Somerset Community Council doubts that people living in rural areas of Somerset will be helped by the Chancellor’s Spring Statement. Plans have been submitted to convert a former church in Yeovil into flats. A specialist unit for secondary school-age children with autism in Mendip is to move from Frome to Glastonbury. Unions have criticised a decision to allow care staff in Somerset to carry on working even when they have Covid...and more.
Somerset Community Council doubts that people living in rural areas of Somerset will be helped by the Chancellor’s Spring Statement. Rishi Sunak announced yesterday he would raise the threshold for paying National Insurance, cut fuel duty by five pence per litre, and cut the basic rate of income tax, but Keeley Rudd, Chief Executive of Somerset Community Council, says for people in rural areas who rely heavily on using a car, the changes are unlikely to be much of a benefit.
Plans have been submitted to convert a former church in Yeovil into flats. The building on Larkhill Road was formerly used as a church and day nursery but has been empty for a number of years.
A specialist unit for secondary school-age children with autism in Mendip is to move from Frome to Glastonbury. Somerset county council has decided to move its Mendip autism base to the grounds of St Dunstan's School in Glastonbury, where building work will start shortly on part of the playing fields.
Unions have criticised a decision to allow care staff in Somerset to carry on working even when they have Covid. It follows concerns expressed by Somerset County Council that vulnerable residents in care homes would be put at more at risk of contracting other illnesses if staff were not allowed to work as normal.
A children’s pre-school in the village of Hinton St George has been provided with a new building. The building forms part of Hinton St George Primary School and has been paid for by donations and local fundraising.
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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