RESIDENTS in parts of Somerset are being reminded they may have an extra, one-off Saturday rubbish collection this month.

The extra pick ups for some households will ensure no-one goes more than three weeks between rubbish collections when a new set of routes and collection days start from next Monday (February 12).

The 35,000 households due to have the one-off collection on February 10, 17 or 24 will have received a letter in January to explain the changes.

Only residents in the former Sedgemoor, Somerset West and Taunton and a small part of South Somerset could be affected.

Anyone unsure if they are affected can use the online lookup feature at www.somerset.gov.uk/reroute. A PDF version of the updated service guide and collection calendar can also be downloaded.

Residents in the following towns and surrounding villages should check if they have an extra rubbish collection. Not every household in these locations will have an extra collection, but some will.

Some homes in the following towns and villages will have an extra collection on Saturday, February 10: Axbridge, Bishops Lydeard, Bridgwater, Chard, Cheddar, Dulverton, Highbridge, Hinton St George, Ilminster, Minehead, Nether Stowey, South Petherton, Street, Taunton, Watchet, Wedmore, Wellington, Wells, Williton, Winscombe and Wiveliscombe.

Some homes in the following communities will have their black wheelie bins emptied on Saturday, February 17: Bishops Lydeard, Bridgwater, Chard, Ilminster, Minehead, Nether Stowey, Taunton, Wellington and Williton.

Some homes having an extra collection on Saturday, February 24 are in Bridgwater, Chard, Hinton St George, Ilminster, Langport, Minehead, Nether Stowey, South Petherton, Taunton and Watchet.

More than 120,000 residents covering the former Sedgemoor and Somerset West and Taunton areas, as well as a small part of South Somerset, will have a change to their collection.

Residents may have:

•a change to collection day;

•a change in week that their rubbish is collected;

•a one-off extra rubbish collection.

There will be no changes to:

•collection days for garden waste subscribers;

•clinical waste collections;

•communal property collections with shared collections (such as blocks of flats, houses of multiple occupancy and retirement developments);

•schools waste collections.

The changes will make rounds more efficient and manageable for crews, while reducing mileage and carbon emissions.