News in Wells

Five organisations in Wells have received nearly £800,000 of funding between them in a second round of culture grants from the government.

The money has been awarded as part of the second round of funding from the Culture Recovery Fund, with a total of 2,700 organisation benefiting from more than £400 million of government money in this phase.

Wells residents are being asked for their views on Recycle More in an online survey that was launched this week.

Somerset Waste Partnership (SWP) and its contractor SUEZ would like to hear what residents think about the expanded recycling service which has been running since October.

Now the Stay At Home coronavirus message has been replaced by Stay Local, we can now get out and about around Wells over the Easter weekend.

For those who will be going out shopping, opening times will be different this weekend with the bank holidays, so check below for the opening times for Lidl, Morrisons, One Stop, Spar, Tesco and Waitrose in Wells.

There is egg-citing news at the Bishop's Palace in Wells, where the famous swans have laid eggs in their nest.

The pair, named Grace and Gabriel, became more popular than ever last year, when thousands of locked-down viewers tuned in daily to the palace's 24-hour Swan Cam to catch a glimpse of the swans and their cygnets.

While, of course, I will be very pleased to not have to write columns on the state of play with regards to the coronavirus pandemic, this week does feel different - and much more positive - with the sun shining and some restrictions easing.

It is the first hurdle passed in this steady movement to normality. The key point to remember is that the reason we can now socialise in groups of six or two households outside and sports are able to return is because the four tests the Government set are being met.

Fitness fans in Wells will be delighted to discover that group exercise has restarted from Monday March 29.

Fusion Lifestyle, the company responsible for leisure premises in Mendip, have announced they are kicking-off outdoor classes at Wells Sport and Fitness - and bookings are now live.

Mendip Markets are running in Shepton Mallet, Wells and Frome across the Bank Holiday weekend.

Residents can shop with confidence, and in safety, at the outdoor venues. Stallholders will have all your Easter essentials to hand including eggs - the farm-fresh variety, of course.

Plans for the siting and appearance of a new 5G phone mast in Wells have been refused by Mendip District Council.

The application for prior approval of telecommunications development for slimline lattice tower, antennas, dishes, equipment cabinets, meter cabinet and associated ancillary development at East Somerset Yard, Wells, had been submitted by MBNL (EE UK Ltd and H3G UK Ltd).

Illuminated carnival carts will not be seen on the streets of Wells for the second successive year as the annual Somerset County Guy Fawkes Carnivals have been postponed until 2022.

The difficult and timely decision was taken as the country starts to slowly emerge from the Covid-19 restrictions and follows a meeting of the Somerset County Guy Fawkes Carnival Association (SCGFCA) comprising the seven carnival venues (Bridgwater, Burnham-on-Sea, Weston-super-Mare, North Petherton, Shepton Mallet, Wells and Glastonbury) and the three organisations which represents the entries (Bridgwater Gangs and Features, Mid Somerset Gangs and Features, and the Associates).

VICKERY, Joyce May, passed away peacefully at Torrwood Care Home on 13th March 2021, aged 96 years.

As a local online newspaper seeking to be at the heart of the Wells community, we realise the importance of obituaries as a key part of the service.