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SEEN
Somerset Environmental
and Ecological News
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Welcome to the October edition of SEEN.
We've lots to tell you about this month including:
- New net zero carbon school opens in Taunton
- Latest recycling figures for Somerset
- Low cost loans for energy saving home improvements
- Spooktacular species to look out for this Halloween
- Have your say on the new Taunton Waterways strategy
Best eco wishes
The Climate Team
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 Somerset’s first net zero school has opened its doors to its first pupils.
Guests and families were welcomed to Orchard Grove Primary School, Comeytrowe, Taunton, on Friday 4 October to celebrate the occasion.
Funded by Somerset Council and constructed by Futures for Somerset and BAM, the £12.3million build offers places to 420 pupils from reception to year 6, as well as 52 nursery places. The school was built to Passivhaus standards and also features three sports pitches, a kitchen and a library and incorporates solar panel technology, air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points.
The Somerset Council Education Team assisted in the design of the classrooms and nursery area, ensuring active learning is encouraged throughout.
Year 1 pupils marked the occasion with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Guests were also invited on a tour of the school and to a special assembly.
Orchard Grove is part of the Blackdown Education Partnership, who hosted the event.
The primary school opened its doors to pupils in September.
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A grant, jointly funded by Somerset Council and its collections contractor SUEZ recycling and recovery, has helped three Somerset community groups thrive.
The Best Before Food Store in Wellington, Prodigal Bikes of Crewkerne and Victoria Park Community Centre in Bridgwater have all benefitted from the Waste Not Somerset Fund. The fund was set up to support community projects that stop or reduce waste.
The fund uses ring-fenced income from the sale of recyclable materials, and could also be used to support reuse and repair initiatives, helping residents to fix their pre-loved items.
Community groups were invited to apply for funding, with successful applicants chosen by a panel, based on projects that work to reduce waste, increase reuse and repair, influence, and encourage sustainable behaviour.
The fund is managed by Somerset Community Foundation, a grant-making charity that helps build strong communities where everyone can thrive, by funding local charities and facilitating local giving.
Read on to hear from the community groups who've been helped.
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Glastonbury is stepping up its sustainability game.
Resident Laura Sorensen is calling out to locals and visitors to think twice before using disposable cups when buying their takeaway beverages. She is also urging all local food and drink outlets to get on board and offer to ‘fill my cup’ or charge extra for single-use ones. Bishop’s Eye café in Wells is one of the early adopters, with Glastonbury’s Earthfare, 100 Monkeys Café, and the Tourist Information Centre also joining in.
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We're pleased to be expanding our coat exchange to 12 of Somerset’s libraries.
Now in its second year, the scheme is open to everyone and designed to support communities by providing access to warm coats to everyone, and especially those in need.
Taunton, Priorswood (Taunton), Wellington, Dulverton, Bridgwater, Yeovil, Minehead, Shepton Mallet, Glastonbury, Street, Langport, and Chard libraries are running the scheme.
- You can take a coat without donating one.
- You can donate a coat without taking one.
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All donations must be of good quality and in a clean condition.
- Coats of any shape or size, for adults or children are accepted.
The Winter Coat Exchange also helps to support a green and sustainable Somerset. November marks ‘Buy Nothing New’ month, a campaign led by Keep Britian Tidy.
From the water and energy used in production, to the fuel used in delivery, every new item we buy comes with an environmental price tag. The campaign highlights that ‘Recycling is good, but we can do better’.
Reusing, swapping, renting, and buying second hand are all great ways to waste less.
With more libraries on board than ever before, the expansion makes it even easier to avoid buying new. Across the 12 libraries 546 coats have already been donated – with more than 200 already finding new homes
For more information or to participate in the Coat Exchange scheme, please visit your nearest participating library, on Facebook @somersetlibrariesuk or contact librariesmail@somerset.gov.uk
And don’t forget, you can also borrow a thermal imaging camera attachment for your smart phone or tablet to help you start to identify if your home needs a new coat (insulation and draught proofing). Contact your local library to book one out and see where your home is leaking when the heating is on.
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Join us in celebrating National Tree Week, the UK’s largest annual tree celebration!
We’re having a Council staff volunteering tree planting day at Rockwell Green Wellington which will be supported by our tree officers.
This is part of a plan to plant nearly 2 hectares of trees, using the Woodland Trust’s Morewoods Scheme (funded by Lloyds) to plant 3,000 native trees. This ensures Wellington is at the forefront of contributing to the delivery of both national and local tree planting targets. The schemes aims are to enhance good quality green space for residents of Wellington and Rockwell Green, increase woodland and scrub by linking habitats and making the environment more resilient for climate, nature and people.
If you're looking for ideas on how you can celebrate national tree week The Tree Council have some great ideas to help you get into the tree spirit.
