15 YEARS AGO

MORE than 50 farmers from across the South West blockaded the Dairy Crest creamery at Chard Junction for eight hours in a protest over the price of milk.

Although workers were able to get in and out of the factory, milk lorries were unable to make deliveries during the blockade.

Robert Dean, spokesman for the NFU, said: "A lot of our members are personally involved at a grassroots level. They are frustrated and angry.

"They feel strongly about Dairy Crest because of the way it communicated the increase, which makes very little difference to farmers' bottom line."

A CHARD youngster was praised for his integrity after handing in £60 left in a bank's cash machine.

Shaun Pratt, 17, a sixth form student at Holyrood School, found £60 as he went to use the cash machine at Lloyds-TSB in Chard.

Unable to see who had left the money behind, Shaun handed the cash into the branch where it was returned to its rightful owner.

Shaun was commended for his citizenship by Holyrood headteacher Maurice Hicks and Chard Mayor Jean Smith. Cllr Smith thanked Shaun and said his honesty was an example of the good things that happen in Chard on a regular basis.

20 YEARS AGO

A CHARD teenager made history as the first student at Holyrood Community School to be selected for international football duty.

Rob Walker, 17, of Manor Farm, was in the England under-19 squad and travelled with the other 15 players to Belgium for a schoolboy international.

The talented midfielder, who played for Chard Town, took part in a series of selection weekends at the FA School of Excellence at Lilleshall.

After his trial however, he only discovered he had made the final squad when a letter arrived at his home.

BUDDING journalists at Neroche Primary School, Broadway, were producing a successful newspaper – the Neroche News – in their spare time at school, and managed to make a profit from it.

And they decided to present the profit to the charity CLIC, the Cancer and Leukaemia in Childhood Trust.

They are pictured handing the cheque to Mrs Malinda White, an assistant at the school, whose family works tirelessly for the charity in Ilminster.

25 YEARS AGO

A FORMER mayor of Ilminster stood down from the town council after 15 years because he had a "gutful".

Tony Goverd accused fellow town councillors of talking too much and not doing enough and announced he would not stand for re-election in May. He had some harsh words for town organisations, too, and said it was never possible to get them to work together, commenting: "They won't pull together."

He said this week: "I've given 15 years of my life to the town, but I will not stand again. I've had a gutful. Nobody wants to find out anything [or] ... take responsibility. We talk but we do not take decisions. It is quite frustrating."