Monday 20th November

Monday, 20 November 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A man from Galhampton near Castle Cary has been jailed for six years for causing death by dangerous driving. Next year’s Great Dorset Steam Fair has been cancelled due to increased costs. Volunteers in Chard, led by the Mayor, Gary Shortland, have been putting up the town’s Christmas lights...and more.

A man from Galhampton near Castle Cary has been jailed for six years for causing death by dangerous driving. Anton Hull, aged 21, of Long Street in Galhampton was twice over the legal drink limit when his van hit a car being driven by Sarah Baker at Anchor Hill in Wincanton. Sarah who was 29 was pronounced dead at the scene. Moments before the crash, Hull had filmed himself on his mobile phone saying he was ‘smashed’. In a statement read in court, Sarah's family said the pain of losing her had been immeasurable.

Two men have been jailed after police found them with tens of thousands of pounds worth of drugs in Yeovil. Kyle Kennedy and Bartosz Gorczyca, both aged 21, were sentenced to nine years between them for being in possession of drugs with a value of £50,000 when arrested. Both men pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of cocaine, ketamine and MDMA.

Business owners in Somerset are being offered the chance to be paired up with successful leaders and entrepreneurs for support. Forty mentors have been lined up by Somerset Council to offer six hours of free mentoring to anyone running a business that is over a year old and employs more than two people. Anyone interested in taking part should apply online via somerset.gov.uk

A Somerset man has written a book capturing the experiences of his grandfather during World War One. David John says his grandfather talked about many things in life but it wasn’t until he had turned 80 that he opened up about his experiences of fighting in the First World War.

Volunteers in Chard, led by the Mayor, Gary Shortland, have been putting up the town’s Christmas lights. The display consists of six cross-street decorations and twenty illuminated frames on lamp posts. The lights will be officially switched on at 7.30 pm next Saturday with a Christmas craft fayre held in the Guildhall during the day. Radio Ninesprings will be hosting the Christmas lights switch-on in Chard with a live broadcast starting at 6 pm.

Next year’s Great Dorset Steam Fair has been cancelled due to higher costs of staging the event. The show is one of the most popular on the Dorset calendar but organisers say with costs rising to £5 million, ticket prices having to go up, and a risk that fewer people would attend, the event has become unaffordable.

More from News

Monday 4th December

Campaigners have failed in their bid to stop the demolition of the former Nautilus Works in Yeovil. Avon and Somerset Police say three-and-a-half-thousand motorists were caught speeding during National Road Safety Week held last week. Chard Town Council has announced that a new block of stone with the message Welcome to Chard is to be placed at the entrance to the town...and more.
Friday 1st December

Police are warning of a spate of thefts of Ford cars in South Somerset. The government has turned down a bid for levelling-up funds to build a new train station to serve Somerton and Langport. Long-running roadworks on the Somerset-Devon border will continue over the Christmas holidays after a repair scheme was postponed...and more.
Thursday 30th November

Libraries, leisure centres, theatres and recycling centres could all face cuts as Somerset Council tries to save tens of millions of pounds. The people who run Shepton Mallet Prison say the building is closing as a visitor attraction. A licence has been granted to hold an eight-day long Christmas Festival at Yeovil Showground in December...and more
Wednesday 29th November

The head of the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance says they’re busier now than they have ever been. Housing charities in Somerset say there's been a big rise in the number of people being evicted from private housing, through no fault of their own. A teenager from Ilton has been chosen as the St John Ambulance District Cadet of the Year...and more.
Tuesday 28th November

The future of Yeovil Hospital’s stroke unit could be decided at a meeting later this week. A new cycle route in Yeovil, promised for September, won’t now open until the end of December. Somerset Council has announced plans to turn an empty property in Chard into a children's home....and more.
Monday 27th November

Plans have been submitted to open a new traveller site near Curry Rivel. Wessex Water has started the latest phase of a five-year programme to clean up Somerset’s watercourses of phosphates. Ilminster’s annual Christmas Tree Festival at the Minster starts today. A man from Somerset is taking on the challenge of rowing 3,000 miles across the Atlantic...and more.
Friday 24th November

A Police operation has resulted in 160 knives being taken off the streets in the Avon and Somerset force area. Ofsted says pupil suspension rates in Somerset are alarmingly high. It’s a big night for Christmas light switch-on events in South Somerset with Christmas lights being turned on in Wincanton, Ilminster and Crewkerne...and more.
Thursday 23rd November

The South Western Ambulance Service is asking people to use its services responsibly as it prepares for a challenging winter. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, which includes Yeovil Hospital, is contacting people after hospital records were inappropriately accessed. Chard Ladies Rugby team is taking on a new challenge, climbing to the top of the National Three Peaks for charity...and more.