Tuesday 24th June

Tuesday, 24 June 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

There’s been a drop in the number of potholes being filled in on Somerset’s roads. A Somerset company has developed a new type of un-crewed helicopter. A man has cycled from Spain to Somerset to attend Glastonbury Festival...and more

There’s been a drop in the number of potholes being filled in on Somerset’s roads. In the financial year, April 2024 to April 2025, 24,483 potholes were repaired compared to 28,574 in the previous financial year. This, despite the government giving Somerset Council an extra £3.5 million to fix potholes. The Council says the figures don’t tell a full story as some roads were resurfaced rather than having potholes filled in.

A Somerset company has developed a new type of un-crewed helicopter. The aircraft designed by Certo Aerospace Limited, based in Frome, is the first in the UK to be fitted with a coaxial rotor head, allowing it to be flown remotely.

Yeovil MP, Adam Dance, is calling on the government to review how it deals with littering. He wants greater focus put on the impact of littering on public health, especially as it affects people in rural areas. Mr Dance is also asking for more investment in rural recycling infrastructure and better support for councils to enforce the existing littering laws.

Wessex Internet has secured £50 million in investment from the National Wealth Fund to expand its fibre coverage to homes and businesses. The company says the cash will be used to bring faster broadband to hard-to-reach areas, including in South Somerset.

Recycling and rubbish collections start at the earlier time of 6 am in parts of the broadcast area from today. Somerset Council says the change of start time is to avoid bin crews getting stuck in extra traffic on local roads travelling to the Glastonbury festival.

The A361 between Shepton Mallet and Glastonbury will be closed for 26 days, commencing on Sunday, 28 July. It’s to allow Wales & West Utilities to lay a new gas main at Fishers Hill and for drainage work to take place outside Millfield Prep School.

A man has cycled from Spain to Somerset to attend the Glastonbury Festival. Ollie White, who lives in Madrid, has covered 60 miles every day over the last 3 weeks and is due to arrive at Worthy Farm today. Meanwhile, the Met Office has published its 5-day forecast for Glastonbury. Tomorrow in Pilton will be cloudy with sunny intervals. Thursday will be overcast, with sunshine expected by late morning. Friday could see showers early on. Saturday and Sunday will be mostly cloudy.

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Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service says July has been its busiest month ever for emergency calls. Police have recovered a 1970s Austin Mini pick-up stolen in Shepton Mallet. A specialist spinal injuries service at Yeovil Hospital has treated three hundred patients in its first year... and more
Thursday 30th July

The Environment Agency has declared a drought across Somerset as the hot weather takes its toll on the county's water supplies. Police are appealing for witnesses following a fatal road traffic accident near Crewkerne. A bowls player from Yeovil has won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow...and more
Wednesday 29th July

Police have arrested two suspects in connection with a series of moped thefts in Chard. A combine harvester has been destroyed in a farm fire at Forton, near Chard. A bowls player from Yeovil has won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow... and more
Tuesday 28th July

The former Beales department store in Yeovil could be brought back into use as part of a wider masterplan for the future of the town. A yellow heat health alert is in place across Somerset from nine o’clock this morning until nine o’clock on Friday morning. A Somerset farmer says this year is the driest on his land since 1976... and more
Monday 27th July

Gooch and Housego, based in Ilminster and one of the town’s biggest employers, has been sold in a multi-million-pound deal to an American private equity firm. A father who shook his four-week-old baby to death at a house in Chard has been sentenced to life in prison. A doctor who works for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is one of five people to have jointly set a new world record for rowing around Great Britain... and more
Friday 24th July

Avon and Somerset Police are warning people to watch out for scammers posing as Amazon. The CEO of the company that provides Somerset's recycling is warning of a major incident if people continue to put used batteries in waste bins. A former Yeovil pub could be demolished to make way for a major hotel expansion.
Thursday 23rd July

The West Country is officially one step closer to being declared in drought. Somerset Council says it's remodelling its service after a children's home was closed following an inspection. A new McDonald's planned off the M5 at Bridgwater could create up to 120 local jobs... and more
Wednesday 22nd July

Two men have been jailed for stealing electrical items and cash from a property in Yeovil. Somerset Council has defended its use of Yeovil’s new performance area in The Triangle, in Lower Middle Street. Tintinhull Primary School, near Yeovil, has won a top national award for outdoor play... and more