Wednesday 15th November

Wednesday, 15 November 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A Wincanton man has been jailed for 12 years after being found guilty of rape and other offences. A family from Somerset is asking the government for better access to medicinal cannabis through the NHS. A new clothes shop has opened in Ilminster as part of a project to help young people with autism find employment...and more.

A Wincanton man has been jailed for 12 years after being found guilty of rape and other offences. Bournemouth Crown Court was told that Gary Bridger of Dancing Lane in Wincanton attacked a nurse at his mother’s home in Sherborne. She’d gone to the property to check that it was safe for his mother to return home from hospital. While inside the house, Bridger, grabbed the woman and forced her into a bedroom where he carried out the assault. The court was told that Bridger must serve a minimum of two-thirds of his 12-year sentence before being considered for release.

A family from Somerset is asking the government for better access to medicinal cannabis through the NHS. Parents, Emily and Spencer, pay thousands of pounds each year for private cannabis prescriptions for their 4-year-old daughter Clover, who suffers from epileptic seizures. The government says it needs more evidence before deciding whether it’s safe to prescribe medicinal cannabis on the NHS.

A trial using artificial intelligence is underway at four GP practices in Somerset. NHS Somerset says it’s using A1 to monitor ‘at risk’ patients so they can be supported at home to avoid being admitted to hospital.

A Chard pub has been recognised for the quality of its toilets. The Cerdic in Fore Street has been awarded a platinum rating in the Loo of the Year Awards. The awards are aimed at highlighting and improving standards of 'away from home' toilets across the UK.

A new clothes shop has opened in Ilminster as part of a project to help young people with autism find employment.‘Punky Dory’ in Silver Street sells vintage clothes and jewellery. It’s run by Silver Lining Internships, an employment placement organisation that supports young people with autism and special educational needs.

Chard boxer Paul Roberts has secured his second Southern Area Super Flyweight title. Roberts took the title defeating Martin Hillman of London with a seventh-round stoppage at York Hall in Bethnal Green. If you would like to meet Paul, he will be presenting trophies at the Chard and Crewkerne Amateur Boxing Show, at Holyrood School, in Chard, this coming Saturday.

More from News

Monday 16th June

The new owner of Yeovil Town says he’s in talks with Somerset Council about buying back Huish Park. Water levels at some of Somerset’s reservoirs are below what they should be for this time of year. A Chard woman has been recognised in the King's Birthday Honours... and more.
Friday 13th June

Police are appealing for witnesses to a road traffic accident near Chard, which left one person with life-threatening injuries. Texas Rocks in Middle Street, Yeovil, has closed temporarily following a significant fire. A Yeovil dental hygienist has been named as a finalist in the Ms Great Britain competition...and more.
Thursday 12th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance has criticised the Chancellor’s Spending Review for not delivering real change for Yeovil and South Somerset. The CEO of Leonardo UK states that they’re working towards closing the gender pay gap within the company. Yeovil Town is relocating its first-team training camp to Bristol... and more.
Wednesday 11th June

People in Somerset are being asked for their views on the state of the county’s roads and footpaths. A trial is being conducted at Yeovil Hospital to investigate whether administering shorter courses of antibiotics to patients can effectively treat sepsis. Somerset Council says it has no plans to reopen a block of public toilets in Chard...and more.
Tuesday 10th June

A mother from Chard says schools need to do more to identify students with dyslexia. A fire in a van that caught alight at Stoke-sub-Hamdon is being treated as accidental. A former Yeovil-based police officer, who made it appear he was working when he wasn’t, has been barred from policing...and more
Monday 9th June

Somerset Council is giving £1.5m to Hill View Special School at Ash near Martock to prevent it from closing. Two men have been convicted of killing a Yeovil man they mistakenly believed to be a convicted paedophile. People across Somerset are being asked to make a note of any wildlife they see...and more
Friday 6th June

Community Speedwatch volunteers in Keinton Mandeville have stopped monitoring the local traffic because of online and verbal abuse. Redstart Primary School in Chard has been rated as ‘Good’ by Ofsted. A care home resident in Glastonbury has raised more than one thousand pounds for Children's Hospice Southwest by knitting soft toys...and more.
Thursday 5th June

Yeovil MP Adam Dance says he’s been told the temporary closure of the maternity unit at Yeovil Hospital will not be made permanent. Firefighters have dealt with a fire on a coach carrying passengers at Vagg Hill in Yeovil. The authorities in Chile are holding a man who lives in Milborne Port after being found with class-A drugs in a suitcase...and more.