Your council

Somerset: what’s happening where you live

What the council itself has published on the five things it most shapes for a household: homes, getting about, the bill, the local environment and schools. Each line is quoted from the council’s own document, with the link. This page says what was decided or proposed; it never says whether it was right.

This page is built from official registers only; the council’s own publications have not been read yet, and every line below says so where that leaves a gap.

Somerset Council: Unitary authority (unitary), England, South West. GOV.UK lists it as a unitary council. ONS code E06000066.

Council website

Housing

We haven't read this council's own publications yet. The council’s website

Transport

We haven't read this council's own publications yet. The council’s website

Council tax

Band D set by Somerset for 2026–27: £1,950.89 of a £2,560.59 total bill in the area. MHCLG, Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027 (Open Government Licence).

We haven't read this council's own publications yet. The council’s website

Environment

We haven't read this council's own publications yet. The council’s website

Education

We haven't read this council's own publications yet. The council’s website

Changes to schools in this area recorded by the Department for Education Updated automatically

No school here is currently recorded as proposed to open or close.

In the last twelve months: 5 opened (3 academy converter, 2 fresh start), 7 closed (3 academy converter, 2 fresh start, 2 result of amalgamation/merger)

Butleigh Church of England Primary School (primary) — closed; reason recorded: academy converter, 31 October 2025
Danesfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Community Middle School (middle deemed secondary) — closed; reason recorded: fresh start, 31 August 2026
Martock Church of England VA Primary School (primary) — closed; reason recorded: academy converter, 31 December 2025
Pyrland School (secondary) — closed; reason recorded: fresh start, 31 January 2026
Robert Blake School (secondary) — closed; reason recorded: academy converter, 31 August 2026
South Somerset Partnership School — closed; reason recorded: result of amalgamation/merger, 31 March 2026
Taunton Deane Partnership College — closed; reason recorded: result of amalgamation/merger, 31 March 2026
Butleigh Church of England Primary School (primary) — open; reason recorded: academy converter, 1 November 2025
Danesfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Community Middle School (middle deemed secondary) — open; reason recorded: fresh start, 1 September 2026
Martock Church School (primary) — open; reason recorded: academy converter, 1 January 2026
Pyrland School (secondary) — open; reason recorded: fresh start, 1 February 2026
Robert Blake Academy (secondary) — open; reason recorded: academy converter, 1 September 2026

Get Information about Schools, DfE’s register of every school in England, refreshed daily (Open Government Licence). The register’s own reason is shown: most closures and openings are a school becoming an academy, which changes who runs it, not whether it is there.

What the council plans to spend, 2026–27

The budget for each service, as Somerset reported it to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The same headings, in the same order, for every council in England.

Somerset: budget by service, 2026 to 2027
Service	Budget
Education services	£387.3 million
Highways and transport services	£23.5 million
Children's social care	£172.8 million
Adult social care	£299.8 million
Public health	£30.1 million
Housing services (general fund only)	£18.3 million
Cultural and related services	£14.6 million
Environmental and regulatory services	£88.8 million
Planning and development services	£8.6 million
Police services	none budgeted
Fire and rescue services	none budgeted
Central services	£24.1 million
Other services	£11.7 million
Total service expenditure	£1,079.7 million

Net current expenditure: net of sales, fees and charges; spending funded by the NHS, such as through the Better Care Fund, is excluded.A minus figure means the service’s income is budgeted to be more than its spending. “None budgeted” usually means another body runs that service here. Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Revenue Account Budget 2026 to 2027, individual local authority data (part 1), updated 11 June 2026 (Open Government Licence).

Somerset in numbers

Official statistics for the whole council area. Each figure is the latest published, with the period it covers.

Total population: 588,328 people 30 June 2024 · Office for National StatisticsMid-year estimate of the total number of people
Median age: 46 years 30 June 2024 · Office for National StatisticsMedian age of people
Gross disposable household income per head: £25,473 2024 · Office for National StatisticsAverage income per person (£) after taxes and direct benefits
Gross median weekly pay: £584 30 April 2025 · Office for National StatisticsGross median weekly pay based on where people live (£)
Children in relative poverty after housing costs: 23.9% April 2024 to March 2025 · Department for Work and PensionsPercentage of children aged under 16 living in relative low income families After Housing Costs (AHC)
Claimant Count: 2.5% 2025 · Office for National StatisticsPercentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are claiming unemployment-related benefits
Average house price: £282,062 July 2026 · HM Land RegistryAverage monthly price of a property (£)
Housing affordability ratio (residence-based): 7.9 affordability ratio 1 April 2025 · Office for National StatisticsRatio of median house price to median gross annual residence-based earnings
Female healthy life expectancy: 63.0 years 2022 to 2024 · Office for National StatisticsAverage years expected to be lived in good health for females born in the given year
Male healthy life expectancy: 62.8 years 2022 to 2024 · Office for National StatisticsAverage years expected to be lived in good health for males born in the given year
Greenhouse gas emissions: 6.6 tCO2e per capita 2024 · Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroGreenhouse gas emissions (tCO2e) per capita
Gigabit capable broadband: 75.7% 1 January 2026 · OfcomPercentage of premises that have coverage from a gigabit-capable service (download speeds of 1,000 Mbps or more)
Public electric vehicle chargers: 136.7 per 100,000 population 1 July 2026 · Department for Transport, sourced from ZapmapPublicly available electric vehicle chargers at all speeds per 100,000 people
Active businesses: 22,980 number of enterprises 2024 · Office for National StatisticsBusinesses with turnover or employment in current year

