Thursday 14th March

Thursday, 14 March 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A new campaign is urging people in Somerset to quit smoking as health experts estimate that around sixty thousand people still smoke cigarettes across the county. An Ilminster man caught driving while disqualified has been jailed for eight weeks. A Somerset couple are preparing to travel to Ukraine to deliver a vehicle for use on the frontline in the war against Russia...and more.

A new campaign's urging people in Somerset to quit smoking as health experts estimate around sixty thousand people still smoke cigarettes across the county. This week marks the 40th anniversary of No Smoking Day and the release of a new TV anti-smoking advert backed by Cancer Research UK.

An Ilminster man caught driving while disqualified has been jailed for eight weeks after breaching a court order. Morgan Freeman, aged 25, of Ile Court, in Ilminster, was appearing at Taunton Magistrates' Court for failing to comply with the requirements of a community order. The court was told that Freeman had failed to attend appointments as directed. Magistrates revoked the community order and sentenced him for the original offence of driving while disqualified.

Somerset Council is selling Petters House on Petters Way in Yeovil. The building was operated as a customer access point by South Somerset District Council before being transferred to the new Somerset Council in April 2023. A new customer access point will be introduced at Yeovil Library.

A fund has reopened to provide fresh support to veterans in Somerset injured during military service. Ex-service personnel can apply to the fund being administered by the charity Help for Heroes to get financial help with specialist equipment.

A Somerset couple are preparing to travel to Ukraine to deliver a vehicle for use on the frontline. Ed Chalmers and Katie Hines will travel the thirteen hundred miles over 3-days to Ukraine on behalf of the charity, Driving Ukraine, which so far has delivered seventy vehicles to the country to use in the war against Russia.

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Thursday 30th October

Bird flu has been found at a nature reserve in Somerset, closing part of it down. St Margaret’s Hospice in Somerset is calling for the hospice sector to be given more central funding. The Barrington Boar in Barrington has been placed 12th in The Good Food Guide’s list of 100 best pubs in Britain... and more
Wednesday 29th October

Police are investigating a suspected arson attack on a mobile home near Yeovil. Somerset Council is suggesting people turn their pumpkins into soup this Halloween. People in Yeovil have until Sunday to comment on controversial plans to sell off four car parks in the town centre... and more.
Tuesday 28th October

Plans have been submitted to build 12 new homes in Chard. A nursery in Yeovil has been rated ‘overall good' by Ofsted. A Somerset mortgage broker has achieved national recognition. A stretch of the M5 at Wellington will be shut every night this week...and more
Monday 27th October

The Unite union has announced four days of strikes by its members at Leonardo in Yeovil. One of Yeovil’s busiest roads is closed to traffic today. Staff at the Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard raised £3,000 taking part in a Sleeping Ruff challenge at the weekend...and more
Friday 24th October

New figures show that 500 young people were either injured or killed on roads in Somerset and Devon last year. The Old School Community Centre in Queen Camel has reopened, thanks to a donation of £10,000 from Somerset Freemasons. Two Fleet Air Arm engineers based at RNAS Yeovilton have recreated a family moment from 26 years ago...and more
Thursday 23rd October

Yeovil-born actress Sarah Parish is supporting efforts to reopen the Octagon theatre. Mobility scooter campaigners in Somerset have welcomed a government review of the legislation governing the use of mobility scooters on public highways. Changes are being made to the dates when garden waste is collected in Somerset...and more
Wednesday 22nd October

A major house builder in the South West says government targets for new house building in Somerset are 'unrealistic'. Pizza Hut is closing its restaurant in Yeovil. Staff at the Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard will be taking part in a ‘Sleeping Ruff’ challenge tomorrow...and more .
Tuesday 21st October

Reckleford in Yeovil is to shut for 15 days for essential drainage works. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust has paid out compensation of £23 million for claims related to birth injuries. A Grade II listed building in Glastonbury has been converted into a health and wellbeing centre...and more