Local News Friday 24th February

Friday, 24 February 2023 06:00

People in Somerset who undergo hip replacement operations are no longer having to stay in hospital overnight. The RSPCA in Somerset says it's dealing with a sharp rise in abandoned pet rabbits. The Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard is closing for two weeks. People are being asked to take part in a charity Swimathon organised by Olympic gold medallist Duncan Goodhew. Soldiers from the 1st Regiment Army Air Corps, based at RNAS Yeovilton, have marched through Wincanton...and more.

People in Somerset who undergo hip replacement operations are no longer having to stay in hospital overnight. It follows the launch of a pilot scheme to reduce waiting lists, with patients leaving hospital within just a few hours of being operated on.

The former Leader of Somerset County Council, Councillor David Fothergill, has expressed alarm at a sharp rise in children having teeth extracted in hospital. Councillor Fothergill, who‘s currently chairman of the Local Government Association's Community Wellbeing Board, was speaking after figures showed an 83 per cent increase in children having teeth taken out in hospital this year. His comments come amid claims that a lack of NHS dentists is leading to an increase in cases of people of all ages having rotting teeth.

The RSPCA in Somerset says its dealing with a sharp rise in the number of abandoned pet rabbits. The charity says it’s a result of overbreeding during the lockdown and the cost of living crisis.

Soldiers from the 1st Regiment Army Air Corps, based at RNAS Yeovilton, have marched through Wincanton. The parade was held to mark the Regiment being awarded the Freedom of the Town.

The Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard is closing for two weeks for improvement works to be carried out. The sanctuary will shut to visitors from Sunday, March 19th to Saturday, April 1st. Changes to the site include building a new entrance, and the opening of a new art, crafts and education centre.

People in South Somerset are being asked to take part in a charity Swimathon organised by Olympic gold medallist Duncan Goodhew. Goldenstones Leisure Centre in Yeovil, Chard Leisure Centre and Wincanton Sports Centre will be involved in raising funds for Cancer Research UK and Marie Curie over the weekend of May 12th to the 14th. You can enter the Swimathon as an individual or with a team via the MySwimathon website.

More from News

Monday 16th June

The new owner of Yeovil Town says he’s in talks with Somerset Council about buying back Huish Park. Water levels at some of Somerset’s reservoirs are below what they should be for this time of year. A Chard woman has been recognised in the King's Birthday Honours... and more.
Friday 13th June

Police are appealing for witnesses to a road traffic accident near Chard, which left one person with life-threatening injuries. Texas Rocks in Middle Street, Yeovil, has closed temporarily following a significant fire. A Yeovil dental hygienist has been named as a finalist in the Ms Great Britain competition...and more.
Thursday 12th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance has criticised the Chancellor’s Spending Review for not delivering real change for Yeovil and South Somerset. The CEO of Leonardo UK states that they’re working towards closing the gender pay gap within the company. Yeovil Town is relocating its first-team training camp to Bristol... and more.
Wednesday 11th June

People in Somerset are being asked for their views on the state of the county’s roads and footpaths. A trial is being conducted at Yeovil Hospital to investigate whether administering shorter courses of antibiotics to patients can effectively treat sepsis. Somerset Council says it has no plans to reopen a block of public toilets in Chard...and more.
Tuesday 10th June

A mother from Chard says schools need to do more to identify students with dyslexia. A fire in a van that caught alight at Stoke-sub-Hamdon is being treated as accidental. A former Yeovil-based police officer, who made it appear he was working when he wasn’t, has been barred from policing...and more
Monday 9th June

Somerset Council is giving £1.5m to Hill View Special School at Ash near Martock to prevent it from closing. Two men have been convicted of killing a Yeovil man they mistakenly believed to be a convicted paedophile. People across Somerset are being asked to make a note of any wildlife they see...and more
Friday 6th June

Community Speedwatch volunteers in Keinton Mandeville have stopped monitoring the local traffic because of online and verbal abuse. Redstart Primary School in Chard has been rated as ‘Good’ by Ofsted. A care home resident in Glastonbury has raised more than one thousand pounds for Children's Hospice Southwest by knitting soft toys...and more.
Thursday 5th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance says he’s been told the temporary closure of the maternity unit at Yeovil Hospital will not be made permanent. Firefighters have dealt with a fire on a coach carrying passengers at Vagg Hill in Yeovil. The authorities in Chile are holding a man who lives in Milborne Port after being found with class-A drugs in a suitcase...and more.