Work on new guide to accommodation

A NEW booklet is being planned that will provide a directory of overnight accommodation providers for visitors to the Wells area.

Dale Bray, the Manager at Wells Tourist Information centre, is contacting local hotels, B&Bs, campsites and caravan parks to see whether they would like to be included.

The Wells & Beyond booklet will be printed later in the year by St Andrews Press in readiness for the next tourism season. It will be available at Wells Tourist Information and every other TIC across Somerset.

There will also be a digital copy available online.

“We want to promote Wells and this is one way of doing so,” said Dale. “We don’t have anything like it available here, but similar booklets have been a big success elsewhere.”

Businesses would pay a small fee to have their details listed in the booklet, which would be free for visitors to pick up and take away.

“Not everyone can access the internet to find out such information, and people like a physical copy of something that they can take away and refer to easily,” said Dale.

Accommodation providers can find out more about appearing in the booklet by contacting Dale on 01749 673091 or emailing tic@wells.gov.uk

Call for more hosts for Ukrainians

MORE host families are needed in Somerset to help support Ukrainian refugees who have been forced to flee their country.

Since the Homes for Ukraine scheme was launched in March 2022, Somerset has welcomed more than 1,500 Ukrainians to date, with host families playing a pivotal role in creating a safe environment for guests to re-settle and rebuild their lives in some way, supporting and helping them navigate a new life in the UK.

Chris Hall, Executive Director, Community Services at Somerset Council, said:

“We are now 500 days into this programme, and many of the guests now need to find a new host and be ‘rematched’, because their original hosts are approaching the end of their commitment.”

The key consideration for hosts is the ability to provide a bedroom and a comfortable place to live for a minimum of six months.

To find out more about the Homes for Ukraine scheme and to register interest in becoming a host, visit somerset.gov.uk/ housing-support/homes-forukraine

THERE have been discussions recently towards bringing an end to “no fault” Section 21 evictions. Talks which have been causing disruption among landlords and tenants.

An Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) is a form of tenancy on a property between a landlord and a tenant. These most commonly run for a minimum term of six months and there onwards on a rolling basis until one of the two parties issues notice to terminate the agreement.

If a landlord wishes to end the tenancy, they must issue notice that the rules no longer match the times and as a result need updating. upon the tenant. This is where Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 comes in, otherwise just referred to as a Section 21 notice.

If the Section 21 notice is terminated then the remaining option is to serve a Section 8 notice on the tenant, also referred to as “fault evictions”. These present grounds for repossessions such as where the tenant is in rent arrears or the property has deteriorated due to the tenant’s treatment of it.

However these are much more restrictive and require a certain level of evidence. Therefore, hand in hand with reforming Section 21 notices, the Government plans on reforming Section 8 notices so that the grounds on which landlords can regain their property are slightly wider.

If the tenant hasn’t broken any part of the agreement, and therefore is not at fault, but the landlord still wants to terminate the tenancy they will serve a Section 21 notice. However, most recent parliamentary consultation and studies have concluded that this renders the renting market too unstable, n Frances Hodgson is a Solicitor with Chubb Bulleid, a local firm who have offices in Wells, Street and Somerton.

Overall it is still uncertain when these changes will be implemented and what exactly they will entail. It will be interesting to see whether they do alter the rental market to achieve the Government’s commitment towards ensuring a “fairer more affordable private rented sector that provides security and stability for both tenants and landlords”.

Phone 01749 836100.

Website: chubb-bulleid.co.uk