 Responding to storms
Our response to storms late last week continued through the weekend. Since Thursday we've responded to call outs for more than 150 fallen trees across the borough, as well as a range of other issues. The Met Office has no new weather warnings in place at this time.
We'll have a full update on our response later this week, but we'd like to say a huge thank you to those working on the front line responding to issues caused by the storms. Thank you for your patience if you experienced any disruption.
We’ve launched a new emergency alerts email newsletter following the storms. This will be used as required when we have extreme weather, potential flooding and emergency incidents which impact large parts of the borough.
It will be the newsletter we use to provide multiple updates a day with key information when responding to incidents like Storm Eunice. You can sign up using the button below.
 Can you stick to one blue bag a week?
Every week, households in Wokingham borough throw away over 570 tonnes of rubbish but more than 50 per cent of this could be recycled. Much of this through your kerbside recycling collections.
Food waste makes up almost a quarter of what goes into the average blue waste bag at the moment. It doesn't seem like much on its own, but there are more than 75,000 households in the borough so it all adds up and costs us more than £500,000 a year to dispose of.
The average blue bag also contains 13 per cent paper, metal, cardboard and plastic while textiles make up five per cent and glass and garden waste each make up four per cent. Those materials could be recycled again and again or be used to create energy, but currently it’s just being thrown away.
That’s why we’ve launched the One Blue Bag Challenge. If we all only use one blue bag per week for each household, this would significantly reduce the amount of rubbish we send to landfill or burn for energy. Watch our One Blue Bag Challenge.video on YouTube to find out more.
 Gorse Ride regeneration takes next step
Progress continues on the regeneration of Gorse Ride in Finchampstead, with proposed changes to how the project will be funded.
The Gorse Ride regeneration project will replace 178 existing dated properties, with 249 new, energy efficient homes of which 136 will be social rented homes, 49 shared ownership and 64 private sale homes. This equates to 51 more affordable housing properties than currently provided on the development. At the start of the project there were 41 privately owned properties.
During the past five years, we’ve delivered just under 1,700 affordable homes in the borough primarily through our registered provider partnership. A further 300 affordable homes are expected to be delivered in 2022 and 2023.
The majority of residents affected by the first phase have already been rehoused, with many moving into Arnett Avenue, the first phase of the Gorse Ride Regeneration, which completed last summer. Work is also well underway to clear and prepare parts of the site ready for main construction in summer 2022.
The funding changes are to give greater flexibility to draw down financing as needed, as well as reducing the need to rely on external grants. It also helps counter the impact the rising cost of materials has had on the project and ensure it can be delivered in full.
These changes were agreed by the council’s executive last week, with the final decision by full council next month.
 Give views on how you use your local pharmacy
Berkshire Public Health wants views from you on how you use your local pharmacy.
The survey will form part of the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessments (PNA) to understand how local pharmacies are currently being used.
Your opinion is very important and will help to shape the essential health and wellbeing needs in Wokingham Borough.
Find out more on the pharmacy survey on our Engage Wokingham Borough website. The survey is open until 28 February.
Eliminating rough sleeping across the area
We’re aiming to eliminate rough sleeping across the borough within the next three years.
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic we’ve placed almost 100 people who were sleeping on the streets, or in danger of doing so, in temporary accommodation.
Everyone in need was offered a roof over their head and, since that time, no-one who received help has returned to long-term rough sleeping in the borough.
The work has been carried out initially by our homelessness team and then with support from Two Saints, which provided an outreach service which visited rough sleepers on the streets, explained the help available and helped them take it up.
In future, the council plans to be even more proactive by identifying more people at risk of rough sleeping and stepping in before this happens, thus preventing the problem and not simply responding.
What you might have missed
- Our Moving with Confidence scheme, which helps older residents improve strength and flexibility, has won a Get Berkshire Active award. The one to one sessions are run by our sports and leisure team with support from partners at the Link Visiting Scheme and AgeUK Berkshire, as well as local physios and occupational therapists
- Do you have a property to rent and need help finding tenants? You could rent your property out through our Private Rented Scheme, which introduces individuals and families in need of housing to local landlords. You can find out more on this free service on our get help with housing webpages or email landlords@wokingham.gov.uk
- Did you know you can get a £100 voucher if you provide information on fly-tipping incidents which lead to prosecution? You can report fly-tipping on our website and we’ll treat all information in confidence
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