Welcome to the Somerset Prepared Autumn 2023 Newsletter

In this newsletter we are highlighting our upcoming event, the Somerset Prepared Community Resilience Day, which will be held on 5th October 10AM- 4PM at Wincanton Racecourse, Old Hill, Wincanton BA9 8BJ. You can book your FREE tickets to this informative, fun and interactive event here.

The day is packed with a range of workshops on topics such as Throw lines, and Flood packs, and writing Community Emergency Plans. There will be CPR and Defibrillator training, sessions on Neighbourhood Watch schemes and updates on community telemetry for monitoring water levels. You can also browse information stands from a wide range of organisations such as the Environment Agency, Rotary and Inner Wheel, Somerset Rivers Authority, Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group, The Red Cross, RAYNET, Somerset Council, Somerset Wildlife Trust, Wessex Water, and Somerset and Avon Police.

This event will also feature the Community Resilience Awards. Please take a moment to think about the heroes in your community and make sure to acknowledge their efforts with a nomination - the form can be found here. We want to make sure that local success stories are shared far and wide so that all communities can both learn from these moments of resilience and celebrate the myriad ways people pull together to prevent, prepare for, and cope with emergencies. To hear more about the awards and last year’s winners, follow this link.

The Community Resilience Day is the highlight of the Somerset Prepared year and we hope to see you there to learn, celebrate, and help us create new ways to build resilience in our wonderful communities.

If you have any queries about this or any of the other features in our newsletter, please get in touch at somersetprepared@somerset.gov.uk

Best wishes, 

Somerset Civil Contingencies Unit 

Preparing for Seasonal Weather

As we move into Autumn there is a host of useful seasonal advice available online to guide you through the joys of rain, fog, frost and more!

A good starting point is the Met Office, where you can browse pages on everything from safe driving in severe weather to how to understand weather warnings. Take a look here:  Advice - Met Office

They also have a Weather Ready campaign to give you advice on how to prepare yourself and your property for seasonal severe weather risks that come with it. To find out more visit WeatherReady - Met Office. 

If you are out and about then it is also worth turning to the AA’s driving advice. Their safety guidance includes how to escape a sinking car,  how to cross a ford,  and tips on driving in fog, all of which of which can be found right here.

Home Emergency Preparedness

If you are staying at home, one important aspect of keeping safe includes checking that your fire safety equipment is installed correctly, working well and is up to date. Why not consider a home safety visit from Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service? You can find out more about this and much more on their on their website.

Public Health information

You probably know that the new body with responsibility for public health is the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). Put simply, they are responsible for protecting every member of every community from the impact of infectious diseases, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents and other health threats. It is worth keeping the UKHSA website on your favourites tab as they issue updates and advice on all matters such as covid vaccine programmes, and health risk in relation to travel.

Animal diseases

Many of us in Somerset are gardeners, pet owners, smallholders, or famers and so animal health and wellbeing is something that we are passionate about. Avian Influenza has been a huge worry in recent years and has killed thousands of birds across the county. As we move into the bird migration season again in the autumn, we all need to stay alert to the risks this disease can bring. If you want to stay up to date we recommend using this link to the Animal and Plant Health Agency website. From here you can access useful advice on the signs of Avian Influenza, how to report it, and measures you can take to improve biosecurity and reduce the spread within bird populations – both wild and captive. If you are a smallholder, pet bird owner or even just feed wild birds in your garden it is well worth keeping up to date on this information as we move into the autumn and winter when birds are at a higher risk from this deadly disease.

Partner Focus - Rotary and Inner Wheel 

In each newsletter we like to highlight one of our hard-working partners in Somerset Prepared. This autumn, it is the turn of the Rotary and the Inner Wheel, who have been instrumental in helping Somerset communities prepare for and respond to emergencies in recent years.

When Somerset was hit by severe flooding in 2014, the organisational expertise of the Rotary and Inner Wheel came to the fore. They managed a 1500 sq. Ft warehouse of donated goods, supervising the inventory and ensuring that people who had been displaced were able to access all the basic provisions they needed such as toothbrushes and razors

As the months went on, and flooded homes were emptied out for repair and refurbishment, the Rotary and Inner Wheel then opened and managed an additional warehouse. This was used to store furniture whilst the process of rebuilding and refurbishing was underway – an endeavour that took over three years.

Identifying a further need after the floods, Rotary Clubs nationwide raised £150,000 to help people who had been living in under-insured homes. They worked with a range of charities to refurbish and equip homes for people that would otherwise have been unable to find the means to recover from the flooding. Over 70 homes were recarpeted and refitted with donated materials and this work made a huge and positive impact on communities across the county.

Riding on this momentum, Rotary and Inner Wheel combined forces more formally to form a unit known as ‘EVAG’ – the Emergency Voluntary Action Group. This group is called upon in times of emergency. The group receives training to help as needed and plays a vital role in the county’s resilience plans. EVAG also supports community resilience by supplying ‘flood packs’ consisting of self-inflating bags to resist flash flooding in homes which are subject to this risk. To date they have supplied over 200 such packs and welcome enquiries from people who are interested in finding out more.  Enquiries about flood packs, membership or volunteering can be made to David Welch:  David303welch@btinternet.com

Finally, just a quick reminder…

Do you know a someone or a group who has gone above and beyond to promote community resilience in Somerset? Why not nominate them for our Somerset Prepared Community Resilience award? The winner will be presented with a hamper of local Somerset Produce and the runners up with certificates at our Somerset Prepared Community Resilience Day on 5th October. Make your nominations for using the form found here