Thursday 13th March

Thursday, 13 March 2025 05:00

By Steve Haigh

A new campaign has been launched to persuade people in Somerset to stop smoking. Four people have been arrested in Chard in connection with the supply of Class A drugs. A dog from Yeovil has won the title of ‘best in breed’ at Crufts...and more.

NHS Somerset has launched a new campaign to persuade people in Somerset to stop smoking. Data shows that around 60,000 people smoke in Somerset. The Smokefree initiative targets those in high-risk groups, where smoking rates are higher or where cigarettes pose a health concern.

Four people have been arrested in Chard in connection with the supply of Class A drugs. South Somerset Neighbourhood Policing Team seized items relating to drug supply during a raid on a property in the town. Avon and Somerset Police say their enquiries remain ongoing.

Police are seeking witnesses to a two-vehicle collision in Chard. The crash, involving a grey BMW 520D and a grey VW Golf, happened in Church Street at around 5.30 pm on Monday, March 10th. A woman in the Golf was treated for her injuries at the scene. Police say their enquiries are ongoing and ask that anyone who witnessed the crash or has dashcam footage to please call the non-emergency number 101.

A Yeovil woman has appeared in court charged with using threatening and abusive language towards a family member. Pleading guilty to the charge at Yeovil magistrates court, Dorothy Isaacs, aged 76 of Orchard Close in Yeovil Marsh was fined £120 with £40 costs.

Blackdown Acapella made up of over 30 women singers who live in the Blackdowns, are to compete in the Ladies Association of British Barbershop Singers Convention. The event, being held in Harrogate in October, will allow the group to win national recognition for its work.

A dog from Yeovil has won the title of ‘best in breed’ at Crufts. Manu, a Finnish Lapphund, was singled out by the judging panel for having a ‘delightful head and expression’. His owner, Edward Forsey, has described Manu as a ‘once-in-a-lifetime dog’.

More from News

Friday 13th March

The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more
Thursday 12th March

A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more
Wednesday 11th March

Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more
Tuesday 10th March

Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more
Monday 9th March

Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more
Friday 6th March

Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more
Thursday 5th March

Two military helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton are being sent to Cyprus to help bolster UK’s defences amid the US-Israel war with Iran. Yeovil Town Council is seeking legal advice over the closure of the hyper acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. Flood warnings have been lifted on the Somerset Levels... and more
Wednesday 4th March

A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more