Wednesday 19th June

Wednesday, 19 June 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

New figures have shown that Somerset has the lowest rate of delivered NHS dental care in the South West. A boxing glove made in Somerset and claimed to have been worn by Cassius Clay in his 1963 fight against Henry Cooper has been sold at auction in Chard. A helicopter built in Yeovil will be one of the newest attractions at this year's Glastonbury Festival...and more.

New figures have shown that Somerset now has the lowest rate of delivered NHS dental care in the South West. Somerset’s Integrated Care Board says that due to a shortage of dentists, around half the money allocated for NHS dental work in Somerset is not being spent, with the number of children seen by NHS dentists halving over the past six years. The Integrated Care Board says in 2017/18 more than 60% of children in Somerset were seen by an NHS dentist; now the figure is 32%.

Somerset Rivers Authority says an agreement has been reached between the Environment Agency and local landowners to progress improvement works to the King’s Sedgemoor Drain on the Somerset Levels. The works, aimed at strengthening local flood defences, have involved removing silt and clearing river banks, but due to a fall-out between the EA and local landowners, the final stages of the work have been delayed. Somerset Rivers Authority now says the two sides have patched up their differences and that work on completing the improvements will begin shortly. This includes improvements to the Chedzoy tilting weir and the Back Ditch outfall, which lie between Bridgwater and the Polden Hills.

A boxing glove made in Somerset and claimed to have been worn by Cassius Clay in his 1963 fight against Henry Cooper has been sold at auction in Chard.

A helicopter made in Yeovil will be one of the newest attractions at this year's Glastonbury Festival. The Sea King, built by Leonardo and now retired out of service, has been turned into a mechanical Dragonfly by Bristol-based artists Pip Rush and Bert Cole. Its final look is being kept under wraps until the festival opens in nine days.

A group of young footballers from Somerset are in Germany taking part in a mini Euro football tournament. The visit by members of Frome Town United's Youth Squad to Frome’s twin town of Murrhardt was timed to coincide with the Euros 2024.

Chard is gearing up for an invasion of Town Criers. Around twenty criers, representing towns and cities across the South West, will be in the town for the annual Chard Town Criers competition on Saturday, June 29th. The event begins with a procession of Town Criers in the High Street followed by the competition outside the Guildhall starting at 10.15 am. Amongst the six members on the judging panel at this year’s contest will be the Deputy Lord-Lieutenant of Somerset, Alexander Priest.

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.