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Timberscombe Gardening Club 2025 – A New Season

Greetings and hope you stay safe in the gathering storm Éowyn! Just a reminder that the Gardening Club, currently ‘resting over the winter’ will commence again on Monday, March 3rd, when the evening will focus on Roses and pruning. We look forward to seeing old members and new. Visitors are always welcome.

Perhaps you are spending your winter evenings by the fire – perusing your seed catalogues, so when the time comes don’t forget to sow a few extra seeds in preparation for our plant sale at the end of May. 

Subscriptions will be due at the first meeting; they remain the same; £10 per annum, then £1 for monthly meetings. Visitors £3.00. 

Thank you to everyone for your enthusiasm and support in 2024. In the mean time, you can see our programme for 2025 on the Gardening Page of Timberscombe Village Website.

Happy Gardening.

Carol, Erica, Elisabeth, Pauline

Weather Warning

Published on by Lesley WebbLeave a comment

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) is moving to Weather Warning status in central and southern England. This is in response to Storm Eowyn due to impact our network area this weekend and into next week.

If you are registered for our priority services, we would like to remind you that you can call 105 if you experience a loss of power and require support.

Please make sure you are prepared for the possible impact of this storm.

Changes to the Fire Brigade Consultation

Published on by Lesley WebbLeave a comment

The following message from our Chief Fire Officer, Gavin Ellis provides the context as to why we are considering changes:

‘Last year, our crews responded to an average of 16 false alarms every day due to automatic fire alarms, placing an unnecessary burden on the Service’s resources and our ability to be ready and available for genuine emergencies.

In the last five years, we have been alerted to more than 55,000 automatic fire alarms, out of which just 42 needed the hose reel jet from one of our fire engines, which is less than 0.08%.’

We’re looking at how we can reduce the number of automatic fire alarms we attend to make our Service more efficient, and make sure our firefighters are able to respond to genuine emergencies.

More detailed information about the consultation, and a link to a public survey for feedback, is available on our website www.dsfire.gov.uk/about-us/AFA-consultation. There will also be opportunities to question and answer events.

We want to make absolutely clear to our communities that any change is only in our response to an automatic alert and we will always attend if someone has reported a sign of fire. We will also always attend single domestic properties, such as houses, or where there is a known night-time sleeping risk. We also have a number of high risk buildings where we will also maintain a response. Details of these can be found in our consultation document.

Online sessions to help people understand complexities of care planning

Published on by Lesley WebbLeave a comment

Somerset Council is holding a series of free, online webinars to help individuals plan care and support needs for themselves or those they care for.

These informative sessions aim to provide valuable insights and practical advice on navigating the complexities of care planning.

The webinars follow the success of the previous in-person event held in November, which saw positive feedback. The new sessions will be held via Microsoft Teams and in the evenings and are scheduled to begin on 27 January 2025 and continue throughout February, offering another opportunity for Somerset residents to gain essential knowledge and resources.

Topics covered will include understanding your care options, financial planning, and how to access local support services. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and receive guidance from professionals in the field.

Councillor Sarah Wakefield, Lead Member for Adults Services, Housing and Homelessness at Somerset Council, said:

“The webinars are a fantastic resource for anyone looking to understand and plan for care needs, whether for themselves or their loved ones.

 The positive response from our November in-person event has encouraged us to keep this momentum going, and we hope that holding the webinars online in January will encourage even more people to join.

 No one wants to start thinking about financing care for themselves or the people they support, but it is a position that many of us will be faced with sooner or later. These online sessions aim to help the people of Somerset get the information that they need to make the best-informed decisions for their lives or for the lives of their loved ones.

 I really encourage you to drop in if you can.”

There will be a series of webinars taking place in the evenings between Monday, 27 January  and Thursday, 27 February 2025.

For those that cannot attend, the webinars will all be available online after the sessions take place. Register for the free online-only events using the following links:

Keep your eyes peeled!

Published on by Lesley WebbLeave a comment

The Police have just warned us that criminals often move bikes, etc to a different place for a while before taking them out of the area. The idea is to check if they have tracking on them. If you see a quad bike, or farm vehicle tucked away in a corner of a field out of general sight, in a place where it is not normally seen, then please report this to the Police asap.