The fire service is encouraging local households to have chimneys swept before the winter sets in. It's going to cost more to dispose of tyres, soil, and rubble at recycling centres in South Somerset. A public meeting is being held to discuss the options for re-opening Chinnock Hollow. Bin lorries in Somerset could soon be running on vegetable oil to help cut carbon emissions and more volunteer drivers are urgently needed for a community car scheme in Chard.
The fire service is encouraging local households to have chimneys swept before the winter sets in. Last year, the fire service dealt with 200 chimney fires that were reported in Somerset, with properties using log burners being at greater risk of fire due to chimneys not being swept.
It’s going to cost more to dispose of tyres, soil, and rubble at recycling centres in South Somerset. Somerset Waste Partnership says charges will increase by 11 percent to cover inflation and higher energy bills. The new rates come into force from April next year
A public meeting is being held to discuss the options for re-opening Chinnock Hollow, the road linking East Chinnock with Odcombe, that was closed following a landslip in February last year. Highways officials will outline four options to deal with the situation, including one of taking no action and keeping the road shut. Somerset County Council will host the meeting on Wednesday, 12th October, at Cott Farm Barn in East Chinnock.
Bin lorries in Somerset could soon be running on vegetable oil to help cut carbon emissions. Somerset Waste Partnership announced in June spending £5.5 million to replace twenty-two diesel vehicles with electric vehicles. Now, the partnership says the remainder of its fleet, roughly about 80 vehicles, could be converted to run-on hydro-vegetable oil to further reduce C02 emissions.
More volunteer drivers are urgently needed for a community car scheme in Chard. The Hub in South Chard provides people with transport to essential appointments when they have no other means of making the journey. Anyone interested should contact The Hub in South Chard through their website.
There’s been a call for the Somerset Levels to be designated a National Landscape. A Yeovil man has raised £2,000 for a new school minibus at Fairmead School in Yeovil by running the London Marathon. Exmoor Ales, which provides cask ales across the region and beyond, is closing its Somerset brewery and moving the business to Surrey...and more.
The long-awaited refurbishment of Yeovil police station is finally to get underway this summer. Plans have been approved to build 185 new homes off Bunford Lane in Yeovil. Police have arrested three men in Yeovil for being involved in the supply of Class A drugs. A Somerset jockey has been named Champion Conditional Jockey of 2025...and more.
New figures have shown that registering as a new patient with an NHS dentist in Somerset is still just as difficult as it was six months ago. The go-ahead has been given to build 160 new houses on Station Road in Castle Cary. A sailor from South Petherton has been chosen to lead a team in the round-the-world Clipper Race...and more.
Somerset Council is being criticised for taking too long to re-open Yeovil's Octagon Theatre. The Liberal Democrats have won a seat on Chard Town Council by one vote. Dates have been announced for this year’s illuminated carnival processions in South Somerset...and more.
Police are investigating the theft of a motorbike in Ilminster. Tributes have been paid to the former Yeovil Town player-manager, Cecil Irwin, who has died aged 83. Town criers from across the South West will be in Yeovil tomorrow competing for the loudest voice in the Yeovil Town Crier Competition 2025...and more
Police are appealing for witnesses to an accident in which a child was struck by a car in Yeovil. This week, a planning inquiry is being held into plans to turn a Somerset shopping centre into a retirement complex. A Somerset woman is planning to walk the 70-miles of Hadrian's Wall to mark her 90th birthday...and more.
Tourism bosses in Somerset say they feel confident the County will have a good summer for visitors this year. A group representing care providers in Somerset is warning that some residential homes are at risk of going out of business due to rising costs. A Somerset animal charity has taken into care, three orphaned badger cubs...and more.
The Care Quality Commission has given two GP practices in Yeovil a 'good' overall rating. According to insurers, AXA, thefts at commercial premises in Somerset are on the rise. Bus users in Somerset could see changes to the frequency of services when the new West of England mayor takes office. Martock is to host its first Pride event in June...and more.