Monday 30th October

Monday, 30 October 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A red flood alert has been issued for the next 36 hours along the banks of the River Yeo between Sherborne and Yeovil. Plans have been submitted to build up to 85 new homes on land off Watercombe Lane in Yeovil. A survey has been launched asking people for their experiences of booking GP appointments in Somerset. Former Mayor of Yeovil, Julian Freke, has died at the age of 75...and more.

The Environment Agency has issued a red flood alert for the next 36 hours along the banks of the River Yeo between Sherborne and Yeovil. It means flooding can be expected in the area, with properties at risk of flooding. People living along the route of the Yeo are being advised to protect their properties from flooding.

Plans have been submitted to build up to 85 new homes on land off Watercombe Lane in Yeovil. The application from Abbey Manor Developments Ltd is in addition to another of their planning applications to build up to 100 new homes on an adjoining site. The two proposed developments would be on agricultural land between Watercombe Lane and Broadleaze Farm. Vehicular access is proposed through Watercombe Lane.

Former Mayor of Yeovil, Julian Freke, has died at the age of 75. Julian, described as a ‘Yeovillian through and through’, was Mayor of the town from 2002 to 2004 and a long-standing member of Yeovil Town Council and South Somerset District Council.

A survey has been launched asking people for their experiences of booking GP appointments in Somerset. Healthwatch Somerset says early returns show that people are being made to wait too long to see a GP.

Friends of the former Yeovil Town Coach, Marcus Stewart, have completed a week-long bike ride, raising money for Motor Neurone Disease. Marcus was diagnosed with the illness just over a year ago. His supporters cycled between his former clubs, including Yeovil Town, covering nearly six hundred miles.

The boundary wall of St Mary’s Church in Whitelackington near Chard is to be rebuilt. Somerset Council has approved plans to restore the wall outside the Grade-2 Listed building after it collapsed due to damage caused by tree roots.

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Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service says July has been its busiest month ever for emergency calls. Police have recovered a 1970s Austin Mini pick-up stolen in Shepton Mallet. A specialist spinal injuries service at Yeovil Hospital has treated three hundred patients in its first year... and more
Thursday 30th July

The Environment Agency has declared a drought across Somerset as the hot weather takes its toll on the county's water supplies. Police are appealing for witnesses following a fatal road traffic accident near Crewkerne. A bowls player from Yeovil has won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow...and more
Wednesday 29th July

Police have arrested two suspects in connection with a series of moped thefts in Chard. A combine harvester has been destroyed in a farm fire at Forton, near Chard. A bowls player from Yeovil has won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow... and more
Tuesday 28th July

The former Beales department store in Yeovil could be brought back into use as part of a wider masterplan for the future of the town. A yellow heat health alert is in place across Somerset from nine o’clock this morning until nine o’clock on Friday morning. A Somerset farmer says this year is the driest on his land since 1976... and more
Monday 27th July

Gooch and Housego, based in Ilminster and one of the town’s biggest employers, has been sold in a multi-million-pound deal to an American private equity firm. A father who shook his four-week-old baby to death at a house in Chard has been sentenced to life in prison. A doctor who works for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is one of five people to have jointly set a new world record for rowing around Great Britain... and more
Friday 24th July

Avon and Somerset Police are warning people to watch out for scammers posing as Amazon. The CEO of the company that provides Somerset's recycling is warning of a major incident if people continue to put used batteries in waste bins. A former Yeovil pub could be demolished to make way for a major hotel expansion.
Thursday 23rd July

The West Country is officially one step closer to being declared in drought. Somerset Council says it's remodelling its service after a children's home was closed following an inspection. A new McDonald's planned off the M5 at Bridgwater could create up to 120 local jobs... and more
Wednesday 22nd July

Two men have been jailed for stealing electrical items and cash from a property in Yeovil. Somerset Council has defended its use of Yeovil’s new performance area in The Triangle, in Lower Middle Street. Tintinhull Primary School, near Yeovil, has won a top national award for outdoor play... and more