Wednesday 18th September

Tuesday, 17 September 2024 21:09

By Steve Haigh

BT is reassuring customers in Somerset who are worried about the upcoming digital switchover for landline phones. Somerset Council could lose 13 percent of its elected members as part of an upcoming boundary review. Castle Cary has been named as the best place to live in the UK in an online poll...and more.

BT is reassuring customers in Somerset who are worried about the upcoming digital switchover for landline phones. Copper phone lines are being decommissioned and all landlines will connect through the internet and electricity sockets. BT senior engagement manager, Vicky Hicks say the change to digital is needed to improve the way phones work.

Somerset Council could lose 13 percent of its elected members as part of an upcoming boundary review. The council has 110 elected members, two for each of the 55 divisions on boundaries inherited from Somerset County Council. However, this number could go down to 96 as part of a review by the Local Government Boundary Commission ahead of the next local elections in Somerset in May 2027. The commission is expected to hold two rounds of public consultation on the proposals before the summer of 2025.

Chard Town FC celebrated 100 years of playing at Zembard Lane last night. The milestone was marked with a Somerset Senior League fixture against Worle FC. Chard Town first played at Zembard Lane on September 17th, 1924, after being formed in March 1921, and initially playing at Bonfire Close.

Somerset Council has launched a new consultation asking people for their views on where they live and the services the council provides. The Council says it will use the results of the 2024 Resident Survey to measure progress against Somerset’s priorities and shape future council services. The survey is open now on the Somerset County Council website and closes on Monday, October 21st.

A sign that hung in the reception area of the Pittards factory in Yeovil is being auctioned off. Anyone who visited the Pittard's on Sherborne Road will have seen the carved wood emblem reading 'Established 1840'. The sign is being auctioned by Charterhouse in Sherborne on September 25th with a guide price of £2,500.

Castle Cary has been named as the best place to live in the UK in an online survey. In a poll of readers of the Muddy Stilettos’ website, Castle Cary came top of a list of the best villages, towns and cities to live in the UK.

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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