Gathered by the Office for National Statistics in Explore Local Statistics (Open Government Licence), refreshed daily. Some figures aren’t published for every nation, so the list can be shorter outside England.

Who runs the council

110 seats in 2026. Run by: Liberal Democrats, with a majority. Open Council Data (public domain).

Councillors by party: Liberal Democrats 62, Conservative and Unionist 31, Labour Party 5, Green Party (E&W) 5, Independent / Other 4, Reform UK 3.

Next scheduled council election: 6 May 2027.

All 110 councillors, by ward

Caroline Ellis (Liberal Democrats) — Bishop's Hull & Taunton West
John Hunt (Independent / Other) — Bishop's Hull & Taunton West
Ross Henley (Liberal Democrats) — Blackdown & Neroche
Sarah Wakefield (Liberal Democrats) — Blackdown & Neroche
Hayward Burt (Conservative and Unionist) — Blackmoor Vale
Nicola Clark (Liberal Democrats) — Blackmoor Vale
Bob Filmer (Conservative and Unionist) — Brent
Tony Grimes (Conservative and Unionist) — Brent
Andy Dingwall (Conservative and Unionist) — Bridgwater East & Bawdrip
Diogo Rodrigues (Conservative and Unionist) — Bridgwater East & Bawdrip
Hilary Bruce (Labour Party) — Bridgwater North & Central
Leigh Redman (Labour Party) — Bridgwater North & Central
Brian Smedley (Labour Party) — Bridgwater South
Kathy Pearce (Labour Party) — Bridgwater South
Gill Slocombe (Conservative and Unionist) — Bridgwater West
Lance Duddridge (Conservative and Unionist) — Bridgwater West
Jeny Snell (Liberal Democrats) — Brympton
Peter Seib (Liberal Democrats) — Brympton
Mike Murphy (Liberal Democrats) — Burnham on Sea North
Peter Clayton (Conservative and Unionist) — Burnham on Sea North
Brian Bolt (Conservative and Unionist) — Cannington
Mike Caswell (Conservative and Unionist) — Cannington
Henry Hobhouse (Liberal Democrats) — Castle Cary
Kevin Messenger (Liberal Democrats) — Castle Cary
Jenny Kenton (Liberal Democrats) — Chard North
Martin Wale (Conservative and Unionist) — Chard North
Connor Payne (Conservative and Unionist) — Chard South
Jason Baker (Liberal Democrats) — Chard South
Ben Ferguson (Liberal Democrats) — Cheddar
Pauline Ham (Liberal Democrats) — Cheddar
Mike Hewitson (Liberal Democrats) — Coker
Oliver Patrick (Liberal Democrats) — Coker
Dawn Johnson (Liberal Democrats) — Comeytrowe & Trull
Habib Farbahi (Liberal Democrats) — Comeytrowe & Trull
Mike Best (Liberal Democrats) — Crewkerne
Steve Ashton (Liberal Democrats) — Crewkerne
Mike Stanton (Liberal Democrats) — Curry Rivel & Langport
Richard Wilkins (Liberal Democrats) — Curry Rivel & Langport
Frances Nicholson (Conservative and Unionist) — Dulverton & Exmoor
Steven Pugsley (Conservative and Unionist) — Dulverton & Exmoor
Cara Strom (Liberal Democrats) — Dunster
Marcus Kravis (Liberal Democrats) — Dunster
Helen Kay (Green Party (E&W)) — Frome East
Shane Collins (Green Party (E&W)) — Frome East
Adam Boyden (Liberal Democrats) — Frome North
Dawn Denton (Conservative and Unionist) — Frome North
Martin Dimery (Green Party (E&W)) — Frome West
Michael Dunk (Green Party (E&W)) — Frome West
Ewan Cameron (Liberal Democrats) — Glastonbury
Susannah Hart (Conservative and Unionist) — Glastonbury
Alistair Hendry (Conservative and Unionist) — Highbridge & Burnham South
John Cook-Woodman (Reform UK) — Highbridge & Burnham South
Mark Healey (Conservative and Unionist) — Huntspill
Suria Aujla (Conservative and Unionist) — Huntspill
Sue Osborne (Conservative and Unionist) — Ilminster
Val Keitch (Liberal Democrats) — Ilminster
Harry Munt (Liberal Democrats) — King Alfred
Matthew Martin (Liberal Democrats) — King Alfred
Andy Sully (Liberal Democrats) — Lydeard
Mike Rigby (Liberal Democrats) — Lydeard
Emily Pearlstone (Liberal Democrats) — Martock
John Bailey (Liberal Democrats) — Martock
