News Archive

Appeal for information in relation to criminal damage in Dorchester Officers investigating a report of criminal damage to an NHS building in Dorchester are appealing for anyone with information to come forward. Dorset Police received a report at 1.42pm on Friday 1 May 2020 that graffiti had been sprayed on the side of the building in Trinity ...

Dorset Police has issued 255 fixed penalty notices to people who have allegedly breached the COVID-19 (coronavirus) restrictions. The fines were issued in the county between Friday 27 March and Thursday 29 April 2020. Officers in Dorset are continuing to work with the public to ensure they understand and adhere to the rules, which are in place ...

More than 270 reconditioned laptops and 30 mobile phones have been distributed to children across Dorset to help them with online learning during the coronavirus pandemic. Dorset Council said it had been “overwhelmed with requests” for laptops from schools for pupils who do not have one at home. Following the recent government announcement that it would provide ...

Extinction Rebellion have pasted ‘CLOSED FOR GOOD’ signs on the doors of buildings around Weymouth today (Thursday 30 Apr), reportedly to show that that they want a bail out for people and planet not a bailout for business as usual. ER have said in a press release: “In the midst of this crisis, all around the world ...

A new mobile coronavirus testing centre has opened in Weymouth at the Park & Ride site. It comes after the government launched a further expansion of coronavirus testing to help protect the most vulnerable. Anyone in England with coronavirus symptoms who either has to leave home to go to work or is aged 65 and over ...

Taylors, a local animal rehoming centre based at Kingston Maurward, has just launched it’s “Please Sponsor Me” campaign. Despite the current Covid 19 pandemic their centre is still full and all of their animals desperately need food and veterinary care. With all of their charity shops now closed they have lost their most vital source ...

A passenger plane bearing the logo “Thank you NHS” has landed in the UK with a cargo of surgical gowns from China. The Airbus 340, with boxes strapped into every seat, arrived earlier at Bournemouth Airport. NHS supplier Crest Medical said it was using passenger jets as well as cargo planes in order to “ramp up” imports ...

Following a further review by the Great Dorset Steam Fair Board of Directors, it has been confirmed today (27th April 2020) with regret and sadness that the 52nd Great Dorset Steam Fair will no longer be taking place this year and will be postponed until 2021 (Thursday 26th to Bank Holiday Monday 30th August 2021). Martin ...

The Gryphon School Year 7 student Joshua White is climbing the equivalent of Mount Everest on his stairs at home after seeing an appeal by Dartmoor Zoo to help raise funds to save their animals. Josh says “I saw Dartmoor Zoo on the local news and they said that they were short of money due to ...

A drive-through coronavirus testing facility is now open at Creekmoor Park and Ride in Poole as part of the Government’s UK-wide drive to increase testing for thousands more NHS and other key workers. The site sits alongside a rapidly expanding network of testing sites being set up around the UK, and is operating on an appointment-only ...

Public Health Dorset along with Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust (AWP), BCP Council, Dorset Council, EDAS, EDP Drugs & Alcohol Services, the Local Pharmaceutical Committee have been getting prescribed medicines safely to residents who are potentially more likely to be exposed to coronavirus due to underlying health conditions. Will Haydock, Public Health Dorset’s ...

Dorset Police’s Chief Constable James Vaughan is delighted to announce the appointment of a new Assistant Chief Constable for Operations to the Force. Chief Superintendent Samantha (Sam) de Reya was successfully selected on Friday 24 April 2020 following an appointment process, supported by Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner Martyn Underhill, Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue ...

Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service sent ten appliances to a heath fire in Puddletown on Sunday afternoon (26th April) . Crews from Bere Regis, Dorchester, Weymouth, Wareham, Hamworthy, Wimborne and Poole were amongst those to tackle the heath and gorse fire in Puddletown Forest that is believed to have been caused by a BBQ. Andy ...

Another P&O Cruises UK ship is anchored in Weymouth Bay. The passenger-free MS Ventura is the second largest vessel in the P&O UK’s fleet of all 7 ships currently in service having a maximum passenger capacity of 3727 plus 1226 staff and crew. As reported by CrusieMapper.com in March, the P&O ship Britannia was also anchored in ...

The BBC website is reporting the Cerne Abbas Giant has been given a makeover. It reports that the famous hillside chalk figure has been adorned with a face mask, in an apparent reference to coronavirus. The Cerne Abbas Giant is thought to have been given the unauthorised makeover on Friday. Local resident Kevin Knight, who tweeted a picture ...

