Autumn has definitely arrived over this past week. With the change of seasons bringing cooler and wetter weather, many people may be more susceptible to winter bugs.

Earlier this month, eligible groups have started receiving invitations to get their seasonal COVID-19 booster and seasonal flu jabs. When you receive your winter vaccination invitation from the NHS, please don’t ignore it. Book your appointment using the options provided in the invitation.

Today, Wednesday, 28 September, sees the council’s self-service system replaced with a new alternative and it’s important for residents to understand what this entails.

The new My Account system on the council website will allow residents to complete more activities online. Residents may already report potholes or fallen trees online to us, but the new system will allow them to find what they need quicker and, ultimately, help us improve our services for residents. The new system includes four options:

· apply

· book

· pay

· report

Residents can then easily select what they need to do, click the option and be directed to the relevant form or service. These mean that we can provide you with solutions to your problems more quickly.

Over the coming weeks, the existing system will no longer be available to use, but you can continue to use our online services through the website or by signing up to the new My Account system. You can find out more on our news page or through the My Accounts link present on all pages of the council’s website.

This has been a widespread project and I’d like to thank everyone involved in bringing it to fruition.