News in Shepton Mallet

A mum and daughter duo are planning to walk 117 miles around the boundary of the Mendip district to raise money for a charity that helps people living in a drought-stricken area of Kenya.

Emma Aitken and her 12-year-old daughter Annabel plan to walk the Mendip Ring over six days of the Easter holidays, and will be raising money for St Peter's Life-Line.

The hospital director of the Practice Plus Group Hospital Shepton Mallet, which was formerly known as the NHS Treatment Centre, has confirmed the building is operating during this lockdown.

Andrew Oakerbee said: "Despite the introduction of a second national lockdown, thanks to our dedicated teams and robust infection procedures we are continuing to undertake elective, routine and planned, treatment for patients with an appointment in a Covid-19 secure environment, albeit in a reduced capacity in line with the rest of the public and private sector under the circumstances.

A little book found among a carrier bag of items donated to the Shepton Mallet Community Bookshop has been donated to the Royal Air Force Museum in London for preservation.

It is an RAF-issue Gospel of St John, published by the Naval and Military Bible Society. These were given to service personnel during the Second World War.

Kilver Court in Shepton Mallet remains open for food, drink and treats.

Visitors will find a variety of every day essentials as well as those much-needed treats in the Great House.

Shepton Mallet Nub News aims to be supportive to every element of the town's community from business and shops to people and charities, clubs and sports organisations.

Everyone is finding it tough at the moment and is desperate to get back to normal.

An investment of more than £35,000 has been made in X-ray equipment at the Practice Plus Group Hospital Shepton Mallet.

The investment comes at a time when routine operations have resumed at the hospital, which was formerly known as the Shepton Mallet NHS Treatment Centre, and as it continues to offer treatment and support to local NHS patients and trusts as part of the regional Covid-19 health response.

Building supplies company Toolstation could be coming to Shepton Mallet after the firm was given approval for a planning application in the town.

The application was for the change of use from Class A1 (Shops) to Class A1 (Shops)/B8 (Storage or Distribution) at 7 Townsend Shopping Park, Townsend, Shepton Mallet.

Councillors from Mendip District Council will lay eco-wreaths made by residents and florists in Mendip's city, towns and rural communities to remember those who died in the two World Wars and other conflicts.

The eco-wreaths are being made by Street-based florist Luce Loves Flowers and Glastonbury florist Abundiflora.

An initiative to address fuel poverty, improve energy efficiency in homes and cut carbon emissions is to be launched by Mendip District Council.

The fuel poverty awareness push, approved by Cabinet on Monday (November 2), will be intensive, personalised and will stretch across an 18-month period to include the winter months, and beyond.

Around 900 miles of Somerset's road network will still be gritted over the winter months despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Somerset County Council, which is responsible for highway matters, has published a map showing all the routes it intends to treat with its fleet of 23 gritters as the nights begin to draw in.