Tuesday 6th August

Tuesday, 6 August 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Drivers are being warned not to scan QR codes when paying to park at Somerset Council-run car parks or risk being scammed. Two men from Yeovil were amongst those arrested at an anti-immigration protest held in Weymouth at the weekend. A new extension to Caryford Community Hall in Ansford has been formally opened...and more.

Drivers are being warned not to scan QR codes when paying to park at Somerset Council-run car parks. It follows the discovery of fake stickers with QR codes stuck to ticket machines in an attempt to scam motorists.

Two men from Yeovil were amongst those arrested at an anti-immigration protest in Weymouth at the weekend. Police say a 42-year-old man from Yeovil was arrested on suspicion of a public order offence, and a 62-year-old man, also from Yeovil, for being drunk and disorderly. The arrests followed disturbances involving anti-immigration protesters and Stand Up to Racism demonstrators on the seafront in Weymouth on Sunday.

Glastonbury and Somerton MP, Sarah Dyke, has called for a proposal to build a new railway station in the Somerton and Langport area to be protected from government cutbacks. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced that she’s scrapping a £500m fund, launched under Boris Johnson's premiership in 2020, to re-open stations in areas closed under the Beeching cuts of the mid-1960s. Sarah Dyke says a station in the Somerton and Langport area would give access to mainline rail services for 50,000 local people, adding that the line between Taunton and Castle Cary is the longest stretch between London and Cornwall that doesn’t have a train station.

A new extension to Caryford Community Hall in Ansford has been formally opened. The extension includes a meeting room for up to sixty people and a smaller meeting room for twelve people, together with storage space and a new ladies’ toilet. The extension has cost £600k with the bulk of the money provided by the National Lottery, Castle Cary Town Council, Ansford Parish Council, and Somerset Council.

Taunton’s Gateway Park and Ride site will shut for a short time tomorrow. The closure between 1.30 and 2.30 pm is to allow for a replacement barrier to be installed. Anyone needing access to the Gateway Park and Ride during this time for hospital appointments should use the Silk Mills Park and Ride.

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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