News in Wells

A Wells organisation has given the thumbs up to plans expected to be announced in the Budget tomorrow (March 3) that would release £150 million to enable community groups to buy and run neglected local assets.

Under the plans expected to be in Chancellor Rishi Sunak's Budget, a new Community Ownership Fund would be created, with an initial £150 million budget.

Mendip District Council will adopt the Real Living Wage from April 1.

The move means Mendip commits to paying its staff a minimum hourly wage of £9.50 for those aged 25 and over.

Plans to return Wells' historic 15th century Bishop's Barn and recreation ground back to the local community have taken a significant step forward.

After almost half a century of Mendip District Council control, Cabinet members voted unanimously yesterday (March 1) to pursue the transfer of trusteeship to Wells City Council.

Edgar Wright, the film director who grew up in Wells, is set to direct a new adaptation of Stephen King's novel The Running Man.

Wright, who attended Wells Blue School from 1985 to 1992, is in discussions with Paramount Pictures over the movie, which is based on the futuristic novel that King wrote under the pseudonym Richard Bachman.

Farmers are being invited to bid in Somerset's biggest ever auction for works to reduce flooding, boost agriculture and improve the environment - and money is being put aside for works in the Wells area.

The auction will run online from Monday (March 1) to Monday March 15 at somerset.naturebid.org.uk.

In conjunction with Wells Art Contemporary (WAC) and Project Factory CIC, Wells Cathedral is collaborating with Antony Gormley to produce a new work that will be exhibited on the West Front of the cathedral.

The piece will be loaned by the artist, who created the Angel of the North, and on display from the end of August.

A local resident is warning other drivers after his vehicle sustained £1,500 of damage in a Wells car wash.

Carl Oaks said that the car wash at the Esso Garage in Chamberlain Street broke down and he was stuck in his vehicle for 10 minutes, as well as the machinery causing damage.

Mendip District Council is looking to kickstart local creative industries with a £40,000 investment, and the promise of a cultural renaissance for the area.

The one-off windfall - achieved through significant savings in reduced travel costs by council staff and members due to Covid restrictions - will provide a boost to the struggling sector, hard-hit by the pandemic during the past 12 months.

John Barkle, age 86 from Wells, has written his first book called Memories of a Village Grocer and it has been met with high praise.

The book recounts John's days as a young boy in Ditcheat, his years in the shops in Pilton and Wells, his amateur dramatics in Croscombe, to his retirement and beyond.

Households across Mendip will soon be asked to take part in Census 2021.

Taking place on 21 March 2021, the Census is a once-in-a-decade survey that gives us the most accurate estimate of all the people and households in England and Wales.