Local News Wednesday 14th September

    A Yeovil man has been jailed for seven years for sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl. A Somerset couple has returned from visiting London where they laid seventy bouquets of flowers outside the gates of Buckingham Palace. South Western Railway has welcomed the decision by trade unions to suspend strike action this weekend. Traffic was disrupted for a time near Wincanton yesterday when a car caught fire. Manor Court Community Primary School in Chard has been presented with an Artsmark Gold Award...and more.

    A Yeovil man has been jailed for seven years for sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl. Taunton Crown Court was told that Paul Morgan (pictured) had carried out 'an extensive campaign' of grooming and manipulation on the girl. Morgan, who pleaded guilty to all charges against him, was also made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for life.

    A Somerset couple has returned from visiting London where they laid seventy bouquets of flowers outside the gates of Buckingham Palace. Russell and his partner Gemma say the seventy floral tributes were to mark each of the seventy years of the Queen’s reign.

    South Western Railway, which runs trains through Yeovil Junction station, has welcomed the decision by trade unions to suspend strike action following the death of Queen Elizabeth. The action was due to take place this week on Thursday and Saturday. SWR says it will be reinstating normal service for the days which would have been affected by the strikes. 

    Traffic was disrupted for a time near Wincanton yesterday when a car caught fire. It happened just after 9 am at the Holbrook roundabout. A section of the road was closed to motorists while firefighters extinguished the blaze.

    Manor Court Community Primary School in Chard has been presented with an Artsmark Gold Award. The award is in recognition of the school has put creativity at the heart of the curriculum. It has provided pupils with a variety of creative experiences, including putting on art exhibitions and variety shows and participating in community projects such as Culturally Chard and Chard Carnival.

    A Martock business is waiting to see if it will be granted new Royal Warrants following the death of the Queen. Warrants are awarded to companies to show they provide goods or services to the Royal Family with SFM Technology in Martock having supplied fruit harvesting and spraying machinery to Her Majesty. However, warrants automatically expire on the death of the royal who granted them, and firms have two years in which to remove the Royal coat of arms from their products, vehicles, and stationery or hope the new Monarch, King Charles The Third, will re-issue the warrant.  At the request of SFM Technologies, we confirm that the information contained in this story was not provided by the company, and the company was not approached for a comment.

    More from News

    • Friday 26 April

      A man has been charged with stalking, harassment and making threats to kill after being arrested in Castle Cary. The NHS in Somerset says its staff retention rate has improved over the past two years. A farmer in South Petherton is preparing to cycle 1,000 miles to raise money for charity...and more.

    • Thursday 25th April

      The NHS is offering spring COVID-19 vaccines to people in Somerset who are at increased risk of serious illness from the virus. A new way of making roads safer for children in Somerset has started this week. A Yeovil-based apprentice has been named as a winner in the JTL Regional Awards. Haselbury Mill near Crewkerne has been put up for sale...and more

    • Wednesday 24th April 

      Yeovil Town FC have sent a strongly worded letter to the Football Association asking for plans to end FA Cup replays to be dropped. A Somerset woman who's spent the last 32 years living with Hepatitis C, says better support is needed for those affected by the contaminated blood scandal. A new school of musical theatre has opened in Chard...and more.

    • Tuesday 23rd April

      Two teenage boys have admitted animal cruelty after filming themselves throwing a lamb down a stone staircase at Montacute. Somerset Council could lose around £5 million by selling the Marks and Spencer building in Yeovil. Chard, Wincanton, Castle Cary and Ansford are on a list of fifteen places in Somerset where new 20 mph speed limits could soon be introduced...and more.

    • Monday 22nd April

      The parents of a two-week-old baby boy, accused of his murder at Yeovil Hospital, are to stand trial. Protesters have splashed red paint across the front of County Hall in Taunton for a second time. A comedy film about the world of competitive marrow-growing and made in Shepton Mallet has opened in cinemas across the UK...and more. 

    • Friday 19th April

      Work starts today building a new eastbound carriageway as part of dualling the A303 between Sparkford and Podimore. A childhood obesity clinic in Somerset has revealed that it is treating children as young as eight months old. Somerset Wildlife Trust has launched a campaign to recruit an army of young people to act as conservation champions...and more.

    • Thursday 18th April

      A Martock man has been jailed after admitting to shining lasers at aircraft flying over Yeovil. Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the TK Maxx store at Babylon Hill. Nearly four hundred people have put their names forward for redundancy at Somerset Council...and more.

    • Wednesday 17 April

      Three local primary schools have been named on a list of England's top five hundred primary schools. A new co-working space for businesswomen has opened in Wincanton. Urgent repairs are being carried out to Ilminster's new public clock after it started showing the wrong time...and more

    Today's Weather

    • Yeovil

      Light rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

    • Chard

      Light rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 4°C

    • Crewkerne

      Light rain

      High: 11°C | Low: 4°C

    • Somerton

      Medium-level cloud

      High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

    • Wincanton

      Medium-level cloud

      High: 11°C | Low: 5°C

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