Local News Thursday 16th February

Thursday, 16 February 2023 06:00

A Yeovil man has appeared in court charged with causing death by dangerous driving. Fire has destroyed a building used for a garage business in Chilton Cantelo. Plans have been approved to build two food production units in the village of Galhampton near Castle Cary. A Crewkerne man has appeared in court for sentencing after being convicted of historic sexual offences...and more.

A Yeovil man has appeared in court charged with causing death by dangerous driving. Shane Bovey, of Monmouth Road, was appearing at Poole Magistrates Court in connection with a road traffic accident in Mosterton where a woman pedestrian died and two others were injured. Mr Bovey was also charged with two counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, failing to stop after a road traffic collision, causing death by driving a vehicle while uninsured, causing death by driving a vehicle while unlicensed, aggravated vehicle taking and making threats to kill. His case will next be heard at Bournemouth Crown Court.

Fire has destroyed a building used for a garage business in Chilton Cantelo. It’s thought the blaze at M-Tech South West started when a vehicle parked outside the premises caught alight.

Plans have been approved to build two food production units in the village of Galhampton near Castle Cary despite local objections. The units to be built at Avalon Farm will replace existing agricultural buildings. The owners of Avalon Farm who are also the owners of the Newt Hotel near Bruton say the units will be used for preparing locally grown produce for the Newt and selling elsewhere.

Somerset’s new unitary authority plans to spend more than £250 million on new and major infrastructure projects in its first year of operation. Figures published ahead of its first budget next week show details of investments in the county’s roads, protecting cliffs from subsidence, extending the life of a reservoir and upgrading one of the county’s main theatres. Somerset Council will officially replace the existing county council and four district councils on 1st April.

A Crewkerne man has appeared in court for sentencing after being convicted of sexual offences against an eight-year-old girl. At his trial at Exeter Crown Court in January, Michael Redgrave, aged 73, of Barn Close in Crewkerne was found guilty of seven charges of sexual abuse that took place when he was 17 years old and living in Torquay. Redgrave, who suffers from dementia, was jailed for eleven years and will serve two-thirds of the term before being released.

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