Local News Monday 24th January

Monday, 24 January 2022 06:00

Police have seized two BB guns from pupils at a school in the Wincanton area. A driving instructor in Somerset has expressed concerns about the changes to the Highway Code that come in force at the end of the month. St. Gilda's Catholic Primary School in Yeovil has joined four other catholic primary schools in Somerset to form a new multi-academy trust. Work starts today on resurfacing Coombe Street Lane in Yeovil...and more.

Police have seized two BB guns from pupils at a school in the Wincanton area. Police say BB guns are dangerous because they look like real guns. Anyone found with a BB gun will be treated as possessing a real firearm, until proven otherwise. The name BB refers to the ball-bearing shot fired from a BB gun that is the size of a single lead shot in a shotgun shell.

A driving instructor in Somerset has expressed concerns about the changes to the Highway Code that come in force at the end of the month. The Department for Transport says the changes are aimed at increasing road safety, Rachel Coward who runs Freedom School of Motoring claims not enough has been done to publicise the new rules.

St. Gilda's Catholic Primary School in Yeovil has joined four other catholic primary schools in Somerset to form a new multi-academy trust. St Gilda’s will no longer be run by Somerset County Council with the school building and management of the school transferring to the Dunstan Catholic Educational Trust on March 1st.

Works start today on resurfacing Coombe Street Lane in Yeovil. Somerset County Council says the road will be closed, except for resident access, for the next four weeks. Meanwhile, work resurfacing Langport Road at Langport has been completed ahead of schedule. The A372 reopened as normal at the weekend following three weeks of disruption.

HMRC is allowing people and businesses an extra one month to submit their tax returns. They say the end of January remains the deadline for sending in self-assessment forms and company accounts, but that late filing penalties won’t apply until after March 1st.

A Somerset pub that won the CAMRA Heart of Wessex Pub of Year award in 2017 has been put up for sale. The Bird in Hand at Henstridge, which has been in the same ownership for 40 years, has been advertised with an asking price of £480,000.

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