News from across the Council

Most of the farms and smallholdings in Devon and Somerset tested are ensuring that their livestock have access to clean drinking water. In a round of Food Standards Agency-funded visits, Heart of the South West Trading Standards’ rural team took…

Somerset Council is embarking on the next phase of its Improvement and Transformation Programme as it continues to take bold action to protect public services. Titled Inspiring Innovation, this next phase builds upon the work undertaken over the past 2…

Somerset Council has published a new Local Transport Plan for the county which aims to create a fairer, greener and better-connected transport network. The Local Transport Plan (LTP) is a key document that sets out how the Council will plan…

Throughout Rural Housing Week (7 to 11 July), Somerset Council is highlighting the importance of accessing affordable housing in rural communities. A combination of high property prices, limited availability of private rental properties, and lower income levels all contribute to…

Community Action Groups (CAG) Somerset are celebrating a successful year, notching up significant recycling and reuse achievements. CAG is a not-for-profit organisation supported by Somerset Council and its collections contractor SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK and managed by Resource Futures.…

The Wessex Partnership today welcomed Baroness Taylor of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) for a ministerial visit focused on the area’s ambitious devolution plans and its drive for economic growth. The visit comes at a time when…

Somerset Council and arts company Emerald Ant, are opening up the Iguanodon Restaurant, a quirky piece of free street theatre coming to Ham Hill Country Park on Saturday 26 July. A furious romp through 50 years of ground-breaking scientific discoveries…

Work starts next week on a £5.7 million Somerset Council Highways scheme to replace a deteriorating 51-year-old concrete road and motorway junction. The refurbishment of Junction 26 of the M5 along with the A38 Chelston link road near Wellington, which…

Today, Monday 9 June, Somerset Council will share a poem written and read by Somerset resident and previous unpaid carer, Alison Birket.   The poem, titled ‘Twenty-four hours in the life of a carer‘ vividly illustrates the emotional and physical challenges…

A colourful community mural will launch in Bridgwater this summer. St John Street / Broadway Brick Project aims to transform a dull facade at the junction of the 2 streets into a giant painted patchwork, created by community groups and…

Film and television productions spent more than £4m in Somerset in the last year, according to the latest Screen Somerset estimates. The figures come as the county gears up for the release of The Salt Path, the screen adaptation of…

No further funds will be released to a regeneration project in Glastonbury following the publication of an independent audit report. The Life Factory is 1 of 10 projects in the Glastonbury Town Deal. Red Brick Building Centre Ltd is the…

4 residential care homes in Somerset will be fitted with smart lighting systems as part of an innovative trial to help reduce falls.  Somerset Council and NHS Somerset ICB have been awarded funding from NHS England to install the technology…

Somerset Council is celebrating success after winning three prestigious awards from the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) SW. The Council, alongside its appointed contractor Milestone Infrastructure, won the Transportation Infrastructure Project of the Year and the Sustainability Award…

People can find out more about a major Government-funded Somerset Council project next month which will see a deteriorating 51-year-old concrete road and motorway junction completely renewed. The Council’s contractor Heidelberg Materials is refurbishing Junction 26 of the M5 along…

Somerset Council has issued a cross-party appeal to the Government following the findings of a report by NHS Somerset which calls for urgent reforms to the NHS dental contract in light of the worsening access to NHS dentistry across the…

A major new pilot project, Step, Ride, Thrive, has launched across the Avalon and Poldens area, thanks to a £35,000 grant from the Somerset Association of Local Councils (SALC)’s Community Health and Wellbeing Fund. Running through to March 2026, the…

Implementing universal kerbside collections for waste batteries and electricals across the UK could save £6bn over the next decade by increasing recycling and avoiding the costs associated with waste fires. This was the key finding of independent research conducted by…

A major Government-funded Somerset Council Highways scheme gets underway in June to replace a deteriorating 51-year-old concrete road and motorway junction. The Council’s contractor Heidelberg Materials will be refurbishing Junction 26 of the M5 along with the A38 Chelston link…

Tourism in Somerset and Exmoor is set for a major boost with the release of The Salt Path next month. Minehead, Porlock, Porlock Weir and stretches of the Exmoor coast all feature heavily in the film adaptation of Raynor Winn’s…