Thursday 4th September

Thursday, 4 September 2025 06:00

A new leisure complex on the edge of Yeovil will be built, after plans were approved by Somerset Council. Landmarks across the south-west will be illuminated from Monday to mark Air Ambulance Week. YAOS are hoping to trace passengers stranded at Gander Airport in Newfoundland after the 9/11 attacks...and more.

A new leisure complex on the edge of Yeovil will be built after Somerset Council approved plans. The development, including a gym, spa, two swimming pools, soft play and a business area, will be constructed on the Bunford Park employment zone on the corner of the A3088 and Watercombe Lane to the west of the town. Construction is expected to begin within the next six months and is anticipated to create the equivalent of 100 full-time jobs once it is fully operational.

Landmarks across the south-west will be illuminated from Monday to mark Air Ambulance Week. The annual event raises awareness for the 21 air ambulance charities across the country, highlighting the organisations’ life-saving work and raising funds for their continued operation. Glastonbury Tor and Wookey Hole are amongst the six sites set to be illuminated yellow and green on Monday night.

Use Ilminster’s public bins correctly, or risk losing them. That’s the message from the Town Council, who are asking the public to stop putting household waste in the recreation ground bins and warning that otherwise the facilities will be permanently removed. The Council report that oven chip packages, plant cuttings and even discarded saucepans have recently been discovered in the bins, leading to refuse overflowing at the recreation ground. There have been similar problems with inappropriate rubbish outside the Co-op.

The Yeovil Amateur Operatic Society are working to trace passengers who were stranded at Gander Airport in Newfoundland after the September 11th terror attacks. Their latest production is ‘Come From Away’, a stage musical based on real events, where 38 airliners carrying 7,000 passengers had to divert and land at the airport urgently. It is thought that several people from South Somerset and North Dorset were caught up in the 2001 events, and the society would like to hear people’s stories and get them to meet the cast. If you can help, you can contact them on their website www.yaos.org

More from News

Friday 12th June

It's claimed the increasing availability of drugs such as ketamine and cocaine has normalised drug use among young people in Somerset. The trial of a man accused of killing his one-month-old son in Chard begins today at Bristol Crown Court. A stone pillar outside the Langport Arms Hotel in Langport has been replaced after it was destroyed in a car crash... and more
Thursday 11th June

Sir Keir Starmer has paid tribute to the three aircrew from RNAS Yeovilton who died in last week's helicopter crash in Devon. Two men have been arrested and stolen vehicles seized following a major multi-agency operation in South Somerset. An event highlighting opportunities for women in the aerospace industry has been held in Yeovil... and more
Wednesday 10th June

The public will be consulted on how best to spend fifty million pounds of government funding to tackle flooding in Somerset. Avon and Somerset Police are backing a new road safety campaign aimed at reducing motorcycle fatalities. New welcome signs have been installed at entrances to the Mendip Hills National Landscape... and more
Tuesday 9th June

The government has announced a £50 million investment to strengthen Somerset’s flood defences. A woman from Stoke-sub-Hamdon has been banned from driving for 14 months after admitting drink-driving. Somerset Council has been told it must improve its adult social care services... and more
Monday 8th June

Plans for a new railway station in Langport remain stalled in Whitehall, according to Somerset Council. Plans to build 50 new homes in Broadway, near Ilminster, have been refused. The new water fountains in Yeovil’s Triangle, in Lower Middle Street, are being switched off during very hot weather because of safety concerns... and more.
Friday 5th June

A new NHS dental practice in Crewkerne says it won’t start operating at full capacity until July due to staff shortages. Somerset Council says it has no plans to show England matches in the World Cup on the Big Screen in Yeovil town centre due to safety concerns. A Somerset family has been thanked after completing a 73-mile walk raising money for a third world charity... and more
Thursday 4th June

An investigation continues today into the crash of a Royal Navy helicopter, based at RNAS Yeovilton, in which all three aircrew were killed. Somerset Council has confirmed that a new operator will take over several leisure centres across the county. The new live-action Masters of the Universe movie, filmed in Somerset, is released this week...and more
Wednesday 3rd June

A Yeovil man has appeared in court charged with assaulting three police officers. Somerset Council has begun legal action to recover more than £320,000 owed by housing developers. The line-up has been announced for this year’s Ilminster Midsummer Experience...and more