Work has started building a new Breast Cancer Unit at Yeovil Hospital. One of the first summer music festivals takes place near Ilminster this weekend. Work is underway this week removing dozens of diseased and dead trees in Crewkerne. An appeal’s been launched to raise £20,000 to open a village shop in Hatch Beauchamp...and more.
Work has started at Yeovil Hospital building a new Breast Cancer Unit. The unit is being built as an extension to the main hospital and follows a successful appeal to raise two-and-a-half million pounds to pay for it. Head of Charity at Yeovil Hospital, James Kirton, says the appeal attracted huge local support, for which they are most grateful.
Work is underway this week removing diseased and dead trees in Crewkerne. It’s being carried out by the Town Council and follows checks that found dozens of trees at Bincombe Beeches Nature Reserve and elsewhere around the town infected with Ash Dieback disease.
One of the first of this summer’s big music festivals takes place near Ilminster this weekend. The Shindig Festival, with more than twenty bands and individual acts performing live, including headliners Sister Sledge, is being held on the Dillington Estate, starting this Friday through to Bank Holiday Monday.
An appeal’s been launched to raise £20,000 to open a village shop in Hatch Beauchamp. Locals are being offered community shares in the business as a way of raising the money. Andy Grant is leading the project. He says the shop will sell a range of products and also have a café, which is much needed in the village.
A Somerset farmer is nearing the end of walking for charity the six-hundred-and-thirty mile route of the South West Coastal Path. Mark Pope is raising money for two charities, the MND Association and St Margaret's Hospital.
People in Somerset will go to the polls in May 2028 to elect a new mayor for the Wessex region. A Somerset farmer who failed a breath test after being caught asleep at the wheel of his tractor has narrowly avoided losing his driving licence. The new Ham Hill Visitor Centre has been named a regional winner in the Building Excellence Awards 2026... and more
Somerset Council says it doesn’t have the money to improve its planning enforcement team. Drivers are being advised that work to replace the central barrier on the M5 near Wellington starts this week. A health food shop in Chard has been crowned High Street Shop of the Year... and more
A motorist was caught driving at 133mph on the A303 between Podimore and Sparkford, according to newly released data from Avon and Somerset Police. Taunton's Brewhouse Theatre closed for the last time at the weekend. Public firework displays in Ilminster and Martock have been cancelled due to rising costs... and more
Wells Cathedral says it's having to get creative to bring in more money as financial pressures continue to grow. A convenience store in Martock has been allowed to keep its alcohol licence despite an employee working there illegally. Police have seized an illegally ridden e-scooter in Yeovil in response to concerns from local residents... and more
A Yeovil man has been detained under the Mental Health Act for attacking his mother with a knife. People in Chard are being reminded that it’s unlawful to attach flags to lamp posts and street furniture. Wincanton Racecourse has called off its 'Badger Chase Day' because the ground is too firm... and more
Leweston School near Sherborne has announced that it is closing with immediate effect. NHS Somerset could merge with neighbours in Bath and North-East Somerset and Dorset to cut costs. Somerset’s Lord-Lieutenant has launched a campaign to get more people nominated for national honours... and more
Work has started building a new six-million-pound flood defence scheme in Taunton. Plans have been submitted to build a new church hall in Martock. People are being asked to donate gifts to this year’s Chard Christmas Present Appeal... and more
Eligible groups in Somerset are being encouraged to get their flu jabs. There’s a rare opportunity to get a behind-the-scenes look inside Avon & Somerset Police’s control room. Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader, Daisy Cooper MP, has visited Yeovil... and more.