AS the leaves turn golden and winter is on its way, West Devon Borough Council would like to make sure residents across West Devon are prepared for the wintery conditions ahead.

The council has launched its ‘Are You Ready For Winter?’ campaign, which wraps up the best safety advice and alert services from partner agencies and messages from the council. This will allow residents to be prepared and stay safe over the winter period.

Cllr Jeff Moody, lead member for Customer First, said: ‘We are working with our partners across West Devon and the UK to make sure that safety and emergency winter messages reach our residents. These messages could be weather alerts or vital health messages from government agencies. With this health and safety campaign bringing together all of these messages, we can make sure the festive season is a safe one.

‘Residents can find out what is happening across the borough simply and quickly by using social media. We post messages on Facebook and retweet warnings from the Met Office, road safety information from Devon County Council and flood alerts from the Environment Agency.

‘If everyone follows the great advice given by our partners they can be better prepared for winter. From warding off the flu, to flood prevention, you can find some great advice from our partners that could help, or even prevent, a crisis.’

West Devon Borough Council is now appealing for all residents to take five minutes to follow not only the borough council, but also Devon County Council, the Met Office and the Environment Agency on Twitter or Facebook, before the weather really gets cold.

Speak to your town or parish council to find out who is responsible for the local Emergency Plan and sign up for flooding and weather alerts if you think you might be at risk. 

Parish and town councils play a vital role when responding to an emergency situation. Many of them have a bad weather plan, with nominated resident snow wardens and people trained to work in the road to clear gullies.  They usually know where the nearest store of sand bags can be found and who to speak to about getting more.

Emergency situations will have less impact on everyone if people are prepared for winter.

For more information visit www.westdevon.gov.uk/readyforwinter