Plans have been announced to build a new special needs school on the outskirts of Yeovil. A planning inspector has upheld a decision by South Somerset District Council not to allow 60 new homes to be built in Templecombe. An online exhibition is being staged of the plans to upgrade the A303 in South Somerset. £4,000 has been raised for Parkinson’s UK by Bruton Cycling Club. A new café and wine bar has opened in Bruton.
Plans have been announced to build a new special needs school on the outskirts of Yeovil. It’ll be situated off the A303 between the villages of Ash and Tintinhull and provide places to 100 children with social, emotional and mental health needs. The school’s due to open in January 2023 and will be managed by the Wave Multi-Academy Trust.
A planning inspector has upheld a decision by South Somerset District Council not to allow 60 new homes to be built in Templecombe. Planning inspector, Hayley Butcher, sat for 8-days in May and June, hearing evidence for and against the development at Manor Farm. She concluded that to allow the development at the Manor Farm site would be harmful to the grade-2 listed Manor House and nearby heritage assets.
An exhibition is being staged of the plans to upgrade the A303 in South Somerset. Highways England is to turn the three-mile stretch of single lane road between Podimore and Sparkford into dual carriageway at a cost of £250 million pounds. The online exhibition takes place next week on July 22nd and 23rd. It will give details of each section of the upgrade and show how disruption to motorists will be minimized when work starts in September. To view the exhibition, visit www.highwaysengland.co.uk/a303-sparkford-to-ilchester and follow the recommended links
£4,000 has been raised for Parkinson’s UK by Bruton Cycling Club. Ten of its members raised the money by cycling 200 miles from Kent to Somerset.
A new café and wine bar has opened in Bruton. Michelin star chef Merlin Labron-Johnson and owner of the Osip restaurant in Bruton has converted the Old Pharmacy building in the High Street into a new eating and drinking venue.
Charity shops in Somerset report that they have received donations of dirty clothing and even soiled nappies. Plans have been submitted to build a further fifty new homes in Crewkerne. The National Audit Office says extra government funding to improve bus services, including in Somerset, has failed to deliver an increase in passenger numbers...and more
Dorset County Hospital is preparing to handle an increased number of births from now until the end of the year, following the closure of Yeovil Hospital's Maternity Unit. A number of former and current serving military personnel are pursuing the Ministry of Defence for compensation. Vandals have damaged a wooden shelter at the recreation ground in Ilminster...and more
Business owners in Chard say ongoing roadworks in Fore Street are hurting their trade. A vehicle has been destroyed in a fire at a farm at Charlton Mackrell. A new recycling scheme has been launched to support Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance. Castle Carey has created a Scarecrow Festival...and more
A murder trial starts today of the parents of a baby boy who died in Yeovil Hospital. Somerset residents are being asked to keep an eye on elderly neighbours, with temperatures expected to reach the high 20s again today. A tiny black kitten has been found inside a crate of laundry delivered to a cleaning business in Yeovil...and more
The Care Quality Commission has published its report into the running of the maternity unit at Yeovil Hospital. A public consultation has been launched into plans to build 150 new homes at Horton near Ilminster. A Chard man has embarked on walking 75 miles across Somerset, raising money for the Devon Air Ambulance...and more
Yeovil MP Adam Dance is calling for Yeovil Hospital to be included in the government's national review of NHS maternity services. A Yeovil man has appeared in court charged with four counts of fraud. Yeovil Town players will be modelling the club’s new home and away strip at Huish Park this evening...and more.
Thousands more music fans will arrive at Worthy Farm for the start of Glastonbury Festival. The government has granted Somerset Council a stay of execution, allowing it to defer a spending deficit on special needs education. A party has been held to mark the 100th birthday of a Somerset woman who has lived in the same house for 100 years...and more.
Businesses at the Cartgate services off the A303 near Yeovil say they feel threatened by Welcome Break Ltd's plans to build a new, bigger services area right next door. A man who lives in Tintinhull, found nearly double the drink drive limit, has been given a 20-month driving ban. Police are warning of fake tickets being on sale for Glastonbury Festival...and more