As it happened: West of England

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Emergency funding for three bus routes previously run by collapsed Webberbus is unlikely to be extended, Somerset County Council has said.

The interim contracts expire on 26 November and so far no new operators have expressed an interest in taking the routes on.

The council plans to extend the contracts until the end of the year but said it cannot afford to extend any longer.

Routes affected are the 67 service from Wookey Hole/Wells to Burnham-on-Sea and the F&C services in Bridgwater town centre.

The Shepton Mallet Cider Mill has been saved from closure.

C&C Group has sold the cidery to Brothers Drinks, makers of Brothers Cider. 

The site has a long tradition of cider making stretching back to the 18th Century. 

In January it was announced the mill was set to close with its production being moved to the Republic of Ireland.  

Two men found a porpoise stranded in mud on the River Severn. 

They put it on a surfboard and carried it about half a mile through reeds and up a bank to their car. 

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They then wrapped the porpoise in wet towels, put it in the boot and drove to Ilfracombe in Devon to release it at a nearby beach. 

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ThinkstockCopyright: Thinkstock

Some people caught carrying small amounts of illegal drugs in the West are being offered drug education workshops rather than face arrest. 

Avon and Somerset Police is part of a scheme trying out the idea, which it says is aimed at dealing with low-level offenders and keeping them out of the court system.

According to the internet news service Vice News it's been running here for six months and those caught with cocaine and heroin can avoid automatic criminalistation.

A police spokesman said 215 people have been through the course and so far none have been arrested for drug possession since.

Sale Sharks players are rescued by a fire crew after they get stuck in a lift before their 30-3 defeat by Bath on Friday. 

Rex FeaturesCopyright: Rex Features

Gloucestershire seam bowler Liam Norwell has signed a new contract extension with the county until the end of the 2018 season.

The 24-year-old took 39 wickets in Division Two of the Championship 2016.

Since making his debut in 2011 he has played in 55 first-class matches and also taken 30 limited-overs wickets.

"It's a great changing room to be a part of," he told Gloucestershire's website. "As a group of players, we're on the verge of something special."

Avon and Somerset PoliceCopyright: Avon and Somerset Police

This steak knife was confiscated from a Year 7 girl in a playground at an unnamed Bristol school on Monday.

Avon and Somerset Police said the school's beat manager is now working with the child and her family to explain the potential consequences of carrying it.

A force spokeswoman said the aim is not to criminalise the child but to find out why she had the knife at school.

She added the incident was unrelated to the discovery of a Swiss Army penknife in another Bristol school last week.

National TrustCopyright: National Trust

Stencilled graffiti on a door at Welliington Monument is not the work of Bristol-based Banksy, the National Trust has confirmed.

The trust contacted Banksy's spokeswoman who declared the graffiti, purportedly signed by the artist, a fake.

"It makes the decision on whether to remove the graffiti somewhat easier for us," she said. 

"Quite often in the trust we face the challenge of proving who created a painting in our collection, but it is unusual for us to be dealing with works by a living artist. 

"This makes it somewhat simpler, though still intriguing."

Bristol ZooCopyright: Bristol Zoo

Can you help keepers at Bristol Zoo name their new pygmy hippo?

He was born to parents Sirana and Nato eight weeks ago and the zoo says it is now time for him to be named.

There is a choice of three - Hugo, Kito (which means precious in Swahili) or Tunde (which means returns, after keepers thought he might not initially survive).

To cast your vote you need to visit this page.

A Swindon councillor says a conversation he had about defecting to the Conservative group was misconstrued, and he is not leaving the Labour Party. 

Matthew Courtliff, who was elected as councillor for Lydiard and Freshbrook in May, has told the BBC that something he said had been misunderstood. 

Earlier today, the Conservatives welcomed the councillor to the party and released a statement from Mr Courtliff.

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Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Bath make seven changes from the side that beat Pau as they host local rivals Bristol in the European Rugby Challenge Cup at the Recreation Ground tomorrow.

