The Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) is active from the 23 of December 2025, until and including Sunday 11 January 2026. This implementation will be reviewed by 12 midday Monday 12 January 2026 and extended or ended as the weather forecast dictates. Email updates will be sent.
Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP)
The Council delivers SWEP in line with national guidance from Homeless Link.
The protocol aims to minimise risks to these people during periods of severe weather and provides an opportunity to engage with hard-to-reach groups and signpost them to appropriate support services.
There is no single definition of severe weather; any conditions that increase the risk of harm to people sleeping rough can be classed as severe. This includes extreme heat, cold, wind, snow or rain.
When SWEP is triggered, we will notify local services supporting rough sleepers via email, and it will be published on our website and social media.
Kennelling when the SWEP is active
Unfortunately dogs are not permitted in the SWEP accommodation. However we arrange free of charge kennelling for the dogs of people who require accommodation during SWEP.
- If a person contacts us between 10am and 3pm, their dog can be placed in our holding kennel until it can be transferred to the main kennels.
- If a person contacts the Council between 3pm and 10pm, the out-of-hours emergency kennelling procedures will be implemented. The person will be met so their dog can be collected and transferred to the kennels.
- A dog cannot be visited whilst in kennels and will be reunited with the owner once SWEP has ended.
Read the Severe weather emergency protocol - SWEP (PDF, 66KB).