Barry Clarke (Conservative and Unionist) — Mendip Central and East
Philip Ham (Conservative and Unionist) — Mendip Central and East
Edric Hobbs (Liberal Democrats) — Mendip Hills
Sam Phripp (Liberal Democrats) — Mendip Hills
Claire Sully (Liberal Democrats) — Mendip South
Rob Reed (Liberal Democrats) — Mendip South
Heather Shearer (Liberal Democrats) — Mendip West
Ros Wyke (Liberal Democrats) — Mendip West
Andy Hadley (Conservative and Unionist) — Minehead
Mandy Chilcott (Conservative and Unionist) — Minehead
David Fothergill (Conservative and Unionist) — Monkton & North Curry
Norman Cavill (Conservative and Unionist) — Monkton & North Curry
Alan Bradford (Conservative and Unionist) — North Petherton
Bill Revans (Liberal Democrats) — North Petherton
Derek Perry (Liberal Democrats) — Rowbarton & Staplegrove
Nick O'Donnell (Liberal Democrats) — Rowbarton & Staplegrove
Bente Height (Reform UK) — Shepton Mallet
Martin Lovell (Liberal Democrats) — Shepton Mallet
Stephen Page (Liberal Democrats) — Somerton
Tim Kerley (Liberal Democrats) — Somerton
Adam Dance (Liberal Democrats) — South Petherton & Islemoor
Jo Roundell Greene (Liberal Democrats) — South Petherton & Islemoor
Liz Leyshon (Liberal Democrats) — Street
Simon Carswell (Liberal Democrats) — Street
Federica Smith-Roberts (Liberal Democrats) — Taunton East
Simon Coles (Liberal Democrats) — Taunton East
Lee Baker (Liberal Democrats) — Taunton North
Tom Deakin (Liberal Democrats) — Taunton North
Fran Smith (Liberal Democrats) — Taunton South
Hazel Prior-Sankey (Independent / Other) — Taunton South
Dave Mansell (Green Party (E&W)) — Upper Tone
Gwil Wren (Independent / Other) — Upper Tone
Hugh Davies (Independent / Other) — Watchet & Stogursey
Rosemary Woods (Conservative and Unionist) — Watchet & Stogursey
Andrew Govier (Labour Party) — Wellington
Marcus Barr (Reform UK) — Wellington
Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrats) — Wells
Theo Butt Philip (Liberal Democrats) — Wells
Lucy Trimnell (Conservative and Unionist) — Wincanton & Bruton
Tom Power (Conservative and Unionist) — Wincanton & Bruton
Andy Kendall (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil Central
David Woan (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil Central
Graham Oakes (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil East
Tony Lock (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil East
Andy Soughton (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil South
Faye Purbrick (Conservative and Unionist) — Yeovil South
Evie Potts-Jones (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil West
Wes Read (Liberal Democrats) — Yeovil West

Each councillor’s register of interests is on the council’s own website; we have not yet located the page. Councillors from Open Council Data as recorded after the May 2026 elections; a by-election since then may have changed one seat. Attendance and allowances are not shown.

This council’s meeting papers are not yet read automatically, so decisions and motions are not listed here; they are on the council’s website.

Write to your councillors → WriteToThem (mySociety) finds them from your postcode; nothing is sent through this site.

Cite this page

Harvard style. Every figure on the page also names its original source, which is usually the better thing to cite.

Every council page has the same five headings in the same order. Sources are the council’s own publications and official statistics. Council list: mySociety, UK Local Authorities (CC BY 4.0) and WhatDoTheyKnow authorities (CC BY-SA 4.0); council websites, tiers and service links: GOV.UK (Open Government Licence); codes: ONS Code History Database (Open Government Licence). Corrections: hello@whatsittome.org.