Blog Archives

Dorset Digital Hotline

29/4/2020

Dorset Digital Hotline – Can we help you? Many people in your local community are likely to be relying on digital online services and applications more than ever before. For some this will be a first and they need to learn from scratch and for others there are new digital hurdles to overcome almost on a daily basis just to get every day jobs done such as shopping or ordering prescriptions.
We wanted everyone in your local community to know that there is a new free telephone hotline set up in response to the COVID-19 lockdown, to provide support for people with IT and digital problems of all kinds. The hotline has received more than 50 calls in the first three weeks.
Here is a selection of some of the support the digital advisers can provide – no problem too small!

• helping families with digital applications for home schooling

• providing help to get online for home shopping

• support for all digital NHS services and e-Consult

• setting up video calls such as Skype and Facetime to keep in contact with friends and family

• support to use all digital appliances and solve problems

• using digital to exercise at home and keep fit

An example of how the Dorset Digital Hotline can make a difference to people’s lives is expressed by one of our digital advisers...

Andy Hargreaves a digital adviser said: “One lady I helped this week uses her iPad to keep in touch with her family via Facetime. She told me that she couldn’t hear her family speaking to her clearly on her calls because the sound on the iPad was distorted. I helped her to correct the problem over the phone and soon it was working properly. She said to me that if she wasn’t in isolation she would come over and give me a hug because the iPad was her lifeline now to the outside world.”

The Dorset Digital Hotline is run by a group of volunteers mostly made up of retired IT professionals and some Dorset Council staff. The team are extremely versatile and experienced and can offer a wide range of support to anyone including assistance to vulnerable people in your community.

Please pass this information on through your own channels to community groups, friends and family.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Telephone: 01305 221000 (Select Option 2).
Monday to Friday 10.00 am to 12 noon (except Bank Holidays) or leave a message.

Some Great Advice about your car

21/4/2020

Here is some great advice from J Day Engineering on how to look after your car during the lockdown..."To all of our customers and friends of J DAY Engineering,
We want to keep people updated with our decisions and how they might challenge our customers, particularly now that green shoots are possibly emerging. We have decided that we will continue the full lockdown as we feel this benefits the locality the most in the long term. It is not an easy decision and we are aware of the frustration it causes us and our customers alike.

In the meantime, the government has granted MOT tests a six-month extension to the expiry so there is no need to panic to get it done.

We have also listed a few helpful and practical things that can be done by you at home, during these extended periods of non-use of your vehicle.

If you want to keep your vehicle roadworthy for essential journeys, or are concerned about the impact of not driving it at all for a while, I am going to give you some maintenance tips to see you safely through the coronavirus crisis we are all facing.

Unless you’re driving for one of the essential purposes outlined by the government – including essential work, food shopping or medical reasons – you should avoid driving at all for the time being.

For many of us that means our vehicles will parked for long periods of time. A vehicle that is left unused can develop problems that will prevent it working properly when you come to need it. There are sensible measures you can take to ensure your vehicle remains both safe and legal.

A vehicle's brake discs can begin to corrode if not driven for long periods. This could eventually lead to the brakes seizing to prevent this from happening, I would suggest driving your vehicle up and down your road once a week. This will also help prevent your tyres from developing flat spots. If possible, avoid using the handbrake and leave your vehicle in gear, which prevents it from moving. However, caution must be taken if you are parked on a slope.

It’s also important to keep your battery maintained, and you can do this by simply just running your vehicle for about 15-20 minutes once a week. This will give the battery time to increase its charge.
While the vehicle is running, turn the air conditioning on. This will help maintain the seals in the air conditioning system and reduce the chance of mould developing in your vehicle’s air circulation system. Most importantly never ever leave your vehicle unattended when it’s switched on.

Vehicles with MOT’s due from 30 March 2020 have been given a six-month extension however, drivers are still expected to keep their vehicles in a safe and roadworthy condition. If you need to drive for essential reasons check the following.

Check all fluid levels including oil, engine coolant, brake fluid and screen-wash to ensure they’re at least at minimum recommended levels.
Check all your lights and get someone from your family to check the brake lights are working.
Make sure your wiper blades are not split and are clearing your windscreen
Check that the tyres have sufficient tread depth and no defects like cuts or bulges. The minimum legal tread depth in the UK is 1.6mm. You can easily check by inserting a 20p piece into a tyre groove. If the outer band of the coin is not obscured by the tread, they’re too low and illegal to use.
Ensure tyres are properly inflated. Under-inflated tyres increase fuel consumption and can affect the braking performance of your vehicle. You’ll be able to find the recommended tyre pressures for your model in the owner’s handbook or in some cases on the inside near the lock of either of the front doors.
Gently try your brakes when first setting off to ensure they’re working properly. They may build up corrosion, which creates a crunching or grinding noise for the first mile or so, this will soon disappear once you have used the brakes 2-3 times at it will only be surface rust which occurs naturally.

We all want to return to normal as soon as possible but it must be done safely and responsibly without undoing all the good that has been achieved by lockdown to this point.
We cannot wait to help you on the other side of this crisis.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and hope it has helped even a little.
You can still email us at any time. You will receive an automated response but we are monitoring and working through these as fast as we can.