Matt Garvey and Guy and Zach Mercer make up the back row, with Taulupe Faletau and Francois Louw among 14 Bath players sidelined with injuries.

Fly-half Billy Searle makes his first competitive start for Bristol, as Andy Robinson makes 11 changes to his side.

Bristol have lost all seven of their competitive matches so far this season.

Robinson is without 15 of his first-team squad, with Samoa fly-half Tusi Pisi the latest to join the injury list.

Teacher, artist and musician Joyce Murgatroyd has lived and worked in Rodbourne Cheney, Swindon most of her life and celebrates a very special birthday this week. 

She's been reliving some of her most precious memories through photos from the past and gave us a little rendition of Greensleeves.  

A Bath man who allegedly conned a woman he was in a relationship with out of £850,000 is being hunted by police in Spain.

Mark Richard Acklom, 43, is being investigated by Avon and Somerset Police for offences of fraud by false representation.

Police said his victim reported the offences to the force in July 2013.

Officers obtained a European Arrest Warrant in June and are now trying to locate and arrest Mr Acklom who is believed to be in Spain.

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The Bristol Repair Café  - where people can bring their broken appliances, moth-eaten clothes or wonky-wheeled bicycles to get fixed - has become so popular it's now looking to expand.

The Make Do and Mend project was started in Fishponds three years ago with volunteer "fixer upper" experts helping people to patch up and fix their clothes, furniture, gadgets, crockery and appliances.

Despite a second cafe - already open in St.Paul's - the project has had to turn some people away, so is now planning to open a branch in the Easton area.

ArlaCopyright: Arla

There are plans to move part of Arla's butter operations from a plant in Scotland to Wiltshire.

The company said about 22 posts would be affected by the proposals to transfer the work to Westbury.

South of Scotland MSP Colin Smyth said: "We hope to be able to transfer 12 colleagues to other vacant roles at our site, as well as look at whether we can fill vacant positions at other Arla sites, including Westbury."

Relatives of Cpl Anne-Marie Ellement, from Bournemouth, who was found hanged in 2011 after claiming she had been raped by two colleagues in 2009, have given their reaction to an apology by the Ministry of Defence.

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Quote Message: Anne-Marie was my beloved youngest daughter. No words can express how much I miss her. I will always be incredibly proud of all that she achieved in her life. I hope that the changes the Army have promised us will come about and be a lasting legacy for her. from Alexandra Barritt Mother

Anne-Marie was my beloved youngest daughter. No words can express how much I miss her. I will always be incredibly proud of all that she achieved in her life. I hope that the changes the Army have promised us will come about and be a lasting legacy for her.

Quote Message: Both the coroner at Anne-Marie’s inquest and the judge at her trial made strong criticisms of the conduct of the Royal Military Police men and women involved. I know that the RMP failed my sister and am glad that has finally been admitted. I acknowledge the apology offered today with a heavy heart – but it remains to be seen if they have in fact learnt any lessons. from Sharon Hardy Sister

Both the coroner at Anne-Marie’s inquest and the judge at her trial made strong criticisms of the conduct of the Royal Military Police men and women involved. I know that the RMP failed my sister and am glad that has finally been admitted. I acknowledge the apology offered today with a heavy heart – but it remains to be seen if they have in fact learnt any lessons.

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GKN Aerospace says no redundancy notices have been issued to staff at its site in Yeovil.

The union, Unite, said earlier that 221 workers had been given the documents and the first jobs could go in December.

GKN says nothing has changed since it issued a statement earlier this month saying it would have to significantly downsize or close the site after helicopter manufacturer Leonardo decided to take most of its work back in-house.

A company spokesman said it has issued an HR1 notice - a compulsory step when a certain number of jobs are at risk - but added no documents have been given to workers.

Swindonians could face having to pay £75 extra a year for new parish councils to run their services. 

The borough council says it can no longer afford to manage everything on its books and is proposing three brand new parishes are set up to take over some contracts. 

The controversial idea - which affects more than half the town's population - will be decided tonight by the town's Conservative leaders.