Farmers in Somerset are warning of increased food prices and farmers going out of business as a result of last week’s budget. Police have released pictures of items stolen in a raid on Montacute House. A Somerset man has completed the 630-mile-long South West Coast Path, raising money for the RNLI...and more.
Farmers in Somerset are warning of increased food prices and farmers going out of business as a result of last week’s budget and changes to inheritance rules. The Chancellor put a one-million-pound limit on inheritance tax relief when a farm is passed on following the death of the owner. With farms typically having a value in excess of one million, it means families will pay a big tax bill to keep a farm together when the owner dies and ownership is transferred.
Police have released pictures of items stolen in a raid on Montacute House. The National Trust property was broken into last Tuesday night, at around 11 pm. Items taken included a pair of French Empire candelabra, various pieces of porcelain, and a silver dining room table centrepiece. Photos of the items can be viewed on the Avon and Somerset Police website.
A Somerset man has completed the 630-mile-long South West Coast Path, visiting lifeboat stations. Wayne Bradshaw was raising money for the RNLI and the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance in memory of his friend, Dean Wall, who passed away earlier this year.
Yeovil Recycling Centre will be closed this Friday. It’s to allow for resurfacing work to be carried out. Chard and Somerton are the closest recycling centres to Yeovil for anyone needing to visit a recycling centre on Friday.
The Newt Hotel in Bruton is taking over the running of the George Hotel in Castle Cary from next year. The George which has been a focal point of local life in Castle Cary for 600 years will be completely refurbished with work beginning in late 2025. Meanwhile, the Red House pub on Dorchester Road, just outside Yeovil, which closed earlier in the year, has re-opened under new management.
Crewkerne Community Hospital is to lose half its inpatient beds. A review will be conducted of a project to make Bridgwater more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly. Chard Methodist Church is offering residents a free lunch on Christmas Day. Yeovil-based Screwfix is opening a new outlet in Minehead...and more.
Yeovil MP Adam Dance has warned that delays in ordering 30 new medium lift helicopters for the RAF is putting the future of Somerset’s defence industries at risk. Somerset's farmers are being urged to convert more cow manure into biogas to heat homes. A new visitor centre has opened at Ham Hill country park...and more
Parcel business, Evri, has been criticised by Glastonbury and Somerton MP Sarah Dyke over what she claims have been ‘widespread delivery failures’. Demand for mental health support provided by South Western Ambulance Service is running at record levels. A nine-year-old Somerset boy has completed 100 days of litter picking for charity...and more
New data shows that crime in the Avon and Somerset police area is at an all-time high. Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard has issued a warning to prospective pet owners ahead of Christmas. The owner of four pubs in Somerset has warned that many could be forced to shut unless the government reconsiders business rates...and more.
Toolstream in Yeovil has been put into administration, threatening the jobs of dozens of employees. NHS Somerset has issued a last chance call for people to get a flu jab after hospital admissions increased by 76% in a week. Police are investigating the theft of a bike valued at £7,000 in Sherborne... and more
The Chief Executive of Somerset Council, Duncan Sharkey, has admitted to making mistakes in cutting jobs. Yeovil MP Adam Dance is supporting a Lib Dem initiative to introduce a new ‘Farm First’ training scheme. Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance has launched an appeal to help buy a second helicopter... and more.
A man has appeared in court in connection with an attack in Wincanton. A member of Somerset Council, jailed for 26 months for taking part in a Just Stop Oil protest, may not have to stand down as a councillor. NHS Somerset has announced that changes to stroke services at Yeovil Hospital will "go live" in the spring of next year...and more
Avon and Somerset Police say 62 drivers were arrested in the first week of the Christmas drink and drug driving campaign. A reindeer farm near Yeovil thinks it may have to close after being told it needs a Zoo licence. Father Christmas has made a special delivery of presents to Charlton Farm Children's Hospice in Somerset...and more