Monday 2nd February

Monday, 2 February 2026 05:00

By Steve Haigh

The Met Office has issued a warning of more heavy rain for Somerset. A survey by Somerset Council shows nearly two-thirds of households would be happy to pay more in council tax. Yeovil Town Council is offering free allotment spaces to support people’s wellbeing... and more

The Met Office has issued a warning of more heavy rain for Somerset from midday today to 9 am tomorrow. They say between 10 and 20 mm of rain could fall later today and overnight causing further flooding in places like Chard, Ilminster and Yeovil.

A survey by Somerset Council shows nearly two-thirds of households would be happy to pay more council tax to prevent further cuts in public services. The consultation, held in December, asked people how much additional council tax they would be willing to pay. Of the 1,400 people who responsed, 62 per cent said they’d support a council tax rise, with 21 per cent favouring an increase of 4.99 per, and 15 per cent supporting a larger rise. 36 per cent said council tax bills should not rise at all, and 2 per cent called for bills to be reduced. Council Leader, Bill Revans, says whatever the level of increase in council tax in Somerset, it will be kept in line with the national and regional average.

Changes are being made to waste collections at flats and other communal accommodation in Somerset. 13,000 households are involved, with people living in flats and communal accommodation able to recycle plastic bottles, cans, foil and aerosols, glass bottles and jars, cartons, food waste and plastic bags and wrappers. The new collection service begins at the end of March.

Yeovil Town Council is offering allotment space at no charge in a scheme aimed at supporting people’s wellbeing. The Town Council operates 300 allotment plots on 11 sites and says it will give free spaces to community groups, beginner gardeners and underrepresented residents. The scheme, called Allotments for All, runs on a trial basis to September this year.

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Thursday 2nd April

The joint master of a hunt in Somerset has criticised the decision to hold a public consultation on banning trail hunting. Images of two men police want to speak to in connection with an arson attack on a barber’s shop in Wincanton have been released. The company that runs four leisure centres in the Mendip area has gone into administration... and more
Wednesday 1st April

No money has been committed to major new road projects in Somerset. A road linking Chard and Clayhanger has been closed after it collapsed due to badgers burrowing under the surface. The Bishop of Bath and Wells is on day-2 of his pilgrimage across Somerset to mark the holy week of Easter... and more
Tuesday 31st March

Somerset Council says it doesn’t have the money to install solar panels on the roof of the Octagon Theatre. Three men have been charged in connection with an investigation into a hunt in Somerset. Changes have been announced to the times of waste collections in Somerset over the Easter holidays... and more
Monday 30th March

Avon and Somerset Police say its armed officers attended 2,700 incidents in Somerset last year. Plans have been submitted to build 40 new homes in Curry Rivel. South Western Ambulance is offering free CPR and defibrillator training to help improve cardiac arrest survival rates...and more
Friday 27 March

There's been a big improvement in ambulance response times in Somerset. Three local people have been charged with offences linked to the theft and supply of prescription-only drugs. A fragment of a jawbone found in a cave in Cheddar Gorge appears to show that humans kept dogs as pets as far back as 5,000 years ago... and more
Thursday 26th March

Somerset Council is offering food vouchers during the school easter holidays to families whose children receive free school meals. A local man has been charged in connection with an incident involving a firearm in Yeovil. The Environment Agency says it could take up to 10 years to protect homes at Holway House Park and Home Farm Park in Ilminster from flooding...and more.
Wednesday 25th March

Yeovil MP Adam Dance has raised concerns in the House of Commons about the planned closure of Yeovil Hospital’s hyper-acute stroke unit. Police in Yeovil are appealing for information after a man was arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm. A 13-year-old terrier named Mole has been rescued after becoming trapped underground...and more
Tuesday 24th March

Yeovil College has received a glowing report following an Ofsted inspection. The main road between Chard and Ilminster is to be better protected from flooding. A six-thousand-year-old wooden walkway has been uncovered on the Somerset Levels... and more