Somerset Council is urging residents to be aware of temporary delays in Council Tax processing as preparations begin for the annual billing period at the end of this month.

The annual billing cycle is always one of the busiest times of the year, but this year demand is even higher due to the rollout of a new Revenues and Benefits system.

Somerset Council is focused on ensuring the A30 Hendford Hill can fully reopen as soon as possible following a specialist report on recent damage caused by Storm Chandra.

The busy road in Yeovil is operating southbound only at the moment after a bank slippage and fallen trees made the route unsafe. The Council’s Highways Team carried out initial repairs and following this a detailed geological assessment was carried out.

A review of car parking charges across the County has been given the green light by Somerset Council’s Executive this week.

It includes proposals, outlined in a report for Executive, for a new tiered pricing structure for both on-street and off-street parking. This would see car parks placed within a sliding scale of fees depending on location.

A new report from Somerset’s Director of Public Health highlights the powerful role physical activity can play in improving health, wellbeing and independence across the county and calls for a collective effort to help residents move more.

The Director of Public Health Annual Report 2025 titled ‘The Miracle Cure – Physical Activity for All’, which was presented at Somerset Council’s Executive this week, focuses on the benefits of physical activity and the opportunities to help people of all ages become more active in their daily lives and maintain their strength and balance to minimise the risk of falling and injuring themselves as they get older.

Since April 2023, Somerset Council, which owns in excess of 10,000 homes, has operated via 2 models of housing management after bringing together the services of the former Sedgemoor and Somerset West and Taunton Councils, the only 2 district councils which owned housing stock.

The current housing management services are split, with circa 6,000 homes managed in-house by Somerset Council and circa 4,000 homes managed by Homes in Somerset, a not-for-profit Arms-Length Management Organisation (ALMO) wholly owned by Somerset Council.

Somerset Council is encouraging residents to report empty homes as part of a national initiative.

National Empty Homes Week 2026 runs from 9 to 15 March.

The awareness week aims to highlight the waste of long-term empty homes, which can become a focus point for anti-social behaviour, crime, littering and other activity which may become a nuisance for neighbouring areas and the community. Vacant homes also attract vermin, can be unsafe and they can also de-value other houses nearby.

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) is warning of a rise in recruitment scams targeting young people, particularly in the run up to the Easter holidays when many are searching for part time work.

With rising youth unemployment, young people are increasingly looking for quick summer jobs online. Understanding this, fraudsters are advertising fake job opportunities on social media platforms and messaging services such as WhatsApp, often promising flexible hours and quick earnings. However, these advertisements are designed to harvest personal and financial information.

Binned vapes can cause fires, so:

• Unplug your vape once it’s fully charged
• Store your used vape safely until you recycle it
• Remove the battery if possible
• Don’t bin it in general waste or household recycling
• Ask vape retailers about take-back
• Drop it in a vape-only recycling bin at a vape shop, supermarket or recycling point

Find out more about recycling your vape at Recycle Your Electricals.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is looking for lifesavers to join the lifeguard teams at Burnham-on-Sea and Brean Sands to help keep beaches safe this summer.

The RNLI lifeguard service is responsible for keeping more than 240 beaches safe and lifeguards are preparing to return to the Somerset Coast ahead of the summer season. 2026 is an exciting year to join the organisation as it marks the 25^th anniversary of the RNLI’s lifeguard service which started as a pilot scheme in 2001.