News in Wells

Wells Cathedral School pupil, Sophie Nicholls, who lives in the city, came in the top three out of 344 girls in the recent National Schools Cross Country Championships in Liverpool, and has subsequently been selected for the England Junior Cross Country Team.

Sophie, who is in Year 9 at Wells Cathedral School and is also a vocal specialist there, is not yet 14, but ran in the U15 category of the championships, a year younger than this age group.

Top conductor Charles Hazlewood, who lives near Wells, is hoping to unite musicians the world over for a special performance online during the coronavirus crisis.

Charles wants to create a worldwide orchestra, including performers from the Wells area, all playing the piece In C by Terry Riley at the same time at their laptops.

Waitrose is raising the contactless payment limit at its Wells supermarket from £30 to £45 to help customers minimise the need for contact while shopping.

The retailer has already worked with its payment provider to test the change in ten branches and from today (April 2) all shoppers with a contactless payment card will be able to make purchases up to £45 without the need to enter their pin number.

Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is reassuring Wells residents that its lifesaving service is still being delivered during the coronavirus outbreak.

But, the service is not being tasked to attend suspected or confirmed coronavirus patients.

A planning application has been submitted to Mendip District Council for the conversion of office space around the Insane Games shop in Wells into six flats.

The application for prior approval to change of use of a building from office use (Use Class B1(a)) to dwellinghouses (Use Class C3) at 2 St Cuthbert Street, Wells, has been made by Ben Walters.

There's never been a better time for Wells residents to immerse themselves in learning something new or improving the knowledge and skills that they already have.

And Somerset Skills and Learning (SS&L) have made it easier for you by offering distance learning courses free to anyone aged 19 and over who has lived in the EU for at least three years.

With theatres and cinemas closed and communal life in the "physical world" put on hold, the team at Strode Theatre, which attracts audiences from Wells, have decided not to give up on its primary purpose - to be the heart of the community, bring people together and provide entertainment, diversion, creativity and culture.

It will be harder to fulfil that purpose in lock-down, without the theatre's facilities, but, theatre manager Robin Peters promises, "absolutely possible".

UCAS has given prospective higher education students in Wells an extra two weeks to make a decision about their future place of study, also giving colleges more time to adjust their processes in what are highly unusual times.

All students will receive an email from UCAS this week with the new May deadline. If you attend Strode College, contact your tutor or Strode College Careers if you need any support with this.

A website has been launched by the Wells Coronavirus Network (WCN) to help people through this crisis.

It offers advice, useful information, how to become a volunteer and links to agencies that can help. Go to https://helpwells.co.uk/.

Blood donation will continue in Wells despite the coronavirus crisis, with donors being reassured that travel to sessions is classed as essential.

Donation sessions will continue to be held at Wells Town Hall, and the NHS Blood and Transplant service has made a plea to city residents to keep donating to maintain stock levels.