Local News Monday 21st March

Monday, 21 March 2022 06:00

A new report claims the controversial cull of badgers that began in Somerset ten years ago and aimed at helping stop the spread of TB among cattle hasn’t worked. Plans have been submitted to build a new drive-thru coffee shop, using repurposed shipping containers, in Yeovil. Kerbing and drainage work at Boden Street in Chard is due to be completed by the end of the month, A new home for adults with autism and other learning disabilities is to open in Yeovil...and more.

A new report claims the controversial cull of badgers that began in Somerset ten years ago and aimed at helping stop the spread of TB among cattle hasn’t worked. It’s been published by a group of scientists known as Born Free, who are opposed to culling badgers. The government says the report has manipulated official data.

Plans have been submitted to build a new drive-thru coffee shop, using repurposed shipping containers, in Yeovil. The facility would be on land opposite Palmers fish and chip shop, next to the Bluebell roundabout on Bunford Lane. South Somerset District Council is due to make a decision on the application in the next three months.

Kerbing and drainage work at Boden Street in Chard is due to be completed by the end of the month, making way for the new asphalt to be laid. South Somerset District Council says a new footway along the east side of Boden Street will be in place by April, making it safer to walk into town from the Boden Street car park, as well as Chard Leisure Centre. The improvements are part of the multi-million pound Chard Regeneration project.

A new home for adults with autism and other learning disabilities is to open in Yeovil. The complex of five-bed bungalows on The Avenue in Yeovil is for people who have ended a stay in hospital. They will stay for 2-years after which they will move into permanent accommodation.

A water tap has been installed in Middle Street in Yeovil for public use. It’s aimed at encouraging people to drink more tap water and not use water in plastic bottlers to avoid the use of single-use plastic bottles. The tap and has been provided by Wessex Water as a free service.

Parliament has passed legislation allowing for the setting up of Somerset’s new unitary council. The Somerset Structural Changes Order gives responsibility for creating the single unitary council from April next year and replacing the County Council and four district councils, to a new Implementation Executive. It also gives approval for local elections to be held on May 5th to elect 110 councillors to run the new Somerset unitary council.

More from News

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
Wednesday 4th March

A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more