Tuesday 14th April

Tuesday, 14 April 2026 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Avon and Somerset Police has launched a new five-year plan to tackle anti-social behaviour. Additional GP appointments will soon be available at three local surgeries, following a £1 million investment to upgrade NHS facilities in Somerset. A Stoke-sub-Hamdon couple whose daughter died of cancer have raised £128,000 in her memory... and more

Avon and Somerset Police has launched a new five-year plan to tackle anti-social behaviour. The strategy focuses on prevention, and early intervention. It aims to strengthen partnership working and better identify vulnerable victims. Police say intelligence is key with information from local people, neighbourhood officers, and partner organisations helping target resources where they’re needed most.

Additional GP appointments will soon be available at three local surgeries, following a £1 million investment to upgrade NHS facilities in Somerset. Church Street Surgery in Martock and Crewkerne Health Centre are both set to expand, creating extra consulting space for patients. Millbrook Surgery in Castle Cary will see a new clinical room built. The improvements aim to make it easier for patients to access GP services.

Somerset Council has lost an appeal over plans to build a care home near Taunton. The authority had rejected proposals by developer Belstone Fox to build the home and 19 houses in the grounds of Woodlands Castle in Ruishton, saying the scheme would harm the character of the listed building and surrounding village. But following a public inquiry, the Planning Inspectorate has overturned the decision. It’s ordered Somerset Council to pay the developer’s legal costs linked to the appeal.

The Mayor of Chard, Councillor Victoria Bates, is inviting people in the town to take part in a series of community event this month. Highlights include the Mayor’s Charity Ball on Saturday April 18th, followed by the traditional St George’s Dragon Parade through the town on Sunday April 19th. On Sunday 26th April, local cyclists set off for Chard’s twin town of Helmstedt in Germany.

Stoke-sub-Hamdon couple, Dave and Julie Thomas, whose daughter, Jess, died of cancer 10 years ago have raised £128,000 in her memory. The couple began fundraising for the Teenage Cancer Trust in 2016 in recognition of the support it gave their daughter during the final stages of her life. Later this month, two family friends will take on the London Marathon in Jess’s memory.

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