Thursday 15th May

Thursday, 15 May 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has been asked to intervene in the decision to close the maternity ward at Yeovil Hospital. A man who lives in Winsham near Chard has been given a suspended prison sentence for breaching his sex offender notification requirements. Plans have been submitted to convert Dolphin House in Yeovil into 18 residential units...and more

The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has been asked to intervene in the decision to close the maternity ward at Yeovil Hospital. The sudden shutdown, which takes effect next Monday and that will initially last six months, follows an inspection by the Care Quality Commission that found safety risks within the paediatric department at Yeovil Hospital. The issue regarding the decision to shut the unit was raised in the House of Commons during Prime Minister’s questions by Yeovil MP Adam Dance. After the unit closes, expectant mothers will have to travel to the County Hospital in Dorchester, the Royal United Hospital in Bath or Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton to give birth.

The family of a Yeovil man is asking for the public’s help in finding him. Ciaran King, aged 22, who also goes by Ciaran Lucas, was reported missing on Boxing Day. He’s described as white, 5ft 8ins tall, of slim build, with tattoos on both arms and his neck. If you know of Ciaran’s whereabouts, you’re asked to please call the non-emergency number 101.

Plans have been submitted to convert Dolphin House in Yeovil into 18 residential units.. Dolphin House in Hendford adjoins a mid-terraced property and Yeovil’s Masonic Hall. Each units will consist of one bedroom, a living room/kitchen space, and a shower room.

A man who lives in Winsham near Chard has been given a suspended prison sentence for breaching his sex offender notification requirements. A court in Yeovil was told that Christopher Reynolds had used a fake name to exchange messages on the networking app Grindr. Reynolds, aged 63, of Davies Close, Winsham, pleaded guilty to failing to comply with his notification requirements. He was sentenced to 16 weeks in custody, suspended for 12 months on condition that he does not commit any further offences.

Several care homes in Somerset are to trial a new type of alarm system to help reduce falls. The Nobi smart lighting system will be installed at four care homes and is designed to immediately alert carers when a resident falls to ensure assistance is got to them as quickly as possible.

Whites fish and chip shop in Chard has been named Chard and Ilminster News Fish and Chip Shop of the Year. Whites, on Boden Street, was the public’s pick as the best fish and chip shop in South Somerset in the Chard and Ilminster News poll. Palmer's Fish and Chips in Yeovil, and Vincent’s Fish Bar in Ilminster came joint runners-up.

More from News

Thursday 12th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance has criticised the Chancellor’s Spending Review for not delivering real change for Yeovil and South Somerset. The CEO of Leonardo UK states that they’re working towards closing the gender pay gap within the company. Yeovil Town is relocating its first-team training camp to Bristol... and more.
Wednesday 11th June

People in Somerset are being asked for their views on the state of the county’s roads and footpaths. A trial is being conducted at Yeovil Hospital to investigate whether administering shorter courses of antibiotics to patients can effectively treat sepsis. Somerset Council says it has no plans to reopen a block of public toilets in Chard...and more.
Tuesday 10th June

A mother from Chard says schools need to do more to identify students with dyslexia. A fire in a van that caught alight at Stoke-sub-Hamdon is being treated as accidental. A former Yeovil-based police officer, who made it appear he was working when he wasn’t, has been barred from policing...and more
Monday 9th June

Somerset Council is giving £1.5m to Hill View Special School at Ash near Martock to prevent it from closing. Two men have been convicted of killing a Yeovil man they mistakenly believed to be a convicted paedophile. People across Somerset are being asked to make a note of any wildlife they see...and more
Friday 6th June

Community Speedwatch volunteers in Keinton Mandeville have stopped monitoring the local traffic because of online and verbal abuse. Redstart Primary School in Chard has been rated as ‘Good’ by Ofsted. A care home resident in Glastonbury has raised more than one thousand pounds for Children's Hospice Southwest by knitting soft toys...and more.
Thursday 5th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance says he’s been told the temporary closure of the maternity unit at Yeovil Hospital will not be made permanent. Firefighters have dealt with a fire on a coach carrying passengers at Vagg Hill in Yeovil. The authorities in Chile are holding a man who lives in Milborne Port after being found with class-A drugs in a suitcase...and more.
Wednesday 4th June

Somerset Council states that gas canisters were responsible for igniting six fires at local sorting facilities last year. A leading medical academic in the South West says vaccine fatigue could be the reason why so many vulnerable people are not having a COVID-19 spring booster jab. Avon and Somerset Police say the waiting time for calls to be answered to the non-emergency number 101 has been cut to an average of 11 seconds...and more
Tuesday 3rd June

Police say they have traced a man, believed to be a witness to an incident in Chard in which a teenager alleges she was sexually assaulted. A campaign has started aimed at cutting the number of motorcyclists, cyclists and e-scooter users killed and seriously injured on Somerset's roads. Yeovil Town Council has taken over the management of Yeovil's public parks after Somerset Council announced it could no longer afford to maintain them...and more.