Information and Advice for Coping with Severe Weather

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Last revised: 9 May 2008

A tipper truck used to salt roads in bad weather

During severe weather conditions such as gales or snow, some council services may be temporarily disrupted. Kennet District Council will make every effort to keep you informed about any alterations in service and other news, through local radio stations and by updating this webpage. You can find out from the Met Office (External link) whether any severe weather warnings have been issued for the area.

Waste Collection

In severe weather we may be unable to collect your normal household waste as normal. If your waste has not been collected by 1600 hrs on your scheduled day of collection during severe weather conditions, this means we have been unable to reach you. Weather permitting, we will collect your waste as soon as practicably possible. Weather conditions could also disrupt special collections of bulky household waste. We will aim to contact individual customers directly if there are problems with their scheduled collections.

Traffic and Transport

Wiltshire County Council carry out road gritting and snow clearance of the highways and the Council's 'high use' car parks. Users of the Council's land and car parks are reminded that they should drive in a manner that is appropriate to the weather conditions.

Keep Warm, Keep Well

Download the government's advice on how to Keep Warm, Keep Well this winter. This guide includes information on healthy living, winter fuel payments, getting grants for insulating your home, and much more. You can also call the Winter Warmth Advice Line, open 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, on freephone 0800 085 7000. There is also a textphone line on 0800 085 7857, lines are open from October to March.

Water

Tips on avoiding burst pipes and other winter water problems can be found on the Wessex Water (External link) website. Burst pipes in you home should usually be dealt with by a plumber but for waste or street pipes please contact the relevant water company for your area. Depending on where you live this may be either Wessex Water (External link) or Thames Water

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Flooding

Tips on protecting your property can be found on the Environment Agency (External link)web site. If your property is in imminent danger of flooding, Kennet District Council may be able to provide a limited number of sandbags to protect domestic properties against internal flooding. The provision of sandbags is dependant on available resources, for futher information please follow the link to the Council's Flood Defence page.