Tuesday 21st November

Tuesday, 21 November 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

The Leader of Somerset Council has written an open letter to every household in Somerset explaining why the Council has declared a 'financial emergency'. A public meeting has been organised to discuss the future of Bruton School for Girls. Staff and customers at a shop in Chard have raised £900 for Chard Hospital League of Friends...and more.

The Leader of Somerset Council, Councillor Bill Revans, has written an open letter to every household in Somerset to explain why the Council has been forced into declaring a financial emergency. In his letter, Councillor Revans says Somerset Council has a projected overspend of £27 million in the current financial year and a budget gap of £100 million in the next financial year, with the bulk of the overspend blamed on the rising costs of delivering adult social care services. At a meeting early next month, members of the Executive at Somerset Council will be asked to vote on a range of money savings measures including cutting staff numbers, selling council-owned buildings, and transferring some non-statutory functions, like running theatres, to town councils.

For the first time, nurses can be fully trained in Somerset without having to leave the County. Previously, those seeking a nursing degree have had to move to other parts of the country to study at university. Now, a nursing degree course is being offered at Bridgwater and Taunton College.

A Somerset couple have written a book about their travels on a narrowboat along Britain’s rivers and canals. Rob and Philippa Perryman spent a year covering thirteen hundred miles of waterways in their narrowboat. They’re hoping their book will inspire others to give traveling by narrowboat a try.

Staff and customers at the Original Factory shop in Chard have raised £900 for Chard Hospital League of Friends. The money was raised through selling carrier bags, holding a bingo night and raffle.

A public meeting has been organised to discuss the future of Bruton School for Girls. The school closed last summer after being in existence for 122 years. The school and adjoining land are currently advertised for sale at £9 million, with development potential. The meeting, organised by Bruton Town Council and Pitcombe Parish Council, takes place next Monday, November 27th.

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