Somerset Prepared Website

February Newsletter 2022  

 

Welcome to the winter update from the team at Somerset Prepared!

In this edition, we are excited to announce the free film 'Down by the River' to celebrate Somerset Community Resilience and premiers this month! Keep reading for more information about the film and information on how to sign up for the free screenings.

We have also completed another year and another Somerset Prepared Virtual Event. Thank you to everyone to took part in and attended the event. For those who attended the event, we would love your feedback so we can continue to improve and take your ideas and thoughts into consideration when planning the next event. Please see below for details. For those who were not able to attend, session recordings and resources remain available on the Somerset Prepared Website

In other news, spring is on the way, and days are already getting longer. In the meantime it's more important now than ever to look after the physical and mental health of yourself and your neighbours, especially during periods of cold or wet weather. Keep reading for resources on staying healthy, happy and warm, and on how to be best prepared for bad weather.

In the coming months we will commence planning for the next Somerset Prepared event and we will share details of this as soon as we can!

If you want to get more involved with emergency preparedness, response or recovery in Somerset, please check out our Volunteers page for more information.

Best wishes,

Somerset Local Authorities' Civil Contingencies Unit

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'Down by the River' free film events

Down by the River is a documentary about the inspiring ways that communities across Somerset have responded to flooding, celebrating the extraordinary work of local volunteers. It was commissioned by Somerset Rivers Authority from Bridgwater-based charity Somerset Film.

Archive films include historic Somerset floods, local groups like the Home Guard in World War Two, and fundraising carnivals. The exact mix will vary from place to place, but all the films show what Somerset people can do when they put their minds to it, and illustrate how valuable past experiences can be in responding to challenges such as climate change.

Each event will last about two hours, with free tea and cake and will also include an entertaining and thought-provoking selection of Somerset archive films.

The screening schedule is:

• Glastonbury Town Hall, 4 February, 7pm

• Cheddar Village Hall, 12 February, 7pm

• Martock Parish Hall, 19 February, 7pm

• Shepton Mallet Whitstone School, 2 March 7pm

• Minehead Regal Theatre, 5 March, 2pm

• Taunton Creative Innovation Centre CIC, 9 March, 7pm

• Burrowbridge Coronation Hall, 12 March, 7pm

• Yeovil Westlands, 16 March, 7pm

• Bridgwater Arts Centre, 18 March, 7pm

• Roadwater Village Hall, 20 March, 7pm

To reserve your free seat, visit www.somersetfilm.com/get-involved  

The SRA community engagement team would love to hear from anyone who would like to be involved, to look at new resilience groups, recruiting volunteers, or strengthening existing groups. Contact egiffard@somerset.gov.uk for more information.

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Roadside Salt Bins

Please check on your roadside salt bins in preparation for cold weather. If they need re-filling, Parish and Town Councils can request a re-fill from the Highways Management team.

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Somerset Prepared Online Event 2021 and 2022

We held our second successful online event in October 2021. Over the 3 weeks of the event we were pleased to offer a variety of sessions and useful resources focussed on building emergency preparedness and community resilience, presented by many of the Somerset Prepared partners and special guest speakers. Communities Prepared also presented three very valuable training sessions on Recruiting Volunteers  in partnership with Spark Somerset, Insurance for Community Emergency Volunteers and finally Risk Assessment. We hope you were either able to attend those of interest at the time or have been able to access the  session recordings and resources which remain available on our website 

We would be very grateful for your feedback about the event, and to hear your thoughts ideas for the next event which will take place this coming Autumn. Please complete this Form. This should take no more than 5 minutes to complete and all your comments will be most welcome.  Alternatively you can email  Dawn James (Community Engagement Support Officer, Somerset Rivers Authority) directly at djames@somerset.gov.uk

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Winter Weather - Looking After Yourself and Your Neighbours

Winter can be a challenging time of year for everyone, especially with Covid making some things more challenging. Spring is on the way, and there are resources that you can use to help look after yourself and the people around you including your neighbours and your community.

Healthy Somerset Website

Keep Warm and Well Poster

Top Tips for keeping warm and well

The Met Office also have their annual Weather Ready campaign to give you advice on how to prepare yourself and your property for winter and the associated severe weather risks that come with it. To find out more visit WeatherReady - Met Office

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Rotary and Inner Wheel - Flood Packs

Rotary and Inner Wheel have combined resources to provide flood resilience packs to improve household resilience. The team donate packs including self-inflating bags to resist flash flooding in homes which are subject to this risk.

The packs are available free of charge as a donation from Rotary and Inner Wheel.

Enquiries can be made to David Welch - David303welch@btinternet.com

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Somerset Local Authorities Civil Contingencies Unit maintain a record and contact details of all buildings designated as a Community Place of Safety. These are spaces that can be opened and operated by the community in the event that it is impacted by an emergency and people need to leave their homes for a short while. If you are responsible for a Place of Safety, please check that your contact information is up to date.

The Civil Contingencies Unit are always looking out for more Places of Safety across Somerset. Do you know of any village halls, community centres, churches or similar buildings that might be suitable? If so, please get in touch with JTittley@somerset.gov.uk or InfoCCU@somerset.gov.uk.  

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Somerset Prepared Small Grant Scheme

Don’t forget that you can apply to Somerset Prepared for up to £5000 for training, equipment or other costs that would help your community be better prepared for emergencies. Applying is simple, and we are happy to work with you to find the solutions that are right for your community. See the Funding Support page for terms and conditions and how to apply.

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COVID-19

The risk of Covid still remains so you should continue to protect yourself and others. Please make sure you remain vigilant and follow the Covid guidance. Consider wearing a face covering in crowded and enclosed spaces and be respectful of those who still choose to wear a facemask, and of businesses that request this consideration from their customers.

For information on the latest National and Local information relating to Coronavirus, small business grants, NHS advice and useful links, go to: https://www.somerset.gov.uk/coronavirus/ 

 

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We would love your feedback!

Have your say on what you'd like to see in these newsletters. Please Contact us and let us know.

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