- Host a tree party to plant or celebrate trees.
- Download the Tree Council’s tree party playlist
- Get out and about and enjoy the splendour of Somerset’s trees
- Try forest bathing to destress
- Adopt a tree or buy one in memory of someone
Enjoy!
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 Left to right: Lydia Winthorpe (Ranger), Erica Cox (Ranger), Julia Kennaby (Community Ranger).
We've recently welcomed three new members to our Natural Environment Team thanks to a grant from the Government Department of Culture’s Levelling Up Programme. The new roles have been created by the council to help enhance and manage green spaces in the Taunton and Bridgwater area.
Lydia Winthorpe (Ranger), Erica Cox (Ranger) and Julia Kennaby (Community Ranger) are with the Council for a fixed term of six months and will be based at Berrow Dunes Local Nature Reserve near Brean and Wilstock and Stockmoor Country Park near North Petherton. Their mission is to enhance and manage these beautiful natural areas and help foster a deeper connection between the community and their local green spaces and promote environmental stewardship and sustainability.
As part of this, the new team are working on five year management plans for both places and would like to hear from members of the public. If you know and love these sites you can have your say here:
Wilstock & Stockmoor County Park questionnaire.
Berrow Dunes questionnaire.
We're also hosting two volunteer taster sessions at each of the sites.
Thursday 14 November from 10am to 2pm at Wilstock and Stockmoor Country Park. We will meet at the play area by Teeswater Walk at 9.45am. During this session, volunteers will help rangers Lydia and Erica remove some of the tree guards from the maturer new trees on the site.
Thursday 21 November, we will hold a volunteer taster session at Berrow Dunes from 10am to 2pm. We will meet at the Berrow Dunes Local Nature Reserve Car Park at 9.45am. Volunteers can join the rangers in removing the encroaching scrub and non-native sea buckthorn.
If you're interested in coming along, please let our countryside team know at countryside@somerset.gov.uk Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided!
The results are in!
Thanks to you, the great people of Somerset, the county's annual recycling results are in and you can be proud to have helped to:
- Recycle 145,000 tonnes
- Reuse 2,300 tonnes
- Bring down landfill to a record low
- Save 130,000 tonnes of carbon - that's like taking 50,000 cars off the road for a year!
Let's keep recycling for all it's worth to increase Somerset's 56% recycling rate to even higher than the national average of 43%.
Click on the image to watch the video.
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We've been given the green-light to roll out the collection of plastic bags and wrapping to more than 25,000 households. The county has been part of a national trial since May 2023 with around 3,500 residents in Frome having plastic bags and wrapping added to their weekly recycling collection.
From this month a further 25,000 residents in and around Wells, Draycott, Frome and Chilcompton will benefit from getting these hard to recycle plastics collected from home. New residents to the scheme will receive a pack of blue collection bags, alongside further information about what to collect.
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We’re encouraging Somerset homeowners to improve energy efficiency and lower bills with council-backed Lendology loans. These are fixed-rate loans to help with repairs, energy upgrades like insulation, windows, solar panels, and heat pumps. Benefits include saving money, enhancing comfort, boosting property value, and reducing carbon emissions. Lendology has partnered with Somerset Council since 2005.
Loan decisions are made on a case-by-case basis, making it accessible for those who might struggle to borrow elsewhere, such as the self-employed, benefit recipients, or retirees.
The Lendology scheme was funded by the former Somerset district councils and this original pot of money is recycled. This means that every time a Somerset homeowner makes a monthly repayment, the money becomes available for another Somerset homeowner.
Residents who are interested in making energy saving improvements to their homes can see how much a loan would cost with the Lendology Loan calculator.
Lendology also partners with local organisations like The Centre for Sustainable Energy to provide impartial energy advice, grant eligibility assessments, and home retrofit support and the Councils Home Improvement Agency Somerset Independence Plus who can assist with any essential repairs to the home, applying for various benefits that you may be eligible for and advising on how to save energy.
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We want your opinion to shape the future of Taunton’s cherished waterways.
The draft Taunton Waterways Strategy and Guidance is now open for a six-week consultation. It’s been created with input from key stakeholders, ensuring its accuracy and feasibility, and has been paid for with grant funding in connection with Taunton Garden Town.
Putting the waterways at the centre of the town’s renewal, the aim of the Taunton Waterways Strategy is to reconnect with our environment and communities by enhancing Taunton’s rivers, canals, and streams and the areas around them. This plan will enhance character and attractiveness, strengthen green corridors, and improve walking and cycling routes. It will also boost the local economy, attract investment and visitors, and foster community networks through new and revitalised spaces.
The waterways are at the heart of the Taunton Garden Town Vision, and the final Taunton Waterways Strategy and associated guidance for town centre development sites will guide planning and serve as evidence for the new local plan.
