Local News Wednesday 17th August

Wednesday, 17 August 2022 06:00

A senior manager at South Western Ambulance says the handover of patients to hospitals is the worst he's ever known. Ilminster has some of the worst public transport links in the south west, according to new data. People in Keinton Mandeville are campaigning against proposals for new housing development. A Yeovil landlord says the pub trade has still not fully recovered from the business lost during the pandemic and work has started in Martock connecting homes and businesses to ultrafast broadband.

A senior manager at South Western Ambulance says the handover of patients to hospitals is the worst he's ever known. Deputy Director of Clinical Care, Adrian South says the service is under "sustained pressure" and that staff are finding the work "soul-destroying". The Department of Health and Social Care says it’s given the ambulance service an extra £150 million to help deal with the current situation.

Ilminster has some of the worst public transport links in the south west, according to new data. In a report, the Campaign for Better Transport says the town has been left with no direct bus service to Yeovil and that only two buses run between Ilminster and Taunton before 9 am Monday to Saturday. The report calls for Somerset County Council to be given more powers to develop local transport networks, especially in places like Ilminster, and for free bus travel to be given to some passengers.

People in Keinton Mandeville are campaigning against proposals for new housing development. Developers, LVA, want to build 120 homes in the village.

A Yeovil landlord says the pub trade has still not fully recovered from the business lost during the pandemic. Peter Lambden, who runs the Quicksilver Mail pub at the top of Hendford Hill says people are not socialising like they used to and that coupled with rising costs and staff shortages, pubs like his continue to struggle.

Work has started in Martock connecting homes and businesses to ultrafast broadband. Gigaclear is currently installing fibre cabling in Martock where, historically, internet speeds have been slow. The company says the network should be completed early next year when it will be extended to Langport and Curry Rivel.

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Monday 16th June

The new owner of Yeovil Town says he’s in talks with Somerset Council about buying back Huish Park. Water levels at some of Somerset’s reservoirs are below what they should be for this time of year. A Chard woman has been recognised in the King's Birthday Honours... and more.
Friday 13th June

Police are appealing for witnesses to a road traffic accident near Chard, which left one person with life-threatening injuries. Texas Rocks in Middle Street, Yeovil, has closed temporarily following a significant fire. A Yeovil dental hygienist has been named as a finalist in the Ms Great Britain competition...and more.
Thursday 12th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance has criticised the Chancellor’s Spending Review for not delivering real change for Yeovil and South Somerset. The CEO of Leonardo UK states that they’re working towards closing the gender pay gap within the company. Yeovil Town is relocating its first-team training camp to Bristol... and more.
Wednesday 11th June

People in Somerset are being asked for their views on the state of the county’s roads and footpaths. A trial is being conducted at Yeovil Hospital to investigate whether administering shorter courses of antibiotics to patients can effectively treat sepsis. Somerset Council says it has no plans to reopen a block of public toilets in Chard...and more.
Tuesday 10th June

A mother from Chard says schools need to do more to identify students with dyslexia. A fire in a van that caught alight at Stoke-sub-Hamdon is being treated as accidental. A former Yeovil-based police officer, who made it appear he was working when he wasn’t, has been barred from policing...and more
Monday 9th June

Somerset Council is giving £1.5m to Hill View Special School at Ash near Martock to prevent it from closing. Two men have been convicted of killing a Yeovil man they mistakenly believed to be a convicted paedophile. People across Somerset are being asked to make a note of any wildlife they see...and more
Friday 6th June

Community Speedwatch volunteers in Keinton Mandeville have stopped monitoring the local traffic because of online and verbal abuse. Redstart Primary School in Chard has been rated as ‘Good’ by Ofsted. A care home resident in Glastonbury has raised more than one thousand pounds for Children's Hospice Southwest by knitting soft toys...and more.
Thursday 5th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance says he’s been told the temporary closure of the maternity unit at Yeovil Hospital will not be made permanent. Firefighters have dealt with a fire on a coach carrying passengers at Vagg Hill in Yeovil. The authorities in Chile are holding a man who lives in Milborne Port after being found with class-A drugs in a suitcase...and more.