Tuesday 10th October

Tuesday, 10 October 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A meeting of Yeovil Town Council, postponed from last week, is being held tonight to discuss giving financial support to the £30 million project to upgrade Yeovil’s Octagon Theatre. The go-ahead has been given to open a new car dealership on the site of the old Globe Cinema at Lufton in Yeovil. A Yeovil Town councillor is fighting to have the Yeovil Bus Depot building in Reckleford officially listed in a bid to stop it from being demolished...and more.

A meeting of Yeovil Town Council is being held tonight to discuss giving financial support to the £30 million project to upgrade Yeovil’s Octagon Theatre. The meeting was due to be held last Tuesday but had to be postponed when the Town House was not big enough to accommodate all the people who wanted to attend. Tonight’s meeting, which is open to the public, is being held at the Westland’s Entertainment venue, starting at 7.30 pm.

Plans have been submitted to build a new 20-bed Orthopaedic Ward at Yeovil Hospital. The unit would be built on the roof of the main hospital building with £15 million given by the government to fund the scheme. The application comes amid a period of growth at Yeovil Hospital with a separate planning application recently submitted to build a new three-storey diagnostic and outpatient centre on the car park site.

A Yeovil Town councillor is fighting to have the Yeovil Bus Depot building in Reckleford officially listed in a bid to stop it being demolished. The red brick building was once part of the Nautilus Works factory owned by the Petters family that made engines during World War One. Owners, First Bus, say they no longer have a use for the building and want it knocked down to clear the site for selling. Independent member of Yeovil Town Council, Tareth Casey says he’s speaking to Historic England and Somerset Council about listing the building which would mean it could not be demolished.

The go-ahead has been given to open a new car dealership on the site of the old Globe Cinema at Lufton in Yeovil. The dealership, run by the Howards Motor Group, includes two showrooms, a workshop, and a MOT bay.

People campaigning for improvements to bus services in Somerset have welcomed the decision to keep £1 and £2 cheap fares in place until the end of 2024. Peter Travis, the co-chair of the Somerset Bus Partnership passenger group, says it’s important to keep fares as low as possible for as long as possible.

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