The strategy covers the area from the Silk Mills park and ride, west of Longrun Meadow to the M5 motorway, and includes the River Tone, the Taunton and Bridgwater Canal and tributaries that run through the town’s neighbourhoods.
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Halloween is upon us, along with talk of all things grim and ghostly. So, we’ve been exploring some of Somerset’s spooky-sounding species.
The common toothwort, nicknamed the corpse flower, can survive for years underground. The flowers, which emerge from the ground only briefly, resemble two rows of teeth!
Bats are often associated with Halloween, and Somerset is home to 16 of Britain's 18 bat species, including lesser and greater horseshoe bats.
The devil’s coach horse beetle is a ruthless predator. When threatened it curls up its rear like a scorpion and emits a foul-smelling liquid from its abdomen.
And then there’s the spine-tingling fungi – dead man’s fingers. Yikes!
Despite their ghoulish reputation, these species play an important role in maintaining a healthy ecosystem, and many face an uncertain future. Somerset Council, in collaboration with Somerset Local Nature Partnership, is currently working on a Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) for Somerset, setting out priorities and opportunities for nature to support species and habitats, spooky or otherwise!
Find out how the Local Nature Recovery Strategy is progressing
Delve into the longer version of this article to learn more about these and some of Somerset’s other spooky species.
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Bath and West Showground Shepton Mallet
Somerset farmers and food producers, are you ready for LandAlive?
Join us at this groundbreaking conference advocating for a shift to local, regenerative, and nature-friendly farming across Somerset and the UK. Connect with fellow innovators who are setting new standards. Be part of the change!
Explore the promise of Regenerative Farming to mitigate climate risk, restore nature, boost local economies, make healthy food more accessible and build resilience into our food system in a time of climate change. The list of speakers is now available. You’ll hear from experts and professionals in the food industry who will discuss new strategies for food and farming in the Southwest. These strategies can be applied across the whole country, focusing on fairness and food security.
We hope to see you there.
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Tonight – Wednesday 30 October
 Tonight (30 October) Ben Thorne, a Senior Farm adviser from the Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group will be talking about what can be done to help reduce the frequency and severity of local flooding events.
It’s being held at the Ilminster Arts Centre, 35 East Street, Ilminster TA19 0AN.
Doors open 6:45. Talk starts 7:30 and the bar will be open before the event and in the mid-session break. Event is free but donations are very welcome.
Check out all the other brilliant eco events happening across Somerset, there's something for everyone. Click on the Event Calendar button below to find out what's on and let us know about your eco events at climateemergency@somerset.gov.uk so we can tell our readers.
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Last month we called out to you to ask for help in setting up tree nurseries to support the preservation and heritage of Somerset’s trees. We are thrilled to have already secured three locations and there is funding for more.
Thanks to Carbon Aware Productions who are donating to this project, we can do more to increase the tree canopy cover of Somerset. Tree nurseries will provide more resilient locally grown species grown from local seeds. Local provenance will give them the highest chance of survival in the future as they will be better adapted to local conditions and have a greater resistance to pests and pathogens.
If you are interested in helping set up a tree nursery, the time is now. Seed gathering season is in full swing and all you need to do is gather them and bring them on is a small 15 metre square sheltered outdoor space.
If you or your community would like support and guidance on establishing a nursery, please contact our woodland creation team at woodlandcreation@somerset.gov.uk
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Are you curious about the solar potential of your home or building? The Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) has introduced Solar Wizard, a user-friendly online tool aimed at promoting the adoption of solar energy among people and communities.
This new tool offers precise, and unbiased evaluations on whether solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on various buildings and homes is feasible. It is accessible to everyone, including homeowners, community organisations, local governments, and anyone keen on making informed choices and planning investments in solar PV technology.
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 Visit our Grants and funding page to see what see what opportunities are available for your community environmental project.
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This month’s eco tip is to check out the new look Somerset Independance plus (SIP) website. SIP is a Home Improvement Agency service provided by Somerset Council.
One of their many services is helping Somerset residents improve home energy efficiency by providing advice and assistance to reduce fuel bills and ensure homes are better insulated – targeting fuel poor households. They can also assist with funding for retrofitting homes and can guide you through applying for grants and loans.
SIP also support with financial assistance products, including Disabled Facilities Grants and Safe Warm and Secure grants, along with prevention services like Hoarding Service, Home Safety Inspections, and property inspections for Ukrainian Refugees.
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 This is your newsletter, and we want to hear about the great environmental work happening where you live, or what you do to make a difference every day with your brilliant eco hacks and tips.
You can make suggestions about what you would like to see more of in future editions of SEEN and have your say on previous stories and topics.
We would love to hear from you.
Get in touch at climateemergency@somerset.gov.uk.
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