Council services over festive period

There are no planned changes to rubbish or recycling collections over Christmas or the New Year. Please make sure your bin is out for collection by 6am. Any extra recycling can be put out in an open bag or box as normal.

The Hub, our customer service centre, will be closed to visitors from Friday 23 December 2022 and it will reopen on Tuesday 3 January 2023 to anyone with a pre-booked appointment. Phone lines will be open between 10am and 4pm on

Wednesday 28 December 2022.

The quickest, easiest and most convenient way to access council services is online. Our website, My Wyre Forest mobile app and web portal are all available 24 hours, 7 days a week.

Free parking – Christmas offer

Our free parking Christmas offer starts next weekend. This year we are offering free parking in all council owned car parks over the weekends of Saturday 10 December to Sunday 11 December and Saturday 17 December to Sunday 18 December.  Tickets do not need to be displayed but time restrictions do apply. Any overpayments will not be refunded. The parking offer is not available at Weaver’s Wharf car park in Kidderminster, which is privately owned.

Warm spaces

If you are looking for somewhere warm to go, we have been working with partners to set up some warm spaces across the district. You can find details of what's available on our webpage. We also have a Warm Spaces charter, which explains how everyone who visits one of the warms spaces will be treated equally, with dignity and respect. We are helping voluntary and community organisations with the cost of running warm spaces. To find out more email Rahma Dahir.

Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy consultation

It is also the last chance to give us your views on the Worcestershire Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy 2022-2025. It is based on three principles, prevention, intervention and recovery. It sets out how we are going to continue to deliver services and respond to the changes ahead. The consultation closes at midnight tomorrow (Tuesday 6 December). 

Reduce, reuse, recycle this Christmas

This festive season please try to reduce the amount of waste, recycle more and repurpose unwanted items. There are lots of tips on how to do this on the Let's Waste Less website. They can also save you money. Some suggestions include, try to buy locally to support the local economy and reduce your carbon miles. Plan your food shop carefully and try a new recipe using leftovers. Use recycled or recyclable wrapping paper or reusable gift bags - not plastic backed and glittery because we can't recycle them.

The Rangers also joined in National Tree Week. 2,400 trees were planted at Burlish Meadows Nature Reserve in Stourport. Over the past three years we have planted more then 20,000 trees in our parks, nature reserves and open spaces across the district. Tree planting was one of the actions identified by the council's Green Advisory Panel as part of its Action Plan.  (Event taking place on Wednesday 30 November)

White Ribbon Campaign

We are pledging our ongoing support to the White Ribbon Campaign. It is a widely recognised global movement organised by White Ribbon UK, the leading charity engaging with men and boys to end violence against women and girls. There are 16 days of action. They started on White Ribbon Day on Friday 25 November and run until Human Rights Day on Saturday 10 December.

Colleagues at the council are wearing their white ribbons and supporting the campaign.  There has never been a better time for us to come together and start playing as a team to end violence against women and girls. 

Be cyber aware this Christmas

Action Fraud and the National Cyber Security Centre are urging everyone to protect their personal accounts, check before they buy, and use secure payment methods to stay ahead of the threat from criminals this shopping season.

New data from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau shows shoppers lost more than £15 million to cyber criminals during the festive period last year, with an average loss of £1,000 per person. 

Veterans' Survey

The government has launched a UK-wide Veterans' Survey. This is the first-ever exercise to collect feedback from the veterans' community across the UK. The survey gives ex-UK armed forces personnel and their families the opportunity to provide direct feedback to the government on their experiences, access to and use of services for veterans. Responses to the survey will help us better understand the experiences, needs and well-being of our veteran community, and guide future action. 

Help your child with their Mental Health

If you are looking for ways to support your child's mental health Onside is delivering free workshops for parents. The 'Act on It' sessions are for parents of children aged 11-19. They include cognitive behavioural training techniques to boost mood for the whole family. You will learn how to manage your teen's anxiety and low mood. There is also a live Q and A session with a mental health practitioner. The next available sessions are on Tuesday 3 January, Wednesday 1 February and Thursday 2 March. All start at 6pm and are an hour long

Visit Father Christmas and our craft fair

Father Christmas is taking a couple of days out of his busy schedule to be at Bewdley Museum on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 December. We are now taking bookings to visit him in his grotto here. There will be live music sessions over the weekend too. Tickets cost £6 per child. Contact the Museum on 0845 607 7819 to find out availability. The Christmas Craft Fair will include stalls with craft gifts, our resident craft artists and our popular shop will be open too.

Come and see our crocheted tree

A 12-foot giant crocheted structure is on display in the foyer of the museum. It has been created by a group of volunteers as part of a community project to help bring people together after the pandemic. The made more than 300 crocheted diamonds to create the fabulous tree. Our thanks to freelance textile artist Ellie Hooper came up with the idea and helped the museum deliver the project.

Winter closure

The museum closes for winter at 4.30pm Friday 23 December 2022. It reopens on Monday 6 February 2023. Then the gift shop and Shambles walk through to the garden will be open daily from 10am until 4.30pm. The Garden Kitchen cafe will reopen on Monday 20 February. The whole site reopens on Saturday 4 March.