Officers are continuing their patrols on Dorset’s roads, key locations and beauty spots to ensure the public adhere to the Government’s stay home rules to tackle the coronavirus. Between Sunday 29 March and Thursday 23 April 2020 Dorset Police issued 118 fixed penalty notices to people who have been found to be making non-essential journeys or ...

We recently reported that a fire in the garden of a residence in Bridport Road, Dorchester, on Thursday 23rd April was the result of a bonfire. We have since been informed that this was not the case. The resident has told us that it started in the hedge most likely by a cigarette butt discarded ...

Dorset Police officers investigating a serious injury road traffic collision in Gillingham are appealing for any witnesses or anyone with relevant dashcam footage to come forward. At 11.46am on Thursday 23 April 2020 Dorset Police received a report of a collision in Le Neubourg Way, opposite the Waitrose supermarket, involving a red Seat Leon and a ...

As the coronavirus Government-directed lockdown continues, Dorchester’s Brewery Square retailers are pulling together to make a difference and give back to their local community. From donating food to supplying personal protective clothing and gloves, many retailers have found a way to do good in a time of uncertainty. Various retailers at Brewery Square, which have closed ...

Two of Dorset’s most popular arts festivals – Inside Out Dorset and b-side – are to be postponed until next year as a consequence of the on-going coronavirus pandemic. Both biennial events had been set to return this September, Inside Out Dorset hosted by Dorchester-based outdoor arts producers Activate in extraordinary locations across the county and ...

The BBC have reported the surfing-inspired fashion brand Animal is to close, putting up to 500 jobs at risk, its owner has announced. Owner H Young Holdings said the Poole-based business would shut by January. It said the move was due to an “extremely challenging” retail market “further worsened” by the coronavirus pandemic. Up to 500 people work ...

Dorset Council is extending this public consultation by three weeks to make sure people who were unable to obtain a paper version from libraries or the Council offices can do so. Dorset Council recognises that these premises were closed due to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and wants to give those that could not attend due ...

Taking a form of exercise every day can have health benefits, both mentally and physically. We are lucky in Dorset to have a network of almost 3,000 miles of footpaths, bridleways and byways that offers people the chance to stretch their legs, connect with nature and destress. Cllr Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s portfolio holder for Highways, Travel ...

Officers investigating a reported altercation in Weymouth are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information to come forward. Dorset Police received a report at around 1.15pm on Thursday 16 April 2020 of a disturbance on Abbotsbury Road, near to the junction with Chickerell Road, involving two women and a man. Officers attended and a woman aged in ...

It has been a busy time for our firefighters locally. Dorset and Wiltshire fire service has attended several residential fire incidents in the last few days. On 21st April Maiden Newton Fire Station attended a chimney fire at an address in Dorchester Road, Cerne Abbas. The fire was extinguished with Chimney kit and 1 hose reel ...

Local GP Dr Craig Wakeham passed away at the weekend having been admitted to Dorset County Hospital. He had been fighting coronavirus for many days according to a statement on the Cerne Abbas Surgery website. He was part of the team at Cerne Abbas Surgery for more than 30 years and a leading light within the ...

The Government have launched a new tool to help businesses find coronavirus financial support. Steve Bulley from Dorset Chamber told KeeP106, “There has been lots of information and misinformation online and this Government tool is a straightforward way to see what help is available” The support finder will show which loans, tax relief and cash grants a ...

The campaign, Wellbeing @ Home, seeks to support those following the social distancing and government lockdown guidelines, with the option of also supporting Dorset’s disability charity, Diverse Abilities. Taking place over three weeks, content provided is suitable for the whole family, including magic shows, yoga workshops, sign-and-sign-along songs, and story time. Those who use and enjoy the ...

A new campaign has been launched by Dorset Council to find more foster carers for Dorset children. The campaign’s message is that most people can foster, all you need is a spare room, love and energy. It will also highlight that fostering is a paid career. New eye-catching images, capturing funny parenting moments, will be promoted on ...

All 147 pharmacies in Dorset have access to an army of volunteers to help them get through the Coronavirus pandemic. Public Health Dorset is working with the Local Pharmaceutical Committee, Volunteer Centre Dorset and Community Action Network to help find volunteers who can help collect medicines from local pharmacies and deliver them to residents who are ...

