Tuesday 22nd July

Tuesday, 22 July 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Somerset Community Foundation has launched a "Together for West Somerset Appeal" to help families affected by last Thursday's school coach crash on Exmoor. People in Somerset are being encouraged to improve their recycling of food waste. Free family cooking sessions are being held in Chard. A new children’s soft play area is soon to open in Yeovil...and more

Somerset Community Foundation has launched a "Together for West Somerset Appeal" to help families affected by last Thursday's school coach crash on Exmoor. The coach was carrying around 70 pupils and adults from Minehead Middle School back from an end-of-term trip to Exmoor Zoo. A 10-year-old boy died and 20 others were injured in the crash.

Avon and Somerset Police say dozens of people have been conned out of an average of thousands of pounds due to courier fraud. Courier fraud occurs when criminals impersonate trusted officials, such as police officers and bank employees, claiming to be investigating businesses for suspected fraud. They trick people into buying goods and then return the items using criminal couriers.

People in Somerset are being encouraged to improve their recycling of food waste. New figures show households disposed of 37,500 tonnes of food in 2024, with only 21,500 tonnes put in the food waste bin for recycling. An estimated 16,000 tonnes of food waste was put in general waste bins. Meanwhile, calendars listing the recycling and rubbish collection dates for Somerset over the next 18 months are being posted to homes and businesses across the county.

Free family cooking sessions are being held in Chard next month. The sessions, designed to help families cook together and enjoy healthy food, are open to Abri tenants and families on low incomes. Details of how to apply can be found on the Abri website.

A new children’s soft play area opens in Yeovil later this week. The indoor play area on Sea King Road, located on the Lynx Trading Estate, will be officially opened by Yeovil Mayor, Tony Lock, at midday next Saturday.

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Thursday 30th October

Bird flu has been found at a nature reserve in Somerset, closing part of it down. St Margaret’s Hospice in Somerset is calling for the hospice sector to be given more central funding. The Barrington Boar in Barrington has been placed 12th in The Good Food Guide’s list of 100 best pubs in Britain... and more
Wednesday 29th October

Police are investigating a suspected arson attack on a mobile home near Yeovil. Somerset Council is suggesting people turn their pumpkins into soup this Halloween. People in Yeovil have until Sunday to comment on controversial plans to sell off four car parks in the town centre... and more.
Tuesday 28th October

Plans have been submitted to build 12 new homes in Chard. A nursery in Yeovil has been rated ‘overall good' by Ofsted. A Somerset mortgage broker has achieved national recognition. A stretch of the M5 at Wellington will be shut every night this week...and more
Monday 27th October

The Unite union has announced four days of strikes by its members at Leonardo in Yeovil. One of Yeovil’s busiest roads is closed to traffic today. Staff at the Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard raised £3,000 taking part in a Sleeping Ruff challenge at the weekend...and more
Friday 24th October

New figures show that 500 young people were either injured or killed on roads in Somerset and Devon last year. The Old School Community Centre in Queen Camel has reopened, thanks to a donation of £10,000 from Somerset Freemasons. Two Fleet Air Arm engineers based at RNAS Yeovilton have recreated a family moment from 26 years ago...and more
Thursday 23rd October

Yeovil-born actress Sarah Parish is supporting efforts to reopen the Octagon theatre. Mobility scooter campaigners in Somerset have welcomed a government review of the legislation governing the use of mobility scooters on public highways. Changes are being made to the dates when garden waste is collected in Somerset...and more
Wednesday 22nd October

A major house builder in the South West says government targets for new house building in Somerset are 'unrealistic'. Pizza Hut is closing its restaurant in Yeovil. Staff at the Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard will be taking part in a ‘Sleeping Ruff’ challenge tomorrow...and more .
Tuesday 21st October

Reckleford in Yeovil is to shut for 15 days for essential drainage works. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust has paid out compensation of £23 million for claims related to birth injuries. A Grade II listed building in Glastonbury has been converted into a health and wellbeing centre...and more