Somerset Council and residents face concurrent pressures as new figures show staff sickness, PIP claims, and rents all high
Separate reports this week show Somerset Council lost nearly 42,000 working days to stress-related illness, more than one in ten Weston-super-Mare adults claim PIP, and average rents exceed £1,000 a month.
A series of reports published within days of each other paint a picture of simultaneous pressures on Somerset Council and its residents. The North Somerset Times reported that more than one in 10 working-age adults in Weston-super-Mare are claiming Personal Independence Payment [3]. In a separate development, BBC News Somerset reported that the High Court has ordered a travellers' site to be vacated, following legal action that Somerset Council has pursued for more than two decades [6]. While none of the reports connects these issues, their combined publication highlights the range of demands facing the local authority and the people it serves.
Sources
- Somerset County Gazette: Stress and anxiety drives rising Somerset Council sickness rate
- Bridgwater Mercury: Stress and anxiety drives rising Somerset Council sickness rate
- North Somerset Times: New figures show where PIP claims are highest across Somerset
- Somerset County Gazette: New figures show where PIP claims are highest across Somerset
- Bridgwater Mercury: New figures show where PIP claims are highest across Somerset
- BBC News Somerset: High Court orders travellers' site to be vacated
- Somerset County Gazette: How much it costs to live in Somerset now as rents soar again
- Bridgwater Mercury: How much it costs to live in Somerset now as rents soar again
This story was drafted by automation from the public sources cited below. See our editorial policy.