Monday 4th August

Monday, 4 August 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

The planned £15m regeneration of Yeovil's Octagon Theatre has been delayed again. A case of the most serious strain of Avian Flu has been confirmed in Yeovil. The main A378 road through Langport will be shut to traffic from today and for the next four weeks...and more.

The planned £15m regeneration of the Octagon Theatre in Yeovil has again been delayed again. Somerset Council says it is yet to submit a new business case to upgrade the theatre to the government, which will hold up work starting on the theatre by several more months. Somerset Council has so far spent £473,000 on the Octagon regeneration project, with it costing £140,000 a year to keep the venue closed.

A case of the most serious strain of Avian Flu, H5N1, has been confirmed in Yeovil. A 3-kilometre monitoring zone has been put in place around the affected farm. Last week, a commercial game producer was ordered to cull two and a half thousand pheasant chicks following an outbreak of Avian Flu in West Somerset.

A protest demonstration has been held in Crewkerne against plans to close inpatient beds at the town’s community hospital. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust says it's considering turning Crewkerne Community Hospital into a neighbourhood health centre providing diagnostics and treatments. Objectors say closing beds at Crewkerne Hospital will lead to bed blocking at other hospitals.

The main road through Langport will be shut to traffic from today and for the next four weeks. It’s to allow Network Rail to carry out bridge repairs. Diversions will be in operation with the A378 shut from Eastover to the junction with Moor Close until the end of August.

Two walkers from a Yeovil gym have completed a sponsored trek for MIND in Somerset. Rob Harris from Progress Gym and Chief Petty Officer Adam Hugill raised £2,750 for MIND by walking 44 miles from Watchet Harbour to Seaton.

Radio Ninesprings Presenter, Julie Haylock and her husband, Andrew of Sandhurst Garden Design in Yeovil, won a Gold medal for their Jane Austen themed garden design at Taunton Flower Show. The garden drew on the literary works of Jane Austen and featured structural elements of a once-great Georgian house.

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Friday 12th December

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.
Thursday 11th December

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
Wednesday 10th December

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
Tuesday 9th December

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset has criticised the government for axing the role. Police are appealing for witnesses to a road traffic accident near Ilminster in which a woman was seriously injured. Residents of Freedom Avenue in Yeovil are raising funds for charity with a big display of Christmas lights...and more.
Monday 8th December

Plans to build 150 new homes in Ilminster have been scrapped. A Somerset councillor has been jailed for 26 months. Marks & Spencer wants to build a new Food Store in Ilminster. Poundland has announced that it’s shutting its store in Middle Street in Yeovil...and more
Friday 5th December

Police are appealing for witnesses after an assault on a man in Chard. Lloyds Banking Group has announced a date for closing the Halifax in Yeovil. Train journeys on the Castle Cary to Taunton line will be disrupted next week due to engineering work. The mental health charity MIND in Somerset has produced a Christmas advent calendar... and more.
Thursday 4th December

The Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Police says her force is doing all it can to reduce anti-social behaviour. Somerset Council has deferred a decision on introducing Sunday car parking charges. People living in deprived areas in Somerset are being fast-tracked for hospital treatment...and more
Wednesday 3rd December

Fire crews have rescued the driver of a car that got stuck in floodwater near Ilminster. Avon and Somerset Police are urging people going out to celebrate this Christmas to book a taxi or use public transport. A woman from South Petherton has come top at the British Down Syndrome Swimming Championships...and more,