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News in brief

Associated Northcliffe Digital’s FindaProperty.com – one of the UK’s leading property portals – is this month celebrating a decade online, marking a dramatic transformation in the housing market where 91 per cent of active homebuyers consider the internet their first port of call when looking for property.
Launched in May 1997 by Andrew Pendery following his own frustrations when searching online for properties, the site has grown from one Richmond-based estate agent, Major Son & Phipps, to recently celebrating its 5,000 agent with 6,000 firmly on the horizon. Boasting in excess of two and a half million unique users per month, the site continues to grow, seeing an 81% traffic increase in the last year alone.


A new chief reporter is at the helm of the Chard and Ilminster News.
Former chief reporter Alex Cameron has been promoted to the role of news editor for Taunton and South Somerset and will be based at the offices of its sister paper, the Somerset County Gazette, in Taunton.
Stepping into his shoes on The News is Steve Sowden, who will also continue as chief reporter at the Yeovil Express.


A team of journalists has signed up to help raise funds for a Weston charity in the Mercury Mendip Challenge.
A group of hardy hacks from the Weston & Somerset Mercury will pull on their trainers and take part in the trek for Weston Hospicecare on June 3.
The team will be walking the five-mile fancy dress stretch along the seafront, one of five routes available on the day.


The Concourse at Sevenoaks Station is to be resurfaced “within the next year” after Southeastern bosses agreed to make the much-needed safety improvement.
The announcement, made at a meeting of Sevenoaks Rail Travellers Association, signals a triumph for the Chronicle’s Make our Station Safer campaign.


Former US vice president Al Gore is backing the Peterborough Evening Telegraph’s Go Green campaign.
Praising the newspaper for its stand, he said: “Good luck to you, you aer doing the right thing. I hope people support you.”