West of England headlines: 'Tribute tower' and 'dogs welcome'
What have been the big stories in the West this week?
The parent company of Pontins holiday parks pleaded not guilty to corporate manslaughter during a court hearing earlier this week. Wendy Jones, 68, died six months after part of a ceiling collapsed at the resort in Brean Sands in February 2019.The Independent Office for Police Conduct released a report with more details about Tamzin Hall, who died on her way to police custody. The report said she had removed her handcuffs and climbed in to the front passenger seat of the police car before escaping the vehicle.Sir Keir Starmer visited staff from small businesses in Swindon on Thursday. The prime minister unveiled plans to give the employees more access to finance, after many said they were struggling to secure loans.Preparations had been under way all week ready for the Taunton Flower Show which returned on Friday. It was the 194th edition of the event which is dubbed "The Chelsea of the West".And The Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare has allowed dogs on site, following a month-long trial held in June.
Top five local stories for the BBC in the West
Something longer to read
A group of scaffolders from Bristol climbed Pen y Fan in Wales to erect a scaffolding tower in honour of their co-worker who was diagnosed with terminal cancer earlier this year. They have raised more than £20,000 for their efforts building the 26.2ft (8m) tower.
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BBC News
8 hours ago
- BBC News
Swindon school gutted by fire to be turned into seven flats
A Victorian school building gutted by fire is to be converted into Education Centre in Swindon was badly damaged by two fires in 2022, one of which was suspected to be arson. The red brick building, which was the previous home of Ruskin Junior School, lost most of its roof in the a housing company owned by Swindon Borough Council has now been given approval by the same council's planning officers to convert the building into seven flats, and to construct another 10 houses on site. Two teenagers were arrested on suspicion of arson after the first fire, in March 2022, but the case was dropped in May 2023. The school building will be turned into four one-bed flats and three two-bed flats, under the plans submitted by Swindon Housing Development Company. According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, there will also be two small terraces of three houses nearby, as well as two pairs of semi-detached houses. The plan was given consent despite the council's urban design officer having expressed disapproval about the design and layout of the officer wrote in a submission to council planners: "I strongly believe [the proposal] remains unacceptable in its current format and must stress that this scheme is contrary to Swindon's policy which seeks to secure high quality design and contribute to distinctive, beautiful, enduring and successful places." Three of the homes are designated as affordable – two at social rent (around 50% of market rates) and one at intermediate rent (no more than 80% of market rates).The company will also give £6,000 to the council to fund traffic regulation council approved a loan of £4m to the housing company in September to allow it to progress with the project.
BBC News
3 days ago
- BBC News
Headlines: 'Wildflower meadow' and 'nightmare cat'
Here's our daily pick of stories from across local websites in the West of England, and interesting content from social media. Our pick of local website stories A five-year-old girl is in a coma following a house fire on Saturday in Queens Drive, Swindon, the Swindon Advertiser travelling northbound on the M5 faced hours of delays and miles of congestion on Sunday after the Avonmouth Bridge was partially closed for emergency road surface repairs. All lanes are now open again, said O'Sullivan released a fresh appeal to find her 23-year-old son, Jack. He was reported missing in Bristol 18 months ago, reported Bristol Live. Our top three from yesterday What to watch on social media Several roads near Cirencester were closed by police earlier following a serious collision on the A417. Motorists were urged to avoid the area and to plan their journeys in Coastguard in Watchet said it had been tasked to "multiple incidents" last week, including one where a dog fell off the harbour into the sea and transformed Fleming Way in Swindon is almost ready to open to buses. Services will begin running from 31 were held in Taunton over the weekend to mark Somerset County Cricket Club's 150th Greenbridge roundabout has turned into a wildflower meadow. It replaced a previously failed planting people have been interacting with a post about Raisin, a "nightmare cat" who keeps escaping his catio.
BBC News
4 days ago
- BBC News
Six sentenced for attempted O2 shop robbery in Chippenham
Six men have been sentenced after attempting to rob a phone shop. The men were stopped by police as they burst into the O2 shop in Borough Parade, Chippenham, ran through the store and set off the fire alarm on 16 March. All six pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal at a court hearing in June, and were sentenced at Swindon Crown Court on Thursday. Two men were sent to prison - Jason Hunte, 27, of Avondale Drive, Hayes, Hillingdon, for two years and two months, and Nusret Arslan, 24, of East Avenue, Hayes, Hillingdon, for two years. The four other men received suspended prison sentences. The court heard from a sales assistant involved in the incident, who said they had found themselves "overwhelmed with shock, fear, and anxiety".They added they had noticed a significant change in how they interacted with customers, and felt "a sense of unease and tension whenever someone enters the store". Jesse Madika, 24, of Amersham Avenue, Edmonton, Enfield, was sentenced to 14 months in prison, suspended for two years, as well as 150 hours of unpaid work, while Jaheim Thompson, 23, of no fixed abode, was sentenced to eight months suspended for 18 months. Billy Gladdish, 28, of no fixed abode, was handed 14 months in prison, suspended for two years as well as 200 hours of unpaid work, and Tyrike Rasgado, 23, of Deans Lane, Mill Hill, Edgware, was sentenced to eight months suspended for 18 months and 150 hours of unpaid work. The court also heard from a customer who was in the store at the time and described the contrast between "quite happily sitting in the shop completing a new phone contract, to suddenly men bursting in and running through the shop, a fire alarm going off, and shop staff shouting to get out". "I was filled with sudden panic and an overwhelming need to run and get out and get as far away as possible," they added. Speaking after the sentencing, Wiltshire Police Det Con Jared Yalden said detectives had been collaborating with the Metropolitan Police to prevent similar offending. He said the men gave "no thought" to the impact their actions would have on victims due to their "determination" and "own personal greed".
