Monday 15th September

Monday, 15 September 2025 01:00

By Steve Haigh

NHS Somerset says it’s 'fully committed' to re-opening maternity services at Yeovil Hospital, but won't say when it will reopen. Water levels at Somerset's reservoirs have dropped below 50%, despite the recent heavy rain. A charity shop in Martock has reunited a long-lost compass with its owner after he lost it 70 years ago...and more

NHS Somerset says it’s 'fully committed' to re-opening maternity services at Yeovil Hospital. The Special Care Baby Unit, together with inpatient maternity services, was closed in May following concerns about the safety, quality and fragility of paediatric services at Yeovil Hospital. CEO of NHS Somerset, Jonathan Higman, says they’re due an update on staffing in the maternity unit in November, but won't give a date when the unit will reopen.

Water levels at Somerset's reservoirs have dropped below 50%, despite the recent heavy rain. Data from the Environment Agencies shows that currently Wimbleball, Clatworthy, Chew Valley and Blagdon reservoirs are all classed as exceptionally low.

Somerset Council says it may have to look long and hard at making more cuts to services if further government support is not provided. An overspend of 5.4m is forecast for this year, with proceeds from property sales channelled into the Council's transformation programme. A further update on the Council's spending is expected in December.

A charity shop in Martock has reunited a long-lost compass with its owner after he lost it 70 years ago. The shop found a piece of paper in a case containing the compass, saying that it belonged to David L Bruton of Leicester University. After contacting the university, the compass was returned to Mr Bruton in Oslo, Norway. It later transpired that he lost the compass while on a field trip to Somerset 70 years ago.

A Somerset charity that helps rescue hedgehogs has been saved from closure, for the time being at least. £45,000 has been raised through a GoFundMe appeal to keep open Prickles Hedgehog Rescue in Cheddar. However, the charity states that it requires £100,000 per year to operate the centre, and its future remains uncertain.

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