As is commonly known businesses throughout the country are going through a very hard time at the moment. Many Dorchester businesses are in a position to take card orders over the phone and arrange for delivery of goods to local addresses for those who cannot get out of their houses. By using their services we ...

A coronavirus patient is on the road to recovery after spending a week in intensive care at Dorset County Hospital. Malcolm Cumber, 60, from Dorchester, was admitted to DCH via the Emergency Department at the end of March after suffering from intense fatigue and shortness of breath. After not responding to initial treatment, Malcolm was transferred to ...

Garden Waste customers have reason to be pleased as Dorset Council will be resuming its garden waste kerbside collections from Monday 27 April. To ensure that regular food waste, rubbish, recycling and glass collections continue with minimal disruption, the Garden Waste service was suspended shortly after Public Health England coronavirus (COVID-19) guidance was introduced. This was done to free ...

As new evidence comes to light which suggests that smokers are at greater risk from COVID-19, Public Health Dorset is joining health professionals in calling on smokers to #QuitforCovid and offering free stop-smoking support through LiveWell Dorset. Last week the Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, said that “it is abundantly clear from the research into previous coronaviruses ...

Dorchester based Goldcrest Jewellers have been spreading true community spirit during the coronavirus crisis. They have been helping boost moral by delivering cakes and biscuits to care workers in the town. They have delivered the joy bringing goods to Weldmar, Dorset County Hospital Research team and Castle View Care Home. Neil and Donna from Goldcrest Jeweller, pictured below, ...

Chris Loder, MP for West Dorset, became ‘white van man’ over the Easter weekend as he got hands-on delivering Dorset-made hand sanitiser to care homes and surgeries across the constituency who had asked for his help. From Bridport and Portesham to Beaminster and Sherborne, the MP delivered 120 litres of sanitiser on a mission to top ...

Families in Dorset will find out today (16/4) which school their children will be joining in September. Most pupils, nearly 95 per cent, have been offered their preferred choice of infant, first, primary, junior or middle school. Dorset Council School Admissions Team received 4,547 infant, first and primary and middle school applications. They were able to offer ...

Emergency services and other partner agencies across Dorset are working together to highlight the #Unacceptable trend in the number of verbal abuse, assaults or attacks their staff face and the rising number involving threats of COVID-19 infection. During the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak, police, the ambulance service, the fire service, council, healthcare staff and other key workers ...

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Larmer Tree Festival has announced this year’s event will be cancelled. The full statement from the Larmer Tree Team is below: Dear Larmers, It is with a heavy heart that we have reached the difficult decision to cancel Larmer Tree Festival’s 30th Anniversary. We were so looking forward to welcoming you all back ...

Firefighters from Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service are playing a key role in relieving pressure on paramedics during the coronavirus outbreak. The South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust has invested in additional ambulances for the region, two of which will be coming to Dorset and two to Wiltshire. The ambulances will be driven by ...

‘Let’s Keep Dorset Beautiful – Bin The Beast!’ is a new campaign to remind members of the public to act responsibly, ‘Stop The Drop’ and bin their disposable gloves. Litter Free Dorset have announced the launch of the campaign ‘Let’s Keep Dorset Beautiful – Bin The Beast!’ to address the increase in potentially Covid-contaminated disposable gloves ...

Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service is again asking local people to avoid having bonfires and to be extra careful if taking exercise on heath land over the coming Easter weekend. The Service is keen to reduce the number of calls it has to attend, in order to minimise potential exposure of firefighters to coronavirus. Area ...

Residents from across Dorset are being urged by BCP Council, Dorset Council and Dorset Police to stay at home over the Easter break, with any exercise taken directly from their front doors. Leader of Dorset Council, Councillor Spencer Flower, said, “We know how fortunate we are to live in a beautiful part of the country but ...

Small businesses in Dorset are being reminded to provide their details online to get access to coronavirus cash grants, with the council having already handed out £9.1m this week. To help lessen the impacts of the shutdown, firms which already receive small business rate relief or rural rate relief may be eligible for a £10,000 grant, ...

With less than ten percent of regular income coming into the charity, Weldmar Hospicecare has launched an urgent fundraising appeal today. 26 charity shop sites remain closed during the Covid-19 lockdown, and fundraising events have been cancelled until at least the end of May, but frontline services continue at Weldmar’s Inpatient Unit in Dorchester, and in ...

