A Chard man has appeared in court for possessing a bladed object. Taunton Crown Court was told that Sonny Fox, aged 19, waved a machete during a row in the car park at the Sainsbury’s store in Chard. Fox pleaded guilty to the offence and was given a nine-month suspended prison sentence with probation.

Police have found a body in their search for a missing Yeovil woman. The body was discovered at Bowleaze Cove in Dorset early yesterday. Police say no formal identification has yet been made, but next of kin have been informed and are currently being supported.

Most foodbanks in Somerset will be closed on Monday for the Queen's funeral. They say they always close on bank holidays and that agencies and supermarkets who they rely on for supplies will also be closed. Also, due to the period of official mourning for Queen Elizabeth, Super Saturday that was meant to take place in Yeovil town centre tomorrow won’t now take place. Yeovil Town Council says a new date to hold Super Saturday will be announced shortly.

Funding’s being made available in Somerset to provide people with learning disabilities with more opportunities to take part in social activities. According to the organisation 'Discovery’, only 30 per cent of people with learning disabilities in Somerset feel they are able to choose where and when they go out. The organisation’s now making grants available to fund projects to help make community spaces and services more accessible for people with autism and other learning disabilities.

The go-ahead has been given to build a new energy storage facility next to a Somerset beauty spot. Despite concerns that it would damage the character of the nearby landscape, councillors approved plans for the battery storage facility at King’s Farm at Shearston, near Bridgwater. Applicants, Conrad Energy Developments intend to store excess power at the site, to sell back to the National Grid at peak times.

A major photographic exhibition has opened at Barrington Court near Ilminster. The International Garden Photographer of the Year exhibition is on at the National Trust property until October 17th. Categories include Abstract Views, Breathing Spaces, Trees, Wildlife in the Garden and the World of Fungi.

The search is on to find a new Town Crier for Yeovil. Applicants must be aged 18 and over, and have the desire and loud enough voice to fit the job.

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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