Somerset Prepared will hold its annual Community Resilience Day at Millfield School in Street on Wednesday 21 October 2026, with this year’s programme putting young people at the centre of the conversation. The free event brings together the Environment Agency, Somerset Rivers Authority, Somerset Council and local partners to help residents, volunteers and community groups prepare for emergencies before they happen. That choice of theme feels well judged. Resilience plans are often written around institutions and long-standing volunteers, but a county that wants stronger responses to flooding, drought and severe weather also needs younger residents in the room, shaping the plan rather than being added at the end.

Somerset does not need convincing that weather-related disruption is already a local issue. The county has experienced flooding and drought this year, while the Environment Agency says England has just come through a record dry summer after a wet winter, with July the driest in nearly two centuries. The National Drought Group, which includes the agency, has continued to meet weekly through the summer to coordinate the water sector’s response. That swing from too much water to too little makes community preparedness far more than a civic extra. It means local groups need plans that can cope with flooded roads, water shortages, heat, wildfire and short-notice power or travel disruption, sometimes within the same year.

Martin Parham, a lecturer in disaster management at the University of Manchester, is due to deliver the keynote. His work in Manchester and the Caribbean has argued for a bigger role for young people in community resilience, not as mascots for good intentions but as participants with ideas, skills and trusted links into schools, families and peer networks. Sessions are set to include Hampshire’s Young People’s Emergency Response scheme, alongside work from the National Flood Forum and local flood action groups on engaging schools. The value here is practical: when younger people understand risk early, it can help warnings travel faster, bring emergency planning into family conversations and strengthen the future of local volunteering.

Workshops will show attendees how to create emergency plans, prepare ahead of wildfire and understand weather patterns such as El Niño. A live demonstration will also show what three days of food and water looks like for a household, turning a familiar preparedness message into something concrete and easy to picture. This is where the day earns its public value. Good resilience work depends less on dramatic messaging than on simple choices made in advance: who checks on vulnerable neighbours, how communities share updates, what supplies are realistic to store, and where local knowledge can fill the gaps before formal help arrives.

Somerset Council will use the event to provide an update on the Somerset Flood Resilience Fund, giving communities a clearer sense of what help may be available for local projects or property-level measures. The day is organised by the Somerset Prepared Partnership and funded by Somerset Rivers Authority, with backing from emergency services, voluntary organisations and community representatives across the county. It will end with the Community Resilience Awards, which recognise people and groups who have gone beyond their formal role to help neighbours cope with emergencies. That closing note matters. Preparedness is strongest when it is visible, shared and valued, rather than treated as quiet work that only gets noticed after something goes wrong.

Public and media places can be reserved through Eventbrite, with bookings closing on 14 October 2026. The timing sits just ahead of the Environment Agency’s Flood Action Week, which runs from 12 to 18 October 2026 and is urging people to sign up for free flood warnings and take simple steps to reduce risk at home. For Somerset, the wider lesson is clear. After a year shaped by both flooding and drought, resilience is no longer just about response teams; it is about households, schools and local groups having the confidence to act early. If this event works as intended, young people will leave not only celebrated, but trusted with a real part in preparing their communities for the months ahead.