J DAY Engineering

[Click on the button below to email the team at JDay Engineering]

J Day Engineering website

Meditation for troubled times

18/4/2020

Stalbridge resident Caressence Roden has produced a series of online meditation videos to help people in these troubled times. "This is a mini-series of guided meditations called 'Meditations for Troubled Times'. They were originally created for my local U3A group but then I felt it might be helpful to allow the wider community to view them too".- Caressence Roden.
Click on the button below to view them on her YouTube channel.

Meditation videos

Help Us Tackle Fly Tipping

17/4/2020

With household recycling centres (HRCs) currently closed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Dorset Council is asking people to help them in the fight against fly-tipping. Trips to a household recycling centre are not listed under central government reasons for essential travel, so we have had to temporarily close them. Opening them for any amount of time would contravene public health advice that we, as the local authority, are obligated to comply with.

We are requesting that any waste that would usually need to be taken to an HRC should just be kept to one side until they reopen. However, there will unfortunately always be a handful of selfish and anti-social individuals who will fly-tip waste and use the HRC closures to justify their illegal behaviour, even during this unprecedented crisis.

Early fly-tipping figures from late March and early April have not shown a significant year-on-year increase, but officers are hesitant to read too much into this data as reporting is likely to be impacted by fewer people travelling around the county and spotting fly-tips as they isolate at home.

To help us fight against fly-tipping, the waste service’s Enforcement Team – who are continuing to operate at this time – have asked for residents to note the following: –

Report it – If you spot a fly-tip, don’t assume we know about it. Fly-tips can be reported to the Council online and by phone. We will investigate all reported incidents and, where there is enough evidence, attempt to trace and prosecute those responsible
Make sure you’re covered – Rubbish you’ve handed to someone else is still your legal responsibility until it is correctly disposed of. If someone – such as an unlicensed ‘man in a van’ found on social media – were to fly-tip that waste, you could end up paying a fine or being taken to court.
Fly-tipping is a criminal offence, punishable of fines of up to £50,000- or 12-months imprisonment if convicted in a Magistrate’s Court. The offence can attract an unlimited fine and up to 5 years imprisonment if convicted in a Crown Court.

Cllr Tony Alford, Dorset Council’s portfolio holder for Customer, Community and Regulatory Services, said:

“Now more than ever, we need people to keep us informed when they spot fly-tips. We want residents to help us by keeping their waste to one side until things get back to normal, and to check who they’re handing their waste to.

We know the temporary closure of household recycling centres is likely to cause a rise in fly-tipping, so we’re keeping a close eye on the situation, reviewing central government guidance and planning every day so we can re-open the HRCs at the earliest opportunity.

But there are no excuses for fly-tipping. It’s unsightly and damaging to the environment. We all have a part to play in stopping this anti-social behaviour and by working together I know we can make a positive impact.

It’s also worth noting that Dorset Police are still out on the roads at this time checking where people are travelling to and may have some questions if they look in a vehicle and find waste that would typically be dropped at an HRC.”

If you see a fly-tip, make a note of where it is, take a picture if you can, and note down any other details. Never touch the waste or confront fly-tippers.

You can report it to us online using the button below or call us on - 01305 221040

Report Fly-tipping online

Covid Help around Dorset

14/4/2020

For those of you living in Stalbridge with relatives in other parts of Dorset who might be having difficulty getting medicines or groceries delivered Stalbridge Town Council have some useful links and phone numbers to call. Currently displayed on their blog is information about Blandford, Sturminster Newton, Dorchester, Shaftesbury and Weymouth. Click on the link below to access the information.

find out more here

Pews News

3/4/2020

The Church of St Mary in Stalbridge have a new facebook group..."We have set up a Stalbridge Church page. This is to allow a regular contact with the church even though we can't use the building. It has always been stated the church is the people not the building. If you go to the site and request to be a friend we will all be involved in developing the site as the days progress". - Stuart Waite.
Click on the button below to visit the page

stalbridge church facebook page

A Walk on The Wild Side?

2/4/2020

Dorset Council recognises that public rights of way and the cycleway / walking trails in Dorset provide an opportunity for local people to take exercise and get some fresh air in these difficult times. These paths should not be blocked or obstructed and cannot legally be closed to the public.. It is also important to stress that people should not be making special journeys to access them. Travel to exercise is NOT essential travel and people should not be travelling to do their daily exercise. Please see the latest Government guidance on access to green spaces and as always, follow the Countryside Code.

Local communities throughout the County rely on rights of way and cycleway / walking trails, however this should not be the cause of unnecessary travel into and around the County – so, if there is a particular problem with people gathering on rights of way or cycleway / walking trails, then the Police should be informed. They have the power to disperse any groups behaving in such a way.

Where rights of way pass close to, or through residential and agricultural properties, it is important that the existing Government advice regarding social distancing and hand washing is followed.

Dorset Council will work with the Police and other agencies to take any further actions necessary in the event of any changes to legislation or Government guidance, however, at this time there are no plans nor legal means to close public rights of way or the cycleway / walking trail networks for COVID-19 related reasons.

find out more

government guidelines on access to green spaces

The top of Barrow Hill in Stalbridge

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