Local News Monday 12th June

Monday, 12 June 2023 07:00

By Steve Haigh

A record number of motorists were convicted of speeding offences in the Avon and Somerset Police area last year. An Ilchester man has been jailed for ten years after being found guilty of eleven counts of indecent assault. Police are seeking dashcam footage and witnesses to a single-vehicle collision on the A30 at Snowdon Hill near Chard last Thursday...and more.

A record number of motorists were convicted of speeding offences in the Avon and Somerset Police area last year. Figures from the Ministry of Justice show that 10,566 motorists caught by Avon and Somerset Police were convicted for speeding offences in 2022 – up 61% from 6,578 convictions the year before and the highest since comparable records began in 2014.

An Ilchester man has been jailed for ten years after being found guilty of eleven counts of indecent assault. Karl Pitcher, aged fifty-four of Great Orchard in Ilchester, was also given a sexual harm prevention order and placed on the sex offenders register for life when he appeared at Taunton Crown Court. The court was told that Pitcher had carried out his offending in the nineteen nineties on children aged between two and fourteen years.

Police are seeking dashcam footage and witnesses to a single-vehicle collision on the A30 at Snowdon Hill near Chard last Thursday at around 10.20 am. The driver of a black Ford Fiesta involved in the incident remains in a critical condition in hospital. If you can help, please call the non-emergency number 101.

Plans have been submitted to convert a disused church in Langport into a house. The proposal would see the former United Reformed Church building on Bow Street connected to the next-door property to create one large house. The building was constructed in 1828 as a congregational chapel and re-fronted in 1874. It ceased being a church in May 202

A traditional farmhouse cider-maker is encouraging more people to produce heritage Somerset cider. Matt Gillett runs 'Tricky Cider' in Low Ham, near Langport says there's room in the market for more locally produced cider.

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Monday 27th April

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Friday 24th April

Plans have been submitted to turn a property on Preston Road in Yeovil into a House in Multiple Occupation. Yeovil’s Marlie Packer has been recalled to the England Red Roses starting line-up for tomorrow’s Women’s Six Nations game against Wales. Three sisters from Yeovil will be running the London Marathon this weekend in support of Guide Dogs UK... and more
Thursday 23rd April

Helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton have completed six weeks of sorties, protecting Cyprus from attacks by Iran. People in Somerset who use domestic heating oil are calling on the government to regulate the oil supply industry. Patients are being invited to register at a new NHS dentist in Crewkerne... and more
Wednesday 22nd April

Expectant mothers are using Yeovil Hospital once again to give birth following the reopening of the maternity unit. A Yeovil man has been jailed for four years for committing sexual offences against two young girls. Plans have been approved to convert a pub in Milborne Port into housing... and more
Tuesday 21st April

NHS Somerset has delayed closing the hyper-acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. A former Avon and Somerset Police officer has been jailed for making indecent images of children. A Somerset man has been fined after pleading guilty to hunting a wild animal with dogs... and more
Monday 20th April

Nearly one hundred roads in Somerset will be surface dressed this summer to prevent further damage. Almost all children starting primary school in Somerset in September have been offered a place at one of their top three school choices. People in Somerset are being asked to record wild mammals in gardens and other green spaces over the summer... and more