The Sparkford Noticeboard
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LearnForLove – new family health and wellbeing resources worth £100 for every Somerset resident
10th August 2023
A new series of online relationship, health and wellbeing resources worth £100 per person have been launched in Somerset. The learning resources are available to all Somerset residents, and span topics such as pregnancy, labour and birth, parenting, mental health and wellbeing, and relationships. Residents can access the online learning by: Visiting bit.ly/LearnForLove or scanning a QR code with their phone Entering the code ‘dragon’ They can then choose the subjects they are…
Council braced for disruption as waste strike looms
9th July 2023
Somerset Council is asking for patience as the county faces major disruption to its waste collections if strikes go ahead next week. Industrial action by members of the Unite union is due to start on Wednesday 12 July, striking on Wednesday, Thursday Friday, each week for the four weeks from Wednesday 12 July to Friday 4 August. The council and its collections contractor Suez UK will redeploy staff to try and limit the damage but expect many missed collections of recycling, refuse and…
Possible industrial action for Somerset’s waste collections
30th June 2023
Somerset Council’s waste services are preparing for planned industrial action by some of the county’s waste collection crews. The council was informed this week that members of the Unite union intend to start industrial action on Wednesday 12 July. Talks continue to resolve the dispute, but contingency planning is underway to try and limit the impact on residents if it goes ahead. Though all efforts would be made to limit the impact, industrial action is likely to cause widespread and…
Take on the challenge to go single-use plastic free this July
30th June 2023
Somerset Council is backing the movement to go single-use plastic free and asking residents to be part of the solution to plastic pollution. Last year Somerset households recycled close to 6,500 tonnes of plastic, which equates to roughly 29 lorry loads a month. Plastic recycling is great, but choosing to refuse single-use plastic is even better. Plastic Free July is a global initiative working towards a world free of plastic waste. And by taking up the challenge to make a change each…
Stamp out recycling fire starters
19th June 2023
Residents are being urged to help end a surge in dangerous fires caused by poorly sorted recycling and rubbish. Fire services have joined Somerset Council and its collections contractor SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK in asking for people to take more care or risk sparking dangerous and potentially deadly blazes. In the last two years more than ten depot and truck fires are thought to have been caused by people putting batteries, gas cannisters or still warm disposable barbeques in their…
Top up with tap water this World Refill Day
18th June 2023
Somerset Council are encouraging residents to choose reuse and refill this ‘World Refill Day’ (Friday, 16 June). Partnering with Wessex Water, Somerset Council have provided free water bottle refill stations in five of the county’s busiest high-streets, saving residents money and avoiding thousands of single-use plastic bottles going to waste. An estimated 7.7 billion plastic water bottles are used in the UK every year however Somerset’s water refill stations have prevented the need for more…
Early starts as both weather and Glastonbury Festival traffic heat up
18th June 2023
Waste collections will begin from 6am next week, from Monday 19 June to Monday 26 June (inclusive). The early starts are to help crews impacted by the hot weather conditions and to beat the potential additional traffic on the roads due to Glastonbury Festival. The early starts will help to minimise any chance of disruption to recycling, rubbish or garden waste collections across the county. In addition to extra traffic on the roads, crews are working in increasingly hot temperatures. Waste…
Patience please as some collections delayed
18th June 2023
Somerset Council is asking for patience in parts of Somerset following delays to some waste and recycling collections. A combination of factors has left crews unable to complete some of their scheduled collections including, high volumes of recycling and staff sickness. As a result, some residents in and around Somerton, Cheddar, Martock, Bridgwater, Taunton, Glastonbury, Street and Yeovil will need to wait two weeks for recycling collections. This recycling will be returned for on the next…