Wondering about pharmacy opening times, bin collection changes, your last train or bus home on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, train alterations over the Christmas and New Year period, the last post? Here's what you need to know.

When are pharmacies open over Christmas and New Year?

Pharmacies usually close on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day, but tend to open as normal on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

So make sure you've got plenty of prescription medication to cover the festive period.

If you're stuck and you need to find your nearest pharmacy, you can search for a local service on the NHS Direct website.

However the Choose Well  website can also help you decide if you need medical attention over the Christmas and New Year period.

When will the buses stop on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve?

Both local operators Morebus and YellowBus have now published their Christmas and New Year timetables.

Morebus

Christmas Eve - Thursday, December 24

Normal timetables on all routes, which will run until the end of service - there will be no N1 & N2 nightbuses

Last  journeys on m1 & m2: 
12.15am Poole to Southbourne / 12.30am Poole to Castlepoint
12.09am Southbourne to Poole / 12.20am Castlepoint to Poole 

Christmas Day - Friday 25 December 

This year the m1 and m2 will run on Christmas Day, with the m1 extended to Bournemouth Hospital and the m2 extended to Christchurch.

YellowBus - the last service on Christmas Eve is around 9.30pm.

There will be no services running on Christmas Day and limited services on Boxing Day and New Year's Day.

Which train services will be disrupted over the Christmas period?

South West Trains is running no services on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

On Christmas Eve the service will shut down at 11pm - the best thing to do is check with your operator befor you travel.

Click here to view SWTs Christmas timetable.

Train services between Bournemouth and the New Forest will be suspended for 11 days over Christmas and New Year.

Services between New Milton and Branksome will be halted between December 24 and January 4 to enable engineers to carry out essential maintenance to two viaducts near Christchurch.

When will my bins be collected?

Over Christmas and New Year, your usual rubbish, recycling and food waste collection days will be different.  Click here to find your bin days in Dorset - most people's collection will move forward one day. except those whose bins are collected Friday. Those collections will move to the following Monday. If your bin would usually be collected on Thursday, the NYE collection will move to Saturday.

Poole will not be collecting black or blue bins between 25 and 31 December 2015 (inclusive). See here for more details.

Bournemouth council are only not collecting on Christmas and New Year's Day, and will run catch up collections in the weeks after. 

The councils will collect up to two extra sacks of rubbish beside your bin on your first rubbish collection after Christmas Day as well as extra recycling that won't fit in your bin if placed in your own boxes, with glass kept in a separate box.

When is the last recommended post date?

Saturday, December 19 - 2nd Class and Royal Mail Signed For

Monday, December 21 - 1st Class and Royal Mail Signed For

Wednesday, December 23 - Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed

For more information click here.