The family of a man who very sadly died in a collision near Weymouth has issued a tribute to their loved one. Officers were called at 11.41am on Sunday 22 March 2020 to reports of a collision on the A354 Weymouth Relief Road involving a white Nissan Micra and a white Mercedes. Sadly, the driver of the ...

The NHS has launched a mental health hotline as part of a package of measures to support the NHS’ 1.4 million staff as they help people deal with the coronavirus. NHS staff in Dorset will be able to call or text a free number staffed by thousands of specially trained volunteers, to receive support and advice ...

West Dorset’s MP, Chris Loder, has today launched the ‘West Dorset Scrub Hub’ calling for fabric, funds or fans of sewing to support our doctors, nurses and carers with getting more of the personal protective equipment that they need. The MP says: “We are experiencing unprecedented times which is putting resources under strain. We have a ...

On the night of April 1st/2nd, a large polytunnel belonging to Transition Town Dorchester (TTD), standing on the Community Farm off Middle Farm Way in Poundbury, Dorchester was seriously damaged. The plastic from the polytunnel, measuring 30 x 54 feet, was cut off and left draped over the now exposed hoops. The poly tunnel was ...

Kirsty and Martin ran to success on Sunday to raise money for the Dorset County Hospital Charity. They have told Keep 106 their story. “We both indeed had a rest day yesterday. I think the garden is winning on recovery time! “For those that swim, bike, run or all of the above, they will understand that training ...

Hundreds of NHS Volunteer Responders in Dorset will be able to report for duty today and start helping the NHS in its fight against coronavirus. Over 750,000 people, nationally, signed up to the NHS’ call for volunteers in just four days when the scheme launched, three times the original target. Royal Voluntary Service, the charity delivering the ...

A fire broke out in the Grade II listed Chalmington Manor between Dorchester and Yeovil this morning (Monday 6th April). At the height of the blaze there were 12 fire engines, 1 aerial ladder platform, 2 water carriers, 2 support units and numerous DWFRS officers. As well as this the fire service was backed up by ...

Detectives investigating the death of a man in Weymouth have charged two men with murder. At 4.13pm on Saturday 4 April 2020 Dorset Police was called to a report of a possible assault at an address on Dorchester Road. Officers attended, along with the ambulance service, and found a 32-year-old local man with a serious head injury. ...

A couple from Portland have tied the knot at Dorset County Hospital to celebrate their love amidst the coronavirus pandemic. Tina and Mick Hickton exchanged their vows in the hospital’s Chapel on Friday (3) after they received a special licence to marry because of exceptional circumstances. The couple, who have been together for ten years, said it ...

Detectives have launched a murder investigation after a man died following an alleged assault in Weymouth. At 4.13pm on Saturday 4 April 2020 Dorset Police was called to a report of a possible assault at an address on Dorchester Road. Officers attended, along with the ambulance service, and found a 32-year-old man with a serious head injury. ...

A man has been charged for allegedly contaminating goods at a supermarket in Bridport. At around 2pm on Friday 3 April 2020 a man entered Lidl on St Andrews Road wearing a face mask and gloves. He allegedly lowered the face mask and licked his fingers, before purposefully rubbing them onto a product in the store. Following ...

The Bonjour Cafe Poundbury has teamed up with The Embroidery Barn and Dorchester Town Council to provide volunteers and key workers with homemade face masks to help protect them when they’re working to help those in need. Emma from the Bonjour Cafe says “If you’re in need of a face mask, you know someone who needs ...

For some, the guidance isn’t clear enough… Keep 106 has received reports that some people, with second homes in Dorset, have been traveling to the county to ‘isolate’. Its claimed that village stores have seen second homeowners attend to stock up, whilst they are in Dorset, and a key holder for another second home, near Bridport, ...

Martin and Kirsty Smithleigh were intending to run the Manchester Marathon on 5th April but of course it has been cancelled because of the coronavirus crisis. It would be a great shame to let all their hard work training for the event go to waste so they are still going to run a marathon – ...

The single most important action you can take is to stay at home in order to protect the NHS and save lives. Have a big weekend in! The weather is set to be good this weekend, but to help save lives please stay at home. Coronavirus is life threatening for people, of all ages, everywhere.  Don’t be ...